Hopkins sticks to the signature style that has made her books bestsellers, blending verse poetry with controversial topics. In her eighth novel, four teenage protagonists alternately narrate their struggles with perfection. Sean and Kendra's struggles are physical-he's a baseball player who turns to steroids, and she's an aspiring model who develops a severe eating disorder ("Real control is/ not putting in more than you can work off.... Shaving off every caloric unit you can/ without passing out"). Cara and Andre's issues are more about identity (Cara is an all-American girl realizing she is a lesbian, while Andre is under parental pressure to pursue a lucrative, ambitious career path and is afraid to admit his passion for dance). This is a sequel, of sorts, as Cara's twin, Conner, a protagonist in Hopkins's suicide-themed book, Impulse, makes an appearance. There is an overabundance of plot points, as readers learn about Sean's dead parents, Kendra's racist father, a vicious attack on Kendra's sister, and more. But Hopkins explores enough hot-button issues (rape, teen plastic surgery, cyberharassment, etc.) to intrigue her fans and recruit new ones. Ages 14-up. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

While not razor-edged like her previous work, Hopkins' portrait of four 12th-graders who are expected to be perfect will nonetheless keep teens up all night reading.In a Reno suburb, expectations take heavy tolls. Trying to excel at baseball and get into Stanford, Sean takes steroids and spirals into rage and rape. Kendra does pageants but wants to model, so she schedules plastic surgery and stops eating. Andre takes dance lessons in secret, funding them with money that his wealthy, status-conscious parents give him for fashionable sweaters. Cara seems faultless at everything from cheerleading to grades, but she's falling in love with a girl. The four first-person narrations are set in different type and have mildly different styles, but the free verse lacks Hopkins' trademark sharp, searing brittleness. However, the less-sharp tone works here, because these characters are more depressed than dissociated. The ostensible focus on perfection is a coping mechanism against families that are absent, cold and brutally silent, so the consequencesanorexia, drugs, booze, rape, delusion, deceptionall ring true. It also rings true that some characters buckle, worst off at the story's end, while others find themselves and may make it.This page-turner pulls no emotional punches; readers should find Impulse (2007) first, because this is a sequel at heart, and knowing the prior work in advance adds crucial layers of meaning. (author's note) (Fiction. 13-17)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

In this companion to Impulse (2007), Hopkins addresses teens' struggles with unrealistic expectations in gut-wrenching free verse. Top student and athlete Cara wrestles with sexual orientation, while her twin brother and suicide survivor Connor struggles to overcome parental pressure to achieve. Cara's boyfriend, Sean, battles steroids' effect on his psyche, while would-be model Kendra descends into anorexia, and Andre tries to find the courage to tell his parents he intends to follow his dream to be a dancer. Fans of Hopkins' heartfelt, direct, and empathetic voice will not care that format and thematic material are much the same as previous titles.--Carton, Debbie Copyright 2010 Booklist

Gr 9 Up-Ellen Hopkins's companion (2011) to Impulse (2007, both Margaret McElderry Books)), gives voice to four teens trying to live up to the expectations of others while also holding onto secrets. In Impulse, Connor, Tony, and Vanessa were confined to a psychiatric hospital after their failed suicide attempts. Here, Connor's twin sister, Cara, struggles to sustain the flawless facade that her mother has created while also coming to terms with her sexuality. Sean, Cara's boyfriend, has the perfect future mapped out with her, but the effects of steroids take a terrible toll. Andre secretly wants to be a dancer. And Kendra, Connor's ex-girlfriend, will stop at nothing to have the "perfect" body and modeling career. Told from alternating perspectives, Aya Cash, Heather Lind, Aaron Tveit, and Tristan Wilds vividly bring to life each character and their inner turmoil. With varying levels of voicing and character distinction, listeners will be drawn into the lives, hearts, and minds of these teens. As the stories weave into each other, the progression of the characters' desperation, and in some instances, disorder and addiction, are realistically portrayed. Raw and transformational, this audiobook can stand alone, but the story will mean even more to those familiar with the first title. A self-narrated author's note is equally powerful and will have listeners contemplating their own views of perfection. The long tracks, one for each alternating perspective, can be problematic, but not to any major detraction.-Stephanie A. Squicciarini, Fairport Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.