Bully

Fall Away, Book 1

By: Penelope Douglas

Narrated by: Abby Craden

Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

My name is Tate. He doesn't call me that, though. He'll barely refer to me at all, and he'll hardly ever 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 worse as time wore on. I even went to Europe for a year, just to avoid him. But I'm done hiding from him now, and there's no way I'll allow him to ruin another year. He might not have changed, but I have. It's time to fight back.

©2013 Penelope Douglas (P)2014 Tantor

Loved this story before and love it even more now!

I loved Tate & Jared's story before, but I love it even more now that I have listened to it bought to life.

So that's what I missed in high school.

I really liked the story, it gave me a different outlook at H.S. Glad I was too busy with other stuff.

excited love this book couldn't put it down

Love this Book couldn't stop listening the lead characters were the best I love badass female lead characters and she was pretty badass the only thing I didn't like about her was that she kind of came off as a pushover a little bit and she should have been angrier at her best friend a lot more her dating Jared.

Awesome Awesome Awesome

I listen to this book in one day and I never do that it kept me on the edge of my seat! The story line was great and the narrator did an awesome job with voices. This book gives you a different look at bullies and let you know they are hurting and are reaching out for help. Great read!

So Glad I Took a Chance!

Didn’t read this for the longest time because of the mixed reviews… but I love Penelope Douglas’s writing and am fast running out of her books to read/devour. Therefore I broke down and bought it.
Best. Decision. Ever!!
I am an avid audiobook listener; with hundreds of titles under my belt in less than a year. Bully didn’t disappoint. Plot had great twists and turns, characters developed believably well throughout the book; however, as a parent, I couldn’t believe that her father would leave her alone for 3 months… wish I had that as a senior in high school!! Narrator was okay, which is why the 4 stars for performance. There are better narrators for male pov’s, but her reading didn’t effect my overall impression or enjoyment of the book.

Hard to get through

This story is hard for me to enjoy since it was centered about a “bully” or an abusive relationship. I know this is a story but it almost made the old tale of boys will pick on the girl they like to an extreme. I hope no one will think that being treated like trash by a person they care about is ok. I forced my self to listen to this but I was extremely aggravated throughout. I want to make it know that it is never ok to put up with any kind of abuse. Most abusive relations do not get better with hoping the person will change or hoping someone will save you. Asking for help is also ok and removing your self from the environment and situation should be their goal. Having a cop for a husband and hearing the horrific stories about situations like these makes my heart ache for anyone in this situation.

Now that I have said that, I do thank the writer for taking on such an emotional topic. I finished it because I wanted to writing an accurate review. All I can say is that this story isn’t for everyone.

Bad Boy yuck good girl gone wild

The story was a good listen too. I always like the place myself in the characters shoes and try to see things like them. what if this happened to me? Would i felt this way too? I liked how the story progressed, though i wasnt a huge fan of the BFF, i would have dropped her. But I would have been the most honest with her in the beginning if they were truly my friend. My heart heart for the main character. She had to be so strong all alone with everyone she loved so distant from her. I liked how she could take care of herself without a man truly saving her. I wouldnt read this story again till i couldnt remember anything about it. it was enjoyable while it lasted

Great book , poor naration

What other book might you compare Bully to and why?

It reminds me a bit of Samantha Young novels.

Did Abby Craden do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

She did OK. Her inflection during narration was a bit off-putting.

Sweet

I don't approve of unmarried or under age sex. However, before it happened, I was fully entrenched in the storyline. So, a fair warning.

Now, Tate is very mature & some may scoff at that as she's only 17 through the majority of the book. I personally can attest that there are many young people who grow up & mature quickly. A hard life did that to me, so it's quite believable. I truly enjoyed knowing her inner thoughts and struggle to continue growing and to tackle those who not only bullied her but, also, with her own struggle yo not become a bully herself.

From the beginning, I knew that something traumatic had deeply scarred Jared when he was 14yrs old. Bullies 99% of the time have been abused. His acts of bullying may seem outrageous but truly his little pawn Maddox actually made me more upset. He had NO reason or excuse for what he did. He even admitted that he was the one who over did it without Jared even knowing. Being able to move on & forgive is a huge thing that many adults I know have never overcome. That itself really rang true with Tate's personality. I hope others can gain insight & grow themselves as they read her story.

Excellent story of true life happenings. Beautifully written and the narrator was perfect. :-)

My star ratings include these 5 elements:
1★ story line
1★ engaging characters
1★ use of world building/descriptive
1★ being well edited or narrated
1★ the ending

meh.. i wasn't wowed by this book

as a bully book goes, i guess it was ok, too much inner dialogue it got boring and predictable, the storyline was ok I'm underwhelmed