A Match Made in High School

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Many people have heard of the classes that require students to handle an egg or a sack of flour to practice good parenting skills. But a year-long mandatory Marriage Ed course? Not so much.

Fiona is having the worst start to her senior year possible. And when the seniors are informed that the principal is initiating a mandatory Marriage Ed course to graduate, Fiona is shell-shocked. Well, if she can land her long-time crush, Gabe, as her "husband," it might not be so bad. But to top off the horrible start, she lands none other than Todd Harding, "the" biggest jerk of the school, at least as far as Fiona is concerned. And Gabe winds up with none other than Todd's cheerleader co-captain girlfriend, Amanda.

Fiona and Todd are at odds throughout the course. Fiona picks babysitting as their "real life" job and in retaliation, Todd requires Fiona to participate in cheerleading. At least Fiona's best friend, Marcie, lands a nice guy for her partner, Johnny Mercer. And Johnny goes so far as to help Fiona in her pranks against Todd. But when Fiona goes too far, Marcie yells at her for being selfish, then gives her the cold shoulder.

When Fiona's mom gets into crusade mode against the school and the Marriage Ed course, Fiona figures things can't get any worse. But life can take a surprising twist and Fiona is startled by various revelations.

For a book that was originally due for release in May of 2009, I was a bit worried that there was a reason for the delay in publication. Thankfully, the worry in delay was unfounded. Though I don't know the reason for the postponement, it was well worth the wait. Ms. Walker has written an entertaining and creative look at high school. She brilliantly wove a story that made the reader cheer for the wrong people at the beginning and watch as the characters evolved throughout the course of the fall semester. Ms. Walker makes the reader want to hate Todd from the beginning, but the sparring between Todd and Fiona is feisty and amusing.

I found myself chuckling throughout the story and rooting for the underdogs the whole way through. I'm just thankful that my high school didn't have a mandatory Marriage Ed class! I know I wouldn't have had quite the fun that Fiona and gang had!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Hi-freakin-larious

this was a great book. the dialogue was witty and sometimes cutting and sarcastic. the idea was awesome and the characters had me at page one. This is a great book, everyone should deff read it and i hope she writes more soon!!!
awesome. cant say enoguh about it BOOK!, truly very good

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Absolutely hilarious!!!

I can honestly say that a book has never made me laugh so much in my life. I am pretty sure that when I was reading this book around people they probably thought I was losing it. This book was so fun and hilarious!

Fiona is starting her senior year in high school. On the first day the seniors find out that, in order to graduate, they have to pass a marriage ed course. This course requires them to be paired up in couples decided by their principal. Unfortunately she ends up being paired with the school jock, Todd, that she can't stand and her crush gets paired up with her worst enemy Amanda, Todd's head cheerleader girlfriend. Todd does everything in his power to make a fool of her and she gives it right back to him. Thus hilarity ensues.

Fiona is one of the best, most hilarious characters that I have ever come across. Nothing is off limits for her. She says what's on her mind and she doesn't take crap from anyone. She was always quick with a snappy comeback. If I could quote on her funny lines in the book, I would end up quoting just about every single thing she said.

What's crazy is this was Kristin Walker's first novel. I could not believe it when I found out. It was so cute and clever! If I didn't have to work I am pretty sure that I would have completed this in one sitting. I didn't want to stop! I wanted to stay wrapped up in this adorably hilarious story. If you are looking for a fun, quick, hilarious read then this is definitely the book for you! I got my copy from the library, but I will definitely be running out to buy my own. This is a book I could read over and over again!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

?

can this book please be put into nook form ?

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Absolutely Loved this book!

A Match Made in High School has got to be one of the most entertainig and humerous books i have ever read. While reading this book i seriously laughed out loud. Every page is filled with witty and hilarious humor. I would reccomend this book to anyone needing to be cheered up or needing a laugh.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

HI-FREAKING-LARIOUS!!! This book is so freaking funny I nearly d

HI-FREAKING-LARIOUS!!!
This book is so freaking funny I nearly died laughing!!! I am supposed to go to bed by 12 but that's way to earlyfor me so I stay up reading and try to make my parents think I'm asleep so it was a bad choice to be reading this at 2 am! I woke everyone up I was laughing so hard!!! If you don't think the plot line sounds cool (even though it is) then you should just read it for the witty banter between Todd and Fiona!!! If you like this then I also recommend "Cindy Ella", "Something, Maybe" and "Top 8"

A Book that me laugh out loud in some moments. It's good to read a book like that sometimes.

Fiona couldn't believe her day. Starting her senior year, the school has all the seniors pretend their married in a program called Tying the Knot. What makes this worse, is who she's "married" to: Todd Harding, someone she can't stand. But that's not the worse part, Todd's girlfriend, Amanda is "married" to Fiona's crush, Gabe. Liked how Fiona and Todd interacted with one another. What I liked even more was how you think she'd end up with the obvious person but in the end well...not spoiling it but all I will say is you got to read the book to find out. A funny book that's well worth the read and one that I would read again.

A sonnet review (from All-Consuming Books)

"Fee's school decides that marriage education
is what the graduating seniors need
to prep them for the real-life situation.
But Fee is unappreciative cause she'd
prefer to partner Gabe, her longtime crush,
but finds herself instead paired up with Todd,
an icky guy whose brain is filled with mush.
Her best friend Marcie's partnered with an odd
big guy called Johnny--no one's happy, here.
So parents go protesting that their kids
should not be forced through marriage ed, but sheer
adversity is good for for Fee, who kids
around with Todd, meets Johnny, and gets tough--
perhaps, after all, marriage ed's not such bad stuff."


I stayed up late to finish this one, because it just wouldn't let me go. The pacing is good, the characters (including minor characters!) are fleshed-out individuals, and there were several laugh-out-loud funny moments. I did have a few problems with the book, which lowered its grade in my estimation, but to discuss them, I'll have to go into spoiler territory.

Spoilers lie beyond----

The couple I expected to get together, Todd and Fee, did not get together. Fee ends up with Johnny Mercer, who is sweet and cool, but who wasn't in the novel nearly enough for me to root for him. When I read a book with any romantic subtext, I try to figure out what the book wants me to want--in many cases, there's a love triangle and the reader can support whomever they like, but most often there's a specific outcome that we're supposed to want, and we get signals to prepare us. Todd was disgusting and malicious early on, and Fee was very harsh, but they actually seemed to be improving each other as time went on. They were the focus of so much of the story, their scenes were the funniest, their dialogue was the wittiest, they challenged each other more than anybody else...I saw no reason not to think that they were going to be The Couple. Also, the back cover on my ARC copy sets them up as the main love story, though the new back cover on the published copies leaves it more open-ended, so there's that to consider. I'm sure lots of readers will enjoy the change of pace from "what's expected" in romantic stories, because it's hard to see this outcome before it happens, but it just wasn't my favorite move.

My other problem was with the conclusion the book draws about the marriage ed course. In the end, the school caves and says nobody has to finish the course, and Fee and Todd are among the first to say that it's a pointless exercise that has no bearing on their future lives. Perhaps not, but the fact is that Fee and Todd both benefited from having to work with each other, and they learned how to be more selfless and understanding all because they had to play at being married. It seems like the book is counteracting a point it already made very clearly, and I'm not sure what to do with that. Maybe the book's trying to say that classes like these would be a bad idea in the real world, which is likely true, but in the fictional world, it's proven to be an awesome character-building thing.

End of Spoilers-------

Aside from the caveats mentioned, I loved the book, and I'll be checking out Kristin Walker's future books, as she's got a flair for comedy and realistic interaction.

A laugh-out-loud kind of book that is impossible not to enjoy!

"When the principal announces that every senior must participate in a mandatory year-long Marriage Education program, Fiona Sheehan believes that her life can't get any worse. Then she marries her "husband": jerky jock Todd, whose cheerleader girlfriend, Amanda, has had it in for Fiona since day one of second grade. Even worse? Amanda is paired with Fiona's long-term crush, Gabe. At least Fiona is doing better than her best friend, Marcie, who is paired up with the very quiet, very mysterious Johnny Mercer. Pranks, fights, misunderstandings, and reconciliations ensue in an almost Shakespearean comedy of errors about mistaken first impressions, convoluted coupling, and hidden crushes." I have to say, my tolerance for storylines set in the high school environment has been getting a tad low as of late, but when I read several reviews about this particular book being "absolutely hilarious", I decided to take a risk and give it a try against my better judgment. Well! Let me tell you - this novel was definitely NOT a lapse in judgment! I enjoyed every sentence of this novel (Ok, so I could have done without the f-bombs and GD's along with the rest of the profanities, but STILL! Great book!). The dialogue was insanely witty, and I found myself literally laughing aloud every few pages. As for the plot and characters, I was pretty impressed. The author showed creativity, consistency, depth, and realism in both areas, and she was quite obviously well-researched in the modern-day realm of high school. The main character, Fiona, is likable, relatable, and bright, with a quirky personality, a fantastic sense of humor, and a tongue like an adder, which keeps the reader laughing. Her playful banter with almost every other character she encounters is what keeps the story from ever suffering a dull moment. However, I have two complaints: Number 1, was the amount of...inappropriateness? There were more innuendos than I can count, and just about every page had at least one curse word, some of them real doozies as I mentioned above. Fiona and her fake husband Todd don't get along, and they are constantly shooting crude & revolting comments back and forth; but, to be honest, a lot of the humor comes from their conversations. Number 2, was the half-way predictability of the plot. I won't lie and say I guessed the whole thing, but I did guess some of it. But really - that can totally be ignored, because anything the plot lacked was made up for by the excellent writing style (easy to follow, easy to read, fit in with the plot and the character narrating), coupled with the hysterical dialogue. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone of any mature age group who wants a quick read and a ton of laughs. I will undoubtedly be reading this one again and again and again! :)

Funniest book I've read in a long time!

4.5 stars

I went in to A Match Made in High School expecting a hilarious story. I was a bit nervous that I wouldn't find it as funny as I have heard it was in other reviews. That thought quickly went out the window. I couldn't believe how funny it was! I can't remember the last time I have laughed that much while reading. And it was organically funny. You can tell Walker didn't have to try hard to be humorous. She just...is. That is not an easy trait to come by.

Humor wasn't the only thing this book had. A Match Made in High School has a cast of realistic teenagers. Yes, you do have your cliches. The jock, the popular girl, ect. But Walker did a good job at showing there is more to people than what you first assume. That was a lesson the main character, Fiona, had to learn.

I really liked Fiona. She is the type of girl who calls it as she sees it. She was such a smart ass and I loved that part of her. She would be the type of friend you would want to hang out with when you just need to laugh at your life. All the characters really grew and fleshed out by the end of the book. I honestly didn't want it to end there. I wanted to see more of them as their new and improved selves.

The whole idea of a marriage education program in high school is such an interesting idea, and Walker nailed it. I definitely want to read more from here. While it is a bit predictable, A Match Made in High School is a hysterical and genuine teen story. This is a book I can see myself reading again, anytime I need a pick-me-up. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a lighthearted story that is fast-paced and fun. Oh, and laughing until your sides hurt. You can guarantee that!

A Match Made In High School by Kristin Walker Review

There have not been many books that have made me laugh out loud, but this accomplished that on several different occasions. Sure books have made me smile and even been funny, but not usually enough to have me embarrassing myself in public when I bust out laughing and no one knows why exactly. Kristin Walker just knows how to write so that it hits your funny bone.

This is not a gushing romance novel. I would equate it to having a chick flick's amount of wooing, and a realistic amount of idiotic mistakes being made by the characters themselves in the process of seeking said romance. It was fabulous to read and highly entertaining to see how it unfolded. It was good fun from start to finish and a super quick read at that. I think it would be the perfect book for a rainy afternoon, I had it finished in one sitting without a problem.

The idea that a high school would make a marriage education class a graduation requirement for seniors was a little bit of a stretch in my opinion but I couldn't have cared less because it was just too much fun to watch them all squirm. I know that's a terrible thing to say, but it's just fiction right?

Following along as Fiona gets paired with the popular jock Todd, her best friend Marcie is paired with the quiet loner Johnnie, and Todd's cheerleader girlfriend gets matched up with Fiona's crush Gabe, it was just pure comedy. All mixed up but with no choice but to participate and slug it out, these seniors have their work cut out for them, not to mention their holding onto their sanity. I loved it all and I'm positive so will any other reader and fan of YA literature.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!!

i loved it from start to finish. if your unsure of buying this book trust me and buy it and do not hesitate! its very entertaining and there are many twist and turns,it will keep you guessing! your missing out on something good! i just finished reading it 5 minutes ago! and i read in in 2 days during class( yep my classes are that boring ! lol) but it made time go super fast and i was very pleased with it!

marriage in high school

The principal rocks the senior class when she announces they must take part in a mandatory fake marriage class. Fiona must "marry" her arch nemesis boyfriend's Todd. During the marriage ceremony, Todd pranks Fiona humiliating her in front of her entire class. She's so furious that this means war. Luckily her best friend married a super nice guy and the three of them come up with the perfect prank to get him back at the dance.

Todd and Fiona trade pranks back and forth while attempting to participate in the course - which includes holding down a job together and finding a mutual activity. Fiona brings Todd with her to her babysitting gig and Todd makes Fiona join the cheerleading squad as the water girl. In between barbed comments and counseling sessions with the guidance counselor. Will they survive the course without killing each other?


I've been waiting forever to read this, someone buzzed about it very early - which was great because it captured my attention, but bad because I didn't realize how long I'd have to wait to read it. Still, it was worth the wait. A funny refreshing read about two people coming to a mutual understanding among pranks, friendship drama, and maybe finding the boy of your dreams. Wildly fun fantastic debut!

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