How to Break a Boyby Laurie Devore
January 10, 2017
352 pages
352 pages
Goodreads Summary:
Keep your enemies close, but your friends closer.
Olivia Clayton has mastered the art of tearing others down to stay on top. She and her best friend, Adrienne, rule their small southern town like all good mean girls do--through intimidation and manipulation.
After Olivia suffers a family tragedy and catches Adrienne sleeping with her boyfriend, Olivia is over it. She decides to make a change--but it's impossible to resist taking Adrienne down one last time. Up to her old tricks, Olivia convinces golden boy Whit DuRant to be her SAT tutor and her fake boyfriend. But when it starts to feel real, Whit gets caught up in Olivia and Adrienne's war.
Olivia may ruin everything she touches, but this time she won't go down without a fight--not if it means losing Whit.
And definitely not if it means losing what's left of herself.
How to Break a Boy was not at all the book I expected. It's dark and mean, far from the brightness the cover suggests but I loved it. Once you start in on the story you can't stop yourself from finishing it. I literally couldn't stop.
First of all, How to Break a Boy will not be a book for everyone. It features some of the meanest girls I've read in books. They're honestly so nasty. Secondly, the protagonist knowingly makes so many bad decisions it was awful to watch her act each one out. If you can stomach all of that then How to Break a Boy will suck you in and keep you entertained.
Olivia knows she's a horrible person. She's done some bad things and it's not until after her brother's death she starts to reflect on her past actions. Even then her guilt and fear (and Adrienne) held her captive. It was so hard to watch Olivia spew lies after lies and make mistakes after mistakes. Her silence killed me but I was addicted to watching her life unravel. I needed to see when she'd finally wake up and take control of her life. Despite all of Olivia's faults, she wasn't pure evil. The fact that she acknowledges herself as a bad person told me she wasn't beyond saving. I wanted to cry happy tears when she finally unloaded her true feelings at her mom.
Olivia's friendship with Adrienne was seriously unhealthy. It's love-hate at its best. Their crazy high school and gossipy town didn't help. Everybody saw how messed up they were but nobody stepped in. People just accepted Adrienne's nastiness and I think that really reflected reality. It took some time but when Olivia finally spoke up (to Adrienne and all the other toxins in her life) she does so not without fear but with the right mindset. Good girl.
Whit was the one good thing to come from all the bad things that's happened to Olivia. He was straightforward like a wooden ruler until Olivia crashed into his life and bent everything out of shape. It made me sad and a little angry to see her taint him. Whit's such a good guy and didn't deserve all the ugliness she brought into his simple life. It wasn't all bad though. Olivia also brought colour into his ordinary life, helping him find his way while he helped her clear her path. Bonus that they had some swoony and maybe some electrifying moments~
How to Break a Boy is a taste of the dark side of high school. You wouldn't want to get caught in the drama but you will get addicted to it. While this won't be a book for everyone, I do think it's a smart read.
Olivia Clayton has mastered the art of tearing others down to stay on top. She and her best friend, Adrienne, rule their small southern town like all good mean girls do--through intimidation and manipulation.
After Olivia suffers a family tragedy and catches Adrienne sleeping with her boyfriend, Olivia is over it. She decides to make a change--but it's impossible to resist taking Adrienne down one last time. Up to her old tricks, Olivia convinces golden boy Whit DuRant to be her SAT tutor and her fake boyfriend. But when it starts to feel real, Whit gets caught up in Olivia and Adrienne's war.
Olivia may ruin everything she touches, but this time she won't go down without a fight--not if it means losing Whit.
And definitely not if it means losing what's left of herself.
Review
How to Break a Boy was not at all the book I expected. It's dark and mean, far from the brightness the cover suggests but I loved it. Once you start in on the story you can't stop yourself from finishing it. I literally couldn't stop.
First of all, How to Break a Boy will not be a book for everyone. It features some of the meanest girls I've read in books. They're honestly so nasty. Secondly, the protagonist knowingly makes so many bad decisions it was awful to watch her act each one out. If you can stomach all of that then How to Break a Boy will suck you in and keep you entertained.
Olivia knows she's a horrible person. She's done some bad things and it's not until after her brother's death she starts to reflect on her past actions. Even then her guilt and fear (and Adrienne) held her captive. It was so hard to watch Olivia spew lies after lies and make mistakes after mistakes. Her silence killed me but I was addicted to watching her life unravel. I needed to see when she'd finally wake up and take control of her life. Despite all of Olivia's faults, she wasn't pure evil. The fact that she acknowledges herself as a bad person told me she wasn't beyond saving. I wanted to cry happy tears when she finally unloaded her true feelings at her mom.
Olivia's friendship with Adrienne was seriously unhealthy. It's love-hate at its best. Their crazy high school and gossipy town didn't help. Everybody saw how messed up they were but nobody stepped in. People just accepted Adrienne's nastiness and I think that really reflected reality. It took some time but when Olivia finally spoke up (to Adrienne and all the other toxins in her life) she does so not without fear but with the right mindset. Good girl.
Whit was the one good thing to come from all the bad things that's happened to Olivia. He was straightforward like a wooden ruler until Olivia crashed into his life and bent everything out of shape. It made me sad and a little angry to see her taint him. Whit's such a good guy and didn't deserve all the ugliness she brought into his simple life. It wasn't all bad though. Olivia also brought colour into his ordinary life, helping him find his way while he helped her clear her path. Bonus that they had some swoony and maybe some electrifying moments~
How to Break a Boy is a taste of the dark side of high school. You wouldn't want to get caught in the drama but you will get addicted to it. While this won't be a book for everyone, I do think it's a smart read.
*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinion are my own and not affected in any way.
It definitely does look like a light/fluffy/fun book by the cover!! But I also kind of do like dark books, so this might really be for me. I also love mean girls and dysfunctional friendships. Hmmm-- I'll have to put it on my maybe list!! Great review!
ReplyDeleteOh yes I do think it'll be perfect for you Michelle! I hope you do give it a try and I look forward to hear your thoughts :)
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