A Field Guide for Heartbreakers »

Kristen Tracy resides in San Francisco, where she writes young adult novels, middle-grade novels, to-do lists, and poems.

Best friends Dessy and Veronica arrive in Europe with wildly different plans. Dessy hopes to heal her newly broken heart by diving into the creative writing workshop that brought the girls to Prague. Veronica’s plan, meanwhile, is to conquer as many hot-dudes as possible in one month—and help Dessy recycle her heart in the process. Her method:

· Dress like you are the party.

· Explore the terrain. (Moderate stalking is totally allowed.)

· Be adventurous. And that means being prepared to hide in your suitcase.

· Ask questions that make your hot-dude feel smart.

· Gloss early, gloss often, and bring bum. Because a kiss can happen when you least expect it!

At first, Veronica’s plan is working so well that Dessy thinks she might be a love genius. But soon it’s clear that Operation Maneater has a few holes. Like its failure to anticipate crazy mixed signals—and worse, its mysterious tendency to plague a friendship with secrets and lies.

Well, no one ever said breaking hearts was a simple craft….

Publishers Weekly

Best friends Dessy and Veronica aren't so much heartbreakers as heartbroken when they jet off to Prague for a monthlong writing workshop. Fresh from painful breakups, both girls are eager to get their minds off former loves and onto potential new ones. Along the way, the 17year-olds encounter more heartbreak and find themselves at odds with each other, but eventually find their way back to a stronger, more honest friendship. Tracy (Crimes of the Sarahs) is best with the vivid historical detail and city landmarks she incorporates into the story. But Veronica is energetic to the point of caricature, making Dessy (already saddled with the last name Gherkin) seem all the duller. There are boys galore, but none of them stands out as particularly special, and a plot line involving a threatening student at the workshop feels at odds with the book's comedic elements, such as Veronica's "man-wall"--a collage of "hot-dudes" she might go after. The way Dessy and Veronica bumble along, acting without thinking and often hurting people in the process, doesn't add to their appeal, either. Ages 12-up. (June)