The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers (The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers, #1) by Lynn Weingarten

Mar 11, 2012 Jasmineluvsjb rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: march-reads

I was dieing to start another teen fiction book but I thought "If I was going to read a teen fiction book, I want it to be mixed with another genre to mix it up a little." When I read the book jacket of this book I read "witches" I thought this would be perfect. So, I started this book and it's totally way to far fetched and confusing and I hated it. The book starts with how much the main character (Lucy) described how much she loves her boyfriend, who she hasn't seen all summer. She describes h...more

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Nov 23, 2011 Heidi McLaughlin rated it 3 of 5 stars

3.5 Stars

Welcome to THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS

Ever had your heartbroken and tried to do whatever you could to win that special guy back? When Lucy’s boyfriend, Alex, breaks up with her on the first day of school, she’s in tears. She doesn’t understand why, and he’s not talking. Hiding in the bathroom with tears streaming down her face, Lucy encounters the beautiful Olivia. Olivia loans Lucy her scarf and when Lucy wipes her tears, a message appears telling Lucy to meet at midnight.

Lu...more

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May 09, 2013 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Summary:
All summer long Lucy is separated from her boyfriend Alex. She can't wait until the school year starts so that they can start their romance once again. However, once school starts Alex has lost that loving feeling and dumps Lucy. How can she possibly go through school with a broken heart? She runs to the girls bathroom and sobs her heart out, but another girl comes to her rescue. Olivia, a senior, invites Lucy over to her house to help her get over her heartbreak. In spite of herself, Lu...more Summary:
All summer long Lucy is separated from her boyfriend Alex. She can't wait until the school year starts so that they can start their romance once again. However, once school starts Alex has lost that loving feeling and dumps Lucy. How can she possibly go through school with a broken heart? She runs to the girls bathroom and sobs her heart out, but another girl comes to her rescue. Olivia, a senior, invites Lucy over to her house to help her get over her heartbreak. In spite of herself, Lucy is intrigued enough to join Olivia.

At Olivia's house, Lucy meets Liza and Gil. With a touch of magic, these girls test Lucy and challenge her to make someone fall in love with her and then break his heart. Apparently, the only way to get over a heart break is to break someone else's heart. Lucy decides to make Alex fall back in love with her and she just won't break his heart. Unfortunately for Lucy, Alex is not interested. Others definitely are though. Lucy begins to change a lot. Other than her endless attempts to win Alex back, her attitude changes, she ditches her best friend. Tristan, the yummy best friend, puts up with her new self and still remains the strong best friend that is really there for her.

My thoughts:
I'm very mixed on this book. It moves very quickly. For the most part, the writing was good. I got into the book after about two chapters and definitely wanted to find out what Lucy was going to do. The Sisterhood is a typical clique. I suppose this is why the character development is a little thin. With the few exceptions of lengthy sermons, Olivia, Liza, and Gil are not very interesting. If you see any clique movies, you have the basic development of each of these girls. I'm not clear on why they decide to include Lucy in their group. The purpose of this induction bothered me. If three popular girls all of a sudden wanted me to hang out with them, then I would probably ask the "why me" question. This is just not answered, which is disappointing because it would have added another layer to the girls.

I was also a little disappointed with the ending. I know there is another book to come, but with the growth of confidence in Lucy I was hoping to feel good at the end of the book. It was actually fairly sad. I haven't decided if I'm going to read the next book yet, but for the most part Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers was a fun tale about getting over a not so great guy and learning about yourself in the process. Besides didn't all of us wan a little magic to break hearts in high school? (less)

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Mar 25, 2013 Cialina (Muggle-Born) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, library, read-ebook

Originally posted at: http://muggle-born.net/the-secret-sis...

THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS by Lynn Weingarten requires readers to suspend their disbelief. The novel is contemporary sprinkled with a dash of magic.

I have a like/hate relationship with THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS. I knew that coming in I would not like any of the characters. They’re cruel and insanely bitchy, but this is one of those books that I was willing to give the characters a chance to make it up to me. T...more Originally posted at: http://muggle-born.net/the-secret-sis...

THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS by Lynn Weingarten requires readers to suspend their disbelief. The novel is contemporary sprinkled with a dash of magic.

I have a like/hate relationship with THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS. I knew that coming in I would not like any of the characters. They’re cruel and insanely bitchy, but this is one of those books that I was willing to give the characters a chance to make it up to me. They didn’t.

Lucy, the protagonist, is a little naive and a little obsessed with her ex-boyfriend. The moment we are introduced to Alex, I knew that he is Bad News. The boy is clearly not in love with Lucy, but she doesn’t see that. He wasn’t worth all the effort, and it was clearly a lost cause. But Lucy is determined to win him back, so she turns a blind eye against his flaws for the majority of the book. Worst of all, she’s a terrible best friend to Tristan. While he is always there for her in the book, Lucy is quick to abandon him when Olivia and her friends take her in. Lucy doesn’t really feel remorse towards how badly she treated Tristan – disappointing because he was one of the very few likeable characters in the novel.

The mission of the Sisterhood is pretty vindictive and cruel. This book is basically teaching teenagers that boys are their playthings. They are there for you to flirt and date, but when you get tired of them, they are disposable. Um, what the hell? I’m sorry, but just because a boy breaks your heart, it does not mean that it gives you the right to break the heart of others for fun. Weingarten attempts to give her characters a conscience, but it fails hard. I don’t buy it at all that the characters have a bit of compassion in them.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed Weingarten’s writing style – so much that I ended up reading this book in one sitting. I think partially that this has to do with the fact that I wanted to know if the characters were going to disappoint me. I had to know, and I couldn’t put the book down. THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS is a breezy read.

Despite being a quick and breezy read, THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS by Lynn Weingarten is not the kind of book I would recommend. In fact, I am making quite sure that my younger cousins stay far away from this book. And to think that this is the first in a series… (less)

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Jun 18, 2012 kari rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, ya

I think it's the message here that perhaps bothers me the most. The idea that having a heartbreak is so awful that one would then choose to never love again, to instead go around doing exactly what was done to you, seems assinine, childish and mean.
At first I thought this was going to be about finding her own power and seeing that anyone can be beautiful if they think they are and feel love for others, that it is the emotion going out that really matters and I thought, wow, that is a powerful t...more I think it's the message here that perhaps bothers me the most. The idea that having a heartbreak is so awful that one would then choose to never love again, to instead go around doing exactly what was done to you, seems assinine, childish and mean.
At first I thought this was going to be about finding her own power and seeing that anyone can be beautiful if they think they are and feel love for others, that it is the emotion going out that really matters and I thought, wow, that is a powerful thought. But then it gets lost as Lucy gets a makeover and starts toying with a boy's emotions just because she can.
There are side bits about Lucy singing, which I didn't feel actually connected in any way with the rest of the story. Maybe if she hadn't had all the focus on Alex, I'd have thought that singing was more important to her. As it was, I just thought it was all aimed at him and didn't really matter to her since she didn't ever even sing for him. I thought all the singing stuff was odd and put in to show that there was depth to her, that she had her own interests, but I didn't buy it.
There's also the message that for someone to love you that you need to be what they need, whether that's someone to share their interests or someone to cheer them on or someone to challenge them. Hey, what about simply being yourself and letting someone who finds you intersting come to you? But then again, none of these girls are actually intersted in finding love, but only in damaging boys who don't much deserve it. I didn't like Lucy and I didn't like her new friends. And I got very tired of reading about her mangled heart. Yuck.
Also, at the end, Lucy feels so sorry for her parents that their relationship is the way it is, like she is so much smarter than they are, becoming a heartbreaker. Who is she, at the age of fifteen and one ex-boyfriend, to judge them?
I don't know if there will be more to the story at some point in which Lucy will realize she has become a nasty little hot all-the-boys-want-me mess. I guess I hope so because the ending here was just terrible or perhaps I should say the lack of ending. Lucy hurts someone who doesn't deserve it and then she has the nerve, the unfeeling audacity to smile at him and say, "hey, let's find you a girlfriend." Does she not remember a week ago when her heart was broken over her boyfriend? Did she want to go find someone new? What the heck is wrong with her?
I don't think Lucy actually did find out anything about love. I know that's what we're supposed to think, that now she is this wise, sassy girl that understands love. I don't think so. When faced with real love, not the nonsense infatuation she had with Alex and not the manufactured love she's been taught by the heartbreakers, she turns it down without even pausing to consider whether it could be the real deal. She doesn't even think about it, whether love from someone who actually knows you, with all your faults and fears, that this person might be someone you'd want to love instead of shutting up your hard little heart forever. This felt very wrong. I hoped that maybe when offered love, she just might realize that heartbreaking isn't going to make her happy. Can you imagine living your life without loving anyone? Ever? I guess she can.
Last, but certainly not least, the only character I liked ends up being treated the worst. I'll leave it at that.
Even as a nonsensical piece of fluff this isn't good. Don't bother with this one.(less)

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Jun 12, 2012 Liviania rated it 4 of 5 stars

Lynn Weingarten made a splash with her terrific debut WHEREVER NINA LIES. Weingarten explores some of the same themes in THE SECRET SISTERHOOD OF HEARTBREAKERS, but she does so in a different genre and with plenty of twists.

Lucy Wrenn just got dumped. She spent all summer pining after Alex and first day of school . . . dumped. But popular classmates Olivia, Gil, and Liza come to her with an offer. If she can make a guy fall in love with her in a week and then break his heart, then she can have m...more

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Jun 11, 2012 Shanzy rated it 3 of 5 stars

The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers has me torn for multiple reasons. First of all, the sisterhood was original, and I really liked Olivia, Gil and Liza (though the descriptions of Liza as “big” didn’t really make sense to me). When I started reading this book I was expecting more of a cutesy contemporary YA romance where the heroine goes through a few trials before winning back the boy she loves. It was that kind of story in some ways, but it had a lot more magic than I thought it would (in...more

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Apr 26, 2012 Hilary rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: chic-lit, contemporary-fiction, teen

On the first day of her Sophmore year Alex brakes Lucy's heart. She isn't expecting it and she feels like an idiot. While crying in the bathroom she is approached by a girl she hasn't really noticed before and given a piece of silk to wipe her tears with. The silk reveals a secret message inviting her to become a member of the Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers. Becoming a member will mean that she will never feel the pain of heartbreak again. To become a member, though, she must first break a h...more

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Mar 10, 2012 Knk7 rated it 3 of 5 stars

Quick summary: Lucy Wrenn's boyfriend breaks up with her the same day she plans to tell him that she's ready to sleep with him. Lucy is completely shocked over the unexpected dumping, and gets her heart broken. She meets 3 girls who offer her magic as well as healing her broken heart. The catch: Lucy must break a heart of someone else in seven days.

Plot: The plot is certainly interesting. The magic in the story is cool, and I thought it was explained pretty well. The Heartbreakers are able to m...more Quick summary: Lucy Wrenn's boyfriend breaks up with her the same day she plans to tell him that she's ready to sleep with him. Lucy is completely shocked over the unexpected dumping, and gets her heart broken. She meets 3 girls who offer her magic as well as healing her broken heart. The catch: Lucy must break a heart of someone else in seven days.

Plot: The plot is certainly interesting. The magic in the story is cool, and I thought it was explained pretty well. The Heartbreakers are able to make their magic potions by using tears cried by someone with a broken heart. This does sound a bit mean-spirited... but I think it makes Lucy's predictament that much more interesting as she debates whether or not to become part of the sisterhood.

Writing: I really enjoyed the author's writing style. The author (Lynn Weingarten) is very good with metaphors and descriptions of people and places, making the imagery quite good. The last few chapters of the book are written particularly well, and I felt that, as a reader, I was able to really empathize with certain characters.

Characters: Lucy Wrenn is our lead. She's kind-hearted, shy, and a bit naive. I know many readers didn't care for her character, and I can see why. She spends most of the book being obsessed with Alex, her first and only boyfriend, who obviously cares little to nothing about Lucy despite she's head-over-heals in love with him. She can easily be preceived as a weak, desperate character. However, Lucy did have her moments. She refused to be friends with the magical girls

The Heartbreakers (the magical girls Lucy slowly befriends) are Olivia, Gil, and Liza. Olivia is the mysterious leader who first reaches out to Lucy. Sweet Gil is friendly and kind toward Lucy, while beautiful Liza is the opposite. Some may not like Liza's character because she can be cruel, but I sort of thought she was interesting. There's more to her than just being mean.

My favorite character was Tristan, Lucy's insomniac best friend who spends his nights driving around town playing his harmonica and meeting new people. Tristan is funny, kind, and a much better friend to Lucy than Lucy is to him. He is involved in a big twist toward the end of the story, and the whole thing just makes me like him more.

There are also a few side characters that are fun, such as the Heartbreakers' quirky friends.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, especially the final ten chapters or so. It had it's flaws, but the writing style and memorable characters are certainly enjoyable. I did find myself wanting a sequel, which is always a good sign.

Final rating: 3/5(less)

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Mar 04, 2012 BAYA Librarian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Lucy can’t wait for the first day of sophomore year; expecting her beloved boyfriend Alex to return from summer camp, she’ll let him know she’s ready to take their relationship to that next level. But the day marks not just the beginning of a new school year, but the end of her first love, when Alex abruptly breaks up with her, sending her sobbing to the shelter of the girls’ restroom. Within moments, Lucy is approached by a group of beautiful and mysterious upper who invite her to join their se...more Lucy can’t wait for the first day of sophomore year; expecting her beloved boyfriend Alex to return from summer camp, she’ll let him know she’s ready to take their relationship to that next level. But the day marks not just the beginning of a new school year, but the end of her first love, when Alex abruptly breaks up with her, sending her sobbing to the shelter of the girls’ restroom. Within moments, Lucy is approached by a group of beautiful and mysterious upper who invite her to join their secret clique – or is it a coven? – and never again be jilted by love.

Struggling with a dysfunctional family and few friends – just her best bud, Tristan – Lucy latches on to these wild girls who can offer her power over love – but only if she breaks a heart in the next seven days. Lucy plays along, hoping she can muster the courage to use the Sisterhood’s magic – not to join the group of Heartbreakers – but to lure Alex back. Along the way she learns many truths about herself – sometimes unpleasant and hard to accept – and about her friends and family. But she also starts to recognize her inner beauty and bravery and gains the confidence to believe in herself – even in her desire to sing and perform music – a talent she kept hidden from everyone. The Sisterhood teaches her subtle ways to manipulate and to avoid being manipulated, to overcome her fears, to trust her instincts, and to be her own person without living in someone else's shadow.

Although the motives of the Sisterhood are convoluted, alternating between stamping out injustices, seeking inner love and harmony, throwing wild, booze-infused parties with hipsters and jet-setters, and carrying on the traditions of the legacy of Sisters past – and her awkward, befuddled relationship with Tristan seems an afterthought – the revelation Lucy experiences in the action-packed week shows the reader not just a girl transformed by magic, but a girl throwing aside convention and fear to find out who she really is and how to find her own way in the world. The characters are unique and artfully developed and the lively pacing makes this an enjoyable supernatural (anti-)romance, fitting nicely into the genre of high school covens (Libba Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty comes to mind, as well as the 1996 movie, “The Craft”). Mature language and themes make this a selection for older teens.
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Jan 30, 2012 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: magic-magicians, clubs, witches, ya-fiction, school, romance, love-story

It's Lucy's first day of sophomore year and she can't wait see her boyfriend who's been away in Colorado all summer. But, Alex has other plans... he breaks up with her the moment he sees her. Lucy is devastated and thinks of nothing else but winning him back. Enter three gorgeous, confident, slightly wicked upperclassmen...Gil, Olivia, and Liza. They seem to have every boy at their beck and call. And, they want Lucy to join their little club...The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers.

If Lucy passe...more

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Jan 22, 2012 Wendy Hines rated it 4 of 5 stars

Lucy Wrenn hasn't seen her boyfriend Alex all summer, as he's been in Colorado. She's really excited on the first day school, because she will finally get to see him. When she does, he surprises her by breaking up with her. Her heart broken, she isn't sure how she is going to survive first period, let alone the rest of her life.

Sobbing her heart out in the bathroom, a beautiful senior, Olivia, enters and offers her handkerchief and an invitation to her home if she wants her to help her. Lucy isn...more Lucy Wrenn hasn't seen her boyfriend Alex all summer, as he's been in Colorado. She's really excited on the first day school, because she will finally get to see him. When she does, he surprises her by breaking up with her. Her heart broken, she isn't sure how she is going to survive first period, let alone the rest of her life.

Sobbing her heart out in the bathroom, a beautiful senior, Olivia, enters and offers her handkerchief and an invitation to her home if she wants her to help her. Lucy isn't sure what Olivia can do to cure a broken heart but she is intrigued and willing to do anything.

That evening, Lucy meets Olivia at her house, as well as Liza and Gil, the Secret Sisterhood of the Heartbreakers. They tell Lucy that in order for her heart to heal, she needs the tears of another brokenhearted. Only then will she received the magic to cure her heart. Basically, she has to make someone fall in love with her in seven days and then break their heart.

Lucy privately thinks that it's just what she needs - something to get Alex to fall back in love with her. She just won't break his heart. But no matter what she tries, Alex brushes her off. The girls make-over Lucy and she has new confidence, boys are paying attention to her. She begins acting different, shrugging off invites from her best friend and still trying to come up with a way for Alex to remember he loves her. When she passes a test the sisters give her, Lucy decides she wants nothing to do with them and their magic anymore. However, the heart works in mysterious ways and Lucy isn't prepared for what happens next. It sets her whole world atilt.

The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers is a mesmerizing tale of new love, growing up, cliques and a splash of magic. With twists and turns, the story remains fresh and entertaining throughout to the surprising ending. The characters are compelling and modern, with only a spattering of cursing and adult situations, making this enthralling story suitable for older teenagers or adults alike.
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Jan 04, 2012 Alisha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: amazon-vine, arc-s, fantasy, favorites, young-adult

Itty Bitty Shallow Alert: I totally picked up The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers because I loved the cover (I know, I know... But it's purty). That being said, I didn't have high expectations for The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers. The premise of the book just made it seem very shallow (like the Gossip Girl books) that had the cover not been so mystifying (and sparkly), I would've just kept scrolling down my Amazon Vine Newsletter. But the cover was mystifying and sparkly and therefore,...more Itty Bitty Shallow Alert: I totally picked up The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers because I loved the cover (I know, I know... But it's purty). That being said, I didn't have high expectations for The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers. The premise of the book just made it seem very shallow (like the Gossip Girl books) that had the cover not been so mystifying (and sparkly), I would've just kept scrolling down my Amazon Vine Newsletter. But the cover was mystifying and sparkly and therefore, I read The Secret Sistherhood of Heartbreakers and I'm so very glad I did.

In the full interest of disclosure, I'm going to say that the main character, Lucy, is the type of girl I despise. You know, the type who's always hung up on her boyfriend and is clingy, whiny, and a tad bit obsessive (Yeah chicks, deal. It's not cute nor attractive in the least)? Well, that was Lucy. But for some really strange reason, she didn't annoy me the way a character (or real life person) like that usually annoys me. For some reason, I understood where she was coming from and why she was acting the way she was. Not because of her boyfriend (or ex-boyfriend) cause God knows he was no prize and was a total tool, but mostly because she was being clingy due to massive insecurity which, let's face it, we girls are almost always plagued with at one time or another. Now, I'm not saying that Lucy was endearing by any means because she wasn't, but I felt that there was more to her than the typical clingy, whiny girl that can't stop talking about her boyfriend because she loves that attention.

Now, again, the reason The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers was such a massive surprise was because I thought it was going to be all fluffy (and again shallow) and a bit on the juvenile side (moreso than your typical YA novel), but that wasn't the case. Don't get me wrong, the book did have it's fluffy and light-hearted parts, but it was also a bit on the deep side. There was an underlying message that girls should be who they are and be confident about who they are because who they are has the potential to be great. This book is sort of "YAY us girls" and I liked that about it. That's not saying that it's all "Screw guys!" because it's not. I just felt that there was a small sense of empowerment in The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers that you don't tend to see in the fluffy YA novels (but are all the rage in the post-apocalyptic/dystopian YA novels).

The magic in The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers was a bit understated. I mean, it's no Charmed (which is my favorite show ever so everything I ever talk about will eventually come full circle to talking about Charmed again) with magic looming left and right, but again, this is something I liked about it because it still gave the book an air of mystery even when I was reaching the end. I felt that there are still many unanswered questions about the Heartbreakers, but not an annoying "this book seems unfinshed way", but rather in a "I can't WAIT to find out more about them in the next book" kind of way.

Speaking of the Heartbreakers, another thing I loved about this book was that all of the initial Heartbreakers were so different from one another. Eli is the sweet one (which is sort of baffling when you consider she is a heartbreaker), Liza is the one you love to hate, and Olivia is the one you don't know crap about, so that makes her immediately a bit scary cause you don't know what makes her snap. And before you get all "Dude, they're heartbreakers. That's so NOT cool", let me say this: these Heartbreakers only break the hearts of the guys who truly deserve it (i.e. the tools of the world). So, that makes you root for the Heartbreakers even more.

Long story, short: Pick up The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers in 2012. Make it the last book you will ever read if those rumors of the world ending are true. It's dazzling, mystifying, funny, fluffy with shadings of deep attached to it (the book, not the world that may be ending). Plus, it's an incredibly quick read (read it in one sitting) and that makes it THAT much better. (less)

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Nov 21, 2011 Isabel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Lucy's life changes dramatically and her character's growth is magnificent throughout the novel. She goes from heartbroken and uncertain of herself in every way to dealing with her problems in a manner that strengthens her emotionally. Lucy did have the help of magic, but there actually isn't much of that at all. The most powerful magic is the one Lucy believes she has inside of her. The message of this book is having confidence and self-esteem and as corny as I make it sound, this book is amazi...more

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Nov 19, 2011 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars

See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: First, I love the cover art! Second and probably more importantly, I had heard some mixed reviews about this book. Other bloggers I know and have talked to seem to be split 50/50 about their feelings. I was fully expecting it to be a love or hate kind of book. I try not to let other people’s opinions determine how I am going to feel though when I sit down to read a book. I started it with an open mind and hoped f...more See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: First, I love the cover art! Second and probably more importantly, I had heard some mixed reviews about this book. Other bloggers I know and have talked to seem to be split 50/50 about their feelings. I was fully expecting it to be a love or hate kind of book. I try not to let other people’s opinions determine how I am going to feel though when I sit down to read a book. I started it with an open mind and hoped for the best.

Characters and Plot: I think since I had prepared myself for major disappointment, I actually enjoyed myself with this one. I think some other people have been very harsh and have maybe misunderstood what the author was trying to do with the story.

I knew I was going to hate Lucy. Even in the book synopsis, she sounds like a total witch (to put it nicely). Right from the start I couldn’t stand her. I just had some major issues with this character. She was incredible naive and pathetic. Her live basically revolves around her ex-boyfriend, who basically treated her like a dog. If Lucy had been a real person, I would of wanted to shake her and tell her to move on and get over it, the guy isn’t worth it. She almost becomes stalker-like. We all know someone like Lucy, someone that just can’t seem to leave the past behind, even if they were mentally or physically abused. I think that Lucy just didn’t know who she really was. I’m going to refer to her as a chameleon, a person who can change themselves to match their environment. Although, everyone who reads my blog knows I can’t stand a weak character, but with what I believe the author was trying to convey with this story, Lucy fit the bill.

I can’t really say that I liked the female characters in this story. The guys were pretty cool though! Tristan and Colin were my favorites and I think I would have liked to have seen them displayed more prominently then being secondary characters.

What I liked about this book were the hidden life lessons sprinkled throughout the story. In many ways, I believe it’s the themes of the story that make Lucy the way she is. The book talks a lot about self love and learning to accept who you are instead of trying to be someone you are not. There is this whole theme of beauty and believing that you are beautiful and not caring what others are thinking. I think that learning to love yourself first so you can really love other people is an incredible message, and it can be found in this story if you look hard enough. At face-value, the book comes across as being shallow, but by the end of the book, everything sort of came together and it all made sense.

Final Thoughts: I wasn’t crazy about the way the book ended, but that is just my opinion. I do think if you can get past Lucy being a completely annoying character, this isn’t a bad book. It’s not going to be for everyone since it does have its hang-ups. I struggled a little bit to make it through to the end to be honest. Lucy was a very hard character to connect with. I do think the author has a talent for writing and that she is, technically speaking, very good. The pace was well done and it was an easy read. I wouldn’t mind reading more from this author in the future. (less)

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Oct 23, 2011 Vanessa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc

Wasn't sure what to expect from this book. I'd read a couple of descriptions on book blogs and it sounded like a light fun guilty pleasure sort of read (and hey, there's nothing wrong with that!) I wasn't prepared to love it and actually find parts of it really smart and wise and meaningful in a I-feel-like-I-learned-something-about-life sort of way.

The book starts off on the first day of Lucy's sophomore year. She's standing out front of her school waiting for her boyfriend who's been away all...more Wasn't sure what to expect from this book. I'd read a couple of descriptions on book blogs and it sounded like a light fun guilty pleasure sort of read (and hey, there's nothing wrong with that!) I wasn't prepared to love it and actually find parts of it really smart and wise and meaningful in a I-feel-like-I-learned-something-about-life sort of way.

The book starts off on the first day of Lucy's sophomore year. She's standing out front of her school waiting for her boyfriend who's been away all summer and she is bouncing around crazy excited (in a way that felt very real to me because, well, I might have been in a similar situation once or twice!). Anyway, he dumps her and she's heartbroken. I liked the writing at this point and felt like it felt very "real" (as a person who has had her heart broken it is definitely like this) but I sort of thought the story might turn boring and cliche then (I mean, how many breakup books can a person read! Sometimes they're fun if *you've* just gotten dumped, or else they can just be depressing. Anyway). Instead, she meets The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers (referred to as the SSH throughout the book, which I somehow did not realize is supposed to sound like the shushing sound until the very end. Ha ha. Oops). They tell her that they can mend her broken heart and make it so it'll never be broken again, all she has to do is this -- break a boy's heart within the next 7 days. Lucy is like, HUH? That's not possible. And they're like, YUP. And they can help her. Oh, and by the way, they're magical.

So Lucy agrees to try to learn how to win a boy ostensibly to find one and break his heart and become one of them. What she's *really* doing is trying to learn their boy-getting tricks to win back her ex. Anyway...I won't tell you too much of the rest of the plot because you should just read it. What I will say is that it is a good mix of fun, sweet, and actually sort of informative in the how-to-win-boys department (I thought all the "tips" Lucy learns would be typical corny "girl" magazine stuff but it wasn't).

As for stuff about the characters -- I'd like to say that I can't relate to Lucy at all because of how sooooo in love with her boyfriend she is. Like, whatever he says she'll do (this is all told in flashbacks by the way). Like, I consider myself a feminist and think you should be your own person when you're dating someone, but there have definitely been times when I've been as crazy-fawny-will-do-anything-for-him about a guy as Lucy is for Alex and I'm not proud of that but it is true. And I think this is sort of one of those things that everyone has gone through at some point and no one wants to admit it. (At least I hope so, or else I'm just weird ;p) And that part of the book was especially well done. So, yeah, Lucy was relatable and likeable and I felt for the girl. But I was also very glad when she learned things from the SSH and she started to change. (And I guess that's sort of the point -- that she's kind of silly in the beginning and then she learns some things). Lots of fun stuff happens in this book and I won't give it away but there is definitely some damn-I-wish-I-could-do-that-stuff in here. (I think my main criticism of the book is that I wish there'd been maybe a little bit more cool magicy stuff...although I guess the non-magicy stuff was sometimes cooler since it can be applied to real life).

I like the rest of the characters, some more than others. I wish there'd been a bit more of Tristan because he was my favorite. The ending is fun and the way it ends there is obviously going to be a book 2. A couple chapters before the ending I kind of guessed what was going to happen (or, well, it was one of a few things I thought might happen anyway).
(less)

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Oct 21, 2011 Kan rated it 3 of 5 stars

This one was lukewarm for me. Mainly because I didn’t care much for Lucy. She was the annoying girl who was obsessed with her boyfriend at the start of the story, then she becomes a pliable girl that I can’t really know. Each time I thought she would become a character I could like she quickly fell back into line with the other heartbreakers. I really didn’t have a clear picture of Lucy in my head. One of the other characters described her as blank, saying she could be anyone. I felt much the sa...more This one was lukewarm for me. Mainly because I didn’t care much for Lucy. She was the annoying girl who was obsessed with her boyfriend at the start of the story, then she becomes a pliable girl that I can’t really know. Each time I thought she would become a character I could like she quickly fell back into line with the other heartbreakers. I really didn’t have a clear picture of Lucy in my head. One of the other characters described her as blank, saying she could be anyone. I felt much the same, I had no idea what she looked like, whether she was average sized, tall or short or curvy or slim. It’s hard to care about a blank character.

I really liked the guys in this story much more than the girls. Tristan, Colin, and Paisley are the characters I liked the most, and they were all secondary at best. They were all likeable in their own ways and characters I would have loved to read about, while Lucy and the girls were less so. Of the girls Lucy was less likeable to me than the others because they knew where they stood and weren’t being pushed and pulled by others, even though we never really got to know the other heartbreakers either.

I like that there are some good lessons in the book if you look for them. The girls talk a lot about the perceptions of attractiveness and that the way you see yourself is self taught. I like that they go in depth about how a girl believing she’s unattractive stems from her own ideas about herself, and that she won’t really Know what others see and hear when they are with her. If they let go of all of the hang-ups comparing themselves to others and start to simply be their best self and recognize that they are beautiful they will be seen as beautiful as well. I think that more young girls need to hear that it’s not about comparing themselves to others and being More or Less than anyone else, so I love that this book put a lot of focus on that.

I really did not like the end of this one at all. I won’t say whether she became part of the sisterhood or not, but the book ended on a flat note. I felt that Lucy’s decision and what happened to her should have mattered more to her than it did. Somehow it was almost an afterthought that oh, ya, and this happened so there you go.

I’m split on this story, since it is a great concept and I love the way the author talks about beauty not being about comparisons. Yet there were the issues I had with Lucy and the end of the story. Overall… I liked it but it wasn’t a Must Read. I liked her other book, Wherever Nina Lies, much better actually.(less)

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Aug 30, 2012 Bristol Public Library System rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-main-libary

This seems to be a book that people love or hate. I may be the lone voice that rides somewhere in the middle. There were parts of it that were a little corny and it was, at times, a bit predictable, but I appreciated the originality of the story line.
When Lucy's boyfriend breaks up with her on the first day of school, Olivia finds her crying in the bathroom. Olivia extends an invitation to Lucy to join her later that evening where she can help fix what is upsetting her so much. Turns out, Oliv...more

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Apr 10, 2012 Jodi Papazian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-reads

This seems to be a book that people love or hate. I may be the lone voice that rides somewhere in the middle. There were parts of it that were a little corny and it was, at times, a bit predictable, but I appreciated the originality of the story line.
When Lucy's boyfriend breaks up with her on the first day of school, Olivia finds her crying in the bathroom. Olivia extends an invitation to Lucy to join her later that evening where she can help fix what is upsetting her so much. Turns out, Oliv...more

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Dec 27, 2011 Kelly Hager rated it 3 of 5 stars

Lucy is completely in love with her boyfriend, Alex---so much so that she's decided that when he gets back from vacation, they're going to have sex for the first time (her first time, period, not just with Alex). And then he breaks up with her. She's devastated, so when three beautiful girls tell her that she doesn't have to be upset anymore, she grabs at the chance. What they're offering, though, is completely unusual. They're part of an exclusive club, the Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers. I...more

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Jan 08, 2012 Akanksha aKa Axe aKa Da_Bibliophile rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: loved-it, ya, witches-wizards-and-magic, books-you-ve-got-to-read-softy

My first read of the year and I FLLIPIN' loved it!!!!!! Awesome book!!!! So this book is about this girl who's in love with a guy called Alex...the story starts when Alex dumps our protagonist. She's heartbroken as her world revolved around him. Which is when a couple of girls contact her and ask her to join a secret society called the Secret Sisterhood Of Heart breakers. they ask her to break a guy's heart within seven days of her own heartbreak and bring them his tears. They'll use those tears...more

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Dec 11, 2011 Sophia (The Book Basement) rated it 3 of 5 stars

On the very first day of Lucy's sophomore year, she is broken up with by her [jerk] boyfriend, Alex, with whom she's deeply in love. It's sudden and shocking and Lucy doesn't know how she's going to go on with her life. However, when she's bawling in the girls restroom, a senior named Olivia, brings her a magical orange silk cloth for Lucy to wipe her tears with, and thus, Lucy's journey to become a Heartbreaker begins.

I was really excited for this book for two reasons, one more superficial th...more On the very first day of Lucy's sophomore year, she is broken up with by her [jerk] boyfriend, Alex, with whom she's deeply in love. It's sudden and shocking and Lucy doesn't know how she's going to go on with her life. However, when she's bawling in the girls restroom, a senior named Olivia, brings her a magical orange silk cloth for Lucy to wipe her tears with, and thus, Lucy's journey to become a Heartbreaker begins.

I was really excited for this book for two reasons, one more superficial than the other: (1) it sounded really fun and cute! (2) the cover was so pretty. However, after reading this book, I think it's safe to say that I was kind of disappointed.

Lucy, our protagonist, was one of my main problems. To put it nicely, she was the epitome of a heartbroken teenager. To put it harshly, she was pathetic. She was confused and lost and threw herself at Alex, thinking he still liked her when he obviously didn't. Lucy was just plain naive and to be truthful, it bugged me. Maybe it was because I couldn't relate to her, no matter how hard I tried.

The Secret Sisterhood consists of Olivia, Liza and Gil. I don't really think any of the characters--especially those not a part of the Sisterhood--were developed. At first, I really loved the concept of the Sisterhood but as the book progressed, I felt like sometimes, they were just really mean. I understand that heartbroken tears are what activate their magic but the thought of all those boys' broken hearts was sad to think about. I suppose that the Sisterhood does have its morals, but they were a bit cruel.

One thing I really couldn't get into was Lynn Weingarten's writing. I don't really know why. I guess it was just too descriptive and blunt. It wasn't humorous or fun, as I thought it'd be. It was really straightforward and I didn't especially enjoy it. The plot is set over the course of seven days. It's strange because sometimes, the plot is unraveling very quickly and other times, it seemed to drag. However, it was interesting and did keep my attention.

The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers is a magical tale that's splashed with friendship, love and self-discovery. I would recommend it to fans of Robin Palmer.

3 keys.

Sophia
The Book Basement (less)

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Dec 07, 2011 Emma M. rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya

My Thoughts: I have a confession to make. . . I judged a book by its cover and I ended up disappointed. I had such crazy high hopes based just off of this cover and boy oh boy was I wrong. First off, what is with the language Lynn? For such a juvenile story this contains some pretty strong verbage which really indicates to me that the author doesn't quite know how to develop characters. If you want your character to appear tough or heartless yada, yada, yada then be creative! SHOW me through the...more

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Nov 05, 2012 Allyson Rida rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: bought

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

Review also on: http://chillingwithbooks.blogspot.hk/

Plot:

The plot of The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers are pretty simple, and rang true to the title. Lucy, our main character (this book was written in 3rd person POV), just got dumped by her boyfriend Alex, needless to say she was heartbroken, then something magical happened. A senior names Olivia offered her a chance to join The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers, and from then on we got to see Lucy's journey morph...more

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Dec 21, 2011 Nancy rated it 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars

I'm conflicted about this book. I've never read this author before but I will tell you that her writing is GOOD. Her understanding of the art of love, flirting, playing on heartstrings, and the deeper issue of fear is EXCELLENT! Honestly, there were some incredibly good nuggets of wisdom within the pages. The writing style is clear, humor written well, heartbreak and other feelings very well described, and the objectivity in describing matters of the heart is absolutely phenomenal.

Why...more

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Jun 26, 2012 Lizz rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Young Adult/Young Teenaged Girls

Shelves: break-ups, likeable-cover-art, love, read-in-summer-2012, teenagers, young-adult

Summary from Good Reads

If there’s an upside to having your heart broken, it’s this: A broken heart makes you brave.

The first day of sophomore year doesn’t go the way Lucy planned. After a summer apart from her boyfriend, she’s ready to greet him with a special surprise and instead gets a shocking one in return: He’s breaking up with her. Beyond devastated, Lucy has no idea how she’s going to make it through homeroom, let alone the rest of her life.

Enter three stunning girls with the unnatural a...more Summary from Good Reads

If there’s an upside to having your heart broken, it’s this: A broken heart makes you brave.

The first day of sophomore year doesn’t go the way Lucy planned. After a summer apart from her boyfriend, she’s ready to greet him with a special surprise and instead gets a shocking one in return: He’s breaking up with her. Beyond devastated, Lucy has no idea how she’s going to make it through homeroom, let alone the rest of her life.

Enter three stunning girls with the unnatural ability to attract boys and an offer Lucy can’t refuse: They can heal her heart in an instant. And then she’ll be one of them—a member of a sisterhood that is impervious to heartbreak and has access to magic distilled from the tears of brokenhearted boys. But to gain their power, Lucy must get a guy to fall in love with her the old-fashioned way, and then break his heart in the next seven days.

While the sisterhood may need another Heartbreaker, Lucy’s only desire is to get her ex back. But how far is she willing to go, and who is she willing to cross to get what she wants?

My Summary:

Well, when it comes down to it, the beginning pages of the book described pure heartbreak, coming back from a summer vacation, Lucy expecting to be even more in love with her boyfriend, Alex, but then he throws a bombshell, and breaks up with her, with little to no excuse at all. She is then heartbroken, and runs to the bathroom, where she is then greeted by the leader of the Secret Sisterhood, Olivia. Then, she pursues her offer, and then denies it, the sisters than become mad at her, but then Gil, one of the sisters invites her back to it, then near the end helps her.

SO My Opinion:

Lucy, is crushed, which I understand that was written well, concerning her reaction. But what I don't like is the fact, yes it was over, and I mean sometimes especially for teenaged girls is hard to grasp, (me being one of them). Otherwise, I really don't understand when she was presented with other guys that she had the chance to talk to and didn't because she was still stuck on Alex, and no matter what the sisters told her to do, which was basically, in a matter of seven days, have a boy fall in love with her, and then proceed to break his heart, collect his tears, and then make a potion to help make guys fall in love with them. With doing so she would then be a member of the Secret Sisterhood.
Overall, I thought the book was okay, the plot itself was childish and stupid, but again it's a young teenaged girl, so it's not like it would go into complete depth, so it's alright in my opinion.
2.5/5 stars. (less)

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Oct 04, 2011 Andrea rated it 3 of 5 stars

While I liked the idea of this book, there was something about the writing that just left me feeling...disappointed. I'm not sure exactly what it was. Maybe it was that to me the writing seemed kind of juvenile and cheesy. Or that was how Lucy was supposed to come across ( I know she was naive, but this was different) but it just put me off and made me not really care about her or the story.

The characters were only okay for me. As I said above, I honestly didn't care about Lucy. Yes, she got he...more

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May 02, 2012 Jessica Schira rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-challenge

This book baffled me.

I bought it because I thought the idea sounded interesting, and I really enjoyed the sample chapter I read. Okay, I also really liked the cover.

By the third chapter, I’d adapted a scrunched up puzzled face that never really went away as I continued reading.

I really liked Lucy, the MC. She’s a likable enough person who’s dealing with her first heartbreak. While her reactions seemed over the top, I’m sure there are many teenage girls who act the exact same way after losing th...more

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Nov 25, 2012 Erleen rated it 3 of 5 stars

For more book reviews, visit Books For YA!

I decided to read The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers for 3 reasons. First, I fell in love with the cover(I mean, who wouldn't). Secondly, I read that it's about a secret society of heartbreakers who can do magic. You know how I love magic and secret societies so it was definitely a must read for me. And the third and the most important reason is, I'm so tired of all the busy school works and I just needed to divert my attention from all the stress. A...more

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Jun 29, 2012 Erin Sterling rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: character, middle-school, read-in-2012, story, teen-fiction, teen-fantasy

2.5. After Lucy's heart is broken, she is approached by two extremely cool and hip girls and told to meet them at midnight in a strange place. When she does, they tell her that she can be a member of the Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers if she manages to break someone's heart within 7 days of her heart being broken. I read through it pretty quickly and it was entertaining, but I didn't love the obsessive way she thought about her ex-boyfriend (so mushy and angsty and he's not even that interes...more

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The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers (The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers #1)

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