Bully: An unforgettable friends-to-enemies-to-lovers romance (Fall Away Book 1)

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Seriously though, Good Reads is amazing and it allows me to keep tabs on my book review notes. (See below!)

Bully by Penelope Douglas - Book Review — Vivian Mae Bully by Penelope Douglas - Book Review — Vivian Mae

But I still just couldn’t figure Jared out. Did he like her (somewhere deep down inside)? Did he hate her (unlikely, based on his actions and words)? What made him so angry with her? Why did he want to hurt her? Why did he want to protect her? … Questions. Questions. Never-ending questions. I needed to know WHY! Stay the hell away from anyone like my ex-husband-including liars, cheaters, guys with more looks than substance, and (especially important) bartenders Everything about him was just so contradictory. He blared music late at night so she couldn’t sleep but covered for her at school when she was in trouble. He made sure none of the guys at school ever touched yet and yet clearly didn’t want her for himself. I kept trying to figure him out. Maybe it was his messed up way of trying to protect her? Maybe he didn’t feel good enough for her and was trying, in the only way he knew how, to look out for her?

What would I do without your blog, I have just read Bully I started this morning and I just finished it, and I absolutely loved it. A part of me couldn’t help but try to rationalize or at least understand what was going on inside his head because the more I read, the more it was clear that his actions were not just straight up meanness. There was something more behind it. Misguided and wrong perhaps but I could sense something…‘good’ in him maybe? Although at first I wondered if maybe that was just my natural desire to redeem the hero of my book… needless to say, it stirred up a lot of questions and kept me totally hooked and curious to see where the story would go next. Anyway! The story itself is great, we do find out why Jared bullied her all those years and all it would have taken was communication, but they are teens so who communicates effectively at that age? I was along for the ride. I hated his friend Maddoc and at times I was upset with Tate, but the moment they do get together it was fireworks 💥 and I am all here for that built up tension of hate between the two.

Bully: An unforgettable friends-to-enemies-to-lovers romance

Penelope Douglas is a phenomenal romance writer and my love for her books began with Birthday Girl. I need to read all of her books. My next series is going to be the Kill Switch series. The title of this book did not lie! The hero genuinely was a bully in the first part of the book and to be honest, I wasn’t sure how I was ever going to fall for him. He was mean. Not like violent or abusive or anything, but the things he said and did were genuinely hurtful and unkind. But the real question that I kept asking myself was… why? As a general rule, behavior like his is a result of some sort of extreme hurt but for the life of her, Tate couldn’t figure out what she did to wrong him and she was hurting deeply both for their lost friendship and for the pain he was causing in her life.The book took me through a range of emotion and even left me teary in places seeing the friendship they’d once had, the hurt that was left over, the anger that was thrown around and the hearts that were left bruised. Besides, I have enough going on with my ex trying to run my vintage clothing store out of business. So what if I'd rather be selling my own designs? I have bills to pay. remember to read trigger warnings and if you’re affected by bully type books, don’t read it. You’ll not like it. Remember this is fiction! Enjoy!

Bully by Penelope Douglas | Waterstones Bully by Penelope Douglas | Waterstones

Jared moved his head from side to side trying to catch my eyes, his lips inches from my face. “If I ever lay my hands on you,” he said low and husky, “you’ll want it.” I finally graduated with my nursing degree and now it’s time to celebrate. Out with my friends, I come across the man of my dreams. Tall, dark, and oh so sexy. When I see him with another woman, I move on, after all it’s just a night out and it’s time for me to focus on my career anyway. I will say though that despite everything going on between them – Jared and Tate had some seriously chemistry!! Talk about unresolved sexual tension! I mean really! But I loved that despite everything he did while he was being mean, that he never crossed the line into touching her… that again was more proof to me of him feeling something deeper for her. A wonderfully addictive read that kept my heart racing from start to finish. I could not put it down! 5 stars!!”—Aestas Book Blog

This book will make you see where bullies come from and show you how a perfectly sweet and loving person can be shaped into a tormentor.

Fall Away Series – Pen Douglas

Now, because the story was told entirely from Tate’s perspective, it was a while before I got to discover what had made Jared turn into a bully which left me plenty of time to wonder at the possibilities… At this age, I’ve had it with relationships. Call me sour, but nobody is faithful, and I’d rather have a taste and move on. Even after everything he’d done, part of me still missed that boy who was my waking thought and constant companion as a kid. But that Jared was gone now. In his place was a sour, hateful douchbag that had no regard for me.”The author did a phenomenal job of portraying Jared. She managed to capture his conflict in subtle ways that were just strong enough to keep you guessing at his real motivations behind his actions. He was clearly being a bully but at the same time, it was also clear that he wasn’t a bad guy. Hubo un tiempo en que fuimos muy amigos. Luego me dio la espalda e hizo de arruinarme la vida su objetivo. Me han humillado, me han gritado y han murmurado sobre mí durante toda la secundaria. Sus burlas y los rumores se volvieron cada vez más sádicos según iba pasando el tiempo, mientras yo me volvía loca tratando de no cruzarme en su cami- no. Incluso me fui a Francia durante un año, solo por evitarlo. There was a time when I had all his attention and I loved it. And as much I wanted him to leave me alone, I also liked..the way he was looking at me right now. And then I remembered that I hated him.”