Hm. I can’t say I was very invested in this book’s plot or the character’s lives. I guess this book was a bit too juvenile for me.

Unfortunately, I requested this book, but didn't get to read it before it was archived. I wish I had gotten to it.

There were a few parts of this story that I really loved but there were so many things I had issues with that it made this read hard to get through.

The idea of the bad boys never fails to reel me in. These "bad boys" do not disappoint... mostly. I dislike the love triangle trope and there was a lot of confusion in the romance area. I don't know if Lana wanted to be with Benny or Blake. The writing of the different POVs is hard to follow at first but it ended up being one of my favorite parts by the end of the book.

The premise and the twists are really interesting. However, the execution of the story is choppy and lacks the depth needed to really attached to any of the characters more than anything that is surface deep. The constant use of "bites the inside of her cheek" gets old really quickly.

I personally feel that Lana is trying to be too much as a character and doesn't do any of them very successfully. She gives free passes to everyone but Blake which seems rather short sighted and childish. I don't see myself reading the rest of the series even though the cliffhanger at the end is kind of intense.

Thank you Netgalley for the ecopy in exchange for my honest review.

I received this eARC novel from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

I really, really, really wanted to like this. I truly did. I love the cover, I love the synopsis, I love the beginning. But this book just wasn't for me, I don't think. First, the characters. There are so many boys, first of all, and all of them are bullies. And not true bullies, because they will be mean one moment and then nice the next. They are bi-polar bullies. And there are 2 different group of guys that are bullying Lana, and she basically goes from one group to the next without blinking an eye. Plus there is another character that I bet has a significant role to play, at least by reading the synopsis for the second book, that I didn't even get to before I gave up on this book.

Also, Lana. Gah, she is supposed to be a nerdy girl, a good girl, a Yale girl, but she interchanges herself so much that she goes from a good girl to a rebel in literally a second. It depends on who she is around, which honestly makes her two-faced and changes herself depending on who she's next to, which really annoys me to no end.

I know this book says 361 pages on the goodreads page, but I seriously think the one I got is way more pages, because I only got 54% through this book, and it took forever.

One other thing that got too much? There were so many plot twists and such terrible things that happened that the reader would assume that the book was finished with a cliffhanger and ready for the next book in the series. Instead, one bad thing after another kept happening to Lana. What made this really unrealistic was that Lana had a normal life before the 4 got intertwined with her, and now everything that can go wrong is going wrong... It was just a lot to deal with.

I'm bummed that I didn't like this book as well as I wanted to, and I really wanted to see what happened to these characters, but it was just TOO much for me. I'm sure there are readers out there who would enjoy this novel, though! I'm glad I got a chance to read this.

The bad boy of the the school and the geek girl. Can it be true that he shows interesent in her? Its a captative love story. Fully enjoyed reading it!

I received this book from NetGalley in return for a review.

This was not the typical high school romance book that I kind of expected it to turn out to be. There were so many characters and relationships to follow but it wasn't too hard to keep up. It was a heck of a lot longer than I expected though, that's for sure. I will be reading the next book in the series to see how things continue.

When I first started this book I could not put it down. I almost DNF because it kinda went all over the place.

I was very excited when I started reading this book because I connected with the story and the author's style of writing was wonderful. I felt like I was right there in the middle of the story. I was immediately sucked into the story and I was interested to read more. Unfortunately I was disappointed by this book. I stopped reading at 45% and I was thinking of DNF-ing even before that. Up until that point the plot had changed a few times and I didn't see the story going anywhere that the synopsis described.

What I liked: I felt bad for the main character Lana as she was bullied and teased for a long time. I was captivated by her story and I liked that she was working toward her future and getting into Yale. The chemistry between her and all of the boys was great, they did get along once they stopped teasing her. The characters weren't childish which I appreciated. And the cover got my attention and I was curious.

What I didn't like: The plot changed three times and when I stopped reading was when the plot in the blurb was actually happening. I think that almost mid way through a book should not be when a plot should start. I think if the author would have picked on plot it would have benefited the story more. I don't like that Lana started smoking when she started to hang out with the guys.

Overall this book had a lot of potential with the author's enthralling writing style but it wasn't enough for me to continue with the story and I feel like this book wasn't for me.

Spoiler Section:
Plot point one was the bet that the boys made with Lana, which was to shed her good girl image. She would dress and act differently from how she was. Second plot was when the boys were dealing drugs. Third was when Lana saw the dead body in front of her. Fourth was Lana's friend was supposed to visit, she had a past with him but he wasn't mentioned anymore up until the point where I stopped reading. Those are way too many different story lines for my liking and I stopped reading so there could have been more.

**I have posted my review on my Amazon page as well but that takes a little longer than the other links I provided.

Lana Willson is the school geek, nerd, good girl with glasses who is top of the class, not to mention her dad is the sheriff. It doesn’t stop her getting bullied though, far from it. The list of tormentors in her school is endless but she doesn’t let them get to her anymore, her focus is to get into Yale and that’s all that’s important. As much as she would prefer it to stop, falling flat on her face is a common annoying occurrence now that is just to be expected and accepted. So when the four most popular boys in school drag her aside to make a bet, she can’t help but feel drawn in; if she can make it two weeks as the school’s bad girl, the bullying will stop for good. Why the sudden interest she has no idea, but Lana has some secrets of her own, she wasn’t always a good girl so winning the bet might come easier than they expected.

‘”What does this make us?” I asked. They stayed quiet for a bit, then looked at Blake, even me. It made sense since he started the bet.
“I don’t know… friends?” he asked, then shook his head. “Look, Lana, if you want to back out of this and return to the normal, boring, bullied, loser, geek-”
“I get it… and no, I don’t. It’s actually fun with you guys.” I smiled. They gave a warm smile in return.’

My Thoughts

*SPOILERS*
Okay, now that was a long story. I’m not actually complaining, but it’s a heads up to you all.
The story was interesting enough to keep me going, full of unexpected surprises and twists that I really enjoyed. I should mention that the story does include addiction, alcoholism, mentions rape (not explicit), drugs and murder, so it may be sensitive to some who would prefer to avoid this.

As much as I really liked the story, I felt like there was too many characters by the end which sometimes became confusing and a bit unnecessary to tell you the truth. I felt like the author could have taken the time to build up some of the main characters rather than just including more into their group. The main four bad boys for example – Blake, Carter, Aidan and Ethan, could have had more of a backstory, they started off as the most popular boys in school, but after a while they just blended into the background and didn’t matter so much. There were too many crossovers with the characters but ultimately each one once wronged our main protagonist, Lana, in some way and asked for forgiveness then became a loyal companion. I get that she was the nerd of the school and was bullied alot, but it didn’t make sense as to why each person suddenly wanted to become her friend or more strangely – something more. The clothes she wore weren’t that different.
The story was told mainly from Lana, but at times it included other’s perspective which brought the story to life through various characters.

I didn’t know whether I loved Lana or whether she just confused me. Sex, drugs and rock n’ roll clearly weren’t a first for her when she decided to take the bet to become a ‘bad girl’ which made you think that the nerd title was actually the pretence. Yeah her dad is the sheriff and yeah she’s book smart intelligent, but what else is there besides the glasses that give her that title? And why is she suddenly really attractive to the male species, even in a unicorn onesie? It just didn’t quite add up. She’s strong in some ways, but completely pathetic in others. She’s comfortable around guys but has never been on a real date? I feel like I’m reading the book from Blakes perspective – there is definitely more to her than she lets on which is why I find her so annoyingly fascinating.

In regards to the romance in this story – it’s just as addictively infuriating. You’ve got Levi – the secretive best friend, childhood soulmate, her first love as well as her heartbreak who you know will always come back, Blake – the popular bad boy who was the first to realise there was more to Lana than meets the eye, who pulled her away from her comfort zone and introduced her to a life of excitement as well as danger and addition who can’t help but feel drawn to her in that adorable ‘first love’ kind of way, Carter – the heartthrob of the school who can (and most likely has) had all of the girls he wants, yet he can’t help but stare at Lana from across the room, an intellectual challenge in the classroom both being top of the class, he asks her to prom night and spends the night next to her knowing he could have pursued her but didn’t – he’s a gorgeous mystery that I can’t work out but I definitely want too, then you’ve got Ethan who wants her to come to his games, wear his jacket and almost kisses her but you don’t know whether it’s part of the bet, or that he actually likes her, and then you have Benny – the guy who has bullied Lana for years, has physically abused and tormented her who suddenly wants to apologise and change his ways, yet Lana easily forgives him and then choses him over the rest. Yeah I have to admit, the tears are real, the guilt is clear on his skin and the love in his eyes is definitely swoon-worthy – but really? Is he the only one she can really trust after all the years of abuse? Simply put – the author included too many lovesick characters and made them all just as good as each other in their own twisted way. I think part of me is glad that Lana didn’t typically fall for Blake; the bad boy that started it all, but the feelings Blake develops for Lana makes you wonder where it’s going to all end. I’m personally either rooting for Carter or Blake! Carter out of pure fascination, Blake to steal her heart.

‘”I don’t know, it’s weird. I used to tease you, and now I’m spending my Saturday with you. I don’t know how Carter and Aidan can be so calm when they used to tease you too, but now…” he said, then looked away. “Now when Blake shows up, he’s all… I don’t know, interested in you. It’s weird because I’ve known you since kindergarten, and I teased you for no reason. Now thanks to Blake, I see the real you. Shows don’t judge a book by it’s cover.”

As evidenced by my ranting above – I clearly couldn’t get enough of this book – which btw ended on a cliff hanger that made me emotional – I didn’t hesitate to purchase her second book ‘Flawed – Caught by the Bad Boys Book 2’

Okay, so you know that phase where everyone read crappy Wattpad books that had the same plot but different character names? Yeah, this is it.

When I began reading this book, I actually thought this was a prank and the book would start after a while. But no. The writing is SO BAD I physically could not finish this book. The characters were stereotypical and wishy washy, while the plot was overused and bland. I can't believe the person who approved this as a piece of literature, because it is not. The synopsis drew me and in, but that was it.

Sadly, did not enjoy it at all. Do not recommend!

Needs work in improving writing, repeatable story telling. annoying female lead who needed backbone, boring story telling., too young for my liking. Honestly, it was hard to read so I DNF it at around 35% in the book. It needed work done. There was so much unnecessary stuff. Repetitive dialogue. Multiple POVs etc. The plot really could have used a proper tightening up. Plus, it was too long for no reason. It reminded me of After by Anna Todd, so many things that shouldn't have been added.

I loved and hated this book! I got sucked into the story and really liked the main character Lana. The others took some time to like. The trouble these teenagers get into is unbelievable and a bit far fetched but it made a great story. I hate the fact it is a total cliff hanger!

An interesting read but a bit confusing at the beginning trying to keep up with the characters, the narrative was similar so you couldn’t tell at first. They could also do with a bit more work they were likeable enough but seemed to lack something, I enjoyed it, but needs a little work

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Maybe too much to make the plot run smoothly and be easy to follow. And it took me a while to separate out the different characters' personalities. I felt the book concentrated most on listing out what was happening next, rather than showing us who each of the characters were through their actions. A bit muddled then, maybe better with an edit to slow the book down and fill out the characters?

I was gifted a free copy of this book by netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked the premise of the plot, but the story fell short in others way. I felt like the execution of it wasn't very realistic but if you are looking for a wattpad-like book, then you will like this. The story is definitely really cliche at parts but it gives you just enough that you want to keep reading.

The characters were kind of crazy but still loveable at the same time. I liked Lana for most of the book but at other times she was a bit much. The different points of views were interesting and gave you a better insight into the different characters but sometimes it was a bit hard to determine who was narrating. I felt like the book would have been better if the author had developed each of the characters more rather than focusing on the plot.

Overall, I think that the characters could have been fleshed out a bit more because the story is pretty cliche at certain times, but as you read, the storyline builds up and it's definitely an interesting read if you have the patience to get into it.

Thank you to the publisher and author for an ARC!