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samantha914's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
amanda_reads13's review
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
KC is headed back home after an embarrassing breakup with her ex. She ended up moving into Tate's house while serving her community service. Jax, the boy who used to flirt with her, is now her very grown up neighbour.
There is a lot of trauma in this book. These characters have severe PTSD and need therapy. Jax was abused by his father and friends as a child and KC (Juliet) basically became her dead sister. How do you become a functioning adult without proper support and therapy?
I think that the beginning of this relationship is super toxic because they are both suffering and take it out on one another. Eventually it's becomes less toxic, but they never deal with their PTSD.
Jax doesn't feel worthy of love, so he pushes KC away and keeps her at arm's length. He suffered severe abuse as a child and as an adult needs to be in constant control of his environment and life. Yes, I realize that he is traumatized, but he gave me whiplash with his mood swings and his poor treatment of KC. She tried so hard to be patient and help him, but she was his punching bag.
KC has severe trust issues. Her boyfriend cheated on her twice and she suffered from constant emotional abuse, manipulation and gaslighting as a child.Before she was born, her father killed her sister thinking she was an intruder in the house. He suffered severe mental health issues after. To help him cope Juliet took on the "role and personality" of her dead sister KC. Along the way her true self, Juliet, died and she just became KC. So traumatic.
The storyline with his dad kind of took a back seat. When he finally showed up to follow through with his threats, it was over pretty quick. It was barely a blip in the story.
Tropes: boy next door, opposites attract
There is a lot of trauma in this book. These characters have severe PTSD and need therapy. Jax was abused by his father and friends as a child and KC
I think that the beginning of this relationship is super toxic because they are both suffering and take it out on one another. Eventually it's becomes less toxic, but they never deal with their PTSD.
Jax doesn't feel worthy of love, so he pushes KC away and keeps her at arm's length. He suffered severe abuse as a child and as an adult needs to be in constant control of his environment and life. Yes, I realize that he is traumatized, but he gave me whiplash with his mood swings and his poor treatment of KC. She tried so hard to be patient and help him, but she was his punching bag.
KC has severe trust issues. Her boyfriend cheated on her twice and she suffered from constant emotional abuse, manipulation and gaslighting as a child.
The storyline with his dad kind of took a back seat. When he finally showed up to follow through with his threats, it was over pretty quick. It was barely a blip in the story.
Tropes: boy next door, opposites attract
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
lovelymisanthrope's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I stumbled across this book at Barnes & Noble and picked it up on a whim.
"Falling Away" follows K.C. and Jaxon. K.C. has always followed the rules and done everything that is expected of her, until she does something so out of character the police get involved. Now she is back in her hometown to complete her community service. K.C.'s new neighbor for the summer is Jaxon, one of her friend's little brother. K.C. had a little bit of a crush on Jaxon in high school, but she never pursued him. Now, he is all grown up and may be the perfect distraction to help K.C. get through this awful summer.
In true Penelope Douglas fashion, this romance is DARK, and riddled with mature content. Having read Penelope Douglas before, I do not know why this came as a surprise, but I was not fully expecting the craziness that I read, but that is more on me than the author.
Jaxon is a bit of a bully towards K.C., but it comes across as more of him pushing her to be her true self, aggressively. I loved that Jaxon seems to be the only person who really sees K.C. for who she is. I also really enjoyed that we got both of their perspectives throughout the book.
This was a really quick read that I devoured in one sitting, which is exactly what I was looking for. I am definitely interested by the other characters and will likely pick up more of the novels from this series in the future.
"Falling Away" follows K.C. and Jaxon. K.C. has always followed the rules and done everything that is expected of her, until she does something so out of character the police get involved. Now she is back in her hometown to complete her community service. K.C.'s new neighbor for the summer is Jaxon, one of her friend's little brother. K.C. had a little bit of a crush on Jaxon in high school, but she never pursued him. Now, he is all grown up and may be the perfect distraction to help K.C. get through this awful summer.
In true Penelope Douglas fashion, this romance is DARK, and riddled with mature content. Having read Penelope Douglas before, I do not know why this came as a surprise, but I was not fully expecting the craziness that I read, but that is more on me than the author.
Jaxon is a bit of a bully towards K.C., but it comes across as more of him pushing her to be her true self, aggressively. I loved that Jaxon seems to be the only person who really sees K.C. for who she is. I also really enjoyed that we got both of their perspectives throughout the book.
This was a really quick read that I devoured in one sitting, which is exactly what I was looking for. I am definitely interested by the other characters and will likely pick up more of the novels from this series in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Kidnapping, and Gaslighting
mollydollydoodah's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Really, really good. Super spicy. Enemies to lovers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Abandonment
Moderate: Child death and Murder