Triangles by Kimberly Ann Miller (Book Review)

Title: Triangles
Author: Kimberly Ann Miller
Series: A companion novel, Parallel Triangles, is currently in the works.
Release Date: June 18, 2013
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher (thank you!)
Buy It: Amazon
Add It: Goodreads

A cruise ship. A beautiful island. Two sexy guys. What could possibly go wrong?

In the Bermuda Triangle—a lot.

Hoping to leave behind the reminders of her crappy life--her father's death years ago, her mother's medical problems, and the loser who’s practically stalking her--seventeen-year-old Autumn Taylor hops on a ship with her sister for a little distraction. When she wakes up in the Bermuda Triangle, she fears she's gone nuts for more than one reason: that loser’s suddenly claiming they're a happy couple... a hot guy is wrapping his arms around her and saying "Happy Anniversary"... and suddenly, she’s full of bruises, losing her hair, and getting IV medication. Autumn visits the ship's doctor, hoping for a pill or a shot to make the craziness go away. Instead, she's warned that these "alternate realities" could become permanent.

She just has to ask herself one question—how is she going to get out of this mess?

The book synopsis poses a question: what could possibly go wrong? Well... sadly, a lot went wrong with Triangles. I rarely take notes while I read, but I had to in order to keep track of all the things I didn't like. And eventually I got tired of trying to keep track. And honestly, this "bad" review will be one of the hardest ones I have to write because the author is SO nice. As always, my main points are bolded.

1. Unfortunately, the only thing I liked about Triangles was the idea. Triangles was one of my most anticipated books of the summer. I was sold as soon as I read the synopsis, I HAD to have this book. I was SO excited when I received the ARC in the mail and I started reading it as soon as I could. Honestly, though, it was just a disappointment. 

2. Autumn is terrible. I REALLY can't stand her. She is a jerk to everyone (like her older sister, her best friend, and her admirer), she's unbelievably selfish, and she is a really mean gossip. She says horrible things to people's faces, and behind their backs. Plus, she is so cocky. She talks about how she looks amazing in her tiny swimsuit, no matter what she eats. She uses Joey, the cute boy she works with that is in love with her. She adds extra "sway to her hips and bounce to her boobs" when a cute boy looks at her, because she thinks she is so sexy. And she is SO shallow! She actually says at one point in the story that she would like to eat her hot pizza cheese off a guy's chest, before she even knew him. I think that's gross, not to mention incredibly inappropriate. All she thinks about is sex. I can't stand her. It has been a long time since I have disliked a heroine this much. And her friend is no better.

3. Then we have the boys: Joey and Marcus. Joey is a stalker, but with sweet intentions. I think his main issue was that he was so socially immature that he didn't know how else to handle his crush on Autumn. As I got to know him more, he became sweeter, yet dorkier in my eyes. And I wanted to smack Autumn every time she spoke to him, because she was SO MEAN. In the end, I saw him as way too good for her. I have no idea why in the world he took such abuse from her, and the fact that he did actually made me lose respect for him. And then there's Marcus, who is apparently the sexiest teenager in the world. All I saw in him, though, was a lustful jerk who would prefer all women be naked all the time. And of course Autumn liked him. He's a terrible flirt, and he seems way too old and worldy. Bah.

4. There was way too much swearing in this book. And yes, that's common, but more with NA than YA. And this might sound weird, but I can handle it better when the character has a personality to back it up. I felt like everyone was swearing to try to come off as hard, tough, and mature. I wasn't convinced, though, which made me less tolerant.

5. There were too many unnecessary details. Who cares if the character is eating "generic potato chips" or goes on "5-minutes car rides" in her "used Ford Escort"? I don't mind details that add to the story, but these ones just made the book longer. 

6. Room keys on cruise ships do NOT have the room number printed on them. It's a security risk! Those keys get lost all the time, so the room number is not printed on the card in case else someone finds it. It works that way in hotels, too. When inaccurate details like this are added in to a story that is supposed to be somewhat rooted in reality, I begin to wonder if any research was done to make those real details accurate.

7. The drama was just too dramatic. Autumn keeps getting thrown into alternate realities, as a result of the Bermuda Triangle. Each reality is so unbelievably dramatic that I just could not handle it. In one, she has a baby. In another, she has terminal cancer and talks about how she is "losing the battle". Suicides keep happening. Everyone is also super horny in these realities. It was just too much. 

8. There were far too many coincidences.

Triangles was ALL over the place, and incredibly frustrating. The drama was off the charts, I hated all but one of the characters, and the detail overload and inaccuracies threw me over the edge. I was hoping for more of a mystery relating to the Bermuda Triangle, but that was not the case. I hardly remembered it was supposed to be the key element of the story. I'm sad to say that I really disliked the book, and I would not recommend it.