Book Review: Every Girl's Guide to Flings

, by Janine M.


Every Girl's Guide to Flings by Marla Miniano
Because bad girls fall in love too.

In her high heels, short skirts, and purple eyeliner, Rickie is known as the wayward friend of good girls Anna and Chrissy. Her string of meaningless flings, happening parties, and more boys lining up to ask her out make her the envy of every teenage girl—till she sets her sights on a very bad idea: Anna's ex. Is Rickie headed for disaster? Or will she finally fall in love and get her very own happy ending?

Rule number 1: Know where to start.
Rule number 2: Trust your instincts.
Rule number 3: Don't take things too seriously.
Rule number 4: Mistakes do not make up for other mistakes.
Rule number 5: Learn to take risks.
Rule number 6: All's fair in love and war.
Rule number 7: Know where it all ends.
Rule number 8: Be open to finding yourself.
Rule number 9: Change is inevitable.
Rule number 10: Sometimes, a fling can lead to The Real Thing.

My thoughts:
Okay. I admit. I am in love with this character. Rickie is the party girl of the trio, the one who never gets serious with a guy, the one with flings you need all of  your fingers and toes to count. She's the intruder to Anna and Chrissy's longtime friendship. She's the daughter who is not as talented, pretty, and ma-PR as her older sister, Lexie. She stays out late at night to party with her gay friend Bryan and to hook up with boys. Eventually, she chose to be with Jaime, Anna's ex, much to the chagrin of her friends. It didn't last though, because of Rickie's commitment issues. Rickie turned out to sincerely like Jaime and in a confrontation-for-closure scene she acknowledged the fact that she could have chosen to be with him but she chose to walk away. One weekend changed her perspective on life and love when she learned how her sister Lexie chose not to pursue a relationship with Timmy (Anna's brother), even if they liked each other because it was the right thing to do. I like the fact that Rickie realized that she shouldn't be looking elsewhere for affection, because she had the right people (family and friends) with her to give her the love that she needs if only she chooses to let them in and have a sincere relationship with them. She learned to value herself, respect herself, and see herself as a person who deserves something serious and who is capable of something serious. I sort of related to her character in this vein. I loved that the author was able to let her character speak in this candid, unpretentious voice. Rickie seems to be the type to tell it like it is. Gah, I just love her. I'm confident she and Diego ended up happily as a couple. Rickie, no longer lonely. ☺

 Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ ☺



Quotable quotes:
  • I think maybe if you become accustomed to not caring, it becomes your default solution to every problem and your default reaction to every situation. And maybe if people become accustomed to you not caring, they think you can just breeze through life and let things like these roll off your back. (pages 16-17)
  • Friendships with girls will always be tinged with rivalry, no matter what. There will always be someone who is prettier and sexier and more popular with the boys, and this will always be a cause of resentment for whoever's not as pretty and sexy and popular. Nobody will readily admit to this, but this unspoken rivalry is always lurking in the background, a race towards scoring the most stylish clothes and the most expensive shoes and the best-looking boyfriends first. (pages 20-21)
  • So yes, I am used to hearing this from guys. What I'm not used to, however, is not being in control enough to be flattered by their affection, or thrilled with their attention. What I'm not used to is feeling ashamed knowing I intentionally made a guy feel this way, knowing I expertly executed all my tricks in order to bring him to this point. I don't want commitment. I don't want a meaningful relationship, I don't want patience and compromise and a constant effort to make things work. I want a mindless fling, a whirlwind romance devoid of responsibilities and obligations. I want to start something with someone, but I want to make sure I don't stay in it long enough to ruin it. I want someone who plans to enjoy it, but has no plans of making it last either. I want someone who wants the same things I do, someone who gets it.  (pages 52-53)
  • Quite a few guys have done this to me, stammering their way through an explanation that things just aren't working out anymore before hanging up, and I can't really blame them for not wanting to look straight into my eyes as they tell me they want nothing more to do with me. I know how much courage it takes to let someone down in person, to endure the dumper-dumpee awkwardness in the flesh. I also know that courage would have been easier to summon if I were fighting for a meaningful relationship, because courage is often fueled by the need to do the right, noble thing. (pages 59-60)
  • When people say they don't want to get into a relationship, it should never be taken at face value because it is never really the whole truth. It is usually a vast collection of issues and fears and complications, forced to the surface to conceal one tiny hope lurking underneath it all: that someday, somebody will come along to discover and accept and strengthen that feeble hope. (page 94)
  • Because there is always a choice. We make hundreds of choices every single day; every moment is a choice---wake up or sleep for five more minutes, sit down for breakfast or skip it, slow down or speed up, listen in class or daydream, study or procrastinate, take an active risk or leave it all to fate. (page 101)
  • I find myself smiling, and I realize how much I admire her for doing the right thing, for knowing better than I did. There are no bright stage lights, no beautiful gowns, no handsome prince, no applauding audience. But I am proud of her now, in the exact same way I was all those years ago. And maybe all is lost---maybe we have always respected and loved each other all this time, but have just been too caught up in our own lives to make room for one another. We look at each other and I find myself wanting to bridge the distance, wanting to someday make her proud of me, too. (page 118)
  • Most of the time, change is something you have to work on, something that does not happen overnight. It is a conscious effort, and your life will not change unless you allow it to. (page 123)
  • I learned to accept that for years, my relationships with my family and friends have been nothing more than flings---selfish and fleeting and devoid of any real meaning or commitment. I learned to make the most of the relationships I already share with the people who matter, instead of always searching for something more with people who will never treat me the way I deserve to be treated. I learned to live, and I learned to love. (pages 124-125)
  • What I love about Miguel is that he does all these things for Anna for no special reason at all---I think that's what makes a relationship work, the quiet, everyday efforts rather than the loud, grand gestures. (page 128)
  • I am fascinated by the curious mix of betrayal and attraction and desperation and revenge and forgiveness, and I wonder how you can ever know for sure that something was a mistake---some mistakes, when given time, turn out to be blessings in disguise. (page 130)
  • And it was true: I don't regret any of it. It was a wake-up call, and it was a good thing it happened sooner rather than later. Right now, I am just basking in the promise of starting over, building myself up to be the best person I can be. And when someone else does come along, I will be ready. (pages 130-131)
  • I wonder if he misses me, because now that I am over him enough, I can admit that sometimes, yes, I do miss him. I think missing someone you liked in the past is normal, as long as it doesn't interfere with your present. I think anybody who says they don't miss their exes and pseudo-exes at all is a big fat liar. (page 136)
  • Let's end by saying that the way I feel for Diego is something I guess I have been feeling for a while now, and that it is strong and scary enough to make me want to run away, but also real and wonderful enough to make me want to stay. (page 143)
  • Let's begin with this: He jumps down from the ladder and holds his hand out to me. I take it, and take the leap. (page 143)

2 comments :

  1. tell me if this works! I have some books that I do not need anymore too!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ahh i still havent seen the movie yet:(
    xx
    www.vnikali.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

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