Review: Deadly Little Secret (Touch #1) by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Description from Goodreads:

Some secrets shouldn't be kept...


Up until three months ago, everything in sixteen-year-old Camelia's life had been fairly ordinary: decent grades; an okay relationship with her parents; and a pretty cool part-time job at the art studio downtown. But when Ben, the mysterious new guy, starts junior year at her high school, Camelia's life becomes anything but ordinary.



Rumored to be somehow responsible for his ex-girlfriend's accidental death, Ben is immediately ostracized by everyone on campus. Except for Camelia. She's reluctant to believe the rumors, even when her friends try to convince her otherwise. She's inexplicably drawn to Ben...and to his touch. But soon, Camelia is receiving eerie phone calls and strange packages with threatening notes. Ben insists she is in danger, and that he can help--but can he be trusted? She knows he's hiding something... but he's not the only one with a secret.



From the best-selling author of Blue is for Nightmares comes a story of paranormal romance that's sure to be a thrilling and chilling teen favorite.



My Review:
 
Just after reading the first chapter, I knew this was gonna be a great story!
 
Camelia was in the school parking lot on the last day of school, when she has to squat down to search for an earring that slipped off.  Next thing she knows, there's a car heading straight for her and she is frozen like a deer in headlights.  All of a sudden she is pushed out to the curb and out of the way by a mysterious guy.  Camelia thinks this mysterious guy is incredibly handsome too.  He makes sure she's ok, touches her stomach, and then hops on his motorcycle and drives away.
  So who is this mystery guy you ask- Well Camelia is about to find out.  When school resumes three months later, she finds out about the new student- Ben Carter.  Ben is not welcomed with open arms like most new students- quite the opposite really.  There are already rumors going around that he is a killer and pushed his girlfriend of a cliff to her death, but Camelia won't believe the stories about him since she knows firsthand that he's a hero and saved her life personally.
  When she approaches Ben, he denies being the guy who saved her, but she knows she's not mistaken because she notices the same scar on his arm is the same one she saw when he saved her.
  When she gets home from school, she gets a photo of herself with a heart around it and realizes when she keeps getting mysterious gifts, photos and messages that someone is stalking her.  When they start, its as if she has a secret admirer but as they progress and come more often, she knows someone is out to hurt her.  Ben tells her that she's in danger but is she in danger from him or is someone else out to get her?  Is Ben the killer that everyone says he is?
 
  I've read this book twice now because its just that good!  Its full of mystery, humor, and romance that will make your toes curl. 
 
Camelia is my favorite character.  If I were her, I would have told my parents right away what was going on.  In my opinion, she was right to trust Ben when they first met cause she knew he was a real hero for saving her life.  Camelia is a brave character too.  She sticks with what she believes in and rides off with Ben in the middle of the night instead of believing the rumors.  Camelia also does pottery, which brings me to my favorite scene out of any books that I've ever read.  If you've seen the movie "Ghost" with Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze, then you  know about the love scene they do with the clay and the pottery wheel spinning.  Well, that is what happens in one of the scenes of this book between Camelia and a boy. I Absolutely loved that scene and being able to picture it while I was reading it.  It makes me want to learn pottery just so I can experience what Camelia does.
  I recommend this book to everyone.  Seriously, I do!  The characters are entertaining.  The settings are fun, romantic, and mysterious.  The plot flows easily from beginning to end and I wasn't bored for any of it.  Read this book cause I know you'll love it too!!!
 
5 Stars