Epic Fail: A Teen Romantic Comedy Filled with High School Drama and Star-Crossed Love

Epic Fail: A Teen Romantic Comedy Filled with High School Drama and Star-Crossed Love

Pride and Prejudice goes Hollywood in this winning romantic comedy inspired by Jane Austen’s classic. In her teen fiction debut, the author of Knitting Under the Influence goes back to high school for a tale of sisters, misinformation, and star-crossed love. Will Elise’s love life be an epic win or an epic fail? At Coral Tree Prep in Los Angeles, who your parents are can make or break you. Case in point: As the son of Hollywood royalty, Derek Edwards is pretty much prince of the school—not that he deigns to acknowledge many of his loyal subjects. As the daughter of the new principal, Elise Benton isn’t exactly on everyone’s must-sit-next-to-at-lunch list. When Elise’s beautiful sister catches the eye of the prince’s best friend, Elise gets to spend a lot of time with Derek, making her the envy of every girl on campus. Except she refuses to fall for any of his rare smiles and instead warms up to his enemy, the surprisingly charming social outcast Webster Grant. But in this hilarious tale of fitting in and flirting, not all snubs are undeserved, not all celebrity brats are bratty, and pride and prejudice can get in the way of true love for only so long. A Modern Pride and Prejudice Retelling: Instead of Regency ballrooms, think LA house parties. Elise Benton is the smart, witty new girl who’s not impressed by Coral Tree Prep’s arrogant prince, Derek Edwards. - Celebrity Romance: He’s the son of Hollywood’s most famous couple and has a reputation to match. But Elise soon discovers that not all celebrity brats are bratty. - High School Setting: Navigating the halls of a private LA high school where status is everything, especially when your mom is the new principal everyone loves to hate. - The Misunderstood Hero: Derek Edwards is aloof, infuriating, and seems to hate everyone—especially her. So why does Elise find herself warming up to his rare smiles? “Jane Austen fans will have fun finding the clever parallels in this contemporary take on PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, while Austen innocents can just sit back and enjoy the romance.” - Polly Shulman, author of ENTHUSIASM LaZebnik has done a masterful job of reimagining the social caste system and plot twists of Austen’s tale …. Whether or not they are fans of the original, readers looking for a light-hearted romance featuring a protagonist who always has a snappy comeback at the ready will happily lose themselves in this one. - Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books “I thoroughly enjoyed this charming tale about the joys and perils of going to school and navigating relationships with the celebrity set and their complicated offspring. Claire LaZebnik has done anything but fail.” - Jen Calonita, author of Secrets of My Hollywood Life Will Elise’s love life be an epic win or an epic fail? At Coral Tree Prep in Los Angeles, who your parents are can make or break you. Case in point: As the son of Hollywood royalty, Derek Edwards is pretty much prince of the school—not that he deigns to acknowledge many of his loyal subjects. As the daughter of the new principal, Elise Benton isn’t exactly on everyone’s must-sit-next-to-at-lunch list. When Elise’s beautiful sister catches the eye of the prince’s best friend, Elise gets to spend a lot of time with Derek, making her the envy of every girl on campus. Except she refuses to fall for any of his rare smiles and instead warms up to his enemy, the surprisingly charming social outcast Webster Grant. But in this hilarious tale of fitting in and flirting, not all snubs are undeserved, not all celebrity brats are bratty, and pride and prejudice can get in the way of true love for only so long. Claire LaZebnik is the author of ten published novels and, with Dr. Lynn Kern Koegel, two works of nonfiction about autism ( Overcoming Autism and Growing Up on the Spectrum ). She wrote a Modern Love column for the New York Times about having an adolescent son with autism entering the dating scene. Her writing has appeared in numerous magazines and periodicals, including Vogue , the Wall Street Journal , and Redbook . Epic Fail By Claire LaZebnik HarperTeen Copyright © 2011 Claire LaZebnik All right reserved. ISBN: 9780061921261 Chapter One The front office wasn?t as crazy as you?d expect on the first day of school, which seemed to confirm Coral Tree Prep?s reputation as ?a well oiled machine.? That was a direct quote from the Private School Confidential website I had stumbled across when I first Googled Coral Tree?right after my parents told me and my three sisters we?d be transferring there in the fall. Since it was on the other side of the country from where we?d been living?from where I?d lived my entire life?I couldn?t exactly check it myself, and I was desperate for more information. A well-oiled machine didn?t sound too bad. But I was less thrilled to read that Coral Tree was ?basically a country club masquerading as a school.? The same anonymous writer added, ?I?ve yet