Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Perfect Chemistry, a fictional novel written by Simone Elkeles, portrays a rocky love story between ‘perfect’ girl, Brittany Ellis, and badboy from a gang called the Latino Bloods, Alex Fuentes, in an inner battle of beating stereotypes with who they really are inside. Both with hidden secrets and explicit admirable traits, but a deeper meaning to their reputations. When teenage role model meets hardcore, they slowly discover one another behind their masks.

Alex Fuentes, or Alejandro Fuentes, is seen as a cold hard rock, but we later learn that there is more that meets the eye than his reckless behaviors. Alex’s Mexican heritage plays a huge role throughout the novel, and despite joining the Latino Bloods, he tries his hardest to stray away from the gang as much as he can. His resistance of the gang stems from his past where his father, Alejandro senior, was killed due to being within the gang. Therefore, Alex changed his name from Alejandro junior to just Alex to cut off relation to his father and the evets that occured. Due to his father’s death, Alex had to grow up very quickly as he was the oldest of his 3 brothers and would fill his father’s shoes as to not put more stress on his single mother.

Britanny, however, was the teenage role model who appeared golden to her peers and seemed to have the perfect life. She was always put together, from her head to her toes, and seemed to navigate through things gracefully along side of her popular jock boyfriend. But just like with Alex, things are not always what they seem as she struggles to balance grades with her social life and all the while concealing reality with a day-to-day flawless appearance, then coming home to take care of her disabled older sister, Shelley. To Brittany, letting her reputation of being ‘perfect’ fall to pieces would be disasterous and instead deals with all her emotions bottled up and hidden away from peoples’ sights.

Feelings unfold between the two slowly after becoming lab partners in Mrs. Peterson’s class. Brittany is afraid of Alex, but also intrigued. However, Alex just places a confident bet with his friends that he can get involved with Britanny without any effort. But they’re both tested with the deceivingness of looks and soon realize that both sides have an equal amount of flaws and issues but can be entirely opposite.