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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
The book Tease was about the main character Sara and some of her classmates being accused (and charged) with the bullying that led to the suicide of a classmate, Emma.
This book was only okay for me. I enjoyed that the reader was in the head of the bully, but it got to the point where I kept having to put the book down because I was tired of the excuses that Sara kept making for herself. At first, I was confused about the time periods changing from what led to the incident and what happened after it, but eventually I came to love this writing style. I love the plot, and there were many valuable lessons to be learned in this novel, but the characters left something to be desired. None of the characters were very fleshed out. They left something to be desired.
I will remember this novel for a while, but only because of how realistic it seems. I will recommend this book to others, because the insight that this book gave, although fiction, really resonated with me. I hope that others will enjoy this book.
This book was only okay for me. I enjoyed that the reader was in the head of the bully, but it got to the point where I kept having to put the book down because I was tired of the excuses that Sara kept making for herself. At first, I was confused about the time periods changing from what led to the incident and what happened after it, but eventually I came to love this writing style. I love the plot, and there were many valuable lessons to be learned in this novel, but the characters left something to be desired. None of the characters were very fleshed out. They left something to be desired.
I will remember this novel for a while, but only because of how realistic it seems. I will recommend this book to others, because the insight that this book gave, although fiction, really resonated with me. I hope that others will enjoy this book.
Wow tough read because it is told by the bully who is soooo mean but shoulders no responsibility & blames the victim! Important & worthwhile story to read because it's so topical not just in schools today but in the whole world. Definitely for mature readers.
2.5/5
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Going into this book, I had no idea what it was about, other than there were bullies involved somehow. I feel bad for saying this, but I was just unimpressed with this book. There are so many stories about kids being bullied, but we don't really see the side of the bully very often. I feel like this book could have done so much more. It could have gone deeper into the lives of bullies and what has happened to them to make them feel the need to bully others. I honestly feel like nothing was accomplished during this book. There was no character growth and no resolution in my eyes.
CHARACTERS: The main character in this book made me so angry. The whole time, she didn't think she was doing anything wrong and she blamed the girl they were bullying for everything. Emma (the girl being bullied) did some things she shouldn't have, but Sara (the main character) and her friend Brielle just took things way too far. I really didn't like Brielle's character. She was so manipulative.
COVER: I fell in love with this cover. It's so shiny and beautiful. It definitely grabbed my attention and made me want to read the book.
**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Going into this book, I had no idea what it was about, other than there were bullies involved somehow. I feel bad for saying this, but I was just unimpressed with this book. There are so many stories about kids being bullied, but we don't really see the side of the bully very often. I feel like this book could have done so much more. It could have gone deeper into the lives of bullies and what has happened to them to make them feel the need to bully others. I honestly feel like nothing was accomplished during this book. There was no character growth and no resolution in my eyes.
CHARACTERS: The main character in this book made me so angry. The whole time, she didn't think she was doing anything wrong and she blamed the girl they were bullying for everything. Emma (the girl being bullied) did some things she shouldn't have, but Sara (the main character) and her friend Brielle just took things way too far. I really didn't like Brielle's character. She was so manipulative.
COVER: I fell in love with this cover. It's so shiny and beautiful. It definitely grabbed my attention and made me want to read the book.
**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review.
This was a very powerful book. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
3.5 A simple concept but well-written with complex characters. Maciel captures the emotions of teenagers and their experiences in today's world.
Release Date: April 28, 2015
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
I find myself at a loss for words when reviewing this book because it is extremely unconventional. The subject matter of bullying is the main theme of this book of course, but rather than focusing on how the victim feels and lives through the torment, we are taken into the mind of the teenage bully herself, Sara. This is very clever on the authors part however, readers are going to find it very hard to relate and connect with the character simply because it was her actions (along with her friends) that lead to the suicide of a classmate whose name is Emma. There were many points in this book where I shook my head and even moments when I wanted to stop reading it because Sara is such an unlikeable character, but I kept reading anyway to see where everything would go. Was I disappointed? Yes and no. Yes because I felt like the ending was kind of a letdown – I wanted more justice than what was served - and no because it was so interesting to be able to get into the mind of the tormentor (which is rarely done in any books) and see how and why things progressed as they did.
With that being said, this book really does a great job at diving into the minds of teenagers. Sure, many of us were not bullies in high school, but seeing the driving force behind everything in this novel made sense for the age. Adolescence after all, is a really hard time for many people, and when someone is stealing your boyfriend and screwing with your clique you are bound to do something unimaginable. Right? In high school, this is common. Everything seems more grandiose and life threatening at this age, and the author does a wonderful job of bringing this to life. Just be aware that if you do read this book that there is a lot of “slut shaming” and nastiness that will ooze from these characters. It may not be pretty, but think back to high school. I am sure some of you will remember exactly what that was like and how teenagers acted and ran off their mouths whether it be true or not. The author doesn’t seem to be condoning this behavior but she sure writes it as if she lived it herself to and I commend her for that.
Overall, this is not an easy read and I am sure you will either love it or hate it. There really is no in between. But, because I am a reviewer I wanted to make sure that I understood the point of the story and where the author was going when she wrote it, so I remained partial to the story until I could come to grips with what I was reading. Now, for me this could have been a 5 star review because of its uniqueness and the message the author was portraying, but because the characters came off a little dry and immature (yes, I know this is normal for the age) I had to go down a star. But believe me when I say this, the story is very good ESPECIALLY because it’s so unlikable. This may not make sense to you, but when you read it you will know what I mean.
Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
I find myself at a loss for words when reviewing this book because it is extremely unconventional. The subject matter of bullying is the main theme of this book of course, but rather than focusing on how the victim feels and lives through the torment, we are taken into the mind of the teenage bully herself, Sara. This is very clever on the authors part however, readers are going to find it very hard to relate and connect with the character simply because it was her actions (along with her friends) that lead to the suicide of a classmate whose name is Emma. There were many points in this book where I shook my head and even moments when I wanted to stop reading it because Sara is such an unlikeable character, but I kept reading anyway to see where everything would go. Was I disappointed? Yes and no. Yes because I felt like the ending was kind of a letdown – I wanted more justice than what was served - and no because it was so interesting to be able to get into the mind of the tormentor (which is rarely done in any books) and see how and why things progressed as they did.
With that being said, this book really does a great job at diving into the minds of teenagers. Sure, many of us were not bullies in high school, but seeing the driving force behind everything in this novel made sense for the age. Adolescence after all, is a really hard time for many people, and when someone is stealing your boyfriend and screwing with your clique you are bound to do something unimaginable. Right? In high school, this is common. Everything seems more grandiose and life threatening at this age, and the author does a wonderful job of bringing this to life. Just be aware that if you do read this book that there is a lot of “slut shaming” and nastiness that will ooze from these characters. It may not be pretty, but think back to high school. I am sure some of you will remember exactly what that was like and how teenagers acted and ran off their mouths whether it be true or not. The author doesn’t seem to be condoning this behavior but she sure writes it as if she lived it herself to and I commend her for that.
Overall, this is not an easy read and I am sure you will either love it or hate it. There really is no in between. But, because I am a reviewer I wanted to make sure that I understood the point of the story and where the author was going when she wrote it, so I remained partial to the story until I could come to grips with what I was reading. Now, for me this could have been a 5 star review because of its uniqueness and the message the author was portraying, but because the characters came off a little dry and immature (yes, I know this is normal for the age) I had to go down a star. But believe me when I say this, the story is very good ESPECIALLY because it’s so unlikable. This may not make sense to you, but when you read it you will know what I mean.
Rating: 4 stars
3 stars
Okay, listen. This book had literally everything I don’t like in a read: sad, heavy, and full of characters I couldn’t stand. I hated Emma for killing herself. I hated Dylan for cheating. I hated Brielle for being a straight-up bully. And I hated Sara for just going along with it all. No one here felt like the true victim.
But somehow, I still liked it.
It wasn’t gripping enough to binge-read. It took me days to finish but it felt real, disturbingly real. This is not usually my kind of book. I don’t often pick up stories about bullying and trauma but something about this one hit differently. It made me think. It didn’t tell me who to root for and that is what made it stand out. No clear good or bad characters, just messy people making messy choices.
So, do I hate everyone? Yes.
Did I enjoy reading it? Weirdly, yes.
Will I read more by this author? Probably yes.
I grabbed this randomly from the library and I am glad I did. It is definitely not for everyone but if you want a book that feels heavy and makes you uncomfortable in a meaningful way, this is worth a read. Not my favorite genre but a solid story.
Okay, listen. This book had literally everything I don’t like in a read: sad, heavy, and full of characters I couldn’t stand. I hated Emma for killing herself. I hated Dylan for cheating. I hated Brielle for being a straight-up bully. And I hated Sara for just going along with it all. No one here felt like the true victim.
But somehow, I still liked it.
It wasn’t gripping enough to binge-read. It took me days to finish but it felt real, disturbingly real. This is not usually my kind of book. I don’t often pick up stories about bullying and trauma but something about this one hit differently. It made me think. It didn’t tell me who to root for and that is what made it stand out. No clear good or bad characters, just messy people making messy choices.
So, do I hate everyone? Yes.
Did I enjoy reading it? Weirdly, yes.
Will I read more by this author? Probably yes.
I grabbed this randomly from the library and I am glad I did. It is definitely not for everyone but if you want a book that feels heavy and makes you uncomfortable in a meaningful way, this is worth a read. Not my favorite genre but a solid story.
I was really interested in reading this book. (though it sounded quite a lot like I swear by Lane Davis)
Luckily it turned out to be different. The books switches back to now and then (when everything happened).
Emma committed suicide after months of bullying. I have to say, maybe it is harsh, and maybe unfair, but I can kind of see why girls would hate and bully Emma. Throughout the whole book she is with one guy or another and is really making rounds through the popular guys. She even steals a guy right under the nose of his girlfriend. I mean, sorry, but what? So yeah, while it is sad she committed suicide, I think both parties (bully and victim) are both wrong.
Though I must say I practically hated and wanted to strangle most of the characters. Brielle was just (sorry for my language) a bitch, Sara was just oblivious and annoying and then you had Emma, who just apparently thought stealing guys is totally ok, and last you also had Dylan. Who acted like he never did anything wrong in his life, while he was the one who did many things wrong.
The book was interesting though, it is a sensitive subject and I can imagine might be hard to read about. But I felt that the writer did a good thing with the topic. The court stuff, lawyer stuff was really interesting, and believe it or not, but by the end I actually liked Sara a little bit.
Still I would recommend this book to those who like Realistic YA fiction.
Luckily it turned out to be different. The books switches back to now and then (when everything happened).
Emma committed suicide after months of bullying. I have to say, maybe it is harsh, and maybe unfair, but I can kind of see why girls would hate and bully Emma. Throughout the whole book she is with one guy or another and is really making rounds through the popular guys. She even steals a guy right under the nose of his girlfriend. I mean, sorry, but what? So yeah, while it is sad she committed suicide, I think both parties (bully and victim) are both wrong.
Though I must say I practically hated and wanted to strangle most of the characters. Brielle was just (sorry for my language) a bitch, Sara was just oblivious and annoying and then you had Emma, who just apparently thought stealing guys is totally ok, and last you also had Dylan. Who acted like he never did anything wrong in his life, while he was the one who did many things wrong.
The book was interesting though, it is a sensitive subject and I can imagine might be hard to read about. But I felt that the writer did a good thing with the topic. The court stuff, lawyer stuff was really interesting, and believe it or not, but by the end I actually liked Sara a little bit.
Still I would recommend this book to those who like Realistic YA fiction.
More of a 3.5. I have been in the worst reading slump and picked up this book because I remember really liking it in high school. It’s an interesting look at the perspective of bullying from someone who is the bully. Some very cringey dialogue at times; very clear this was written by an adult who was trying to sound like a teen lol