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ambeesbookishpages's review against another edition
4.0
The full review can be found at The Book Bratz closer to its release date!
**Please note: I recieved an eARC from the publisher via Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own**
3.5 Stars
Initially I was rating this book a bit on the lower side, but then I sat back and thought about it. I actually couldn't stop thinking about it. I actually did enjoy it. Though this book was fun and enjoyable it touched on a few a few subjects that needed to be touched upon. This book is perfect for a boring raining day where you want something fun and entertaining.
All the girls in this book were so different, you have Melanie Jane the pageant queen, Ana the geeky one, Liv the outspoken dancer, and Peyton the shy sweetheart. Now combine them together and talk about girl power? Damn. Each girl had their own motivation for wanting to take down the football team. The Revenge Playbook is jammed packed with loyalty, friendship, and unity. Something I think teenage girls need to take out of this book is how they all protected and supported one and another. At the end of the book I was happy to see the bond all of them formed, it was heart warming.
I haven't gotten angry with a book in a good long while. But some of the things the football players said or did. Oh my. I was furious. "The List" made me really mad, who they hell do the older boys think they are making the younger team members dump their girlfriends because they are heavy, or have acne? Such maturity right? It only gets worse from their. The teachers look the other way when they do something wrong. The sickest part of this whole thing? Ana is sexual assaulted by on of the football players, and when she goes to one of the school counselors they make her second guess and feel like it was all her fault. These boys could get away with murder and it would be okay in this town's eyes.
The Revenge Playbook touched on things such as rape culture, the "Cyrus-Swift: phenomena and how some people are treated with privilege where others barley get by. All of this was mixed in with some humor and friendship making this book a refreshing read.
**Please note: I recieved an eARC from the publisher via Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own**
3.5 Stars
Initially I was rating this book a bit on the lower side, but then I sat back and thought about it. I actually couldn't stop thinking about it. I actually did enjoy it. Though this book was fun and enjoyable it touched on a few a few subjects that needed to be touched upon. This book is perfect for a boring raining day where you want something fun and entertaining.
All the girls in this book were so different, you have Melanie Jane the pageant queen, Ana the geeky one, Liv the outspoken dancer, and Peyton the shy sweetheart. Now combine them together and talk about girl power? Damn. Each girl had their own motivation for wanting to take down the football team. The Revenge Playbook is jammed packed with loyalty, friendship, and unity. Something I think teenage girls need to take out of this book is how they all protected and supported one and another. At the end of the book I was happy to see the bond all of them formed, it was heart warming.
I haven't gotten angry with a book in a good long while. But some of the things the football players said or did. Oh my. I was furious. "The List" made me really mad, who they hell do the older boys think they are making the younger team members dump their girlfriends because they are heavy, or have acne? Such maturity right? It only gets worse from their. The teachers look the other way when they do something wrong. The sickest part of this whole thing? Ana is sexual assaulted by on of the football players, and when she goes to one of the school counselors they make her second guess and feel like it was all her fault. These boys could get away with murder and it would be okay in this town's eyes.
The Revenge Playbook touched on things such as rape culture, the "Cyrus-Swift: phenomena and how some people are treated with privilege where others barley get by. All of this was mixed in with some humor and friendship making this book a refreshing read.
mehsi's review against another edition
5.0
This is the review for the ARC.
Liv, Melanie Jane, Ana and Peyton, 4 girls, and they couldn't be different. But they are united for one goal. Get revenge on/kick the football team's ass. It is something that is shown often in books, football (or any other sport) getting preference in school, allowed to do anything without any consequences. It is still something I cannot wrap my head around. Maybe because I am from Europe/the Netherlands. We don't have all these things in this book. I think that is also what pulls me in. Just like stories about prom, I am interested in those as we don't have them (unless they are now in schools here (been a while since I last was in a school), but I don't really see it happening).
Our 4 girls decide to take revenge by participating in a scavenger hunt. The boys are also doing this and they have no clue the girls are doing it. The girls wiggled their way in and got the list with all the things and instructions they need to do. Some of the things on the list were rude and mean, and I disliked the guy who made the list. I won't spoil anything on whether the girls made it or not, you will have to read the book.
I was horrified by the backlash that happened near the end of the book. Luckily, the girls don't give up and they have a plan. They will tell their story, they will show the proof they collected against the football team (and my, oh my, there is a lot).
Because yes, the football club is bad, it is something we notice quite early in the story. Abuse, rape, beatings, bullying, forcing their members to do stuff, weird rituals and several other things. It is all kind of sick and I don't really get why anyone would want to be part of that. I guess something to do with status and the fact they are apparently dying to play ball regardless of whatever happens to them or the ones they love.
Next to the whole Football team needs to be kicked by a notch, we also have another plotline. Namely the relationship between Melanie Jane and Ana. They were best friends but then something happened. And I will post this in the spoiler field as it is a big one.
Now comes the even more fun part. Melanie Jane was in love with Chad. She didn't know or see that her friend was drugged. She assumed (yeah, assuming *rolls eyes) that her friend stole Chad from her. And thus they broke apart.
The book is told from the 4 girls, each one gets her spotlight. They all have their little or big problems. Next to this we have the whole scavenging hunt and also we go back to the past and back again to the future. At times this confused me, at other times it made the book more fun.
I really enjoyed this book, it was a bit gruesome and at times horrific, but it was also a tale of 4 wonderful girls trying to fight to get something wrong beaten and destroyed. I would really recommend this book to everyone. You should read this book!
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Liv, Melanie Jane, Ana and Peyton, 4 girls, and they couldn't be different. But they are united for one goal. Get revenge on/kick the football team's ass. It is something that is shown often in books, football (or any other sport) getting preference in school, allowed to do anything without any consequences. It is still something I cannot wrap my head around. Maybe because I am from Europe/the Netherlands. We don't have all these things in this book. I think that is also what pulls me in. Just like stories about prom, I am interested in those as we don't have them (unless they are now in schools here (been a while since I last was in a school), but I don't really see it happening).
Our 4 girls decide to take revenge by participating in a scavenger hunt. The boys are also doing this and they have no clue the girls are doing it. The girls wiggled their way in and got the list with all the things and instructions they need to do. Some of the things on the list were rude and mean, and I disliked the guy who made the list. I won't spoil anything on whether the girls made it or not, you will have to read the book.
I was horrified by the backlash that happened near the end of the book. Luckily, the girls don't give up and they have a plan. They will tell their story, they will show the proof they collected against the football team (and my, oh my, there is a lot).
Because yes, the football club is bad, it is something we notice quite early in the story. Abuse, rape, beatings, bullying, forcing their members to do stuff, weird rituals and several other things. It is all kind of sick and I don't really get why anyone would want to be part of that. I guess something to do with status and the fact they are apparently dying to play ball regardless of whatever happens to them or the ones they love.
Next to the whole Football team needs to be kicked by a notch, we also have another plotline. Namely the relationship between Melanie Jane and Ana. They were best friends but then something happened. And I will post this in the spoiler field as it is a big one.
Spoiler
Ana was almost raped by one of the biggest guys in the football team. He had her drugged with date-rape drugs. Her best friend walked in on the gory scene and probably thanks to that prevented that Ana was raped. However. Ana doesn't know all this as she was too far gone by that time. So all this time she has been under the impression that she was probably raped, she was uncertain about her virginity (is it still there or not?). She did talk to someone, but due to the high status of Chad (the rapist) they advised her to think it over. After all it might not be true, and how much did Ana remember? Is she sure she wasn't just drunk? In the end Ana gave up and she also didn't consult with her friends or family.Now comes the even more fun part. Melanie Jane was in love with Chad. She didn't know or see that her friend was drugged. She assumed (yeah, assuming *rolls eyes) that her friend stole Chad from her. And thus they broke apart.
The book is told from the 4 girls, each one gets her spotlight. They all have their little or big problems. Next to this we have the whole scavenging hunt and also we go back to the past and back again to the future. At times this confused me, at other times it made the book more fun.
I really enjoyed this book, it was a bit gruesome and at times horrific, but it was also a tale of 4 wonderful girls trying to fight to get something wrong beaten and destroyed. I would really recommend this book to everyone. You should read this book!
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
steph01924's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed this book! The friendships were great, and all of the girls had a distinct personality. I loved seeing them get closer. I loved all the vocab lessons we would get during Melanie Jane's parts. Plus a scavenger hunt almost always makes any book better.
Lest you think this is all just lightness and ice-cream pig-outs, know that there is definitely a thread of seriousness to the story. Players getting away with murder just because they are athletes is one of the worst things about sports, and it's sickening how otherwise respectable people will turn a blind eye to bullying, rape, and laziness just because someone can throw a ball in a straight line. These girls have genuine grievances that fuel their revenge plot, yet the writing style doesn't turn this into a heavy 'issues' book.
Speaking of the writing, it's deceptively easy to fall into. I breezed through this relatively short book a) because the style just had you zooming through the chapters and b) I really wanted to see how it would all turn out. Highly recommend!
Lest you think this is all just lightness and ice-cream pig-outs, know that there is definitely a thread of seriousness to the story. Players getting away with murder just because they are athletes is one of the worst things about sports, and it's sickening how otherwise respectable people will turn a blind eye to bullying, rape, and laziness just because someone can throw a ball in a straight line. These girls have genuine grievances that fuel their revenge plot, yet the writing style doesn't turn this into a heavy 'issues' book.
Speaking of the writing, it's deceptively easy to fall into. I breezed through this relatively short book a) because the style just had you zooming through the chapters and b) I really wanted to see how it would all turn out. Highly recommend!
courtknee_bee's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
Cute execution of a super awesome message.
Cute execution of a super awesome message.
cocopurplebooks's review against another edition
3.0
This book was really awesome despite the ending being really rushed. I love protagonists that are strong willed and awesome and that’s exactly what the four main characters in this book are. Each of the girls are different but they also have many similarities within each other that makes their new found friendship and exciting and fun to read about.
The book is about four different girls who vow to take revenge on the boys in the football team because of their sexist and abusive behavior towards the students in the school especially girls. The football team are really worshipped around the school and gets away with a lot of things which is totally unfair and sexist. This book reminds me of a book I read last year titled “Moxie” which is also a good book. I love reading a good book about Revenge and this did not disappoint.
I love all four girls but my personal favorites were Liv and Ana. Many of the boys in this book had trash behavior but I loved Michael plus his relationship with Melanie Jane was really cute. I really like that one important topic of the book was rape culture. Rape Culture is something that everyone has to be more aware of because certain behaviors are counted as sexual harassment. I felt really bad and icky about the slut shaming some of the characters received in the book but it’s also really realistic. Society tends to always defend the guy that’s accused of the crime than the actual victim which makes me really sad and angry.
The ending was a kinda disappointing because it felt rushed. I don’t want to spoil anything too much but I feel like every character gets closure which is a good thing. This book was great but I just wished the boys in the football team faced some consequences. (I also didn’t want Liv to take back Trevor)
The book is about four different girls who vow to take revenge on the boys in the football team because of their sexist and abusive behavior towards the students in the school especially girls. The football team are really worshipped around the school and gets away with a lot of things which is totally unfair and sexist. This book reminds me of a book I read last year titled “Moxie” which is also a good book. I love reading a good book about Revenge and this did not disappoint.
I love all four girls but my personal favorites were Liv and Ana. Many of the boys in this book had trash behavior but I loved Michael plus his relationship with Melanie Jane was really cute. I really like that one important topic of the book was rape culture. Rape Culture is something that everyone has to be more aware of because certain behaviors are counted as sexual harassment. I felt really bad and icky about the slut shaming some of the characters received in the book but it’s also really realistic. Society tends to always defend the guy that’s accused of the crime than the actual victim which makes me really sad and angry.
The ending was a kinda disappointing because it felt rushed. I don’t want to spoil anything too much but I feel like every character gets closure which is a good thing. This book was great but I just wished the boys in the football team faced some consequences. (I also didn’t want Liv to take back Trevor)
rachelwrites007's review against another edition
5.0
I beta-read/critiqued an early draft of this novel. All four girls have fantastic, different POVs, and I loved their individual stories and how their stories interconnected. I can't wait to see how this book became more awesome. Yay, Rachael!!
merkyr's review against another edition
5.0
What a fun YA contemp, layered with issues, but entirely the opposite of heavy-handed. Full of joy and experience.
alyssia_dory's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Easy read
hellomadalyn's review against another edition
4.0
This was an unexpected gem! If you like feminist contemporaries full of girl power and taking on the patriarchy, this one is for you!
daffz's review against another edition
4.0
This was a quick and delightful read, exactly what I wanted it to be. I love books with female friendships and that's basically what this book is all about. The struggle the girls face at school isn't exactly one I'm familiar with, because where I live high schools don't have sports teams and that whole dynamic isn't there. But it's still easy to feel the frustration all the girls felt in this book, and their desire for revenge was entirely believable.
The only thing that I didn't enjoy was how much the book skipped back and forth in time. It may have been just me, but it was confusing for me and I found it hard to keep up with the timeline and relationships between characters because of it.
Still a really fun book that I'd definitely recommend!
The only thing that I didn't enjoy was how much the book skipped back and forth in time. It may have been just me, but it was confusing for me and I found it hard to keep up with the timeline and relationships between characters because of it.
Still a really fun book that I'd definitely recommend!