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Perfect Chemistry is one of a series of three books written by author Simone Elkeles and published by Walker Books for Young Readers in 2009 and also made it on the NewYork Times Best Sellers List. Perfect Chemistry is apart of the Young Adult genre because of the steamy high school romance Elkeles portrays in the novel. The main characters of the story Brittany Ellis, a white uptown teenager, and Alejandro "Alex" Fuentes, a lower class teenager of Mexican heritage must overcome Brittanys troubled home life and Alex's gang ties to have a their own happily ever after. The book was read and reviewed world wide but most popular in the United States.Simone Elkeles has revealed in many interviews that she admits to writing Young Adult Romance novels and with the Perfect Chemistry series she had to do numerous amounts of research to understand the cultural background of Alex's Mexican heritage. Elkeles also writes the other two novels in the series around the Fuentes brothers. Elkeles takes you into the streets of Chicago where love must overcome all for two teenagers to be together. They must triumph over gang fights, Alex's fathers murder mystery and the world's outlook on their relationship.

Plot
Perfect Chemistry brings you into the lives of Brittany Ellis, labeled as the perfect teenage girl who has worked to keep up appearances of her picture perfect image, and Alex Fuentes, a whose Spanish heritage and gang ties throughout his family has caused him chaos. The school semester starts and the head cheerleader and gang member are assigned each other as lab partners at Fairfield Highschool. The two begin to despise each other but still feel a forbidden attraction. Brittany knows that Alex and his reputation are threatening everything she has worked so hard to keep in place such as her reputation, her relationship with her popular boyfriend and her secret home life that no one must find out about. While Alex and his gang member friends see this as an opportunity to ruin her popularity and help boost Alex's bad boy reputation, they make a bet that Alex's has to have sex with her before Thanksgiving. But feelings appear and Alex starts to second guess the bet but also the relationship when Brittany begins to open up about her life introducing him to her secret, her sister who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, but doubt returns once more knowing that the gang lifestyle that had claimed his fathers life is bound to claim his also.

Alex Fuentes Alex comes off as the typical bad boy. As a memeber of the Latino Blood gang, he is constantly into trouble. Alex only participates in the gang activities to ensure his younger brothers are not forced entry. Despite his rebellious actions he is very smart in his school work. After his fathers murder, Alex and his two brothers were raised by his mother. Alex's interests are cars, soccer and chemistry.

Brittany Ellis Brittany is perfect, or so it seems. Her home life is the root of her struggles. Her parents are considering sending her sister away to a home for people with diabilities while her boyfriend is trying to convince her to do things she is not ready for. Brittany's mother is very concerned with appearances and controls brittany to present the prefect facade. Mr. Ellis likes to hide behind his work and doesn't communicate much with his family. Brittany always ends up caring for her mentally and physically disabled sister, Shelley.

Awards and
New York Times Bestselling Series

2012 YALSA Popular Paperback for Young Adults

2011-2012 Winner of Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award

2011 Abraham Lincoln Award List

2010 Top Ten YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers

2010 Romance Writers of America RITA award winner for Best Young Adult Romance

2010 Kentucky Bluegrass High School Book Award List

2010-2011 Winner of Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice Award in the YA division

2010 Winner of Club Romantica’s DAMA award- Best Young Adult Romance in Spanish

Genre
Perfect Chemistry fits into the romance, young adult, contemporary and urban genre categories in fiction. A reviewer at Romantic Times Magazine described the novel as “Elkeles sure hits her stride in this story of star-crossed lovers. She takes a storyline that could be clichéd and turns it into a gripping tale readers will race through to find out if happily ever after is possible.” This is not your typical romance novel because of its unique storyline when Elkeles adds in the gang ties through out Alex's family and how his father's mysterious murder can come between his and brittany's relationship when he must choose which would be more important to him. In an article interview published by Voya Magazine, Simone Elkeles describes the genre she writes in and her reason for doing so stating,"Yes, I write teen romances and I’m not afraid or ashamed to say it. I love all of the couples I’ve written about–they’re all romantic and magical in their own way." Also, adding a touch of Alex's Mexican culture throughout the novel helping to relate to the character and adding to the spicy romance.