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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
The concept of a "bully romance" is completely new to me and I only found out it was in fact a "thing" after reading [b:Hate Crush|48905200|Hate Crush|A. Zavarelli|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1574297221l/48905200._SY75_.jpg|73014621] relatively recently. Even though it wasn't my thing at all, I was weirdly curious about why people seemed to love them so much.
It took me a while to figure out how many stars to leave this. I was pretty repulsed by the story, but even so, I kept reading - a major kudos to Siobhan Davis' writing I think! I made it to book 3 before officially tapping out and deciding that this genre is just not for me and I will hopefully forget very soon.
It took me a while to figure out how many stars to leave this. I was pretty repulsed by the story, but even so, I kept reading - a major kudos to Siobhan Davis' writing I think! I made it to book 3 before officially tapping out and deciding that this genre is just not for me and I will hopefully forget very soon.
I had to take a minute to reflect on this book before I sat down and wrote the review. With everything that happened in the book, I needed to make sure my head was on straight enough to review Cruel Intentions. Now that it is, I was blown away by this book. I wasn’t expecting to devour it within a couple of hours. The book is that good!!
The plotline of Cruel Intentions was fantastic. Abigail is part of the “elite” squad that runs the school with an iron fist. While people think she has everything, she doesn’t. Abby wants to escape her life, which has become unbearable. Which is why she gave away her virginity to a stranger who helped her in a time of need. She is shocked when the stranger turns out to be none other than Camden Marshall, and he hates her. Cam thinks he can use Abby to get secrets on her father. What Cam doesn’t know is that Abby would do anything to escape her father and bring him down. But, Cam is hiding secrets. What happens when those secrets are revealed? Can Abby survive the backlash?
I loved Abby. If I didn’t know that she was 17, I would have thought she was older. She was loyal to her friends (except Trent). She knew what buttons to push on Cam to get a reaction out of him. She was tough and ruthless. What she did to Rochelle and the other kids cemented that. She handled Cam’s meanness (for lack of a better word) with grace and attitude. I do think that she should have confronted all 3 of the boys (Cam, Sawyer, and Jackson) sooner.
I thought Cam was a colossal jerk until the middle of the book. He was so mean to Abby. The things he did to her made me cringe. Seriously, making her kneel like that and then egging Rochelle on? Uggh. He was also secretive. There is secretive, and then there is secretive. He kept things so under wraps, it wasn’t funny. I don’t know if I believe what he said at the end of the book. If he knew what was being set up. He seemed genuinely shocked about what was revealed.
The secondary characters made the books. Charlie, Drew, Sawyer, Jackson, and Xavier added to the plot. They fleshed out the plotline and added some much needed comic relief at times. Charlie and Sawyer were the hardest to read. Charlie remained an enigma until the end of the book, as did Sawyer. I also had my suspicions about Xavier too. I can’t wait to see what these characters will do in book 2!!
I couldn’t stand Abby’s father or Trent’s father. They both left a bad taste in my mouth. The things that Trent’s father did to her at the beginning of the book. Holy crap!! I did feel bad for Trent, though. I don’t think that he was inherently a bad person. Abby’s memories of him from when he was younger showed that. I do believe that he was molded into what he was in the book. I know, feeling bad for a bad guy, right. But when someone is over the top (sexually, behaviorally, etc.), they are trying to compensate or hide something. So, we’ll see what happens to him in book 2.
I did like the main plotline of Cruel Intentions. I thought that Cam and Abby’s relationship (or lack of one) was perfectly showcased. As was his hatred of her. I did wish that the reason why Cam hated Abby came out soon in the book.
I am going to include a trigger warning in my review. Abby goes through a lot of abuse at the hands of Cam and his friends. She is kidnapped and blackmailed into doing what they wanted. Cam humiliates her every chance he gets. He verbally abuses her and there was one instance of physical abuse. The one scene that got me was when Cam and Jackson groped her after being kidnapped by them. This all happens at the beginning of the book, and it was tough to read. But, after they all talk (which should have happened earlier), everything stops. So, I suggest not to read this book if any of what I wrote triggers you.
From the middle of the book on was wild. There were times that I had to stop reading and say, “Is this happening?” It was also lightning fast. I had to reread passages because I missed stuff. Not because I had to. Because the book was so dang fast.
The end of Cruel Intentions was cruel, and it ended on a cliffhanger. I do not like cliffhangers. But, this one did its job, and I need to read book 2!!! I need to find out what happens to Abby.
The plotline of Cruel Intentions was fantastic. Abigail is part of the “elite” squad that runs the school with an iron fist. While people think she has everything, she doesn’t. Abby wants to escape her life, which has become unbearable. Which is why she gave away her virginity to a stranger who helped her in a time of need. She is shocked when the stranger turns out to be none other than Camden Marshall, and he hates her. Cam thinks he can use Abby to get secrets on her father. What Cam doesn’t know is that Abby would do anything to escape her father and bring him down. But, Cam is hiding secrets. What happens when those secrets are revealed? Can Abby survive the backlash?
I loved Abby. If I didn’t know that she was 17, I would have thought she was older. She was loyal to her friends (except Trent). She knew what buttons to push on Cam to get a reaction out of him. She was tough and ruthless. What she did to Rochelle and the other kids cemented that. She handled Cam’s meanness (for lack of a better word) with grace and attitude. I do think that she should have confronted all 3 of the boys (Cam, Sawyer, and Jackson) sooner.
I thought Cam was a colossal jerk until the middle of the book. He was so mean to Abby. The things he did to her made me cringe. Seriously, making her kneel like that and then egging Rochelle on? Uggh. He was also secretive. There is secretive, and then there is secretive. He kept things so under wraps, it wasn’t funny. I don’t know if I believe what he said at the end of the book. If he knew what was being set up. He seemed genuinely shocked about what was revealed.
The secondary characters made the books. Charlie, Drew, Sawyer, Jackson, and Xavier added to the plot. They fleshed out the plotline and added some much needed comic relief at times. Charlie and Sawyer were the hardest to read. Charlie remained an enigma until the end of the book, as did Sawyer. I also had my suspicions about Xavier too. I can’t wait to see what these characters will do in book 2!!
I couldn’t stand Abby’s father or Trent’s father. They both left a bad taste in my mouth. The things that Trent’s father did to her at the beginning of the book. Holy crap!! I did feel bad for Trent, though. I don’t think that he was inherently a bad person. Abby’s memories of him from when he was younger showed that. I do believe that he was molded into what he was in the book. I know, feeling bad for a bad guy, right. But when someone is over the top (sexually, behaviorally, etc.), they are trying to compensate or hide something. So, we’ll see what happens to him in book 2.
I did like the main plotline of Cruel Intentions. I thought that Cam and Abby’s relationship (or lack of one) was perfectly showcased. As was his hatred of her. I did wish that the reason why Cam hated Abby came out soon in the book.
I am going to include a trigger warning in my review. Abby goes through a lot of abuse at the hands of Cam and his friends. She is kidnapped and blackmailed into doing what they wanted. Cam humiliates her every chance he gets. He verbally abuses her and there was one instance of physical abuse. The one scene that got me was when Cam and Jackson groped her after being kidnapped by them. This all happens at the beginning of the book, and it was tough to read. But, after they all talk (which should have happened earlier), everything stops. So, I suggest not to read this book if any of what I wrote triggers you.
From the middle of the book on was wild. There were times that I had to stop reading and say, “Is this happening?” It was also lightning fast. I had to reread passages because I missed stuff. Not because I had to. Because the book was so dang fast.
The end of Cruel Intentions was cruel, and it ended on a cliffhanger. I do not like cliffhangers. But, this one did its job, and I need to read book 2!!! I need to find out what happens to Abby.
DNF at 63%.
Yikes, this was a giant disappointing mess. High school/college bully romances are all the rage lately, and I’m ALL for it. Unfortunately, this brought nothing new to the table for me.
Abigail and Cam had literally zero chemistry. This should have been brimming with tension since it is a bully romance, and I got nothing with them.
The family/town old blood vs. new blood drama/politics between everyone felt extremely fake and just not plausible. Especially the school's hierarchy Elite system, I won't even get started on that lol
Every page I was waiting for something to hook me and get me invested in this story, but I never got it. There was just nothing about this story that made me want to continue reading.
I’ve seen some stellar reviews for this, so I’m extremely disappointed this didn’t work for me!
Yikes, this was a giant disappointing mess. High school/college bully romances are all the rage lately, and I’m ALL for it. Unfortunately, this brought nothing new to the table for me.
Abigail and Cam had literally zero chemistry. This should have been brimming with tension since it is a bully romance, and I got nothing with them.
The family/town old blood vs. new blood drama/politics between everyone felt extremely fake and just not plausible. Especially the school's hierarchy Elite system, I won't even get started on that lol
Every page I was waiting for something to hook me and get me invested in this story, but I never got it. There was just nothing about this story that made me want to continue reading.
I’ve seen some stellar reviews for this, so I’m extremely disappointed this didn’t work for me!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from being a loyal Siobhan Davis reader it is to always be prepared for anything. Be prepared for heartache, laughter, anger, angst, fantastic sexy times, and conflicted feelings. I absolutely love bully romances, they are honestly one of my favorite romance tropes. (I may actually write a post on why I love them, because this is a hot topic these days). So of course I was all about this and I just loved it!
The whole elite group of kids was so fun to read about, getting inside their lives and minds was truly fascinating. Abby’s life is extremely heartbreaking even though from the outside her life seems amazing. I really don’t want to say much about the characters or plot, because I really feel the summary is pretty informative. And giving anything away at all would be a great disservice, because this story has amazing such an amazing plot plus the twist is absolutely phenomenal. Abby is not at all your typical heroine, she’s feisty, clever, and so crafty. Keeping the company she does she must know how to hold her own. You definitely don’t want to mess with her and if you do be prepared to have your ass handed to you.
And then there’s Cam. I can’t even begin to describe how much I loved him. You know right from the start that he is out for revenge, but the question is why? His reasons are always calculated and it’s as if he is programmed to hate Abby. And yet, he finds himself drawn to her. The chemistry between these two was so hot and amazing. You really can’t help but want these two together despite the hatred. And on top of it all, the side characters really give added depth and humor to the entire story. If you love bully romances you definitely need to grab this one! *ARC provided for an honest review*
Thanks for reading guys! Talk to you soon! ❤ Adrianna
The whole elite group of kids was so fun to read about, getting inside their lives and minds was truly fascinating. Abby’s life is extremely heartbreaking even though from the outside her life seems amazing. I really don’t want to say much about the characters or plot, because I really feel the summary is pretty informative. And giving anything away at all would be a great disservice, because this story has amazing such an amazing plot plus the twist is absolutely phenomenal. Abby is not at all your typical heroine, she’s feisty, clever, and so crafty. Keeping the company she does she must know how to hold her own. You definitely don’t want to mess with her and if you do be prepared to have your ass handed to you.
And then there’s Cam. I can’t even begin to describe how much I loved him. You know right from the start that he is out for revenge, but the question is why? His reasons are always calculated and it’s as if he is programmed to hate Abby. And yet, he finds himself drawn to her. The chemistry between these two was so hot and amazing. You really can’t help but want these two together despite the hatred. And on top of it all, the side characters really give added depth and humor to the entire story. If you love bully romances you definitely need to grab this one! *ARC provided for an honest review*
Thanks for reading guys! Talk to you soon! ❤ Adrianna