DNF Series Review: V is for Virgin by Kelly Oram

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

Synopsis for V is for Virgin (from Goodreads):
When Val Jensen gets dumped for her decision to stay a virgin until marriage, the nasty breakup goes viral on YouTube, making her the latest internet sensation.

After days of ridicule from her peers, Val starts a school-wide campaign to rally support for her cause. She meant to make a statement, but she never dreamed the entire nation would get caught up in the controversy.

As if becoming nationally recognized as “Virgin Val” isn’t enough, Val’s already hectic life starts to spin wildly out of control when bad boy Kyle Hamilton, lead singer for the hit rock band Tralse, decides to take her abstinence as a personal challenge.

How can a girl stay true to herself when this year’s Sexiest Man Alive is doing everything in his power to win her over?

Series: V is for Virgin
Author: Kelly Oram
# of Books: 2 (V is for Virgin, A is for Abstinence)
Book Order: Chronological
Complete?: Yes
Genre: Young Adult/New Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Rock Star
Heat Rating: warm
Point of View: First Person, Single
Publication Dates: December 2012 – May 2014
Source & Format: Kindle Unlimited–eBook

Disclaimer: I stopped reading V is for Virgin at 41% (start of Chapter 13). Find out why below…

Why I Picked it Up / My Expectations:

Hello! The title! I was definitely intrigued by the title but it truly was the synopsis that had me on board.

There has been a big push for a long time to have sex (or at least talk about it) in Young Adult literature because it is something that happens in real life. And while I do support that movement, I’ve always wondered why abstinence isn’t talked about more. It’s a choice for a lot of young people and one that gets made fun of for some reason or another. So I was excited to explore this avenue of abstinence in YA literature.

What I Liked:

–It isn’t Preachy–

I think there is a preconception that people who choose to remain abstinent (and the people who write about it) can be a little preachy about sex and waiting. And while there are definitely cases that reaffirm that believe, it definitely isn’t fair to lump all those people together.

This book does a great job of presenting both sides. It doesn’t tell people to not have sex nor does it say that all people should refrain from having sex. Instead, it opens the conversation about why people might not want to have sex. And it isn’t just for a religious reason either. I loved the conversation it started about starting a sexual relationship and why there is so much pressure to have sex.

It tries to erase the shame people feel when it comes to talking about your sex life. You should never feel like less of a person because you have or have not had sex and that is the main message of this book.

What I Didn’t Like:

–The Maturity–

While I love that this book is set in high school focuses on sex in that setting, the whole setting really cramped my style. Because–it is inevitable–that a book set in high school is going to feature all the high school drama. Like popularity and rivals and all that cliched nonsense. That really just doesn’t interest me any more and it truly dampened the sexuality part of the story for me.

It also made me dislike Val. I wouldn’t say that I loved her at the start–though I did respect her ability to stand-up for herself–but as the story progressed I just got annoyed with her teenage thought process. And it sucks because it totally isn’t fair to dislike her for that. It is the whole premise of the story and part of her development but I just found myself getting annoyed and bored by her actions as it progressed.

–Kyle–

I’m a sucker for a rockstar and so I was really looking forward to this aspect. But he was a dud for me.

I get it though–he is supposed to be the villain in all of this. The guy who is trying to get the girl to give up her ideals and sleep with him just to say he could. And so in that respect, it’s easy to hate him. But at the same time, I can’t help but feel like he is supposed to be charming; that as a reader you are supposed to like him. I mean, isn’t Val supposed to be contemplating going out/sleeping with him?

He honestly just annoyed the crap out of me.

Will I Finish It?

I’m really upset that I didn’t finish this book. I do think part of my motivation for DNFing this book was simply my mindset. Because all the reasons I didn’t like this book are truly all the reasons why I should have finished reading it. (If that makes any sense). It’s a refreshing book in that respect because it does challenge those everyday notions. So I might give it a shot sometime down the road; but I honestly wish I could go back 2-3 years ago and read it then because I probably would have really appreciated it then.

Series Rating: DNF

V is for Virgin 2/5 | A is for Abstinence N/A

I think if you can get passed the high school drama, you will really enjoy this one! The concept and execution of it is really refreshing; I just couldn’t handle the maturity of high schoolers.

Read if You Like: high school contemporaries, books dealing with sex
Avoid if You: dislike the idea of sexually active teenagers

• Bumped by Megan McCafferty (Bumped Series #1)

Connect: