Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Corrupt by Penelope Douglas

129 reviews

nineinchnails's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

i DNFed this 2 years ago so maybe it’s true what they say about distance making the heart grow fonder😭 i really liked the writing style and the book in general flows a lot better than most DR i’ve read. i’m not obsessed with the main characters but they weren’t as annoying as i expected considering the reviews. i stand by finding michael creepy tho i just find it endearing now! i think the whole motivation for the guys bullying her was kinda stupid especially with the reveal but i love OTT and ridiculous DR when it’s done well and this is a decent example of that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Sexual content

Moderate: Gun violence, Kidnapping, Confinement, Death of parent, Rape, Stalking, Animal death, Grief, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Misogyny

Minor: Addiction, Blood, Mental illness, Infidelity, and Toxic friendship

sarahfeller's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Animal death, Blood, Sexual harassment, Violence, Addiction, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, Infidelity, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Murder, Police brutality, Rape, Toxic friendship, Sexual assault, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

minuee's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Sexual content, Violence, Bullying, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual violence, and Physical abuse

sissi27's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I don’t get how the author messed up to give Ricka or Micheal any personality in the span of 500 pages.
Some of the scenes were so disturbing and the lack of trigger warnings confuses me. 
Other than that, the only redeemable characters were Will, Alex and Noah but he vanished for the entire novel after being mentioned for maybe 10 pages.
The epilogue was also one of the worst I read in a book because it made me hate Micheal even more. Speaking about him, the only thing he was doing in the whole damn book was gritting his teeth, slamming her against a wall or yanking Ricka’s hair in order to make out with her. How can anyone be that horny and unwell to enjoy this sort of treatment?

I hated how Ricka was underage (16) in the flashbacks and Micheal was 20! I couldn’t see past the inappropriate age difference 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Cursing, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Animal death, Alcohol, and Bullying

Minor: Car accident

faith99's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Gun violence, Death, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Drug use

bettyswan_reader's review against another edition

🌶🌶🌶
I am so lost as to what is happening.
They are awful to her and yet she never seems to react appropriately. They try to torment her, but she still sticks around, and when shit hits the fan, they throw a party and act like all is forgiven. That's where it lost me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Bullying

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

bookshelfhannah's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Blood, Bullying, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Violence

marlydawn's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Bullying

Moderate: Rape

usjdjfnnffm2737's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Bullying, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Alcohol and Kidnapping

sshpurple1's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Throughout this book, I thought to myself, ‘You guys need serious therapy.’ and ‘Rika, seriously, you’re going to take that from them?’. Told chiefly from Rika's and a little from Michael’s point of view, the story alternates between the present and the past. We are guided through the group’s history and present-day events. The author’s writing style makes the transitions smooth and keeps you in a mix of frustration and eagerly coming back for more. It was evident that though these ‘kids’ come from money, none have had an easy life emotionally. The characters are well-developed, and I could see them as real people. There are twists and intense steam.
I am looking forward to starting the second book in this series. One thing to note about this book is that this is a dark bully romance; this is not for everyone, and if you have never read this author or type of book before, I strongly recommend that you borrow it from the library before buying it. 
2. Hideaway (2017)
3. Kill Switch (2019)
3.5. Conclave (2019)
4. Nightfall (2020)
4.5. Fire Night (2020)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Bullying

Moderate: Gaslighting and Violence

It is suitable for ages 18+.