The Queen of Everything Paperback – March 25, 2008

This was a gift but as far as I know she enjoyed as she requested it for her birthday or christmas I cannot remember which

Excellent condition! Thank you so much! Love the book!

I have read this book multiple times since I was 17 I'm now 27 and still read at least once a year. This is the book I always say when someone ask me for a recommendation.

This book was just pure amazement!!! It had me wanting to hurry up, and read more. It was that amazing. Best book ever!!!

I really did love this book. So, to clarify, I would rate it 4.5 stars if I could.It's about Jordan, an average teenager with divorced parents. She lives with her father, a predictable optometrist because her mother is too eccentric for her tastes. Her summer after her junior year was off to a normal start- a best friend, dumb job, and a new love interest- but then came Gayle D'Angelo. Gayle D'Angelo is her father's new girlfriend.....who happens to be married. But Jordan's father no longer listens to reason as he becomes more and more obsessed with Gayle. Jordan's normal summer ends up having an explosive ending.I loved the writing. Seriously, it was great. Deb Caletti's writing is so detailed and intricate, she brings tiny details to mind that only contribute to overall story and character development.The plot was slowish, but you know from page one that something horribly violent will happen. First off, because the narrator tell you, and also because its terribly hinted at and you would have to be stupid not to get it. Still, there was something tense about this book. While it wasn't thrilling, it was gripping. I think the best part of the book was easily the writing.The main characters, especially Jordan, were well-drawn. It was like they were real people. The minor characters also had the same flair, but had less screen time. The thing about such interesting characters, is that you actually want to see them. But in the story, they just popped in and out, quick as a flash. Like Big Mama. I wanted to see more of her. And Jackson. I would have loved to see that budding romance.Jordan was a real teenager. She wasn't some saint girl. She wasn't a rebel without a cause. She took notice of the world, and messed up a lot, and was likable. One of her mistakes was Kale. I hated Kale. He is the King of Douches. I wanted to crawl into the book and pop him one. I just didn't understand why Jordan still kept going out with him even though she clearly couldn't tolerate him. It just made me frustrated. I guess that makes the mark of a real character, though.Overall, I really liked this book. Everytime I read a Deb Caletti book, they just keep getting better and better.

Jordan found her hippie mother to be a bit too "out there" so she decides she should live with her father. He's an optometrist, and very level-headed. At least, he used to be. Lately he's been acting a bit strange and Jordan thinks she knows the cause...Gayle D'Angelo. She's a married woman and her dad is in love. Jordan knows there's not a lot she can do about it since he is an adult, but she can tell that this is wrong. Besides that, Jordan is living a typical teenage life. She has an accidental boyfriend, but a crush on somebody else and her best friend gossips with her at work. Things are going pretty well until things with her father's love life blow up in a way Jordan could never have imagined.This was a pretty interesting novel. Jordan had a lot of stuff going on. It must be nice but a little strange having your divorced parents living so close. Jordan can easily bounce between household, so when one house proves to be too much she can just go over to the other one. This book was incredibly predictable though. From the first chapter, I knew exactly what was going to happen. The side stories were still interesting though, so it didn't ruin the book. It's just a shame that it was so obvious.I loved Jordan's friend's brother, Jackson. He was just an awesome character and I loved that he just did his own thing. He played bagpipes. He washed his car in the middle of the night. He was simply amazing. If there was one person I would want rescuing me, it would be Jackson. Melissa, Jordan's friend, was not a very like-able character. I didn't find her to be a particularly good friend. She was a bit standoffish all the time. Big Mama was a pretty great character, but until the very end of the novel, I didn't really know who the heck she was. It was evident that Jordan and her had a close relationship, but I couldn't see how she fit into the picture. Even at the end it seemed like their relationship was a lot deeper than I would have imagined given the circumstances. I hated Kale. I have no idea why Jordan gave in to his lame attempts at courting her. He was not very smart and not a good person. Even after he did something horrible, Jordan just still went on with him. Jordan just clearly hung out with people she didn't like, because she was simply too nice to say so. It was perfect to have such a mix of characters though, because you can't love everyone or hate everyone. There was a nice balance of both.I did like quite a bit of this book though. A lot happens to Jordan and in her life. I liked that this was a realistic look at a teen girl's life. Jordan wasn't perfect, she wasn't super smart or super pretty or super popular. She lived in a small town and life just happened. Really all the stories from the people around her were more excitement filled, but her story wove them all together. If you get a chance to read this one make sure you do. I always love how real Deb Caletti's books are so make sure you check them out.First Line:"People ask me all the time what having Vince MacKenzie for a father was like."Favorite Lines:"It can be exhausting eating a meal cooked by a man. With a woman, it's all Ho hum, pass the beans. A guy, you have to act like he just built the Taj Mahal."