Hi everyone, happy Wednesday! Today I’m going to be reviewing Gossip Girl: The Carlyles by: Cecily von Ziegesar/Annabelle Vestry.

Since I posted my Gossip Girl reviews on Monday I thought I would just continue with some of the other novels I’ve read from this franchise.

The Carlyles by: Annabelle Vestry: Gossip Girl is back, and she’s shaking up New York City with a new batch of girls, and guys. The Carlyle triplets have just moved to the Upper East Side, and are making a big splash. From party fails, to party crashes, jail, and stealing boyfriends, the world is just the same as it’s always been. The writing was a little clichéd and lazy; some of the phrases used were supposed to be fun, or funny puns that just came off as lame. But, even though the writing wasn’t on par, as Vestry tried to emulate Ziegesar’s writing, the plot just sucked the reader in because no matter how dumb or spoiled the characters got, it was still kinda juicy to see what would happen. The characters were alright; all of them are full of themselves, but maybe that will change in the following novels, and maybe we’re one step closer to finding out who Gossip Girl is…

You Just Can’t Get Enough by: Cecily von Ziegesar: Now that Carlyle triplets have started to establish a name for themselves on the Upper East Side they continue to cause trouble around town. Owen befriends a guy named Rhys who each fall for the same girl; Baby finds love in another’s boyfriend, and Avery finds power in another’s popularity. This novel takes New York by storm and we, the reader, get to find out more about who these characters are. The plot was alright; nothing extraordinary happened, everything that happened was filled with drama. It was definitely entertaining, and some plots took readers through a bit of a loop that weren’t seen coming, but for the most part plots were predictable, but that is what made this a guilty pleasure read. What was done well was the development of characters. Characters who were simple and two dimensional broke out in this novel and became more three dimensional. They became more than just who they were dating, and started to figure out who they are as people. Ultimately, it’s another Gossip Girl novel that takes the reader through the drama that is the Upper East Side.

Take a Chance on Me by: Cecily von Ziegesar: Everyone is hating on everyone. Owen and Rhys aren’t friends anymore because of a girl, Jack and Avery never liked each other to begin with and who knows what’s going on with Baby. But as time does tell, things happen and situations change. Now everyone is slowly coming back together as friends, but in the world of New York City’s high life, is anyone your friend? This novel continued from the previous novel, and the plots were okay, but they were rather mediocre. Nothing crazy stood out, and the writing felt more like fanfiction than anything else. As for characters, they did mature as the novel progressed and that was actually entertaining to read, but nothing felt too substantial. But overall this novel was good for light reading.

Love The One You’re With by: Cecily von Ziegesar: The last Gossip Girl book finds us in the Bahamas where the triplets and some of their friends head for a vacation where a marriage proposal happens and it becomes a mad dash to get a wedding ready in a day. This novel also dives into the little relationships between each of the characters. What this novel did well was figuring out what it means to truly care about another human being, and that was enjoyable to read. Otherwise the plots were all very arbitrary and didn’t hold much weight; they felt kind of petty and small. The characters as much as they were learning and growing and did somewhat find their place by the end their problems that they kept having to face felt trivial. The writing was alright; it was like past novels in the fact that things were basic, plots were straightforward and characters acted more or less the same as always. Overall, it was an entertaining and mindless read.