I’m going to come right to the point on this one: it was a big disappointment. Nice Try, Jane Sinner is an obscenity-filled book about a nasty person with a filthy mouth and a rotten attitude. That she finally decided to do something decent for someone else at the end of the book did not make for a satisfying character arc nor did it turn this into a worthwhile tale. It simply made me wonder why I kept reading in the hope that there might be a point to this book.

I understand the need to use language that a teen reader might use in order to make a book feel relevant, but it was not necessary to give Jane Sinner such a foul mouth. This is not a girl I would want for a friend. The constant vulgar language did not make her endearing or funny. In fact, her stabs at irony fell flat more often than not. That a nice guy like Robbie would find Jane Sinner attractive was hard to believe. 

So much of the story required suspension of disbelief. Did her highly religious, highly responsible parents really not insist on knowing where their previously suicidal seventeen-year-old was living? Was the teacher who hung out with students, encouraging them to gorge themselves on Chicken McNuggets until they threw up, supposed to be for real? The whole “she-becomes-a-reality-TV-star” felt like a fantasy written by a wannabee YouTuber.

The writing itself was fine, and the formatting used for the various journal entries was interesting.

Seventeen-year-old Jane Sinner has been trying to reinvent herself after an incident that resulted in her being expelled from high school. She enrolls in Elbow River Community College to finish her high school credits, and while there, discovers what could be her chance: a reality show. A student-led production, House of Orange is basically Big Brother, starring Elbow River students, produced and directed by Elbow River students, and streamed online. Jane sees this as a twofold opportunity: to reinvent herself and to move out of her home, away from her overbearing Christian family. She applies for the show, makes it in, and moves out. The show starts ramping up, gaining popularity and sponsors, and Jane loves the chance to be her competitive and snarky self. She's determined to win, but things don't always go as planned...

Nice Try, Jane Sinner is alternately hilarious and unexpectedly deep. Jane, who narrates the novel, is deliciously snarky while deeply conflicted. Her incident - no spoilers - brings up plenty of discussion opportunities, one of the biggest being: can we reinvent ourselves? Do we need to, at 17? Jane and her fellow competitors form cautious friendships, but it's tempered with the knowledge that, as the group shrinks and the stakes get higher, people are going to be backstabbed: something that will fuel Jane's fire even more.

Lianne Oelke writes reality TV well. Her characters have the omnipresent camera and learn to work it to their advantages. She also creates smart, believable characters that you may like, you may loathe, but you'll recognize; whether from your own reality TV viewing or real life. This one will be a hit with teens, who don't remember life before reality, and readers will love Jane's snark.

Not gonna lie …. I really, really love a thoughtful and interesting character driven novel.  Ones that allow us to see both the good and terrible sides of people, understand the motivation behind the choices we make, and the effect the consequences/reprcussions of said choices have on our psyche.  “Nice Try, Jane Sinner” is that novel.  Jane is a snarky, sarcastic, misanthrope with a squishy heart under all that cynicism.  Her struggle with mental health feels authentic rather than overly dramatic making Jane a character you want to root for and one many will be able to relate to.  The humor can be kind of dark at times, but it doesn’t create a mood that feels overtly negative.  Rather, it complements the story’s protagonist as well as the competitive nature of reality television.  Overall, this really is a fantastic novel.  Jane is totally awesome and while she is the star of the story, the secondary characters are not only interesting in their own right, but completely necessary to the narrative and help make this the well-rounded novel that it is.  Definitely a worthy read, one that will make you laugh a lot, cry a little, and bring out the competitor in us all.

After Jane's incident, she left high school and became the child her parents could never want. Jane has decided to reinvent herself by attending a local community college and participating in a local reality show. House of Orange allows several students from Jane's community college to live in a house for cheap rent, compete in challenges for decent prizes, and have the chance to win a used car. Happy to get away from her family, Jane treats this Big Brother-esq reality show like a mini psych experiment and totally messes with her housemates. Readers are treated to the best cat fights, romance, and dastardly deeds one would expect from a reality show. 

I had a great time with this book. I found Jane funny. It did take me some time to warm up to Jane and to hit my groove with the format. I genuinely liked the characters and was interested to see how all of their story lines played out. I would even be interested to see a second book...or this as a real reality show.

I would really love to read this. The story seems very cute, but it is not available for kindle, which is the only platform I have available.

What a refreshing and phenomenal book this is. Jane Sinner is not welcome at her high school anymore, after a period of struggling with her mental health. Meanwhile she desperately wants to move out, to get away from her parents (who obviously mean well, but are still annoying). The parents are very eager for Jane to continue her high-school education at a local community college: River Elbow. 
Jane in turn is not so eager initially. She accepts, but under one condition: that she gets to move out. Like any other seventeen-year-old she isn’t exactly rich so that is a minor problem that needs to be resolved. The student-run reality show House of Orange provides an outcome. Jane signs up for the program which is more or less like Big Brother but then for Elbow River students. Only, how is she ever going to keep this new life separate from her old one without even her parents knowing about it? Most likely it will involve a lot of drama. 
Best to just come to the point immediately, I LOVED this book so much. Even though the description did not seem fundamentally different from all other Young Adult books that exist, reading it was a whole new experience. For one, it is set in Canada! Yay. Also, I feel that this book opens up a dialogue on mental health in a very honest way. I am no expert, but it did not feel fabricated at all, and it was not something that magically disappeared either. But I was most impressed by how the topic of religion was addressed in Nice Try, Jane Sinner. 
Religion to me is something that genuinely makes me cringe most of the time it is brought up in books. From an Atheist perspective, most perspectives on religion are very hard to relate to, or way too cheesy. Yet Lianne Oelke created a book in which religion can be seen through more than one perspective, and the interaction between characters who each deal with religion in their own way is more than interesting. 
Furthermore, this book is incredibly funny. Jane Sinner is full of sarcasm and that makes me adore her. The book felt a tad bit longer than the average book in this genre, and in this case that is a good thing. 
without doubt 5 out of 5 stars.

Jane Sinner is a wonderfully snarky misanthropic protagonist, with a fantastic name to boot, but boy did this book drag on a LOT. It's taken me days to get through a book I would normally finish in an evening. I don't think the length added much value to the story or the characters. The concept - a YouTube reality TV show to win college tuition - was fun and interesting, albeit completely ridiculous, but there's only so many interludes with an imaginary psychiatrist I can take.

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review)

It took me a little bit to get into the journal format- but Jane's dry sarcasm helped.  :) I'll champion any book that tackles mental health issues and makes them a regular part of life, which this book does. Jane attempts suicide and drops out of high school. She begins her new lease on life by enrolling in Community College and entering a reality show where she lives in a youtube filmed home with other students as she attempts to win a car. This reads like a play and I think teens will love it.

I really enjoyed this story. I'm not a big fan of reality TV, but I found it an interesting setting for the story and as a way to help the character grow. I also liked the formatting of the dialogue, more like a script than using quotation marks. I found Jane relatable and real and I was invested in her story. I also throughly disliked Marc, I don't know how anyone could live with him! :)

The style of this book made for a fast furious read - I couldn't put it down! The script style gave you a very real feel for the events as they unfolded. Some of the themes are pretty serious, but the contrast of those themes coexisting in a Facebook/YouTube/reality show world makes for a whole picture of who Jane is, and how she grows over the course of a few months. If she were a real reality star, she'd probably have an international following. I recommend this book.

A ton of interesting ideas in Nice Try, Jane Sinner. The story centers on an older teen who must complete her diploma at a community college after a suicide attempt, while readjusting to life outside a strict religious upbringing and a complicated relationship to family and best friends. Oelke seems to capture what it would be like to live in a Big Brother-style reality tv setting, and how hard it can be to define yourself after going through such a life-changing experience. While using the framing device of the journal could be a good way to experience Jane's voice unfiltered, its use could feel imbalanced. We experience too much through an imaginary psychologist, and are purposefully left in the dark with Jane's plans for parts of the reality competition. It was a funny and different read, but the tone could be all over the place at times.

Content warnings: Suicide, depression

DISCUSSION OF MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES
Despite it not being mentioned until halfway through the book, a major theme is Jane's suicide attempt. Though it's not discussed until halfway through the book, I'm not marking this as a spoiler because, to be frank, mental health is not a spoiler. And the book still held up with me knowing about the attempt going in, which proves it wasn't one of those "just a plot twist" discussions of suicide. Which I'm eternally grateful for.

Jane's struggles with herself, her parents, and her little sister mirrored my own experiences with depression. Jane is discovering her identity, something depressed people can struggle with, and one way of doing that is signing up for the reality show House of Orange. Which, of course, leads to one disaster after another.

Jane's frank nature and nihilism make for an interesting depiction of a mentally ill character. I'm thrilled to see a mentally ill character whose character arc doesn't revolve around their mental illness, but still has nuanced discussions of how difficult everyday life when you don't want to exist is.

PRINCESS OF SNARK
Though this book touched on serious topics, Jane never lost her dry sense of humor. She belongs in the Queens of Snark museum. Her humorous little insights on life kept me turning the pages, along with the unique plot concept.

SERIOUSLY, THIS REALITY SHOW WAS WILD
House of Orange was like Survivor meets community college. So. Imagine the beautiful mess that would be. I don't want to spoil much about HOO because it's something you REALLY need to experience first hand. All I'll say is: psychological experiments. Online leaks. Curtains for bedroom walls. Also, the discussion of manipulation behind the scenes was fascinating.

A character you can root for! Full review on Goodreads

I was unfortunately unable to download this book to my kindle to review.

I was in the mood for a funny YA book and this book really hit the spot! I loved the way that Jane's story was written. The journal type writing was fantastic. The characters were well developed, and Jane was relatable. Definitly recomend this one!

I wasn't sure what to think about this book at first because of the writing format...since it's a script format. But I feel like it really worked for this case! I read this book extremely fast but it was so much fun! It's funny, dramatic, serious, and sad at times but totally worth the journey! I love how sassy and authentic the main character is. Definitely laugh out loud funny at times and hitting you in the feels other times. Would definitely recommend this book for others to read!

I'm very sorry. When I requested this title, I didn't realize it was not available for download to Kindle. I will not be able to review this title.

Well, it looks like you can't read this kind of file on a kindle. Sorry, I was looking forward to reading something funny, but I will not be able to review if I cannot open the file. If you are able to send in a different format, I'd still be happy to give it a go.

I REALLY enjoyed this one. It's a mix between big brother and a contemporary story, which I loved because Big Brother is one of my favorite tv shows.