Geez, things are really complicated for Jared and Tate. Things are always complicated and intense when you are between the ages of ‘I’m in hormone hell’ and ‘Crap, I think I’m dying’. But things are really hard between these two, because they are a big hot mess of hormones, ‘I’m dying’, my-peanut-butter-hates-your-chocolate, he ripped the head off my voodoo doll, no one can hate her as much as I hate her, no one can have her–but I don’t want her, he’s not there if I don’t look at him, AND NO ONE CAN EVER LOVE HIM/HER MORE THAN I HAVE SINCE WE FIRST MET. It’s like the Magic 8 Ball as a relationship.
Does it sound like a cluster-eff of angst, drama, loathing, self destruction, and trauma? Dude… it really is a cluster-eff of angst, drama, loathing, self destruction, and trauma and worth every freaking moment! Every. Freaking. Moment.
This book is sexy. It’s sexy in all the ways that makes mothers tell their daughters to stay away from bad boys. Penelope Douglas has her finger on the pulse of what makes a relationship that terrible combination of tragic perfection where love destroys and hate give birth to stronger beautiful things that no one should ever have to make. First let me say–this is NOT the relationship I would ever want my sister to be part. I don’t think anyone would wish this on anyone, but it’s an exaggeration of a relationship that is closer in reality to what most girls out there are going to encounter than the majority of YA novels available in contemporary YA genre. Does it make it an ideal relationship? NO! But it makes a effing phenomenal story and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the amount of heartache and emotional torture. There have to be over 9000 reasons to read this book and one of those reasons is because I say you need to! My reason has more weight than the other 8999 because I am the coolest effin’ person on the Earth.
I haven’t said jack-squat about Bully other than blah, blah, blah yet though…
Tate and Jared were once inseparable. The two of them were in one another’s pockets. Original BFFs, who had secret sleepovers–they lived next door and shared all their secrets and dreams with each other. Then parts of Jared’s body started being like, “Hey, she has a socket and you have a plug.” Feelies began to evolve and thoughts began to change to, “Hey, she has a socket and I love her. She’s mine. I have a plug.” But the thing is girls are from one side of the tree and guys are from the other and guys think with their plugs but never use their words. So where Tate was thinking along the line of, “Jared is awesome and he has pretty eyes, I wonder if he would ever like to kiss me?” and giving him fluttering lashes, Jared thought she had something in her eye and never said crap. Outcome: Jared makes a choice that ends up having devastating results and the resentment of all his plug anger gets hoisted on Tate.
Yes, this book–boiled down to a quick summary is: Adolescent penis fury fuels malignant passionate ill will between true lovers, in rare psychotic perversion of schoolyard tormentor game.
By the time the story of Tate is rolling she has become tempered steel. She has been in the flames for a VERY long ass time and struck down to a powerful weapon. Jared and his friend Maddoc have been going after her; slandering and persecuting her to the point where in the past she felt unsafe leaving her house and because she lived next door to Jared she’d not been sure that was safe either. To further exacerbate the situation she was ashamed that things had become so bad. She had no respect from her schoolmates and no self-respect. She was going to a year long study abroad and couldn’t be happier to leave Fall Away St. behind her. When she returns she is full of fury. She doesn’t know where the strength is coming from but she isn’t taking crap from Jared and Maddoc anymore. The result isn’t that they stop torturing her… it’s that Jared can’t get enough of her. He’s mesmerized and the plug has never wanted her socket more.
This book is great. I don’t think this is a ‘how-to’ book for dealing with bullies for young adults. Do not think your bully and you are going to fall in love. Dicks don’t become princes most of the time. Do not run out and find a Jared. If you are a girl of 13-992… boys of this ilk are bad, bad news. Boys with their crap together that can take care of you is what you want. Guys in a downward spiral taking everyone with them are terrible for you. When someone you are with gives you a diet of shit, that isn’t love. Don’t eat shit; it will go to your thighs.
If you like this you will love Sara Wolf’s Lovely Vicious Series.
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Until You Synopsis:
***This novel contains graphic sexual content and harsh language. It is only appropriate for adult readers age 18+.
Have you ever been so angry that hitting things felt good? Or so numb that you actually felt high? The past few years have been like that for me. Traveling between fury and indifference with no stops in between.
Some people hate me for it, while others are scared of me. But none of them can hurt me, because I don’t care about anything or anyone.
Except Tatum.
I love her so much that I hate her. We used to be friends, but I found out that I couldn’t trust her or anyone else.
So I hurt her. I pushed her away.
But I still need her. The sight of her centers me, and I can pool all of my anger into her. Engaging her, challenging her, bullying her…they are my food, my air, and the last part of me that feels anything human.
But she left. She went to France for a year, and came back a different girl.
Now, when I push, she pushes back.
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Rival Synopsis:
Madoc and Fallon. Two estranged teenagers playing games that push the boundaries between love and war…
She’s back.
For the two years she’s been away at boarding school, there was no word from her. Back when we lived in the same house, she used to cut me down during the day and then leave her door open for me at night.
I was stupid then, but now I’m ready to beat her at her own game…
I’m back.
Two years and I can tell he still wants me, even if he acts like he’s better than me.
But I won’t be scared away. Or pushed down. I’ll call his bluff and fight back. That’s what he wants, right? As long as I keep my guard up, he’ll never know how much he affects me….
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Falling Away Synopsis:
Jaxon is the guy she’s supposed to avoid.
K.C. is the girl he won’t let get away….
K. C. Carter has always followed the rules—until this year, when a mistake leaves her the talk of her college campus and her carefully arranged life comes crashing to a halt. Now she’s stuck in her small hometown for the summer to complete her court-ordered community service, and to make matters worse, trouble is living right next door.
Jaxon Trent is the worst kind of temptation and exactly what K.C. was supposed to stay away from in high school. But he never forgot her. She was the one girl who wouldn’t give him the time of day and the only one to ever say no. Fate has brought K.C. back into his life—except what he thought was a great t wist of luck turns out to be too close for comfort. As the bond between them grows, he discovers that convincing K.C. to get out from her mother’s shadow is hard, but revealing the darkest parts of his soul is nearly impossible.…
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