Merivale Mall #11 Perfect Strangers and #12 Lost and Found

In Merivale Mall #11, Perfect Strangers, Lori and Nick's relationship gets rockier.  Lori feels that she and Nick do not share enough interests, so she tries to learn about car repairs all in one day. Later, Lori tries to teach Nick how to draw. Nothing works, and Lori fears that she and Nick are incompatible.  Meanwhile, Danielle tries to dazzle a ski instructor while she vacations in Switzerland.

On page 54, Nick is looking over Lori's car.  He suddenly asks Lori where her diary is, and Lori gets flustered.  Nick just wants to know when Lori last got an oil change, but instead, he asks her in such a way as to cause maximum drama.  By this point in the series, I am so over Nick and Lori and desperately want them to break up.  Their relationship is so stupid.

I enjoyed this book but not as much as earlier books in the series.  I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had known how the series ends.  My perspective about the plot and subplot is different now that I know how the series is resolved.

In Merivale Mall #12, Lost and Found, Nick gives Lori an heirloom necklace, but he acts weird about it.  To Lori's dismay, she immediately misplaces the necklace and must hide what happened.  Basically, both Lori and Nick act bizarre in this story, and I just wanted them to break up.  Let's get it over with and put us all out of our misery!

Meanwhile, Danielle decides not to date for a month.  Danielle's restraint helps her experience personal growth so that she is able to make better decisions about romance.

Lori comes up with a crazy scheme to make a copy of the heirloom necklace to hide its loss. How can a high school student with no training think that she has the skill to duplicate an heirloom necklace?  This series has many stupid events in it, but this one takes the prize.  Lori goes through with the plan and tries to pass off the copy as the original.  Not surprisingly, the scheme fails miserably.

This book recaps many of the events of the series.  The book was clearly written with the knowledge that the story would be the final entry in the series.  As I read the second half of the book, I realized that the series began winding down during volume nine.

I am pleased with how the series ends and feel that the ending is appropriate.  I enjoyed reading the Merivale Mall series.