Emma Hearts LA by Keris Stainton

Publisher: Orchard
Published: 7th June 2012
Pages: 256
Synopsis:
Emma's not sure that LA's for her, but when she accompanies her sister Jane to an audition, a chance meeting with a teen TV star starts to change her new sunshine lifestyle for the better... But what about Oscar, so far her only friend in LA, who's turning out NOT to be the idiot she thought he was?

Soon Emma begins to find herself torn between two boys and reconsidering her entire future.

Maybe LA's not that bad after all.

Review:
I could not get enough of this book - literally whizzed through it! It left me with a big soppy grin on my face!

First off, Emma was a brilliant heroine - she was cool and artistic and funny and not too confident because hey, she's a teenage girl! I also really liked how she wasn't entirely sure of herself, especially after her parents divorce; made her feel more real and relatable. Oscar, of course, was adorable and incredible and awesomely nerdy! I fell for him almost instantly, especially with his love for Doctor Who t-shirts!

Alex wasn't in the book as much as I thought he would be - he wasn't much of a distraction or threat to Oscar that I was led to believe. Not that it's a bad thing, just not what I expected. Bex and her mum were also pretty damn awesome. I loved how driven Bex was towards her dream of acting and impressed with how strong their mother was, faced with a divorce and moving across the country.

I also liked the popular culture references - sometimes they can really bog down the book but these references to Big Bang Theory and Tumblr felt natural in Emma's language. Props to the good taste in TV! 

Although the focus is on Emma and Oscar, Keris brings up issues of ambition with Bex's acting and Emma's drawing, the always sensitive topic of divorce and the changes in parent-child relationships that brings. Emma distancing herself from her father unintentionally but after talks with her mother, and Oscar, she finally gets the courage to mend the gap. Approaching these issues with subtly allows the reader to come to terms with them along side Emma.

All in all, a very fun read with a lovely happy ending that every teenage girl wants.