Andi's Young Adult Books: Review of the 'How To' series by Cassie Mae

How to Seduce a Band Geek (How To #2)

Release Date: 05/06/14

Swoon Romance

Summary from Goodreads:

Sierra Livingston’s got it bad for her sister’s best friend, Levi Mason—the boy who carries his drumsticks in his pocket, marches with the school’s band, and taps his feet to whatever beat runs through his head. Sierra racks her brain for ways to impress the sexy drummer, but the short skirts and bursting cleavage don’t seem to cut it.

When Sierra gets paired with Levi’s sister, Brea, for a mentorship program, they strike a deal. In exchange for Sierra keeping her mouth shut about Brea ditching the program, Brea lets Sierra dig for more info on Levi to help get the guy of her dreams.

But when Sierra discovers Levi no longer plays the drums, his family has moved into a trailer, and he’s traded in his Range Rover for a baby blue moped, Sierra’s not sure if she can go through with violating his privacy. She’ll have to find the courage to ask him straight out—if he’s willing to let her in—and explore other ways to seduce the school’s band geek.

Read an excerpt:

A day without my phone is like a day without … I don’t know … my hair. Like it’s always been there, so when it’s suddenly not, you forget and you just fall into the habit of thinking it’s there. I’ve reached for my pocket a thousand times today then mentally yelled, “Damn it!”

So first thing I do when I get to my house is locate the thing.

After flitting through my Pinterest for way too long, I get a text from Dad, who still hasn’t mastered the art. His autocorrect is all over the place.

DSahara, I need you to conspire with the dishes before your master gets home. Thanksgiving very much. I’ll be there at tenth.

Good thing I’m an auto-translator.

Available from:

Amazon * Kobo

**My thoughts**

We got to meet Sierra in the first book, How to Date a Nerd. She was the cranky, bratty little sister, only 14 at the time. Of course, some of our impressions of her were skewed, because we were seeing her through her big sister's eyes.

Sierra did something really dumb two years ago. Because high school can be an evil place, no one has ever let her forget it. Some would call it being bullied and would shrink into themselves, or worse. Sierra is stronger than we realized, though, and still marches on day after day, in spite of it all. She has her close friends, and a massive crush on her sister's hottie friend who is in the band.

Levi has been lovable since the first book, because he isn't shallow. He's the kind of guy that everyone knows and respects. Sure, he's a band geek, but he's a hot one and doesn't act like it. He has a big heart and just wants to do right by everyone.

The two of them together make a fun match. Sierra can be your stereotypical teen girl who freaks out over the hot man and plots ways for them to run into each other. Yes, she may do a bit of stalking. She doesn't seem to be crazy obsessive, though. You are going to smack your forehead with a few of her antics, but she wouldn't be herself without them. Levi does seem almost too good to be true at times, but he is hiding a deep secret. Sometimes being this wonderful young man who cares too much can be overwhelming at times.

You're going to find characters that you recognize from your own high school days in this book. You'll even hear about some situations that are scary to think of happening in schools. (I am thinking of a particular party.) The fundamental high school experience seems to be the same, twenty years later, just higher stakes and more dangerous events.

This has been a fun series to read. I eagerly anticipate book 3 and also want to check out some of Cassie Mae's other titles!

Blurb:

Anonymous Zoe has a great pair of legs, perky boobs, and wears exactly what she needs to show it all off. She works hard for the easy sleazy ‘you only wish you were me’ reputation, burying who she really is—an all-out nerd. The only time Zoe gets to be herself is when she hides under her comforter to read X-Men comics, sending jealousy stabs at everyone who attends Comic-Con. Keeping up her popular rep is too important, and she’s so damn insecure to care about the consequences. But when Zoe’s sister takes her car for a ‘crash and burn into a tree’ joyride, her parents get her a replacement. A manual. Something she doesn’t know how to operate, but her next door neighbor Zak sure as heck does. Zak’s a geek to the core, shunned by everyone in school for playing Dungeons and Dragons at lunch and wearing “Use the Force” t-shirts. And Zoe’s got it bad for the boy. Only Zak doesn’t want Popular Zoe. He wants Geek Zoe. She has to shove her insecurities and the fear of dropping a few rungs on the social ladder aside to prove to Zak who she really is and who she wants to be… if she can figure it out herself.

Available from:

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Kobo

**My thoughts**

Zoe is a mess. Sure, she looks like she has it all together on the outside. She knows how to dress to get attention. She has a new boyfriend every couple of weeks. She has all the right friends and gets invited to all the right parties and events. Inside, though, she is an utter mess. Desperate to escape her nerdy status from middle school, she has sold her soul to the fashionista devil and has turned herself plastic. She literally hides under the covers, hoping no one sees her as she reads her comics and "nerdy" books. Her new reputation has cost her the one friendship that helped her to thrive and to be herself in those younger years. And Zak has just gotten hotter, making it even more difficult to ignore him.

I felt sorry for her. I just wanted to reach into the book and shake her and tell her that it is okay to just be yourself. Those high school years aren't going to matter in the long run. But it is a learning process that she has to endure on her own.

Zak is a saint. At times, I have no idea how he puts up with Zoe's nonsense. Then again, the heart wants what it wants and is often willing to be hurt in hopes of a better payoff in the end.

The two of them go on quite a roller coaster ride of self-discovery and push the lines of friendship to the breaking point. You can't help but to root for them and may find yourself wishing for a bit of a nerd to fall in love with, yourself.

About the Author

Amazon multi-category and international bestselling author of HOW TO DATE A NERD, HOW TO SEDUCE A BAND GEEK and HOW TO HOOK A BOOKWORM

Cassie Mae is a nerd to the core from Utah, who likes to write about other nerds who find love. Her angel children and perfect husband fan her and feed her grapes while she clacks away on the keyboard. Then she wakes up from that dream world and manages to get a few words on the computer while the house explodes around her. When she’s not writing, she’s spending time with the youth in her community as a volleyball and basketball coach, or searching the house desperately for chocolate.

Cassie Mae is an Amazon.com bestselling author of the teen contemporary romance novel REASONS I FELL FOR THE FUNNY FAT FRIEND, which she self-published. In addition to publishing with Swoon Romance, she is published by Random House Flirt.

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