Skip to main content

Flash Burnout by L.K. Madigan

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Genre: Contemporary

Release Date: 10/19/2009

Add to Goodreads

About the Book: Blake has a girlfriend and a friend that's a girl. There's a delicate balance between the two, but everything seems to going OK. But when Blake takes a photo of a homeless woman and finds out that it's his friend Marissa's long-lost meth addicted mom, their friendship slowly starts to change. Blake finds himself caught between two girls-one who needs him and one who loves him-and finds himself learning who he is in the process.

GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: Alright I'm warning you-there will be gushing in this review!! I LOVED Flash Burnout-like totally and completely fell head over heels for this book loved it. This book had everything I could want-a great narrator that I could relate to and an authentic male teen voice, a delicate dance of friendship and romance, a bit of mystery, fantastic character growth, and one of the best YA family's I've read about in a long time.

I think I have a book crush on Blake. His voice is just so authentic and real and he's easy to relate to. He has a great sense of humor and his wry observations about life are great to read. I love that he wants to be a comedian and keeps track of how many times people laugh at his jokes-it's just another fun characteristic that made Blake really stand out to me. Major kudos to the author (who if you didn't know is a girl) for pulling off such a convincing male narrator.

I really liked that while there are two girls in this book that Blake is dealing with, it's not really a love triangle. It really is the story about Blake, his girlfriend, and his friend that's a girl and the delicate dance of relationships they all deal with. The author makes all three characters likeable and you feel for Blake as his dilemma grows. There are moments when I wanted to yell at him because I knew what was coming-I was so invested in his relationship with both Marissa and Shannon.

Blake's family is amazing! It's so hard to find a great family in YA-either the parents aren't there, they're too embarrassing or quirky and the teens don't like them, or they never talk to their teens. OK, so maybe that's not a huge thing for a lot of teen readers, but as an adult who reads YA that's a big deal to me-I like seeing positive adults in YA. Blake's parents are quirky and yes, he's embarrassed by them, but he also wants to talk to them. And they're involved in his life, but not overly protective. He has a very realistic love/hate relationship with his older brother. You knew this was a family that liked each other, valued each other and their time with each other, and that really made the book stand out. I had the same type of relationship with my parents as a teen (I still do) so it's refreshing to see a narrator in a YA novel that spends time with their parents and parents that make time for their teens. Blake's parents are going into my "parents I want to be like when I have teenagers" collection.

The only thing I didn't like was that I read this book just recently. I was at ALA when L.K. Madigan was signing books fresh off her Morris win, but wasn't able to stop by. Now I'm sad I missed her-I hope I can meet her at a future ALA!

Overall, Flash Burnout is a fantastic read. Blake's story is one that once you start, you won't want to stop. I wanted to finish it in one sitting but also wanted it to draw out so it wouldn't end. Seriously, if you haven't read this one, get your hands on it. This is a perfect example of how YA contemporary novels should be written.

Book Pairings: Pair this with any of John Green's titles, fans of John Green's books should enjoy Blake's voice, this could also pair well with Gordon Korman's Born to Rock-both feature characters coming into their own

Full Disclosure: Reviewed from audiobook purchased from Audible

Comments

  1. I love books that make you want to gush! This one sounds so good.

    Thanks for the review. I hadn't heard of this book, and now I'm glad I know more about it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Flash Burnout sounds like a fab read! I almost never read contemporary novels but I do like the sound of this one.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I put this book on our 8th grade reading list this year and haven't actually read it (oops). Sounds like I'm missing out!

    ReplyDelete
  4. this book sounds awesome. will have to check it out. have you read the school of possilbilites? it's very good. also, i noticed in your book review section that the night tourist or the dream house kings seires wasn't in there. they are very good books that need to get out there. you have that power and i think you'd like them. dream house kings is a great series and the night tourist is probably my favorite book. i'm a fan of you blog.
    LF

    ReplyDelete
  5. For some reason I really like his hair on the cover... I heard about this one before but I haven't read it yet. Great review!! :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

I love hearing from other readers! Share your thoughts and chime in!

Popular posts from this blog

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Rating: 5/5 Stars Genre: Realistic Fiction Release Date: 2/26/2013 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Eleanor and Park are both misfits. When new girl Eleanor sits next to Park on the bus, they don't want anything to do with each other. But over the course of the school year, things change. It starts with comic books and becomes a friendship and a romance that the two will never forget. You never forget your first love. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: Have you ever had a book sit on your shelf that you've heard so much hype about? And you think that books sounds like it would be right up your alley, but you're in a reading slump and you're afraid to give it a try unless it fails? I knew Eleanor and Park sounded like my perfect book, but I was in such an after committee slump that I even though I knew this book would help, I just didn't want to be disappointed. I should have known better because Eleanor and Park was perfect and everything that I had hoped it wou

Contact Me

  I love to hear from fellow readers and librarians! Send me an email to say hello! You can reach me at greenbeanteenqueen (at) gmail (dot) com

Post Downton Abbey Reading List

Downton Abbey is over (with a shocking and frustrating ending!) and now I'm suffering Downton Abbey withdrawal. I've got a reading list full of books that I hope will satisfy my post-Downton Abbey cravings and I thought I'd share what's in my pile and get suggestions for other after Downton reads. Here's what I hope to be reading this year (a mix of YA and adult titles):                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  A couple Julian Fellowes reads:                And a few re-reads:                    Edited to add: What's on your Post-Downton Abbey reading list?