ARC, 398 pages
Release Date: January 7, 2014Published by: Simon PulseStand-aloneSource: Publisher (I received this ARC in exchange for a just and honest review!)For fans of: Contemporary, Realistic Fiction, YAEmma is tired of being good. Always the dutiful daughter to an overprotective father, she is the antithesis of her mother — whose name her dad won’t even say out loud. That’s why meeting Siobhan is the best thing that ever happened to her…and the most dangerous. Because Siobhan is fun and alluring and experienced and lives on the edge. In other words, she’s everything Emma is not.
And it may be more than Emma can handle.
Because as intoxicating as her secret life may be, when Emma begins to make her own decisions, Siobhan starts to unravel. It’s more than just Dylan, the boy who comes between them. Their high-stakes pacts are spinning out of control. Elaborate lies become second nature. Loyalties and boundaries are blurred. And it all comes to a head at the infamous Afterparty, where debauchery rages and an intense, inescapable confrontation ends in a plummet from the rooftop…
This explosive, sexy, and harrowing follow-up to Ann Redisch Stampler’s spectacular teen debut, Where It Began, reveals how those who know us best can hurt us most.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I’m a little upset over this. I wanted to like this one sooooo bad. I was waiting for this one for a longgggg time… And I even like begged the author to send me an ARC of it. But unfortunately, I just couldn’t get into it. From the characters to their actions, I just couldn’t do it.
As for the characters, I HATED the main character Emma. She has no spine. So many things she didn’t like and she didn’t say anything. And then there was that one situation where her “best friend” did something huge and she didn’t say anything. And trust me, it was a big no no. She should’ve beat her up lol And as for Sibohan, I couldn’t stand her. She was such a b*tch and she was so rude. I just couldn’t connect with her. I’m sure the author did this to make us understand why all this happened between them at the end, but I didn’t really care. They both annoyed me and I didn’t want to know about what happened to them.
When I say the actions, I just mean that everything they did was really stupid. And then there was Emma’s dad. I hated his actions too. He treated her like a litttle kid and punished her for her mother’s mistakes. I could have told him (and I don’t even have kids…) the more you shelter them, the more they try to rebel. And Emma definitely does.
Other than that, I didn’t really make it to the end. I skimmed the middle and then read the ending just to see what all happened and I wasn’t really missing anything. Even the party part and the “swoony” boy didn’t work for me.
This may work for some of you, but this just wasn’t for me. I couldn’t get into it or the characters. But because I didn’t DNF it, I kind of rated up.
As for the characters, I HATED the main character Emma. She has no spine. So many things she didn’t like and she didn’t say anything. And then there was that one situation where her “best friend” did something huge and she didn’t say anything. And trust me, it was a big no no. She should’ve beat her up lol And as for Sibohan, I couldn’t stand her. She was such a b*tch and she was so rude. I just couldn’t connect with her. I’m sure the author did this to make us understand why all this happened between them at the end, but I didn’t really care. They both annoyed me and I didn’t want to know about what happened to them.
When I say the actions, I just mean that everything they did was really stupid. And then there was Emma’s dad. I hated his actions too. He treated her like a litttle kid and punished her for her mother’s mistakes. I could have told him (and I don’t even have kids…) the more you shelter them, the more they try to rebel. And Emma definitely does.
Other than that, I didn’t really make it to the end. I skimmed the middle and then read the ending just to see what all happened and I wasn’t really missing anything. Even the party part and the “swoony” boy didn’t work for me.
This may work for some of you, but this just wasn’t for me. I couldn’t get into it or the characters. But because I didn’t DNF it, I kind of rated up.
Overall, I give this
Oh, this book. This book, this book, this book. It was like a train wreck — you know it's awful, but you can't look away. I mean, I tried to interpret it as a sort of Gossip Girl situation, which meant it was mildly entertaining, but I didn't necessarily agree with what the characters did.
Glad to hear I wasn't the only one who felt this way about it!