When It’s Real

A teen reluctantly agrees to pose as the girlfriend to a Justin Bieber–like pop star in order to rehab his bad boy image. Recently orphaned, 17-year-old Vaughn Bennett and her older sister, Paisley, are now responsible for taking care of their twin younger brothers; when the opportunity arises for Vaughn to be 19-year-old Oakley Ford’s public girlfriend, the jaw-dropping salary is enough to persuade her to take the gig. Oakley initially seems like the stereotypical celebrity jerk Vaughn expects him to be, but she soon gets to know the kind, sensitive person underneath the persona. Though the premise isn’t new, watching Vaughn and Oakley’s relationship evolve from angry, bitter encounters to tender ones is a pleasure, and Watt (the pseudonymous author of the Royals series) maintains enticing romantic tension from start to finish. Told through Oakley and Vaughn’s alternating points of view, this page-turning romance about an unlikely couple who overcomes the glare of the public eye, among other complications, is addictive summer reading. Ages 14–up. [em]Agent: Don Fehr, Trident Media Group. (May) [/em]