Virtuosity

Virtuosityby Jessica Martinez

Now is not the time for Carmen to fall in love. And Jeremy is hands-down the wrong guy for her to fall for. He is infuriating, arrogant, and the only person who can stand in the way of Carmen getting the one thing she wants most: to win the prestigious Guarneri competition. Carmen's whole life is violin, and until she met Jeremy, her whole focus was winning. But what if Jeremy isn't just hot...what if Jeremy is better?Carmen knows that kissing Jeremy can't end well, but she just can't stay away. Nobody else understands her--and riles her up--like he does. Still, she can't trust him with her biggest secret: She is so desperate to win she takes anti-anxiety drugs to perform, and what started as an easy fix has become a hungry addiction. Carmen is sick of not feeling anything on stage and even more sick of always doing what she’s told, doing what's expected.Sometimes, being on top just means you have a long way to fall.... (goodreads.com)

Release date: October 18, 2011I am not a contemporary fiction fan. I tend to like my stories imbued with serial killers, dragons, sorceresses, detectives, etc. However, I also try my best to give books that show up for review a chance. I know, technically, that if I didn't ask for the book I shouldn't feel so obligated to read it, but at the same time, I don't receive many books from publishers (when I do, they all seem to come at the same time) and I feel as though since I am being gifted this amazing opportunity I should DO something about it. Therefore I give the books a chance (most of the time). I can't promise I'll finish something and if it looks to me like a book I might not enjoy, I can't promise reading it in a timely manner.However.Sometimes I am pleasantly surprised with what I discover when I pick up a book I'd never read otherwise. I have to say that the summary for Virtuosity did nothing for me at first because of the focus on kissing a boy and pining away, blah, blah, blah. I can't stand teen romance books. I feel like if you're a teen and the only problem you have is that a boy you like doesn't like you back, well, you've got it great, kiddo. (Which I think is why I'd rather read contemporary fiction about teens/people with serious problems like drugs, abuse, alcohol. It seems much more reasonable to me.)Thing is, Carmen isn't just pining away for a boy in this book. She's dealing with other problems - doing what her mother wants her to do, keeping up her home on that pedestal by winning competitions and touring and playing violin so that she can be adored and win MORE competitions. Carmen was a much more complex character than the summary above paints her to be.I liked Carmen a lot. I liked her fears and her bravery and her humour and her mind. This book is by no means dystopian in any way, but it has a similar theme - a girl grows up knowing only one way of living and thinking it's enough until something happens to open her eyes and then she has to fight for control of her life and decide which way to go. Until Carmen meets Jeremy, I think she's pretty content thinking that the way her life is going is the only way there is. It seems normal. When Jeremy shows up, independent and with his own way of approaching the world, Carmen starts to question her own life. She rebels, but not in a very dangerous way. She just learns that life is there to live and maybe her mother doesn't always know best.The book interested me on a couple of levels. First, as I work in a music faculty in a prestigious university, I was drawn to the music references and the sort of inside look at what might make a musician tick. I wondered if this book would appeal to any of the string students we have. If any of them felt the same way. I had left the book on my desk one lunch time when I had to run out and do some errands (I hate carrying a heavy bag when I don't need to) and when I came back I had a note on my desk from the director of our grad studies department asking to borrow the book when I was done. I think this just might appeal to people in my office. ;)I was also very interested in Carmen herself. I thought the growth she showed throughout the novel to be realistic and I was sympathetic to her cause. I really liked her and I liked Jeremy as well (arrogant British boys are just interesting to me!). I believed the two of them together. I believed their feelings for each other and the choices they made. Do I think they'll last forever? No. They are 18 years old. That's way too young to know what you really want to do for the rest of your life, but it's the perfect time to start finding it out. I think the ending of the story was exactly what both characters needed at that time in their lives to help shape them into who they will really, truly become as they get a little bit older.As a side note - I don't normally like to read and blog about books that won't be out for another 2 months. I actually thought this was a September release when I started it and only when I went to look up the release date did I notice my error. Since I like to blog about the books as soon as I read them (or, rather, in the order that I read them), I don't schedule posts for months later. Since September starts this week (HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?!?!) I figured it's not too bad. My apologies if you want to run out and buy the book now. ;)