REVIEW: Bully (Far Away #1) by Penelope Douglas

Book Information:

My name is Tate. He doesn't call me that, though. He would never refer to me so informally, if he referred to me at all.
We're neighbors, and once, we were best friends. But then, one summer, he turned on me and has made it his mission to screw up my life at every opportunity. I've been humiliated, shut out, and gossiped about all through high school. His pranks and rumors got more sadistic as time wore on, and I made myself sick trying to hide from him. I worried about what was around every corner and behind every door.
So I left.
I spent a year studying abroad and bathed in the freedom of life without Jared. Now I'm back to finish up high school and get the hell out of here forever. I'm hoping that after a year of breathing room, he's moved on and forgotten all about me.
But even if he hasn't changed, I have. I'm not interested in avoiding him or turning the other cheek anymore. We're going to go head to head, because neither of us wants to back down.

MY REVIEW

"You were my tempest, my thunder cloud, my tree in the downpour. I loved all those things, and I loved you. But now? You’re a fucking drought. I thought that all the assholes drove German cars, but it turns out that pricks in Mustangs can still leave scars.”

Tatum has lived the past few years being bullied by the one person she has always cared about. Jared wasn't always the vain of her existence. Once upon a time he was her protector and her best friend. One summer Jared went away and when he came back he changed. He didn't want anything to do with Tate and he wanted her to suffer. 

"That's how bullies are made."

Years later after going away to study abroad for a year, Tatum is back and not willing to let her tormentor get the best of her. She refuses to cower from Jared and his friends anymore. She meets them blow by blow and word for word. Most of all she won't let her emotions and feelings for Jared get in the way of preventing her from standing up for herself.  Senior year will be different...

As the tension between Tate and Jared increases so does the feelings they both don't want to acknowledge. Under all the intimidating structure that is Jared, there is still the boy that used to comfort Tate at her worse times. And under Tate's tough act there is her attraction to Jared and her need to finally be free of his bullying.  But even if he seems to ignite something in her, she will not be bullied anymore. She can never trust the Jared that he has become.

I have to say that I was blown away with how much I enjoyed this book. At first I thought that I wouldn't like Jared one bit and couldn't find anything that could redeem him. He was terrible to Tate, he spread rumors about her that knocked her off any social scale and intimidated her. But then Tate leaves and everything changes. You finally see Jared get a taste of his own medicine and can't help but be intrigued to find out what happened? What could have happened that made Jared turn into someone completely different from the sweet picture Tate painted of him. So throughout the book you want to dislike him but you can't help and be absorbed in the story. In some ways you feel the same exact way Tate does. 

"I had loved Jared once, but now I knew, without a doubt, that my Jared was gone."

Tate is a caring and wonderful person and always sees the good people. She suffered through loss as a child and during that time Jared was her solace so its how they became best friends. And even when she grew a backbone she still had a conscience and she still cared, which shows you how much of a great heart she has. But she refused to be bullied anymore and tried hard to fight back. She didn't let Jared or Madoc's(Jared's friend) bullying go unpunished and gave them back what they served.The only quip I had with her was that sometimes her "best friend" walked all over her.

  “He put a hand to my face and guided my eyes to his. "We never lost that. As much as I tried, I could never erase you from my heart. That's why I was such an asshole and kept guys away from you. You were always mine."
"Are you mine?" I asked as I wiped my tears.
He kissed the corners of my mouth softly, and I felt the heat rise up my neck. "Always have been," he whispered against my mouth.”

Bully is filled with so much tension between Tate and Jared that you could feel it coming off the pages. There was anger, hurt, betrayal but also attraction, desire and love all mixed in to this spectacular read!

Buy this. Read it. Love it.

HAPPY READING!