One of my favorite bloggers, even though she doesn't blog much anymore, is Presenting Lenore. She's helping to host a twitter book club, the aim of which is to read books that are amazing but do not have nearly enough buzz. This is the first selection. Well, it definitely isn't well known enough, since I totally thought Yesterday was going to be Martin's debut. Apparently, she's written four books before that one.

The opening of My Beating Teenage Heart is quit alarming. You're thrown into some weird dream-state type thing with the heroine whose name you don't yet know. It's odd and mystical and it's hard to tell whether anything is real or a dream or what. Actually, the book continues to be this way. Ashlyn learns a bit about herself, but what she figures out results in more questions than answers. Breckon (we also get some chapters from his perspective) is mired in depression.

For me, this is one of those books where how much I likes it depended entirely on the explanation of what's going on. The writing is decent, but didn't especially resonate with me. The characters are both so whacked out on grief or confusion that I had trouble connecting to them. The plot is so strange, requiring some serious suspension of disbelief, but, if she pulled it off with the ending, it could definitely make the book epic.

Without a doubt, I can honestly say that My Beating Teenage Heart is unlike any YA book I've read before. It picks up steam very slowly, but, by the end, I was definitely engaged. For the first hundred or so pages, the melodrama of the narration irritated me, especially given the fogginess of Ashlyn's memory. Plus, she made so many assumptions that seemed strange to me.

Anyway, having now finished the book, I'm still not sure how I feel about it. On some levels, it was definitely really cool and thought provoking, and I'm certainly glad to have read it, but there were also aspects with which I did not reconcile. My main issue with the book I can't express to clearly without risking spoilers, but, basically, I do not get why Ashlyn's memory would ever work that way. However, on the plus side again, Martin can write the heck out of a steamy scene.

Looking at those labels at the bottom of the post, you might notice that they're not super happy times themes. Nor is the book at all light and fluffy. At all. Recommended to fans of Ilsa J. Bick and Laurie Halse Anderson. Although I didn't love this, I am now definitely looking forward to reading Yesterday more than I was before. ( )

Review posted on October 9, 2011 at http://canlitforlittlecanadians.blogspot.ca/2011/10/my-beating-teenage-heart.htm... ( )

What an interesting book! At first I was pretty confused to tell you the truth. My Beating Teenage Heart is about this boy, Breckon who has lost his sister and his journey through dealing with that, and Ashlyn, a girl who is watching over Breckon for reasons unknown to her.
Right away I feel bad for Breckon. The loss of his younger sister takes quite the toll on him and he's unsure how to act and get through this. Unfortunately, his family doesn't seem to be overly helpful at times because they are still coming to terms with things as well. For me, I really feel for characters who have to deal with situations like the death of a family member. Thankfully, I have never had to deal with anything like that and since I have a very tight knit family, I don't know what I would do if anything ever happened.
Along with Breckon's narration of My Beating Teenage Heart, we are reading through Ashlyn's point of view. She understands that she is either dead or in a coma, realizing something is wrong with her situation she tries her hardest to remember her life and memories. All while doing that, she is looking over Breckon, who is spiralling downward in his own attempt to deal, and trying to make him understand and realize that she is there for him. (Though she does not know why she's been sent to Breckon and not her own family).
I really did enjoy this book. The change of POV's between the two main characters was enjoyable. The story was original and C.K. Kelly Martin is a good writer. She can get the reader interested in her book and pull the reader in for more. For example, we know right away that Breckon's sister died, nothing is explained up front we just get little more information here and there and it isn't until the end that we really read what happened. Also, we wonder how Breckon and Ashlyn are connected, and it isn't until the end that we find out. But it's done in a way that the story is spread out, and we don't just get hit with a whack of explaination at the end, it's written so well that that doesn't happen.
Overall, My Beating Teenage Heart was a heartfelt read that I enjoyed. The story, the writing and the characters are all worth it, and made for an "unputdownble" book! ( )

Um…I like the concept of Ashlyn’s part, but only the concept. Her story is actually mostly lame and boring. The connection with the guy is tenuous and not particularly interesting. His story is more interesting, but partially from the short length of the piece overall I never get that invested in him. Plus there’s nothing original about his character or his plotline. The whole thing feels like it could’ve been a good short story, but stretched out to make a dubious novel. ( )

I didn't know what to expect going into this book. The premise had me so intrigued and I couldn't wait to pick it up. We start out with Ashlyn as she first comes upon Breckon and starts observing his life. In the beginning Ashlyn thinks she is having a dream and doesn't realize the things she is witnessing are really happening to Breckon and his family. In fact Ashlyn doesn't really remember anything about who she is or what happened to her. Breckon's family has experienced a recent tragedy and he's having a really hard time coping with what happened. He keeps to himself, pushes people away and has started behaving a little out of character. Of course, the only one who knows everything that is going on with Breckon is Ashlyn, because she is sort of tied to him and ends up observing everything that is going on in his life. She is desperate to help him, but without being able to communicate with him she can only sit and watch.

As the story goes on Ashlyn also starts to remember things about her family and her life, slowly filling in the blanks of her memory. She really wants to go to see her family, but since she can't seem to leave Breckon, she assumes there must be a reason that she is observing his life. I really liked the character of Breckon. Sure he wasn't behaving the most rationally throughout the book, but given the circumstances it was understandable. He was a well fleshed out character and by the end of the book I really felt for him. He had such a great support system, too, even if he didn't always appreciate them. I liked Ashlyn, but since she was more of an observer than a character going through their own story, I didn't feel like I got to know her quite as well.

This one had an emotional ending and certainly caused a few tears for me, but I think it was a perfect ending for the story. You get some good resolution all around. I would probably classify this as a contemporary, but some of the things almost seemed a little paranormal. It's a great story about love, life and loss that I would definitely recommend to anyone looking for a great story with lots of emotion.