Jill Jekel has always obeyed her parents rules;especially the one about never opening the mysterious, old box in her father's office. But when her dad is murdered, and her college savings disappear, she's tempted to peek inside, as the contents might be the key to a lucrative chemistry scholarship.To improve her odds, Jill enlists the help of gorgeous, brooding Tristen Hyde, who has his own dark secrets locked away. As the team of Jekel and Hyde, they recreate experiments based on the classic novel, hoping not only to win a prize, but to save Tristen's sanity. Maybe his life. But Jill's accidental taste of a formula unleashes her darkest nature and compels her to risk everything, even Tristen's love just for the thrill of being . . . bad. ~from Goodreads
If Jessica’s Guide To Dating On The Dark Side is a 7 out of 10, I would consider this book to be a 9 out of 10 (not that I have any sort of rating system or anything, lol, it's just to show how good it is). It is told in alternating points of view between Jill Jekel and Tristen Hyde. I’m not usually a fan of that type of writing, but it worked very well for this story.
It opens with the funeral of Jill’s father, where Tristen shows up and comforts her. They barely know each other at this time. Then senior year starts, choosing partners for chemistry labs, and the opportunity to win a $30,000 scholarship. Her teacher mentions how interesting a “Jekel-Hyde” team would be. Jill thinks about the box of her father’s that she’s been forbidden to touch--one that holds the experiments from, you guessed it, The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. So Jill asks Tristen to partner up with her for the scholarship to test the experiments.
Both Jill and Tristen are likable characters and Beth Fantaskey does an amazing job keeping the mystery alive and the wondering in each of their thoughts vivid and intriguing. The intensity of her feelings, his feelings, the pain her mother is going through, and the slow build to the experiment and the aftereffects all lead to a powerful end. A must, must, must read!
Hi Jessica!
ReplyDeleteHow very interesting that you liked this book better than the first one! I have heard the opposite in general from other people who said they liked Jessica's Guide but not this one... I personally loved Jessica's Guide and after reading your review just might have to give Jeckyl Loves Hyde a chance as well!
Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for the review ;)
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland
You know I have been waiting for this one and now after your review I am going to have to get a copy and read it too!
ReplyDeleteI was surprised that I liked it so much. I remember first reading the synopsis and thinking, "meh". But it was much better than I imagined.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry it took so long to post it Angie! I know how much you wanted to read it. I have ginormous amounts of reviews to do, I ended up doing none last week, and that was ridonkulous. :P
Hmmm, I picked this one up at the bookstore but decided against it. Maybe I should give it a chance.
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to read this one and never have. Maybe one day I will. :)
ReplyDelete