Bully

Title: Bully
Author: Penelope Douglas
Year: 2013
Series?: Fall Away #1
Format: E-Book (Kindle)
Genre: New Adult, Romance, High School/Bullying

What's it about?: Tatum and Jared have been next door neighbors for years, they were even the best of friends. Until Jared went to visit his dad the summer before freshman year of high school, because when he came back he was different and he hated Tatum. For two years he tormented her to tears, to the point of hiding from him. Tate flees to France for her junior year, partially to escape Jared. When she returns for her senior year she's different, and she intends to fight back.

My opinion: Bully ended up being a wonderful surprise. I still have some issues with it, but it was better than I thought it would be. The chemistry between Jared and Tatum crackled, they really had the best comebacks for the other one. The few things I did not like about the book, Jared's justification for his actions toward Tatum. I feel like his reasons were not strong enough for the two years of torment he unleashed upon her, and while I felt bad for him, his actions were uncalled for. Jared could have just pushed Tatum away and that would have made more sense (but it wouldn't have made a better story, I know). I REALLY did not like how easily Tatum forgave Jared for what he did. Tatum was so broken down that she had to leave the freaking country and yet she didn't make him work harder for her to forgive him? Uh uh, Ms. Douglas, please read Jennifer Armentrout's Lux series as a reference for what a guy should do when he treats a girl that horrible and you can learn something. Despite their long standing history, the romance between the two hit too fast for me, one second they're still semi-enemies and the next they're, ahem, making up for lost time. I digress.

What I did like: I loved the sharp wit that Tatum brought to the table. I loved the speech she gave in class to Jared about how much he had hurt her over the years. I loved the angst when Jared realizes how badly he messed up with Tatum. I loved that Tatum as a girl liked cars and was a hell of a driver. I loved the character development, not just of Tatum and Jared but of the other bully and Tatum's best friend, it was masterfully done. I loved that people would actually admit when they did something wrong and tried to make up for it. I loved that this book was thought provoking, how bullying can change a person's life, and how it points out how bullies are made by others. We all need to step up and make sure to prevent the creation of bullies as well as stopping bullying. The angst was fantastic, just the right amount. Also the right amount of steam as well. So, I'm sorry the like section was shorter, it's easier for me to rant on and on about what I didn't like, but this book is VERY good, hopefully other readers will enjoy it too.

I would rate it 4 out of 5 stars :-)