Sometimes the greatest books come in the most unsuspecting little packages...

Yes, yes, yes! I seriously couldn't put KISS IT down, even though it would have been in my best interest because I have plenty of homework and whatnot to accomplish. Chastity Bryan is a breath of fresh air.

Chastity, or Chaz, is almost obsessed with the idea of sex and sexuality. To her, sex and love don't always occur in tandem, in fact, she prefers it that way. She's the type of girl that says when and she wants it now, especially when a new, hot boy moves to town and tempts her in all kinds of ways.

Okay, but wait! I know some of you out there are thinking this might just be a bit too much for me... This Chaz girl is more sexual than I like my main characters. I like them sweet and innocent and ignorant with their sexuality. Well, I admit, this might not be the book for you, BUT, if you can handle this side of Chaz, I can promise you that there is much more to her character. And, yes, there's teen sex in this book, but there's a point to it and I believe it's well done. This book sends a message to readers that's definitely worth hearing.

One of my favorite aspects of this book is the fact that Chaz isn't perceived as loose or lacking morality. She keeps her sexual endeavors well under wraps... and Chaz is a lot more talk than actual action. She's smart, funny, sarcastic, and strong - that's what I appreciate in a main character, regardless of how raunchy some of her comments may be. But, even if her classmates knew of her preoccupation with sex and judged her for it, I had the distinct feeling that Downing wouldn't be encouraging the reader to do the same. Even though Chaz has a few things backwards and doesn't always make the wisest decisions, she's real and she sticks to her guns. Sexuality and a healthy dose of curiosity are normal and they shouldn't be condemned.

Erin Downing's KISS IT is a quick read, due to the fact that it's less than 300 pages and it's difficult to put down. I've got my fingers crossed that she's got more novels like this up her sleeve! Her previous two novels are part of the Simon Pulse romantic comedies, which are wonderful, but this novel puts Downing on a whole different level. ( )

When I saw Kristi at The Story Siren's review of this, I knew I had to have this! Lucky for me, there happened to be a copy available on Goodreads swap so I ordered it.

I read it a couple of days after I got it despite the fact that I have stacks of books to read all over the place, and I'm glad I did! There were a lot of layers to this book, and I enjoyed every single one of them.

The first few chapters were absolutely hilarious. In fact, I read the prologue and first chapter three or four times because I couldn't stop laughing. It was very immature of me. Then Shanyn of Chick Loves Lit said "hey! loser! maybe you should read past the first few pages." (Except, of course, she didn't really call me a loser). Anyway, I finally calmed down and was able to keep going.

The humor is definitely one of my favorite parts of the story, but definitely is not all the book has to offer. Once you get to know Chaz, her unexpected depths start to come out. She might be ridiculously immature in some areas...but in others she most definitely is not. She was a really good friend: I loved the interactions between her and Sadie.

And even though I accused her of being immature, once she meets Sebastian she definitely makes some progress in the way she thinks of love and relationships. She realizes that she was wrong when she thought it would be easy to keep her feelings and emotions out of interactions with him. I loved them together, they had great chemistry and I loved the way he really made her think. I also loved the mystery surrounding him and his attitude.

Even though things wrap up very well at the end of this, I would definitely read a sequel if it was published (even though I don't think there are any plans for one). I loved these characters! I definitely recommend picking this up. ( )

I really wanted to like this book, but it just didn't click with me. I bought this book thinking it would be a light and funny read, which was not what I got at all. I felt really depressed throughout the whole story and there really weren't that many happy moments in this book, besides the few times Sebastian showed up. Chaz doesn't really know what she wants, other than the fact that she wants out of Milton. She lies to her parents and her supposed best friend. She messes around with too many boys in my opinion, even when Sebastian was in the picture! I just didn't understand her motivation, I couldn't relate to her at all. She was way too sex crazed and I really didn't like how she gave herself up to boys who she didn't care about. The secondary characters were not at all interesting and I got to the point where I really didn't care what happened to them.

The only redeemable thing for me in this book was Sebastian! He was a hottie and so dreamy but didn't get much page time until the end. He was really a question mark throughout the whole book and I couldn't wait to find out the story behind him! Sebastian is the main reason why this book gets more than 2 stars.

I really hate having to give this book a not-so-good review, but it just didn't resonate with me. It makes me sad to give this review, as I know the author put a lot of work into this, but I want to be honest. Maybe there are others out there who will/do love this book but I can't say that I will recommend this to any of my friends. ( )

I loved this book! I know that some people don't like how much it mentions sex in it but it didn't bother me. It was a part of who Chaz was as a character, and as much a character trait as having blond hair. I didn't find it crude either, it was pretty realistic. Teenagers have sex and they don't always have it because they're in love, sometimes it's just to have sex. It kind of reminded me of Juno a little bit, actually.

Chaz and I are nothing alike, so I really enjoyed reading about her. She knows what she wants, and she's not afraid to go after it. The interactions between her and Sebastian were my favorite part, they were always so interesting. I liked the way that Chaz's family drama was a big part of this. It shook things up. There's one thing that I predicted straight off, but other than that this book kept me pretty much on my toes.

I thought that this book portrayed high school and teenagers and relationships in a very real and true way, which was refreshing. Not everything is perfect. Things don't always work out. I know that sounds bleak, but a lot of this book is really funny, especially Chaz's inner (and outer) snark. The ending of this book was perfect, but slightly unsatisfying to me. I like things to be wrapped up in a bow, but I guess that I can afford to use my imagination.

Basically I really liked this book and would recommend it if you're looking for a book that's original. ( )

Main character Chastity (what a name!) lives in a very small town that she realizes is not where she wants to live out her life, but while she’s waiting it out in high school there she wants to get some experience, in the sexuality department. The pickings are slim in her mind but she tests out the waters, never really finding the right person to go through this education with, until Sebastian comes into town. In Sebastian she sees something different and knows she wants to get to know him better.

What I liked about this book was besides a secondary story with her best friend (that I saw coming from a mile away) I wasn’t really sure where the story was going to go and I liked that. I also really liked the small town jokes, I recall snorting a few times I think! Nothing really crazy happens but sometimes that's ok. It was very realistic in the way everything is sort of open ended but personally I would have liked a few more plotlines tied up by the end of the book. I felt like we were going somewhere but we didn't quite get there.

It's definitely a coming of age story but deals with the idea of sex a lot more than other similar books I've read. I liked Chastity's voice and sarcastic tone but it was still missing something in the end, I haven't yet been able to put my finger on. ( )