Scan barcode
sampoornabiswas's review against another edition
2.0
There are good things about this book - the writing was nice, there was a diverse range of characters, and the main character was quite likeable. Also, it's set in a boarding school, which is one of my favourite things to read about.
However, at a lot of times while reading this, I felt so.damn.confused.
In my opinion, the before and after chapters don't really work here - they start to make less and less sense as the book goes on. They were missing some parts of the story, and a lot of the points were left quite open ended. I think it would have worked better for me if it was in chronological order.
The identity of the person the main character is seeing isn't revealed till the end, and throughout the book they are just refgered to as "him". I had to reread the last third or so of the book, because of how confused I was. When I got to the end, I was like "Who on earth is Daniel?" I think I have now figured it out, but was there any indication of this happening? Maybe I need to reread the whole thing.
The book also just generally felt like it was too romance heavy, and could've done with more mystery elements.
However, at a lot of times while reading this, I felt so.damn.confused.
In my opinion, the before and after chapters don't really work here - they start to make less and less sense as the book goes on. They were missing some parts of the story, and a lot of the points were left quite open ended. I think it would have worked better for me if it was in chronological order.
The identity of the person the main character is seeing isn't revealed till the end, and throughout the book they are just refgered to as "him". I had to reread the last third or so of the book, because of how confused I was. When I got to the end, I was like "Who on earth is Daniel?" I think I have now figured it out, but was there any indication of this happening? Maybe I need to reread the whole thing.
The book also just generally felt like it was too romance heavy, and could've done with more mystery elements.
skelypse's review against another edition
3.0
I did enjoy this book but it wasn't a very satisfying read. This is basically because:
a) There's the supposed mystery of who Adamma is in love with and I think the author was trying to make us guess who it was as they were only referred to as 'him' etc. I knew straight away who it was so it wasn't exactly that mysterious.
b) The ending just didn't work for me. It didn't tie up loose ends and that's true of the whole novel. I just didn't feel like it was the end.
But it's written in quite an engaging way though and like I said, I did enjoy it despite its faults.
a) There's the supposed mystery of who Adamma is in love with and I think the author was trying to make us guess who it was as they were only referred to as 'him' etc. I knew straight away who it was so it wasn't exactly that mysterious.
b) The ending just didn't work for me. It didn't tie up loose ends and that's true of the whole novel. I just didn't feel like it was the end.
But it's written in quite an engaging way though and like I said, I did enjoy it despite its faults.
serendipity_viv's review against another edition
5.0
Originally published on www.serendipityreviews.co.uk
Oh my goodness! I always worry when debut authors bring out their second book. Will it be as stunning and as addictive as their first novel? Will I want to read it? Well I definitely shouldn’t have worried when it came to Tanya Byrne. Follow Me Down was just as addictive as Heart-Shaped Bruise. In fact I felt like it was completely different to Heart-Shaped Bruise. Heart-Shaped Bruise rubbed my emotions raw, Follow Me Down had me straining to hold back from turning to the last page to find out who was responsible.
Adamma is a brilliant character. The change in her attitude from the beginning to the end of the book is quite dramatic. In the beginning, she appears very calm, studious and young for her age, by the end of the book she has transformed into a strong yet at times reckless young woman. She puts everything she has worked so hard for on the line for the sake of love. Her friendship with Scarlett was always going to be a dangerous one. Yet even when it appears unrepairable, Adamma adopts a Nancy Drew style attitude to discover the truth. She is well aware that justice needs to be served; even if Scarlett had become one of the most disliked characters in the book, Adamma could still remember the good times that she shared with her.
Scarlett is the type of enigmatic character that fills a room even when she isn’t in it. Everyone will always talk about her or envy her in some way. She reminded me of Daphne’ Du Maurier’s Rebecca. She was like a fragile doll that would break at any minute. The male characters within the book are quite grey in colour and detail but I felt that had been done on purpose to increase the attention and limelight on Adamma and Scarlett who really are the main stars of the show.
The book jumps backwards and forwards in time to before and after the event that propels the story on. It was easy to keep track of what was happening and I found myself struggling to put the book down.
There are two mysteries within the book – what happens to Scarlett and who is Adamma romantically involved with. Up until the last couple of chapters you have no idea of what the answer is to either question. I thought I would explode if I didn’t find out and I was so tempted to turn to the end to find out and I haven’t done that since I was a child!
The book is set in a boarding school and will appeal to fans of CJ Daugherty’s Night School series as well as Paige Harrison’s New Girl. Also if you loved Sister by Rosamund Lupton, then this will definitely appeal to you. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to young adults looking for a brilliant contemporary thriller. I wouldn’t be surprised if Tanya Byrne gets shortlisted for even more awards this year.
Oh my goodness! I always worry when debut authors bring out their second book. Will it be as stunning and as addictive as their first novel? Will I want to read it? Well I definitely shouldn’t have worried when it came to Tanya Byrne. Follow Me Down was just as addictive as Heart-Shaped Bruise. In fact I felt like it was completely different to Heart-Shaped Bruise. Heart-Shaped Bruise rubbed my emotions raw, Follow Me Down had me straining to hold back from turning to the last page to find out who was responsible.
Adamma is a brilliant character. The change in her attitude from the beginning to the end of the book is quite dramatic. In the beginning, she appears very calm, studious and young for her age, by the end of the book she has transformed into a strong yet at times reckless young woman. She puts everything she has worked so hard for on the line for the sake of love. Her friendship with Scarlett was always going to be a dangerous one. Yet even when it appears unrepairable, Adamma adopts a Nancy Drew style attitude to discover the truth. She is well aware that justice needs to be served; even if Scarlett had become one of the most disliked characters in the book, Adamma could still remember the good times that she shared with her.
Scarlett is the type of enigmatic character that fills a room even when she isn’t in it. Everyone will always talk about her or envy her in some way. She reminded me of Daphne’ Du Maurier’s Rebecca. She was like a fragile doll that would break at any minute. The male characters within the book are quite grey in colour and detail but I felt that had been done on purpose to increase the attention and limelight on Adamma and Scarlett who really are the main stars of the show.
The book jumps backwards and forwards in time to before and after the event that propels the story on. It was easy to keep track of what was happening and I found myself struggling to put the book down.
There are two mysteries within the book – what happens to Scarlett and who is Adamma romantically involved with. Up until the last couple of chapters you have no idea of what the answer is to either question. I thought I would explode if I didn’t find out and I was so tempted to turn to the end to find out and I haven’t done that since I was a child!
The book is set in a boarding school and will appeal to fans of CJ Daugherty’s Night School series as well as Paige Harrison’s New Girl. Also if you loved Sister by Rosamund Lupton, then this will definitely appeal to you. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to young adults looking for a brilliant contemporary thriller. I wouldn’t be surprised if Tanya Byrne gets shortlisted for even more awards this year.
xoczarina's review against another edition
3.0
I keep telling myself that I should stop reading books set in boarding schools because they're getting a bit cliche and I'm getting too old for them. But I can't help it, that's where good mystery stories happen. All those sneaking around during lights out, there's bound to be police involved sooner or later.
Follow Me Down is the typical boarding school story of new girl meets dazzling queen bee, and they become best friends. Then enter queen bee's boy toy and that's where drama ensues. But it wouldn't be a boarding school mystery if queen bee hadn't suddenly disappear. Let's see what juicy secrets we may uncover.
Honestly, I wasn't as hooked to this book compared to Tanya Byrne's first book Heart-Shaped Bruise. The story was predictable and overused. The twists in the plot weren't as shocking as I hoped them to be, and having read Heart-Shaped Bruise was a bit disappointing. But I did love Adamma. I love that she's stubborn and she sticks by her beliefs of what is right or wrong. And sure, love did make her go crazy, but who doesn't?
Overall, I was entertained by this book but I wasn't blown away. The story was common and the characters were stereotypically boarding school students. So this wasn't a memorable read for me.
Follow Me Down is the typical boarding school story of new girl meets dazzling queen bee, and they become best friends. Then enter queen bee's boy toy and that's where drama ensues. But it wouldn't be a boarding school mystery if queen bee hadn't suddenly disappear. Let's see what juicy secrets we may uncover.
Honestly, I wasn't as hooked to this book compared to Tanya Byrne's first book Heart-Shaped Bruise. The story was predictable and overused. The twists in the plot weren't as shocking as I hoped them to be, and having read Heart-Shaped Bruise was a bit disappointing. But I did love Adamma. I love that she's stubborn and she sticks by her beliefs of what is right or wrong. And sure, love did make her go crazy, but who doesn't?
Overall, I was entertained by this book but I wasn't blown away. The story was common and the characters were stereotypically boarding school students. So this wasn't a memorable read for me.
disastergen_'s review against another edition
3.0
Really good and engaging, have no idea if I read it wrong though or if it is meant to end mysteriously, but seriously good.
blubimnotafish's review against another edition
4.0
The ending was SO confusing! I didn't see it coming and I'm not sure whether I could have... Not sure whether the story has dropped enough subtle hints for this not to be out of the blue.
charlottesomewhere's review against another edition
This was much darker than I was expecting and I loved it. Addama's story sucked me right in. I loved the friendship drama and the mystery and watching it all unravel. Brilliant!
ella03x's review against another edition
5.0
The twist.
I did not see that coming.
It was one of those 'let-me-just-read-it-again-and-make-sure-I'm-not-imagining-things' moments.
Fantastic.
A brilliant read. Very good.
I would recommend this book without a thought.
Tanya Byrne, you have earned my respect.
I did not see that coming.
It was one of those 'let-me-just-read-it-again-and-make-sure-I'm-not-imagining-things' moments.
Fantastic.
A brilliant read. Very good.
I would recommend this book without a thought.
Tanya Byrne, you have earned my respect.
schuylervan's review against another edition
4.0
il finale... non ho ancora deciso come mi sento a riguardo, non è finito come volevo io.
More...