Book Review: Psych Major Syndrome by Alicia Thompson

Patient Name: Leigh Nolan Age: 18 years Presenting Concerns: Leigh Nolan has just started her first year at Stiles College. She has decided to major in psychology (even though her parents would rather she study Tarot cards than Rorschach blots), despite reporting that she thinks, "Psychology is a load of crap." Patient has always been very good at helping her friends with their problems, but when it comes to solving her own...not so much. Patient has a tendency to overanalyze things, particularly when the opposite sex is involved. Like why doesn't Andrew, her boyfriend of over a year, ever invite her to spend the night? Or why can't she commit to taking the next step in their relationship? And why does his roommate Nathan dislike her so much? More importantly, why did Nathan have a starring role in a much-more-than-friendly dream? Aggravating factors include hyper-competitive fellow psych majors, a professor who's badly in need of her own psychoanalysis, and mentoring a middle-school-aged girl who thinks Patient is, in a word, nave. Preliminary treatment will include Introduction to Psychology, but may require more if she's going to answer these questions and make it through her freshman year. Diagnosis: Psych Major Syndrome

I actually picked this up after reading some reviews on Goodreads, and I really enjoyed it. Of course, I'm a psychology major who over analyzes everything.

Characters: Leigh (real name: Tuesday), is stuck in a dead-end relationship, analyzes everything that happens around her, and is feeling immense pressure to decide what she plans to do for her senior project. Of course, she's only a freshman. To make things worse, she ends up spending time with younger girls, as part of a mentoring program. While there wasn't a lot of school work mentioned (apparently Leigh can whip out an "A" paper hours after it's due), I did feel like the pressures of college were very present in the book. Over the course of the book, Leigh was able to actually learn from the people around her, particularly the girls that she spent time mentoring. The girls ended up having a reciprocal relationship, with Leigh getting as much advice as she was giving.

Plot: Overall, I really enjoyed the plot. It was fairly obvious how it was going to end, and I didn't really mind. In fact, without giving away any spoilers, that was exactly how I wanted it to end. There were a few times that I was screaming at Leigh in my head, but psych majors are infamous for ignoring what's right in front of them (I should know, haha). I also really enjoyed the humor throughout the book. I've noticed that some of the humor in YA books, and all genres, seems to forced. Maybe it's because slang is constantly being updated, and pop culture references get outdated just as quickly. This book never felt forced to me, which is always a plus. It was a bit fluffy toward the end, just as a warning.

As an added bonus, I got some review on some Intro to Psych theories

I can't wait to read more from Thompson!

Psych Major Syndrome
By Alicia Thomspon
Published by Hyperion
336 Pages
Rating: A-

Teaser Tuesday (November 3)

What is teaser tuesday? It's a meme hosted by Should Be Reading and here are the rules:
Grab your current read...
Open to a random page
Share two teaser sentences from somewhere on the page
Don't include spoilers

So, technically I did a teaser for this same book last week. However, I'm really enjoying it (possibly due to all the psych jargon that I understand). So, once again you'll get a teaser from Psych Major Syndrome

"Signs that Sydney was definitely a narcissistic personality: Grandiose self-importance, check. Fantasies of unlimited success or power, check. Believes she is "special" or somehow deserving of excessive admiration, check, check."

-Psych Major Syndrome, page 105, by Alicia Thompson

Teaser Tuesday (October 27)

What is teaser tuesday? It's a meme hosted by Should Be Reading and here are the rules:
Grab your current read...
Open to a random page
Share two teaser sentences from somewhere on the page
Don't include spoilers

"7. What annoys me is when people confuse "you're" with "your" or "its" with "it's". 8. People are stupid. (see above)."

-Psych Major Syndrome, page 1, by Alicia Thompson

In My Mailbox (October 11)

In my mailbox was created by Kristi of The Story Siren, who was inspired by Pop Culture Junkie. Here are the books I got this week...

The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan

Nick and his brother, Alan, have spent their lives on the run from magic. Their father was murdered, and their mother was driven mad by magicians and the demons who give them power. The magicians are hunting the Ryves family for a charm that Nick's mother stole -- a charm that keeps her alive -- and they want it badly enough to kill again.

Danger draws even closer when a brother and sister come to the Ryves family for help. The boy wears a demon's mark, a sign of death that almost nothing can erase...and when Alan also gets marked by a demon, Nick is des-perate to save him. The only way to do that is to kill one of the magicians they have been hiding from for so long.

Ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse, Nick starts to suspect that his brother is telling him lie after lie about their past. As the magicians' Circle closes in on their family, Nick uncovers the secret that could destroy them all.

This is the Demon's Lexicon. Turn the page.

Candor by Pam Bachorz (Part of 1 ARC Tours)

Oscar Banks has everything under control. In a town where his father brainwashes everyone, he's found a way to secretly fight the subliminal Messages. He's got them all fooled: Oscar's the top student and the best-behaved teen in town. Nobody knows he's made his own Messages to deprogram his brain. Oscar has even found a way to get rich. For a hefty price, he helps new kids escape Candor, Florida before they're transformed into cookie-cutter teens. But then Nia Silva moves to Candor, and Oscar's carefully-controlled world crumbles.


Psych Major Syndrome by Alicia Thompson

Patient Name: Leigh Nolan Age: 18 years Presenting Concerns: Leigh Nolan has just started her first year at Stiles College. She has decided to major in psychology (even though her parents would rather she study Tarot cards than Rorschach blots), despite reporting that she thinks, "Psychology is a load of crap." Patient has always been very good at helping her friends with their problems, but when it comes to solving her own...not so much. Patient has a tendency to overanalyze things, particularly when the opposite sex is involved. Like why doesn't Andrew, her boyfriend of over a year, ever invite her to spend the night? Or why can't she commit to taking the next step in their relationship? And why does his roommate Nathan dislike her so much? More importantly, why did Nathan have a starring role in a much-more-than-friendly dream? Aggravating factors include hyper-competitive fellow psych majors, a professor who's badly in need of her own psychoanalysis, and mentoring a middle-school-aged girl who thinks Patient is, in a word, nave. Preliminary treatment will include Introduction to Psychology, but may require more if she's going to answer these questions and make it through her freshman year. Diagnosis: Psych Major Syndrome

The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong

Book II in the Darkest Powers trilogy takes us deeper into a world where the supernatural intrudes on the everyday with riveting effect. If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl—someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I'm as far away from normal as it gets. A living science experiment—not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a group of people who call themselves The Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters, I’m a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control: I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever. I'm running for my life with three of my supernatural friends—a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch—and we have to find someone who can help us gain our freedom back before The Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.

What did you get this week?