The Truth About You & Me by Amanda Grace
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: September 8, 2013
Rating: 1 star
Source: eARC from NetGalley
Summary (from Goodreads):
Smart girls aren't supposed to do stupid things.
Madelyn Hawkins is super smart. At sixteen, she's so gifted that she can attend college through a special program at her high school. On her first day, she meets Bennet. He's cute, funny, and kind. He understands Madelyn and what she's endured - and missed out on - in order to excel academically and please her parents. Now, for the first time in her life, she's falling in love.
There's only one problem. Bennet is Madelyn's college professor, and he thinks she's eighteen - because she hasn't told him the truth.
The story of their forbidden romance is told in letters that Madelyn writes to Bennet - both a heart-searing ode to their ill-fated love and an apology.
What I Liked:
Uhhhhh... nothing. Don't give me that look!
What I Did Not Like:
SPOILERS AHEAD! MAJOR SPOILERS! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! DON'T BLAME ME IF YOU READ MORE THAN YOU WANT TO READ!
The one word I could think of that embodies this book: bulls***.
This book, to me, is a load of bulls***. I hate cursing, and I rarely do it, and Amazon won't let me post my review is I have curse words, so I won't expand the word, but you know what I'm referring to. This book was crap. I seriously cannot believe that people LOVE this book. I respect everyone's opinions, but seriously?!
Let it be known: I am a teenager. I am two years older than Madelyn, but I'm a teenager. Supposedly, I can empathize with Madelyn and her thoughts and actions and decisions and whatnot. SUPPOSEDLY. But not all teens think alike. Not all teens are bats*** crazy. Madelyn is bats*** crazy. Probably the dumbest, stupidest, most idiotic teenager I have ever encountered, fiction OR real.
Let's start by the fact that Madelyn lies about her age to Bennet. Stupid. Stupid stupid stupid. One thing that my mother always told me as a child is that you can never, ever hide the truth - it always pops up, especially when you don't want it to. Madelyn lets Bennet believe she's eighteen. He's like, twenty-six, so he's not exactly old. But he's her professor.
Oh, I should explain that. Madelyn is like, smart, and takes college classes at the age of sixteen, to get ahead. I know all about this. I took a ton of college-level classes in high school. So it's nothing new to me. In that way, I can relate to Madelyn - because we're both really, really smart individuals, who want to go to Ivy League school and major in something difficult (for me, it's environmental engineering).
So, Madelyn lies about her age. She lets Benett believe she's eighteen. They agree to wait until the semester is over to be together. They have sex. He finds out right after they have sex, because he finds a high school flyer that fell out of her backpack. She is disgusted. He doesn't get charged, because neither he or she says anything.
Do you see what's wrong with that?! It's so wrong, to deceive a grown man and put his life and job in danger like that! Are you so effin stupid/dumb/brainless/selfish, that all you can think about is getting some!? You didn't once think about the man's LIFE?!
Again. BULL. S***.
And how about this whole thing about how Madelyn feels like a robot, like she isn't alive, unless she's with Bennet? WHAT?! Look, I get it with the robot thing - when you're working so hard to be the perfect student, the perfect daughter, the perfect everything, it feels like you're on autopilot. Like life is on repeat. I get it. I've been there. I'm there ALL THE TIME. Don't forget that I'm a super-smart girl too, and a teen, and basically I let education come before my social life, my family, etc.
But that's why you find a HOBBY. You find something that will take your mind off education, grades, work, etc. You do do something disgusting and illegal and so effin dumb like lie bout your age and pursue a sexual relationship with a grown man! How dumb is Madelyn?! Pretty dumb. For such an education-smart girl, she is the stupidest piece of s*** I've encountered. And I'm a TEENAGER. I know some idiots. None of them can top this chick.
I found NOTHING romantic about Bennet and Madelyn's relationship. In fact, it seemed like a ton of frustrated lust to me, and then they finally had sex, and then everything blew up in Madelyn's face. I was like, GO BENNET! Leave her in the snow! He didn't. But I totally wish Madelyn could have actually gotten punished somehow, for all her s***.
But seriously. Their relationship seemed like a ton of lust, not love. There was no love on either party's part. Madelyn thought she loved Bennet soooo much, because he understood her, and she felt alive with him, and she could talk to him. Whatever. She's a nerd, frustrated by her nonexistent sexual life, who jumped at the chance of having sex with a "real man".
I hate that one line in the book that's like "I'm letting you go", or something, at the very end. Girl, whatever. He is NOT yours to let go. You ruined him. He had to leave his position at the university. He moved far, far away. You DESTROYED him. You can't let go of him - you didn't deserve to have any hold on him to begin with.
So basically, the nerd girl thinks she's totally in love with a guy who is ten years older than her. She has sex with him - but he thinks she's eighteen, not sixteen. They part ways at the end. What a bulls***, sob story. I'm sorry, but I don't cut anyone slack. Especially not a girl who is very similar to me - what a stupid idiot.
Would I Recommend It:
No. It's a crap "love story". And the ending isn't even good, in terms of the "love". The whole letters to you thing? Stupid. We're seeing them in the perspective of the idiot girl who wrote them. Everything's so la-dee-dah. It's like she doesn't even THINK she didn't anything WRONG.
Rating:
1 star. Bulls***. The end.
Was this review helpful? Please let me know in the comments section!
To a point, I totally agree. I think the only reason why I 'enjoyed' it was that it was so fast paced. I just couldn't stop reading it even though I really did want to just punch her in the f***ing face, haha. Overall, the story is kind of just... wrong.
ReplyDeleteLaura @ Music Plus Books
I think the fast pace was okay (made it slightly less painful to read), but I also think the author could have done more. I really hated this book though. I can't even understand how some people LOVE this book o.O
DeleteThank you for commenting! :)
Love the review. I definitely don't plan to read this one - the plot is not my idea of fun or romantic
ReplyDeleteLOL! Thank you? ;) I'm sure there are plenty of other books you have to read, Adina ^_^
DeleteWOW, you really did not like this book. I wanted to read it but now...not so much. One of my bookish pet peeves is when the reader (us) is meant to believe the the MC is super smart but then the whole book is them making dumb choices. Just...annoying... Great review though:)
ReplyDeleteChloe @ [B.O.O.K.L.I.F.E.]
http://www.mnkbooklife.blogspot.com
NOPE. If you still read it, let me know how it goes. I just could NOT relate to a "smart" girl like Madelyn.
DeleteThank you!
Those are some strong feelings you have. I have not read this book but I can understand why it would have drove you crazy. I hate when authors make "smart" girls make such "stupid" choices. It is not consistent with their character. It is too bad this one was such a flop for you.
ReplyDeleteRight?! When I re-read my review for proofreading's sake, I was like o.O But I still feel that way. Like, it's bad. Just... no. I'm sorry if you were planning to read this one, and now won't. BUT, you'll read something else that's totally awesome :)
DeleteGod, everything about this book made me mad, except for the writing and the pacing. Those were spot on.
ReplyDeleteWhat I didn't understand is why Madelyn didn't have a ready-made excuse for exactly the situation that got her caught. Couldn't she have just said something about her parent being a teacher at the high school? Not that I condone lying (obviously, because fuck this book) but seriously, how hard would that have been, considering she's been lying to him the whole time anyway. And a series of small, stupid mistakes led to the two of them being caught together that any 'smart' girl could have avoided.
Plus, I don't believe she's actually smart. She failed a bunch of quizzes/tests.
I have to say, I don't really understand the point the author was trying to make with this book. Madelyn suffered NO consequences for her actions, letting the teacher take the fall for 100% of it. Basically, he was all wrong and she was the victim. I thought this book was going to shine a light on the fact that maybe the girl isn't always prey, but I was wrong.
The pacing, I still didn't like. And the writing was definitely good, but I didn't even think to mention that.
DeleteThat is SUCH a good point! LOL, but you bring up a great point. Madelyn is a fantastic liar, in my opinion, and rocks that. All her mistakes and her lies just build up and whatever.
And yeah, she's SO not smart. Like, her grades suck a**, so there is no way that the whole smart-girl was working out for her anyway.
The author's message wasn't really clear to me either... but whatever, because I understand nothing about this book, and I don't want to. I kind of just want to forget I read it, but, I suppose if I read it, it was worth it? But not really.
Thank you so much for commenting, Bekka!
Great review Alyssa :) Thank you for sharing your honest review. <3 I just saw the cover, and thought it was so pretty, but yeah. Book sounds like crap. I'm glad you let me know how it sucked, hih :D
ReplyDeleteI don't even like the cover :o But, yeah, that pretty much sums it up. I'm sorry that THAT was my I contributed, but I hope that instead, you read something awesome :D
DeleteAnd I REALLY wanted to read this too! :le sigh: I'll pass. The thing is-books with professors sleeping with their students, etc irks me. It's because I've spent x amount of time in academia and I know the ins and outs that quite frankly the more I know certain professors, etc the least sexy they become (if they ever were to begin with). That being said, I do know of a former professor who married a student, but they meet up 10 years later and they just clicked (although she admitted to having a crush on him as an undergrad).
ReplyDeleteThe last course I was a TA in, high school students taking college courses for credit are listed as high school students on the official enrollment sheet because that's the way the uni handles them & in case they need additional help getting materials, etc that they won't have access to because they aren't uni students. Again, I know states do things differently so that might vary from state to state. Knowing this-it would me turn me off from any book that didn't take things into consideration.
Awww, I'm sorry that you're not going to read it again, but trust me, I feel like that's a good choice, especially with the other AMAZING books that are out there.
DeleteLOL! Jess, this comment is FANTASTIC. I almost wish the author would read this, just to see your comment. I feel like what you said about being marked as an HS student is correct, so that was stretching the truth, in the author's part.
Thank you for commenting and adding to this semi-discussion! ^_^