[Review] The Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder

Title:  The Lipstick Laws

Author: Amy Holder

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (March 17, 2011)

At Penford High School, Britney Taylor is the queen bee. She dates whomever she likes, rules over her inner circle of friends like Genghis Khan, and can ruin anyone's life with a snap of perfectly manicured fingers. Just ask the unfortunate few who have crossed her.   For April Bowers, Britney is also the answer to her prayers. April is so unpopular, kids don't even know she exists. But one lunch spent at Britney's table, and April is basking in the glow of popularity.   But Britney's friendship comes with a high price tag. How much is April willing to pay?

I really enjoyed The Lipstick Laws; it was such a cute, fun and hilarious story! The main character, April Bowers, was a very real narrator with insecurities every teenaged girl on earth would know about, which made her extremely relatable. Her awkwardness around the guy she liked was endearing and some of the things she said made me laugh out loud! While it was disappointing that April allowed herself to be bullied around by Britney, who was seriously bitchy and too mean to be true, I also felt sympathetic because her situation was understandable. Who wouldn’t want a shot at popularity and friendship with the It Girl, especially if you’re a loner nobody really noticed?

The friendship April found with the Lipstick Lawbreakers was really sweet and I felt like I was there with them, having fun while plotting to bring down their nemesis. Their revenge plan was pure genius! Although we do get a glimpse into why Britney turned out to be the nasty queen of mean she is, I didn’t feel sorry for Britney at all. She deserved a taste of her own medicine and I was rooting for the Lipstick Lawbreakers all the way. I also admired the way April picked herself up after what Britney did to her and how Haley continued being a supportive BFF to April although she had moved overseas.

What about the romance? I was extremely amused at how April had such vivid descriptions about Matt Brentwood, the new boy whom she immediately develops a huge crush on. She not only nicknames him as Hottie Body Brentwood, but also dreams about him all the time; I would usually get annoyed at such protagonists but April does it in a non-irritating way that somehow reminded me of the times when I was crushing (badly) on someone. That being said, Matt wasn’t very appealing as a love interest. He just seemed like a normal teenage boy who was always falling for Britney’s feminine wiles and I didn’t think he was interested in April at all until the end of the book. Delvin, on the other hand, sounds like the kind of guy we girls would normally miss out, but is actually a decent chap who would be a sweet and attentive boyfriend. Sigh. His shyness and sincerity in liking April made me wish April would just stop dwelling on how hot Matt was and see Delvin for who he really was!

The ending was nicely wrapped up but left some space for future possibilities, particularly in the romance department. This suited me fine because to me, The Lipstick Laws was largely about true friendship and loving yourself. I finished it pretty quickly so if you’re up for a fast but pleasant and enjoyable read, grab this book today!