Review: Paper or Plastic by Vivi Barnes

Paper or Plastic 
by Vivi Barnes
Release Date: February 3rd 2015 by Entangled: Teen
Pages: 352
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult, Teen
View/Purchase: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N
Author's Links: Website, Goodreads, Twitter, Facebook

Welcome to SmartMart, where crime pays minimum wage...

Busted. Alexis Dubois just got caught shoplifting a cheap tube of lipstick at the local SmartMart. She doesn’t know what’s worse—disappointing her overbearing beauty-pageant-obsessed mother for the zillionth time…or her punishment. Because Lex is forced to spend her summer working at the store, where the only things stranger than the staff are the customers.

Now Lex is stuck in the bizarro world of big-box retail. Coupon cutters, jerk customers, and learning exactly what a “Code B” really is (ew). And for added awkwardness, her new supervisor is the totally cute—and adorably geeky—Noah Grayson. Trying to balance her out-of-control mother, her pitching position on the softball team, and her secret crush on the school geek makes for one crazy summer. But ultimately, could the worst job in the world be the best thing that ever happened to her?
(Synopsis taken from Goodreads)

Review:

Paper or Plastic was just a cute romantic read that will leave you wanting for more. 

From the very start I was intrigued with the synopsis, it sounded very promising, and it did not disappoint at all. Every single character is put in the same setting, and as readers we get to see and learn their stories as well. SmartMart is widely known for its employees, and for the events that happen there that others would find laughable. When Alexis Dubois is caught shoplifting, she only has one option if she does not want what she did in her permanent record, and that is to work there for the time being. She immediately regrets what she did, but her overbearing mother is not about to let that do until Alexis learns her lesson. What her mother does not know is that Alexis is so tired of being “perfect” that she wanted to challenged her mother, and what she got out of it was a summer job. What she also did not realized that she was about to learn just how real, and loyal everyone at SmartMart really is. 

Noah Grayson has his own problems to worry about. Even though he is smart, his reputation at school makes him nonexistent. Everyone blames him for what he did to Alexis best friend, and non one wants to be associated with him. Working at SmartMart has giving him the experience that he needs for a job, as a supervisor he knows everyone in the store, and everyone seems to like him there. It becomes a home for him, one that he is proud of. But being surrounded with so many characters in the work force, he is bound to see just about anything that could happen in the store. But when he finds out that Alexis Dubois is about to be his co-worker, things slowly start to spiral out of control when he finds out just how much he really likes her. As the two start to spend time together at work, sharing meals together, it is evident that they both want to be something more than just friends. But what is keeping them apart can hurt Alexis friendship with her best guy friend, and that is something that she is not so sure if that is what she wants. 

I absolutely loved the secondary characters in the book, they are all well thought out, and their stories are the ones that bring a little extra to the story. I enjoyed reading about Alexis work at SmartMart, it was entertaining to see her working with her co-workers. There is one employee that likes to play tricks on the customers, and other employees as well that I just found hilarious! Her interaction with Noah Grayson is sweet. He cares for her, and they have a lot in common, since their mothers are into beauty pageants and so Alexis and Noah's little sisters end up in competitions. Noah is one of those characters that has been through a lot, having an abusive dad is what drives him into working ten times harder than others just to maintain his mother, and sister. Whereas Alexis does not have a live like that, she does worry about her grandmother, who suffers from Alzheimer's. So they both suffer emotionally, and that is just one of the reasons they fit well together. Overall, I enjoyed reading Paper or Plastic, it was a cute read that I highly recommend. :)


***ARC provided by Entangled: Teen in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.***

Rating: 4.5/5

 

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