There's a New Name in School (The Ashleys, Book 1)

NOTICE (July 7, 2012): The following review remains the same as when I originally wrote it, but for my opinion now on the way I wrote this review, please read "Would You Say That to My Face?," which can also be found under the tab "Musings."


Dumbest. Book. Ever. Okay, so maybe it's not, but it is the most worthless piece of fiction I've read in a long time. Why did I keep it on my shelf for three years?

There's a New Name in School (The Ashleys, Book 1) is a middle school novel by Melissa de la Cruz. There are three Ashleys in the seventh grade at Miss Gamble's Preparatory School for Girls. And there's one Lauren. The Ashleys are a club, and they have always tormented Lauren. But over the summer, Lauren's family got super rich, and Lauren got super beautiful. So, now, Lauren is going to try to become one of the Ashleys in order to take them down from the inside. The only problem is she's desperate for their approval. It's hard to take something down when all you want to do is be a part of it.

In the end, the Ashleys live on, and Lauren ruins her chances at anything. There's nothing happy or positive about this book, and I felt near sick reading about how shallow and cruel people can be. I suppose middle school is the epitome of this sometimes, but who wants to read about it if there's not going to be a happy ending? I guess this is why I've never heard of the book except for my own advance reader's copy after it came out in 2008. It's supposed to be Book 1, too. I wonder how that went?

One star. Absolute waste of time.