euphoria

Synopsis:

My name is Tate. He doesn't call me that, though. He would never refer to me so informally, if he referred to me at all. No, he'll barely even speak to me.

But he still won't leave me alone.

We were best friends once. Then he turned on me and made it his mission to ruin my life. I've been humiliated, shut out, and gossiped about all through high school. His pranks and rumors got more sadistic as time wore on, and I made myself sick trying to stay out of his way. I even went to France for a year, just to avoid him.

But I'm done hiding from him now, and there's no way in hell I'll allow him to ruin my senior year. He might not have changed, but I have. It's time to fight back. 

I'm not going to let him bully me anymore.

NOTE:

This novel contains adult/mature young adult situations. It is only suitable for ages 18+ due to language, violence, and sexual situations.

Review:

All right, I've got some mixed feelings about this one. Although I love and adore it, for the most part, I want to punch it straight in the face, too. If it had one.

Basically, Tate and Jared were really good friends when they were young, grew apart--well, Jared did--, and now Jared bullies and makes Tate's life a living hell. While the story is ironically cute, it has some "God, what the hell is wrong with you" moments.

For example: Jared's a complete dick to Tate, who is best friends with K.C... I'm sorry, but if you're my best friend, you better the hell not get all hot and bothered with my arch enemy, which is what K.C. does. That just doesn't happen, you cannot do that without repercussions of the concussion sort. What pissed me off the most was the fact that Tate was seemingly unbothered by that fact; her best friend getting it on with the boy she used to love who is now her tormentor. YOU DO NOT DO THAT TO YOUR BEST FRIEND/YOU DO NOT ACT SO NONCHALANTLY ABOUT IT, GOODBYE.

Anyhow, throughout the book, which is wholly in Tate's point of view, (Until You: Jared's POV) we see and learn how and why Jared oppresses poor, innocent Tate. (Note: she doesn't act poor or innocent at all, really, she's pretty strong-willed.) I'm talking about innocent in the sense that she did nothing to Jared, yet Jared seems to hate her. You learn later in the novel that it was all Jared and him trying to cope with having gone through a traumatic experience with his father and younger brother. Not only did Jared have a shitty summer with his dad, his mother was hardly sober when he was home with her. Tate was his muse, his "thunderstorm", if you will. They inevitably fall in love and yay everyone is happy, happy, happy. Just kidding. This horrible thing happens and it's just horrible. Horrible. And embarrassing and sad and oh, God, I feel so bad for them. But then they're happy again so it doesn't matter!

I did really enjoy this book. I've read it, like, 4 or 5 times in the last two months.

What I loved:

Tatum Brandt: she was a good heroine, I think, not too girly or whiny. She took care of herself and didn't let Jared break her down (that often).

Jared fucking Trent: Because he's Jared fucking Trent... who loves cars... and drives a motorcycle. Oh, duh, and he has tattoos. And because he's actually a good hero, as well.

Madoc Caruthers: He was the goofy best friend of Jared's and he didn't fail to make me smile.

THE REFERENCES TO BANDS I LOVE

What I hated:

Tatum Brandt and her unwillingness to punch K.C. in the boobs: as I stated before, don't fuck your best friend over but if you happen to get fucked over by your best friend, shank them.

K.C. Whatever-the-hell-her-last-name-was: Because she's K.C.

So last night at around 1:40 A.M. I wrote an introduction post and saved it as a draft... only problem is, I haven't any idea where to find my drafts, so I have to rewrite it. Anyway! Hello, I'm Sar. My zeal for reading gets out of hand at times, so I've decided to make a blog, obviously. I've never reviewed a book, unless you count school essays, which I sure the heck don't. My goal for this blog is to help fellow readers find their new all-time favorite books through my words. Um... Okay, on to my first (short and sweet) review! :)

Out of Line by Jen McLaughlin

blurb:

Desperate to break free…

I've spent my entire life under my father’s thumb, but now I'm finally free to make my own choices. When my roommate dragged me to my first college party, I met Finn Coram and my life turned inside out. He knows how to break the rules and is everything I never knew I wanted. A Marine by day and surfer by night, he pushes me away even as our attraction brings us closer. Now I am finally free to do whatever I want. I know what I want. I choose Finn. 

Trying to play by the rules...

I always follow orders. My job, my life, depends on it. I thought this job would be easy, all the rules were made crystal clear, but when I met Carrie Wallington, everything got muddy. She's a rule I know I shouldn't break, but damn if I don’t inch closer to the breaking point each time I see her. I’m ready to step out of line. And even worse? I’m living a lie. They say the truth will set you free, but in my case…

The truth will cost me everything.

***

Review:

I'd been wanting to read this book for a while but never really got around to it. It was only when my best friend incessantly recommended it that I relented. I really enjoyed this book, cheesy dialogue and all. I'm such a romantic and a complete sucker for those bad-boy-attitude-but-is-actually-as-sweet-as-candy guys. Who isn't, I mean, honestly? Sigh.

The book starts off with college freshman, Carrie Wallington, hanging out at a party, albeit alone. She feels uncomfortable surrounded by the strangers so she steps outside for some fresh air. And out in the fresh air is where she meets a super hot stranger, just lurking in the shadows. Yeah, not creepy at all. What she doesn't know is that this particular stranger, Finn Coram, is her personal security guard her father, Senator Wallington, hired to keep an eye on her. The two hit it off instantly, though their interaction is somewhat awkward. Carrie basically throws herself at him and he's seemingly uninterested.

I instantly felt sympathy for Carrie. She's 19 and she's never tasted freedom. Even now, when she thinks her father has finally relented and is allowing her to live her own life, she's being babysat!

Finn is anything but happy about being roped into babysitting a brat. He dreads having to look out for Carrie, believing that she'll be the quintessential vapid, rich girl. He soon realizes that she's the complete opposite. Instead of dreading his new job, he looks forward to seeing Carrie... A little too much, in fact.

(May contain spoilers!)

She and Finn become best friends shortly after their first meeting, and spend a lot of their time together surfing. The inevitable happens and they fall in love with each other, of course not realizing they're in love until near the end and after some heartbreak.

To be true to my word of promising a short and sweet review, I'll just end this by saying I very much enjoyed this book and will probably read it again... Maybe even do a more thorough review of it later! Needless to say, I totally recommend Out of Line!