Author: Liz Czukas

I received this book for free from HarperTeen in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Top Five Things That Are Ruining Chloe’s Day

5) Working the 6:30 a.m. shift at GoodFoods Market

4) Crashing a cart into a customer’s car right in front of her snarky coworker Sammi

3) Trying to rock the “drowned rat” look after being caught in a snowstorm

2) Making zero progress with her crush, Tyson (see #3)

1) Being accused—along with her fellow teenage employees—of stealing upwards of $10,000

Chloe would rather be anywhere than locked in work jail (aka the break room) with five of her coworkers . . . even if one of them is Tyson. But if they can band together to clear their names, what looks like a total disaster might just make Chloe’s list of Top Ten Best Moments.

Just in time for the holiday season, this book is set on Christmas Eve. It was a fun and fast read with a bit of a mystery element. The characters were interesting, though not thoroughly developed, and the story was a bit mindless. There are random lists that scatter this book quite frequently, but being that it is told by Chloe, it really shows her personality. She loves lists and it is very much a part of her daily life. At first it was a bit distracting, but quickly became a fun part of the story. This is just one of those books that you can sit down and read in one sitting, that you don’t take too seriously, and it’s a few hours worth of entertainment.

Chloe’s family has recently moved to a new town and she is a bit of a loner. She doesn’t really have friends. She works at a local grocery store, in which the story takes place. She is a pretty funny person and I really enjoyed being in her head. She makes lists for pretty much everything and there is a lot of humor in most of them. She also has a major crush on one of the guys who she works with, but isn’t really great at the whole flirting thing. Being accused of stealing charity money along with the other younger people she works with, they are being held at the store until the police get there. She wants to figure out the truth and goes into Nancy Drew mode. Along the way, she also finds out some truths about herself, and the others that she works with. Oh, and add in that she is diabetic and has completely blown off taking care of herself throughout the day as she should. I knew that would lead to a big uh oh at some point.

I found this book to be just what I needed at the time. It was easy to get into, and I read through to the end without a second thought. The different personalities of the other characters were fun. I did figure out the mystery quite quickly, but it didn’t take away from the enjoyment of it. I actually thought that they mystery wasn’t the center of importance of the story. The characters and how they interact, and learning more about them all was the thing that I was most interested in. This is the type of book that just leaves you with a smile on your face. Despite not getting to know the characters quite as well as I wanted, and the lists dominating my brain, I really loved this book for its entertainment value. Reading should be fun and that is just how I would describe this book. It all takes place in the span of a day. It is lighthearted and perfect escape for a few hours. I feel like this review didn’t really say much about this book, but there’s not much to say except open and enjoy!!

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