Hi everyone! Welcome to Monday; today I’m going to finally be posting my reviews of the Gossip Girl books by: Cecily von Ziegesar. I say finally because this post has been sitting in my drafts folder unfinished since July of 2016, oops 😋

It Had To Be You by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The prequel to the Gossip Girl series. If you haven’t read the series first, you may want to do that. If you’ve seen the tv show, you know enough to read this and figure out what is going on. This takes place a couple years before the show and book series starts. There is a lot of drama to go around, with a series of characters that all intertwine with each other as the story starts to unfold. There is a ton of product placement in the book because everything these A-listers do is a top brand. The writing is very addicting that you don’t want to put the book down. Overall, it’s a great and addictive read.

Gossip Girl by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The first novel in the Gossip Girl series. It’s a series about the Upper East-Siders. Serena is back from boarding school, and her secret is out, which makes her best friend Blair hate her. Dan and Jenny are trying to become one of the populars, and Chuck, well he’s just Chuck, a boy looking for attention. The novel is filled with drama from page one all the way to the last one. It was well written, and had less product placement than the prequel. It’s edgy, and has the reader reading it constantly to find out what is going to happen. Overall, it’s a great start to a series full of drama.

You Know You Love Me by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The second novel in the Gossip Girl series. This novel obviously continues where the first one left off. In this novel, more drama happens then the reader knows what to do with. The main characters, Blair, Serena, Dan, Nate, Jenny, and Vanessa all live in New York City, and whether they realize it or not, they’re all striving for the same thing, acceptance and figuring out where they fit in. College applications are coming up and the characters have their interviews. Add on top of that a massive wedding, and you’re set for a juicy novel. It’s a very addictive plotline where character’s plots intertwine with each other, and gossip is on every page. It’s seriously a novel the reader can’t put down. The novel is also so short so it’s easy to breeze through. Page after page is full of great stories, and the details the author uses just enhance the plot as well. Overall, if gossip and scandals are your type of novel, this is a novel for you.

All I Want is Everything by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The third novel in the Gossip Girl series. The gossip and drama continues taking place around Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Everyone has forgotten about school, and trying to get into a good college, it’s party time. And time for romantic dramas. Serena starts to date a musician; as much as Blair wants to forget about Nate, she tries to get him back, all the while Jenny is in love with Nate, and Nate can’t choose a girl. Dan and Vanessa are this on again off again couple where sex keeps getting in the way. There is so much drama packed into a small novel, it makes the reader question how so much drama can fit. Like the previous novels, this novel is juicy, and entertaining to read. What this novel was lacking was plot progression; the whole thing was based on relationships, and nothing else, so the story didn’t feel like it moved much. The novel still gives people the inside to the Upper East Side, which is fun to read, and the characters are pleasurable and are definitely never boring, it could have been better if it had more than just a relationship focus. Overall, this novel was not as good as the first two, but it was still a fast-paced and an enthralling read.

Because I’m Worth It by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The fourth novel in the Gossip Girl series, and man does the drama heat up. Love is in the air as Valentine’s Day hits. Not only that but our main characters are becoming famous! Serena has become this huge runway model doing ads for perfume. Dan has become a semi-famous poet going to fancy parties and gaining an agent, his girlfriend Vanessa is also going to famous parties and filming strange things. Blair finds herself with an older man, even though she’s still not over Nate, while Nate is clearly over her, hello Georgina Sparks. Jenny finds herself a little confused as her new best friend Elise comes on to her. It’s juicy and filled with fun plotlines that the reader can’t help but want to read. We also get a clue as to whom Gossip Girl can be, the mystery of who she, or possibly he, is may become a central plot in the coming novels. It’s exciting to read about and the author does a great job of keeping points of view short, witty, and strongly detailed. The characterization of each character is simply put together, that makes them memorable and exhilarating. Overall, this novel made up for the last novel’s boring relationship induced sludge, this novel definitely had a more rounded plot.

I Like it Like That by: Cecily Von Ziegesar: The fifth novel in the Gossip Girl series. It’s spring break in New York City and everyone who can afford it is heading to Sun Valley to ski. Serena and Blair go together, but don’t stay together as Serena finds comfort in Nate, and Blair finds true love with Serena’s older brother Erik. Nate brings his new girlfriend, Georgina, who seems to have a past with a certain it-girl. Back in the city, Dan is trying to make it as an poet, while his on again off again girlfriend Vanessa works out things with her parents. Jenny finds out her boyfriend Leo has a few secrets up his sleeve, while her best friend Elise wants to date her brother. It’s all a big scandal in their world. As always the novel does a good job of keeping the reader interested with its intertwining plot lines between all the characters. Each character is created and is growing and it’s fun to watch as the reader reads on. Now the plot is shifting from being all about the characters to being about gossip girl, and trying to figure out who she is. Clues are given throughout the novel, but they seem too obvious as of now. Overall, this novel was just as juicy and enticing as the first couple of novels, and this one threw in a twist, which really helped move the novel along and to give the story something new to focus on.

You’re the One That I Want by: Cecily Von Ziegesar: The sixth novel in the Gossip Girl series. Everyone is finding out what colleges they got into. Now what college everyone is going to determines who gets together, strange, yes. Serena gets into all the schools she wants and finds a boy to love at every school. Blair is wait-listed at Yale, her dream school, and this makes her mad. Nate, her other half, got into all the schools he applied, including Yale. This makes Blair angry but soon leads to the two of them finally hooking up. Dan gets into the school he wants so he gets together with Vanessa, all while becoming a rock-star. This novel is a bunch of hooking up and getting into the Ivy League schools, which is fun to read about. It’s juicy to read about all the scandals and rumours that float around, it’s like reading a game of telephone. Obviously the reader can’t forget about Jenny, the new model. Her plot is a bit strange and feels a little out of place, just because she’s younger than all the main characters. But her story gives the novel a bit of a balance to it so that there’s different ages represented. The characters actually make some developments, especially Blair with the birth of her baby sister, Yale. Overall, this novel was just as good as some of the novels before it. It had everything from romance, to good teenage drama and everything in between.

Nobody Does It Better by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The seventh novel in the Gossip Girl series. Everyone is still thinking about graduating high school. Blair is still worrying and trying everything to get into Yale. She’s back and forth with who she’s friends with. Serena is trying to decide what school to go to, while she hooks up with Nate. Nate is too stoned this novel to really have a proper plotline. Vanessa is looking for a roommate and ends up with Blair somehow. Dan is the lead singer of the band Raves, until his sister Jennifer takes his place. Lying and deceiving, all she wants is to go to boarding school to be just like Serena. And even Chuck Bass has a few mentions, with his military school. Overall, this novel was not short of drama and all the plotlines seemed to intertwine with each other. Not much time as passed from the beginning of the novel to the end, which makes it feel really short, and it felt like nothing progressed. This novel also fell short with Gossip Girl. The novel was so lost in the characters drama and lives that Gossip Girl was just there in the background, and it’s Gossip Girl that makes things interesting. Overall, it was another fiery novel of teen drama.

Nothing Can Keep Us Together by: Cecily Von Ziegesar: The eighth novel in the Gossip Girl series. Everyone is graduating, well everyone execpt Jenny. But Jenny has new adventures coming her way as she embarks into boarding school life. Serena and Nate hook up, although Nate has become a crybaby who steals Viagra, while Serena is to star in her first movie, a movie both she and Blair auditioned for. Blair has gotten over her feud with Serena and Nate by finding herself a lord, or maybe he isn’t who he says he is. Then there is Vanessa and Aaron, who don’t last long due to Vanessa’s infidelity. She cheats on him with Dan. This causes Dan to fall head over heels for Vanessa; he’s even willing to put off college for her. It’s all a tangle of drama in lives from the Upper East Side. This novel was entertaining and fast-paced. Just enough happened in this novel to satisfy the reader until the characters reach college where there are bound to be more drama. The characters up to this point have all gone through dramatic changes that the author has written really well. The way she plays them out is brilliant and worth reading because it’s written well. Overall, it was set up well for what is going to happen next, and has the reader wanting more.

Only in Your Dreams by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The ninth novel in the Gossip Girl series. Everyone is living in their dreams, or well at least they are trying to. Blair has left for London to follow and marry her lord, but when that turns sour she dashes home, with wedding dress in toe, ready to start working for a famous designer on a movie she wanted the lead for. But Serena has that role and she thought she’d make it as a movie star, but so far her attempts have been less than satisfactory. Vanessa had the dream role of helping to direct and film this movie, only to get fired for her avant garde filming style. She falls so low that she’s somehow become a nanny to twin boys. Dan has met this girl who is his complete opposite. He thinks he’s ready for change but he soon realizes maybe he’s not. Nate has that same realization out in the Hamptons. It’s a novel of getting what you want and realizing that it’s not what you want at all. This novel was fun to read about the characters as they embark on what they’ve always wanted, and it’s nice to see that they fall and aren’t perfect at everything. The author really shaped them well, in this novel in particular. The plots were all fast-paced and enjoyable to read. This novel leaves readers wondering what’s to come now that they’ve al had their fun.

Would I Lie to You by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The tenth novel in the Gossip Girl series. It’s still summer time, and everyone is away in the Hamptons, everyone but the Humphreys. Dan has his own issues that he needs to resolve. He thinks he’s gay because he kissed a dude, and Jenny is on the other side of the world in Prague. It was great that the author added letters from her in this novel to know that she’s still around. Back in the Hamptons, Vanessa is baby-sitting twin boys and meeting famous designers. Blair, and Serena are back to being friends, but for how long as a love triangle has formed yet again between Nate and themselves. And Nate is just trying to get away from his duties with the coach. This novel felt like it had a bunch of filler plotlines. Nothing was new that the reader, after ten novels didn’t already know, maybe the whole Dan being gay was new, but it came out of left field. Plotlines were flat, and characters were predictable. There was quite a lot from Gossip Girl this novel, and more about who she is, hopefully in the coming novels the reader will get more clues. Overall, not the best novel, nothing was juicy, or dramatic, just sad and flat.

Don’t You Forget About Me by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The eleventh novel in the Gossip Girl series. Summer is winding down, and everyone is moving on. Blair, Nate, and Serena are scheduled to be going to Yale, Dan to Evergreen, and Vanessa to NYU. Only a love triangle stops some from their hopes and dreams. Nate is unsure what he really wants, both with the girls, and in life, Serena finds herself backing away from Yale to become a movie star, but Blair truly knows she wants, and that’s Yale- no matter what. Dan has a gay period, which turns out he really just loves Vanessa. This novel was filled with its douse of drama, but it feels like these characters are never going to grow up, and actually go to college. Ever since the first novel they have been dreaming and trying to get to these schools, it would be great to get them there. The plotlines are a little old, but some really seemed to work, and enhanced the overall story. New characters have been mentioned, and hopefully will be introduced. Old characters were brought back, like Jenny, and it was a nice tie in. Overall, it was an entertaining novel; it would just be better if plots weren’t always the same.

I Will Always Love You by: Cecily von Ziegesar: Another installment in the Gossip Girl series. The clan of the Upper East Side have made it to college, or well most of them have. This novel starts around Christmastime, and proceeds by jumping year to year to the same time. Every year something dramatic happens, big plans are made, and by the end everyone it seems, have gone their separate ways. This novel was filled with gossip, but didn’t feel as entertaining as past novels. The characters this time around came off as annoying, and a little hard to read. The first eleven novels spent so much time talking about these characters getting into college, that once they finally got there, not much time was spent there. It felt like Ziegesar rushed through it all; the way this novel ended means more is to come, like the world will never end, which at this point feels like it may need to.

Gossip Girl: Psycho Killer by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The last novel in the Gossip Girl series, but can it really be classified as the last novel? This novel is more of an afterthought; this novel takes the first novel, and recreates it as a horror show. Blair, Serna, Jenny and Dan all become killers, as one by one characters are killed off. This whole plot just fell flat; it had big holes in it. For example, no one gets caught for these murders, and no one cares, it’s like just another strange event happened in their everyday lives. It didn’t help that the writing felt really lazy and clichéd. Ziegesar’s characters, who were really well developed, well shaped characters, just took a drastic turn and became an awful cliché. Nothing felt right, and it was off to put these characters in a situation where they are off killing each other like a horror reality show. This novel isn’t worth the read, even though this may have seemed like a great idea, it didn’t pull through.