In Confessions of an Angry Girl, Rose Zarelli is, well, angry. Her father was killed in Iraq, and she has to start high school while she’s trying to figure out how to deal with grief. And then there’s Jamie Forta, who is the most confusing guy on the planet. In Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend, things get even more complicated for Rose, but she’s starting to figure out who she is and what she stands for. And so Rose’s bucket list would probably look a little something like this:
#1: Be a rock star
Rose is a total music fanatic, and she’s starting to embrace the fact that she’s a singer (even though it feels a little weird to call herself that). But she’s not the kind of singer who gets the lead in the musical or sings the solo in the school chorus (she mostly gets told by directors to be quiet and blend). No, Rose is the kind of singer who fronts a band and tears it up, surprising the heck out of everybody. And before she kicks the bucket, she’s going to be a real rock star.
#2: Get answers out of Jamie Forta
For two years now, Jamie has mystified Rose. Jamie has made it clear that he likes Rose, and he’s no coward, but he won’t let himself get close to her—there’s always something stopping him. Rose will get him to tell her why he always disappears after important things happen between them—even if she has to kidnap him and tie him to a chair. Which she might have to, given what happened between them in the parking lot recently…
#3: Watch Tracy get famous from her blog
Rose’s best friend is well on her way to a career in fashion, with a blog called The Sharp List that Rose helps her with sometimes. Tracy has always known she wanted to be in fashion, and the way she pursues her goal has served as some pretty serious inspiration for Rose to find her own thing. Rose would love to see Tracy get the big-time recognition for unique blog and her hard work that she deserves.
#4: Forgive her father for dying
It’s one thing to say you forgive—it’s another thing to do actually do it. Since her dad died, Rose has blamed her mom for her dad’s decision to go to Iraq, and herself for not stopping him from going. But Rose knows that deep down, she’s angry with her father for getting on the plane, and even angrier with him for getting killed once he was there. Rose’s shrink drives her crazy, but she may have a point when she tells Rose that holding a grudge against your father for his own death is no way to go through life.
#5: See her mom find happiness—with someone else
Just the thought of it makes her want to puke, but Rose knows that her mom is way too young to pack it in. And if she can be happy with a guy who’s not Rose’s dad, then she should do that. Eventually. Someday. Maybe soon, but preferably on the later side.
About the Book
Rose Zarelli has big plans for sophomore year—everything is going to be different. This year, she’s going to be the talented singer with the killer voice, the fabulous girl with the fashionista best friend, the brainiac who refuses to let Jamie Forta jerk her around…
…but if she’s not careful, she’s also going to be the sister who misses the signals, the daughter who can only think about her own pain, the “good girl” who finds herself in mid-scandal again (because no good deed goes unpunished) and possibly worst of all…the almost-girlfriend.
The motto for sophomore year? When all else fails, stop looking for love and go find yourself.
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About the Author
Louise Rozett is an author, a playwright, and a recovering performer. Confessions of an Angry Girl, published by HarlequinTEEN, was her debut novel. The sequel, Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend, came out June 25, 2013 — She’s pretty excited about that (as if you couldn’t tell)!
She mostly lives in one of the world’s greatest literary meccas–Brooklyn–but at the moment finds herself in Los Angeles with her giant 120-pound dog Lester. Lester is a Bernese mountain dog who is named after Lester Freamon from THE WIRE. (They considered naming him Omar but ultimately decided that that was tempting fate–you WIRE fans out there know what she’s talking about.)
