THE STRAIGHT ROAD TO KYLIE

Best friends, booze, bodaciousness and bitch-slaps are the name of the game in this hilarious, full-on twist on the mistaken-identities conundrum. High-school senior Jonathan is the out-and-proud man about town, and everyone knows it; he’s good-looking, got money and likes the guys. But perceptions about him change after he gets too plastered at an 18th-birthday bash and winds up sleeping with one of his best girlfriends. Rumors fly, and soon Jonathan’s potentially straight persona is the front-page headline at school. Who should seek him out for hire but Carrie, the richest, most popular girl he knows. The deal? Jonathan plays straight to be her boyfriend until the end of the school year. The payoff? Carrie’s popularity skyrockets, and she agrees to take Jonathan to London, first class, to see his favorite pop star, Kylie Minogue, in concert. Averaging at least a half-dozen yuks per page, Medina’s first offering packs slick, Gossip-Girl-Goes-to-Orlando language stylings with realistic yet over-the-top situations that should have teen readers—gay or straight—doing the locomotion for more. (Fiction. YA)