The Taming by Teresa Toten and Eric Walters (Review + Giveaway))

Genre:	Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Drama
Publication.Date	January 24th 2012
Pages:	279
Published By:	Doubleday Canada  |
Website	Eric Walters | Teresa Toten
	The Taming - Goodreads
My review copy:	Finished copy received from Random House Canada

Where to get:

Katie likes to believe she's invisible. It seems much safer than being exposed as she is--shy, poor, awkward. So getting up on stage in the school production of The Taming of the Shrew should be complete torture. But as Katie tells it, something totally unexpected happened when she stepped on stage: "My head exploded. I loved it. Acting hit me like a sucker punch and I loved, loved, loved it! . . . Invisible Katie became visible Katharina."

Evan Cooper is, as they say, another story. He knows just what it takes to get noticed, and he uses every one of the skills he's honed after years of being the new kid. Like tossing the keys to his father's high-end Audi to a kid he's never met, first day of school. "I have insurance for car theft," he explains to a shocked Danny. "And there's a full tank." An abuse of the power that comes with privilege and money? Sure.

But more dangerously, is his romance with Katie another version of the same thing? Or is it the real thing? (Goodreads)

The noises in my head got louder. It was like I was a walking construction site. Metal crashed into concrete and a relentless hammering pounded “Run, Katie, get off the stage, freak, hide, hide.” Instead I clutched my script tighter. I was projectile sweating. I knew from auditions last week that gripping the pages with my wet hands would end up moulding my script into a rock-hard and useless bow tie. “Cut and run, Katie. Go! ”

And my head exploded. I loved it. Acting hit me like a sucker punch and I loved, loved, loved it! I was someone else, but as that someone, I was heard and I was seen. Invisible Katie became visible Katherina. Every nerve ending fired and I came alive. You’d think I would have choked and screwed up my speeches. But I didn’t, not once. Unbelievable. I liked being up there, and it immediately became very, very important that I stay up there. Somehow I was more me on that stage than I was anywhere else. I didn’t understand it, but there it was.

Katherina is a wild animal that has to be tamed. Give Petruchio something to tame.

     This is a powerful read. And by powerful, I mean, DEVASTATINGLY SO. I really loved this book, from the first page to last. I loved how readable it was, how captivating and intensely emotional. I absolutely loved the darker undertones of it, and how every chapter, every passage, every sentence of it pulls you deeper into its dark and sticky web of emotional abuse and toxic jealousy. It's a poignant, multilayered, and gripping tale that takes what seems to be a dominant theme in contemporary novels - a love story - and darkens it. At the same time, though, it has its lighter moments, humorous tension-breakers that perfectly balance it out. In other words, it's a truly phenomenal book. I was extremely glad to have discovered it and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. 

     Built around the school production of Shakespear's The Taming Of The Shrew, the plot of Teresa Toten's and Eric Walter's collaborative novel deals with some heavy (but very meaningful) subjects. This whole story - complete with the extremely well-drawn, believable characters - is just brilliant. I mean it. The main protagonists, Katie and Evan, are not only real and convincing, but also very complex. They're not some flat, black-and-white characters, they both have beating hearts, filled with emotions, dreams, fears and hopes. They're not perfect - they're perfectly imperfect, flawed, scared, overwhelmed by their personal problems. They both need love and acceptance, but they go looking for it in all the wrong places. They make mistakes, they get tangled up in each other, messy.. lost. Toten and Walters did a fantastic job capturing their complicated relationship (with all its intensity). I loved it! I thought the character building was masterful, and I just loved it. I especially loved the character growth in Katie. When we meet her, she's nothing but a shy, invisible grey mouse, she doesn't know how to assert herself, prefers to lay low and not attract any attention. And then she gets picked to play the part of Katherine in the school interpretation of The Taming Of The Shrew, and her world begins to change. When Evan asks her out, her heart practically bursts with happiness. At first, she can't even believe it. Evan? The most handsome, fabulous, and disgustingly rich guy in town wants to date her? How could she say no to that? How could she say no to anything that Evan wants from her?

      Yes, you will probably feel very uncomfortable and anxious once you realize where the authors are going with the story, but you will also stop and think about the massage this book carries and how well the brilliantly weaved plot gets it across. This is not a happy first-love story and it shouldn't be approached as such. It's an eye-opening, thought-provoking, unsettling story that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

     What I loved the most about this book, though, is that although it's a dark tale, it's also one that ends with hope. I loved seeing the transformation that Katie's character underwent towards the end of The Taming. I liked that she became this strong-willed, assertive girl who could stand up for herself. I absolutely loved that she didn't let Evan break her, overpower her, tame her. And she didn't need saving, she found the power and will to save herself. 

     I also loved that the authors didn't make Evan to be this one-dimensional bad-guy. Instead, they provided enough background story and insight into his past for the reader to better understand his motives. That, of course, didn't make him a good guy, but it definitely made it harder to hate him. I came out of reading this book disturbed, with my head spinning, and very satisfied with its conclusion. I also felt a great deal of sympathy, and not only for Katie, but for both of them - for totally different reasons. If all that doesn't make a great read, than I don't know what does. 

     Teresa Toten and Eric Walter make a magnificent writing duo. They do awful and dark so well, and they get under your skin so deep, that you feel like taking a shower after reading some of the chapters of this book. It's draining and disturbing. Most of all, though, their writing is just absolutely fascinating. At least it was to me, I'm sure not everyone feeds on sad and scary as much as I do, but what can I say? I like my books to be dark, creepy and powerful. And the reason for this book being so sad and scary is simple: it's just all too real. It's disquietingly authentic, and that kind of authenticity is bound to resonate deep within.

Giveaway~! 

Random House Canada has generously offered to give away one paperback copy of The Taming to a lucky Canadian winner!

Open to: CANADA only

Ends: June 30th

Enter through Rafflecopter below:

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This review is posted as part of the Contemporary Fiction Month feature!

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About the Author

Evie is the Blogger behind Bookish. She enjoys reading many different genres, especially YA, Paranormal, Contemporary Fiction and Fantasy.

She loves talking to authors and is always happy to welcome them for interviews, and guest posts. She also likes spreading the love for awesome books and  chatting with fellow book-worms.

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