When I got my hands on today's read, I smiled. It's a paranormal tale which circles around a girl, who has Marilyn Monroe's spirit move into her. I'm not sure what exactly that means or what direction this will take, but according to the blurb, the situation will lean towards humor and heart. I'm wondering how deep this possession will go and have a feeling it could wreck all sorts of havoc in high school life. Honestly, there are many personalities from history, which could make the high school eve more interesting than it already is. My imagination is switching into hyper-drive just thinking about the possibilities.
I'm going to keep my imagination from wandering...Genghis Khan... as said, keep my thoughts centered on Marilyn Monroe and head into these pages.
CHANNELING MARILYN
by Mima Tipper
She Writes Press
YA Paranormal Romance
303 pages
COMING JUNE 2nd!!!
Seventeen-year-old Lexa Donovan’s timid, plus-size life goes sideways when the spirit of Marilyn Monroe takes up residence in her body in this laugh-out-loud funny paranormal YA tale perfect for fans of Lisa Schroeder and Ashley Poston.
High school senior Lexa Donovan longs to be more than a bit player in her own drab life—and when she’s chosen to be part of her school’s spring production of Bus Stop, she thinks her wish has come true. But her thrill turns to panic when she’s tapped to play the leading role, sexy showgirl Cherie. One thing tall, plus-size Lexa knows for sure is that she is the exact opposite of the most famous Cherie sex-goddess Marilyn Monroe.
Lexa wants out before she makes a fool of herself in front of everyone. But then something entirely unexpected The spirit of Marilyn Monroe appears—ready and willing to be Lexa’s personal acting coach—and talks her out of quitting.
Soon, Lexa’s life becomes a screwball comedy, with her bouncing between Marilyn’s acting “help,” her crush on her gorgeous co-star Brian, and her unexpected attraction to the mysterious Jeremy Leith. Comedy shifts to drama, though, as Lexa’s fear of humiliation—fueled by Brian’s jealous girlfriend—morphs into full-on stage fright. A fright that grows dangerously intense when Marilyn starts having decidedly un-spiritish feelings that have nothing to do with Lexa or the play.
Before the curtain rises on opening night, Lexa and Marilyn will have to learn to trust their own hearts and act on what each truly needs to move on—in life and in death.
MY TIDBITS
High school drama hits a new level with a sweet, humorous delight in a way which leaves one word on the lips, 'creamy'.
Lexa did something she never, ever should have done and is hating herself for being so stupidly spontaneous, but she never could have guessed that tossing her name into a jar would end up with her playing the main role in the upcoming school's play. Worse yet, the script gained fame thanks to Marilyn Monroe's historic performance, and Lexa is nothing like her. Absolutely nothing. To stop disaster before it strikes, she goes to the teacher to drop out of the play, but this escape is thwarted when Marilyn Monroe appears inside Lexa's head. Whether she's a spirit or Lexa loosing her mind is still to be determined, but either way, it's not only dealing with the constant chatter inside her head, which begins to make Lexa's life difficult. Whenever Marilyn takes over, Lexa does the most unexpected things. Add that the guy Lexa has had a crush on forever has the leading male role, a unavoidable kiss scene, and a very jealous girlfriend, and this play is headed to become more than just a simple disaster.
This is a read, which leaves a smile on the face, warmth in the heart, and a head full of possibilities. And while this is a romance, there is so much more driving the plot than just starry-eyed moments and stomach tingles. Lexa is a girl, who like almost everyone, isn't sure of where she's headed, what she wants, or even who she is and would like to be. But she has tons of heart and is as sweet as sweet can be. We meet her as a person, who isn't really uncomfortable in her own skin and has a wonderful support group in a loving father and best friend. She isn't bullied or an outcast (which is a nice change) and while she has dreams, she's already settled herself with a future that doesn't include these and is fine with that. Being shoved into the lead role in the play thrusts hidden uncertainties and self-imaging problems to the forefront, and her fears and feelings are understandable. In other words, she very easy to connect with and doesn't really make 'stupid' decisions. So, having Marylin enter her head adds zesty spice to throw everything off balance and creates fun humor without a dash of negativity. The romance also remains on a very innocent scale and simply adds to the growing chaos in the right ways.
I'm not a Marylin Monroe guru, so I can't really say too much about this aspect of the read. The author brings her across with kindness, uncertainty, more wisdom than is first obvious, and a bit of naive and unintentional chaos. For a while, I wondered if it would slide into a little mystery surrounding her death, but it stayed in Lexa's realm. There's an inspiring message about doing something a little unexpected now and then, and trusting yourself to go beyond your own borders. In other words, it's a fun, innocent read with silly predicaments, dreams, and enough heart to make it feel like a warm embrace.
And here she is...
Mima Tipper is half Greek and half American, and her writing reflects her heritage—a little bit old-country, a little bit rock and roll; one foot wandering through the dreamy realm of myths and faerie tales, the other running on the solid ground of fast-paced, contemporary story. She earned her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and has published YA fiction in Hunger Mountain and Sucker Literary magazine. When not working on her own writing, she is committed to promoting literacy and to supporting the writing community. Mima lives in Vermont.
