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The Royals #1
Paper Princess
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Romance (2016)This a previously published edition of ASIN B01DT9ZWNI.
From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.
These Royals will ruin you…
Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone.
Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.
Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals.
He might be right.
Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.
From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.
These Royals will ruin you…
Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone.
Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.
Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals.
He might be right.
Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.
370 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 4, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 14,358 reviews
April 6, 2016
WELL THAT WAS A JAW DROPPER!!!!!
A fucking JAW DROPPER!!! I'm still reeling! Ahhhhh! Okay... I think I've found a NEW addiction and it's ROYALLY intoxicating!!!! YOU GUYS! I started Paper Princess around 11pm on a Sunday Night. My plan was to read until 12:30. Yeah, rightttttt!!!
BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER.
I had to forced myself to set it down. I had read and read and read and before I knew it I had to be up in 2hrs. TWO HOURS. The next morning I couldn't think. Not about ANYTHING but this book. I was obsessed. Intoxicated. Completely taken by what I was reading. As I was making my kids breakfast, my mind ran a marathon, covering every little detail and scene my mind had soaked in. I couldn't get my kids to school fast enough. I came home. I finished immediately. And OH MY WORD! Seriously!!!! THIS, friends, is your NEXT addiction. These Royal's are delightfully wicked in every single way.
When you first meet Callum Royal and his sons, you don't know what to think of them. Callum swoops in and saves the day. Literally. I, personally, thought the man was fantastic. Even with his blatant flaws glaring at you, I saw a diamond in the rough. I have a major crush on him. He's HAWT. But his boys... Oh, baby! His five sons left something to be desired. To be honest, at first they're a bunch of assholes. Gorgeous assholes, but fuckers I wanted to throat punch nonetheless. However, first appearances are often times deceiving. There's soooo many things going on in this story. So many skeletons and little hidden compartments lingering behind the scenes, just waiting to jump out. I'm still trying to figure each of them out.
One of best things about Paper Princess, my most favorite thing, is Ella herself. Our main character is down right FABULOUS. At 17, this girl has handled more than anyone should. And it hasn't broken her. No, if anything it's made her one hell of a fighter. I respected her. I admired her. She's lost her mother, her father, and she's had to do things, to get by, that made my heart ache. This feisty, yet sweet girl, has been taking care of herself for what seems forever. And because of that she's developed an incredibly fierce sense of independence. She rarely shows weakness. And if she feels weak, she gets over it in the very next breath. Simply put, I have a girl crush on her.
With Ella's life's doing a 180--from pauper to princess--she's thrust into the Royal Mansion. That could easily change her as a person, yet it doesn't. Ella Harper is a good to her core. But while she's good, she's also strong. She takes no shit and gives zero fucks as well.
[.... "I lift a finger and trail it slowly across his naked pecs, my nail scraping across his smooth skin. His breath hitches, almost imperceptibly, but it’s there.
My heart leaps to my throat and blood begins to pound in places that I absolutely do not want to be associated with Reed Royal.
"You’re playing a dangerous game,” he rasps out.
Don’t I know it. Still, I can’t let Reed see he’s gotten to me. I pull my hand away, folding the fingers into a fist. “I don’t know any other way to play it.” ....]
All the Royal boys have distinct personalities. From Easton, to Gideon, to Sawyer, to Sebastian, they're all intriguing in their own way. But our hero is Reed Royal.
REED MOTHER FUCKING ROYAL! Prince of aloof fuckery!
Reed is the ringleader of the bunch. When he says jump, they say "YES, SIR!" He sets the standard in the Royal house and at Astor Park Prep, their High School! He's cold and his heart seems impossible to penetrate. I have so many thoughts on this man! I've analyzed him over and over and over again. I could say so much, but I don't want to spoil. So, I'm not going to. But I'll say this... I think our Hero has a soft heart. I think he's deliciously sexy. He makes me feel like a cougar. RAWR! I definitely think I'm in love him. And I think things are going to get very juicy, and maybe even a touch scandalous, in book 2. **waggles brows**
[.... "The apple is dangling in front of me, juicy red and delicious, but, like the fairy tale, Reed Royal is the villain disguised as a pretty prince. Taking a bit out of him would be a huge mistake." ....]
Also, I need to mention! I'm always skeptical when two authors I love write together. Especially when those authors have two very distinct writing voices. I mean, it's ELLE KENNEDY and JEN FREDERICK! Hello, major awesomeness. But with them writing under Erin Watt, I couldn't tell who wrote what!!! It was perfect, seamless, fluid. Effortless writing and transitions that I just devoured. I am so ready to read EVERYTHING these two collaborate on.
Another thing...
You've probably heard this already but Paper Princess definitely had a TV show feel. I could absolutely see this on the CW or one of those TV networks that everyone loves. I'm not a huge movie person. I've never watched Cruel Intentions (don't judge). And I've only seen an episode or two of Gossip girl (I'm lame, I know). But I could absolutely imagine this as something even I, a non TV watcher, would invest in. I would definitely be there every week, snacks at the ready, bells on, waiting for my weekly fix of the Royal TV show.
Overall, I loved it. From the first words to the last, I was BEYOND hooked. This is chock full of drama, sex, dysfunction, but also heart. The writing is good. The characters are enthralling. And the plot line is juicy. With plenty of twists and turns to keep you on your toes, it's an intoxicating read. It is the first in the series. However, I urge you to try it out. You'll LOVE it. I'm sure of it.
A fucking JAW DROPPER!!! I'm still reeling! Ahhhhh! Okay... I think I've found a NEW addiction and it's ROYALLY intoxicating!!!! YOU GUYS! I started Paper Princess around 11pm on a Sunday Night. My plan was to read until 12:30. Yeah, rightttttt!!!
BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER.
I had to forced myself to set it down. I had read and read and read and before I knew it I had to be up in 2hrs. TWO HOURS. The next morning I couldn't think. Not about ANYTHING but this book. I was obsessed. Intoxicated. Completely taken by what I was reading. As I was making my kids breakfast, my mind ran a marathon, covering every little detail and scene my mind had soaked in. I couldn't get my kids to school fast enough. I came home. I finished immediately. And OH MY WORD! Seriously!!!! THIS, friends, is your NEXT addiction. These Royal's are delightfully wicked in every single way.
When you first meet Callum Royal and his sons, you don't know what to think of them. Callum swoops in and saves the day. Literally. I, personally, thought the man was fantastic. Even with his blatant flaws glaring at you, I saw a diamond in the rough. I have a major crush on him. He's HAWT. But his boys... Oh, baby! His five sons left something to be desired. To be honest, at first they're a bunch of assholes. Gorgeous assholes, but fuckers I wanted to throat punch nonetheless. However, first appearances are often times deceiving. There's soooo many things going on in this story. So many skeletons and little hidden compartments lingering behind the scenes, just waiting to jump out. I'm still trying to figure each of them out.
One of best things about Paper Princess, my most favorite thing, is Ella herself. Our main character is down right FABULOUS. At 17, this girl has handled more than anyone should. And it hasn't broken her. No, if anything it's made her one hell of a fighter. I respected her. I admired her. She's lost her mother, her father, and she's had to do things, to get by, that made my heart ache. This feisty, yet sweet girl, has been taking care of herself for what seems forever. And because of that she's developed an incredibly fierce sense of independence. She rarely shows weakness. And if she feels weak, she gets over it in the very next breath. Simply put, I have a girl crush on her.
With Ella's life's doing a 180--from pauper to princess--she's thrust into the Royal Mansion. That could easily change her as a person, yet it doesn't. Ella Harper is a good to her core. But while she's good, she's also strong. She takes no shit and gives zero fucks as well.
[.... "I lift a finger and trail it slowly across his naked pecs, my nail scraping across his smooth skin. His breath hitches, almost imperceptibly, but it’s there.
My heart leaps to my throat and blood begins to pound in places that I absolutely do not want to be associated with Reed Royal.
"You’re playing a dangerous game,” he rasps out.
Don’t I know it. Still, I can’t let Reed see he’s gotten to me. I pull my hand away, folding the fingers into a fist. “I don’t know any other way to play it.” ....]
All the Royal boys have distinct personalities. From Easton, to Gideon, to Sawyer, to Sebastian, they're all intriguing in their own way. But our hero is Reed Royal.
REED MOTHER FUCKING ROYAL! Prince of aloof fuckery!
Reed is the ringleader of the bunch. When he says jump, they say "YES, SIR!" He sets the standard in the Royal house and at Astor Park Prep, their High School! He's cold and his heart seems impossible to penetrate. I have so many thoughts on this man! I've analyzed him over and over and over again. I could say so much, but I don't want to spoil. So, I'm not going to. But I'll say this... I think our Hero has a soft heart. I think he's deliciously sexy. He makes me feel like a cougar. RAWR! I definitely think I'm in love him. And I think things are going to get very juicy, and maybe even a touch scandalous, in book 2. **waggles brows**
[.... "The apple is dangling in front of me, juicy red and delicious, but, like the fairy tale, Reed Royal is the villain disguised as a pretty prince. Taking a bit out of him would be a huge mistake." ....]
Also, I need to mention! I'm always skeptical when two authors I love write together. Especially when those authors have two very distinct writing voices. I mean, it's ELLE KENNEDY and JEN FREDERICK! Hello, major awesomeness. But with them writing under Erin Watt, I couldn't tell who wrote what!!! It was perfect, seamless, fluid. Effortless writing and transitions that I just devoured. I am so ready to read EVERYTHING these two collaborate on.
Another thing...
You've probably heard this already but Paper Princess definitely had a TV show feel. I could absolutely see this on the CW or one of those TV networks that everyone loves. I'm not a huge movie person. I've never watched Cruel Intentions (don't judge). And I've only seen an episode or two of Gossip girl (I'm lame, I know). But I could absolutely imagine this as something even I, a non TV watcher, would invest in. I would definitely be there every week, snacks at the ready, bells on, waiting for my weekly fix of the Royal TV show.
Overall, I loved it. From the first words to the last, I was BEYOND hooked. This is chock full of drama, sex, dysfunction, but also heart. The writing is good. The characters are enthralling. And the plot line is juicy. With plenty of twists and turns to keep you on your toes, it's an intoxicating read. It is the first in the series. However, I urge you to try it out. You'll LOVE it. I'm sure of it.
March 25, 2016
5 stars
I honestly can’t tell you the last time I’ve read a book that was this addictive. This book was like crack to me. I started it on a day when I had things going on and no matter what I had to do, I was itching to read it. I was sneaking in chapters. I devoured this book. It was angsty in the best way possible, had a strong heroine and a family of brothers who ended up being the most lovable jerks- but trust me, you won’t love them all the time!
Ella Harper is tough. She’s only 17, but ever since her mom died of cancer, she’s been making it on her own. It’s been a struggle, but she does it. Out of no where, a man she’s never met, Callum Royal, claims to be her legal guardian and takes her home with him. And his 5 sons await.
The sexual tension between Reed and Ella is off the charts. Although neither one likes the other, sometimes it seems like Reed straight up despises Ella, you can feel the heat between them. The authors did a fantastic job writing these characters. I never hated these Royal boys so much that I felt they were completely unredeemable. Of course, Reed was great (some of the time) but one of my favorite characters in the book was Easton Royal. He was so funny and became a friend to Ella when she needed one.
After spending more time with these Royal boys, Ella sees who they really are and why they do the things they do. She’s resilient. She doesn’t back down and she doesn't give up. On them, or herself.
I thought the authors did a fantastic job of co-writing this story. It was so smooth and had such a great flow, I couldn’t tell who had written what.
This book completely stressed me out. There were twists, turns, angst, drama, revenge, betrayal, love, friendship and more than one jaw dropping moment. That ending. I can’t even with that. WHAT WAS THAT??? I was dying. Let me tell you now, when the second book releases in a few short months, I will have no problem recalling what happened at the end. My jaw is still on the floor and my heart still hurts from reading that last chapter!
If you’re looking for an all-consuming story that’s full of angst- and as the authors describe it ‘a love child of Cruel Intentions and Gossip Girl’ <—- very accurate IMO- READ THIS BOOK!!!!!! I couldn’t get enough!
I honestly can’t tell you the last time I’ve read a book that was this addictive. This book was like crack to me. I started it on a day when I had things going on and no matter what I had to do, I was itching to read it. I was sneaking in chapters. I devoured this book. It was angsty in the best way possible, had a strong heroine and a family of brothers who ended up being the most lovable jerks- but trust me, you won’t love them all the time!
Ella Harper is tough. She’s only 17, but ever since her mom died of cancer, she’s been making it on her own. It’s been a struggle, but she does it. Out of no where, a man she’s never met, Callum Royal, claims to be her legal guardian and takes her home with him. And his 5 sons await.
“You should know whatever game you're playing, you can't win. Not against all of us.If you leave now, you won't be hurt. If you stay, we'll break you so bad that you'll be crawling away.”Yeah, these Royal boys can be brutal. Especially the leader of their pack, Reed. I loved how Ella handled them. She is so bad ass. She always stays true to herself and says what is on her mind. She’ll play their game if she has too… These boys think they know her. They have no idea.
The sexual tension between Reed and Ella is off the charts. Although neither one likes the other, sometimes it seems like Reed straight up despises Ella, you can feel the heat between them. The authors did a fantastic job writing these characters. I never hated these Royal boys so much that I felt they were completely unredeemable. Of course, Reed was great (some of the time) but one of my favorite characters in the book was Easton Royal. He was so funny and became a friend to Ella when she needed one.
After spending more time with these Royal boys, Ella sees who they really are and why they do the things they do. She’s resilient. She doesn’t back down and she doesn't give up. On them, or herself.
I thought the authors did a fantastic job of co-writing this story. It was so smooth and had such a great flow, I couldn’t tell who had written what.
This book completely stressed me out. There were twists, turns, angst, drama, revenge, betrayal, love, friendship and more than one jaw dropping moment. That ending. I can’t even with that. WHAT WAS THAT??? I was dying. Let me tell you now, when the second book releases in a few short months, I will have no problem recalling what happened at the end. My jaw is still on the floor and my heart still hurts from reading that last chapter!
If you’re looking for an all-consuming story that’s full of angst- and as the authors describe it ‘a love child of Cruel Intentions and Gossip Girl’ <—- very accurate IMO- READ THIS BOOK!!!!!! I couldn’t get enough!
“No one wants to be ruined. We all want to be saved.”
July 22, 2017
It's really not fair how hot this guy is. And he's got this whole bad boy vibe that I'm not usually into, but for some reason, it makes him even hotter. I guess I like bad boys.
OH MYYYY GOOOOD! I wish you guys could hear me literally scream at this book.
This whole book was a huge WTF moment.
Why is this thing even allowed to exist?!!!!
I have never been this pissed at a book before. It was wrong on so many levels, I don't even know where to start.
Could you just puh-lease stop romanticising bloody abusive relationships, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!
Can you imagine all the teenage girls reading this book and thinking that freaking assholes are hot because this idiot character Ella is attracted to jerks?????
This book is the most disgusting thing I have read in my life. All you can find in here is abuse, near-rape and a creepy characters.
If any teenage girl is reading this review, I need you to understand that abusive relationships are not okay. If someone is being a jerk to you it is NOT okay. If someone calls you a slut, you get out of there now! If you've been drudged and nearly raped, you need to talk to someone.
*sighs deeply* what has the world come to?
The fact that they kept referring to Ella as their sister makes it TEN TIMES more disgusting and creepy. And don't even get me started on the dad.
“What do you want?”
“To talk.”
“Then talk here.”
“Get in here, Ella.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
I drop my arms and walk into the cabin. Something about this guy…he issues a command and I obey.
He’s a jerk and he wants to hurt you, I scream at my body. My nipples pucker despite my warning.
I don't recommend this book to anyone and I have no interest whatsoever to read the rest of this series.
Pre-reading
Most of my friends absolutely hated this book.
April 14, 2016
I have to admit, I didn't expect to like this book, but it has a Hana Yori Dango (Meteor Garden, Boys Over Flowers, whatever you call it) sort of vibe.
Ella Harper is plucked from poverty and a hard life to live with her "guardian," a wealthy man with five sons. She is smart, strong, a survivor, and is plopped into a chi-chi world and ultra-rich school where four of the sons attend, all of whom are determined to make her life a living hell.
The school she attends is straight out of HYD.
The difference between this book and HYD is that all the guys are asshats. If you're expecting a bunch of flowery boys, you're gonna be disappointed because all of them are alpha male assholes of the Jericho-fucking-Barrons sort. I hated their asses, and to be honest, I still sort of do. Violence and intimidation is never something I approve of, but at least this book doesn't try to make excuses to portray these boys as anything but major douchebags. There's no quiet, sweet moment with violin-playing Hanazawa Rui here. This being NA, of course there is redemption, and it's realistic enough to be believable.
The star of the story, Ella, was surprisingly likeable. She's strong, but not over the top. She yearns for love and acceptance, hiding it behind a hard exterior, and her character was well-developed throughout the story.
Again, don't get me wrong, this isn't the next great American novel, but it's a soap opera and it's damned entertaining.
"...all it takes is one word from him and you’ll be nothing here. Insignificant. Invisible. Or worse.”This is no brilliant work of literature, believe me, but what it was is utterly entertaining. The reason I compare it to Hana Yori Dango (HYD) is the premise. It's a bit different, but the similarity is still there.
Ella Harper is plucked from poverty and a hard life to live with her "guardian," a wealthy man with five sons. She is smart, strong, a survivor, and is plopped into a chi-chi world and ultra-rich school where four of the sons attend, all of whom are determined to make her life a living hell.
The school she attends is straight out of HYD.
“Astor Park is a prep school with a P.” Savannah keeps walking. There’s no quit button on her. “Every family in the state wants their kids to go here, but it’s exclusive. You can’t just have money to get in. Everyone that attends, even the scholarship students, are here because they have something special to offer."I don't like New Adult, I can tell you that, but this book was surprisingly fun. It always takes a lot for me to overcome my prejudice of the genre, and what surprised me about this book was the fact that there are other female characters in the book.
The difference between this book and HYD is that all the guys are asshats. If you're expecting a bunch of flowery boys, you're gonna be disappointed because all of them are alpha male assholes of the Jericho-fucking-Barrons sort. I hated their asses, and to be honest, I still sort of do. Violence and intimidation is never something I approve of, but at least this book doesn't try to make excuses to portray these boys as anything but major douchebags. There's no quiet, sweet moment with violin-playing Hanazawa Rui here. This being NA, of course there is redemption, and it's realistic enough to be believable.
The star of the story, Ella, was surprisingly likeable. She's strong, but not over the top. She yearns for love and acceptance, hiding it behind a hard exterior, and her character was well-developed throughout the story.
Again, don't get me wrong, this isn't the next great American novel, but it's a soap opera and it's damned entertaining.
November 1, 2016
I had been seeing reviews for this series pop up all over my friends' pages. Knowing that I wanted to read this series and find out what all the fuss was about, I told myself I'd wait for the Audible version to be released. So I waited...and waited...and waited some more. When I started to see the glowing reviews for the third, and final, book in the series, and still there was no sign of an audiobook release, I knew I had to start this series. So, I downloaded the Kindle edition of 'Paper Princess' and never looked back.
Several days later, I've finished all three books and am suffering from a significant book hangover. Let me tell you, this series is addicting! From the moment I began reading 'Paper Princess', I was consumed with this story.
Every day is a struggle for Ella Harper. The daughter of a single mother, she has spent her childhood running from town to town as her mother jumps from one bad relationship to another. Although her upbringing was anything but stable, she always knew she had the love of her mother.
However, when Ella's mother grows ill with cancer, Ella is forced to assume adult responsibilities as a young teenager. When her mother dies, Ella is left all alone. She does what she has to do to survive and stay out of the foster care system.
By the time Ella is seventeen, she has registered herself in high school by forging her mother's signature. She is working three jobs and living in a rundown apartment. She'd kill to have the superficial "problems" that her classmates face.
Just when she doesn't think her situation could get any worse, she is reduced to accepting a job dancing nude. She'd danced before, but never fully nude. Clinging to that tiny bit of modesty meant a lot to Ella, but she had to sacrifice it to survive.
Then, a man she'd never heard of before shows up and insists that he is her legal guardian. It is evident that Callum Royal is wealthy, but Ella has no intention of leaving with the man who claims to be the best friend of her recently deceased father. She never had any relationship with the sperm donor that gifted her life and then promptly left her mother in the dust, much less the stranger that claims to have custody of her.
Despite her best efforts to evade him, Callum persists until he has Ella on a jet and headed to his home. When they arrive at the mansion that is to be her new home, Ella is immediately made aware of the fact that she isn't the only one that doesn't want her there. In spite of Callum's best efforts to make Ella feel welcomed, his five teenage sons make their distaste for Ella equally clear.
Reed, the second oldest son, but the oldest son still living at home, is clearly calling the shots. His younger brothers follow his lead and Ella finds herself fighting a losing battle against all of the Royal boys. They're sure that she's out for their father's money, among other things, and they're determined to make her life a living hell.
And so, Ella's rags to riches journey begins...
She is submersed in a world of luxury and excess that she'd never imagined existed in real life. Enrolled in the same elite prep school as the Royal boys, she is constantly reminded that she doesn't belong. Reed rules the school, just as he rules the Royal house. As she struggles to adjust to her new life and blend in, Reed is equally determined to push her out.
The bullying and cruelty that ensues was incredibly sad. I have to admit that I geared up several times as I read some of the things that poor Ella went through. Yet, despite everything she persevered.
Somewhere along the way, Reed gives up on his mission to terrorize Ella. The attraction between them keeps coming to the surface and they eventually make nice. Of course, once Reed decides to give Ella a shot, his brother's follow suit. From that point forward, it is like somebody flipped a switch. Ella and Reed go from being enemies to being head-over-heels. It happened quick enough to leave my head spinning.
Despite my reservations, mainly that Reed never had to "pay" for his maltreatment of Ella, I still found myself completely addicted to this story. In so many ways, this story is reminiscent of another one of my favorite high school sagas, 'Fallen Crest High'. The over-the-top lives of privilege and excess lived by these kids is unreal.
This story has definitely become a guilty pleasure of mine. Like so many of my friends, I am hooked! As expected, this first book ended with a huge cliffhanger. I started reading the second book immediately. You'll want to do the same, so have 'Broken Prince' ready to go when you finish 'Paper Princess'. Loved it!
Several days later, I've finished all three books and am suffering from a significant book hangover. Let me tell you, this series is addicting! From the moment I began reading 'Paper Princess', I was consumed with this story.
Every day is a struggle for Ella Harper. The daughter of a single mother, she has spent her childhood running from town to town as her mother jumps from one bad relationship to another. Although her upbringing was anything but stable, she always knew she had the love of her mother.
However, when Ella's mother grows ill with cancer, Ella is forced to assume adult responsibilities as a young teenager. When her mother dies, Ella is left all alone. She does what she has to do to survive and stay out of the foster care system.
By the time Ella is seventeen, she has registered herself in high school by forging her mother's signature. She is working three jobs and living in a rundown apartment. She'd kill to have the superficial "problems" that her classmates face.
Just when she doesn't think her situation could get any worse, she is reduced to accepting a job dancing nude. She'd danced before, but never fully nude. Clinging to that tiny bit of modesty meant a lot to Ella, but she had to sacrifice it to survive.
Then, a man she'd never heard of before shows up and insists that he is her legal guardian. It is evident that Callum Royal is wealthy, but Ella has no intention of leaving with the man who claims to be the best friend of her recently deceased father. She never had any relationship with the sperm donor that gifted her life and then promptly left her mother in the dust, much less the stranger that claims to have custody of her.
Despite her best efforts to evade him, Callum persists until he has Ella on a jet and headed to his home. When they arrive at the mansion that is to be her new home, Ella is immediately made aware of the fact that she isn't the only one that doesn't want her there. In spite of Callum's best efforts to make Ella feel welcomed, his five teenage sons make their distaste for Ella equally clear.
Reed, the second oldest son, but the oldest son still living at home, is clearly calling the shots. His younger brothers follow his lead and Ella finds herself fighting a losing battle against all of the Royal boys. They're sure that she's out for their father's money, among other things, and they're determined to make her life a living hell.
And so, Ella's rags to riches journey begins...
She is submersed in a world of luxury and excess that she'd never imagined existed in real life. Enrolled in the same elite prep school as the Royal boys, she is constantly reminded that she doesn't belong. Reed rules the school, just as he rules the Royal house. As she struggles to adjust to her new life and blend in, Reed is equally determined to push her out.
The bullying and cruelty that ensues was incredibly sad. I have to admit that I geared up several times as I read some of the things that poor Ella went through. Yet, despite everything she persevered.
Somewhere along the way, Reed gives up on his mission to terrorize Ella. The attraction between them keeps coming to the surface and they eventually make nice. Of course, once Reed decides to give Ella a shot, his brother's follow suit. From that point forward, it is like somebody flipped a switch. Ella and Reed go from being enemies to being head-over-heels. It happened quick enough to leave my head spinning.
Despite my reservations, mainly that Reed never had to "pay" for his maltreatment of Ella, I still found myself completely addicted to this story. In so many ways, this story is reminiscent of another one of my favorite high school sagas, 'Fallen Crest High'. The over-the-top lives of privilege and excess lived by these kids is unreal.
This story has definitely become a guilty pleasure of mine. Like so many of my friends, I am hooked! As expected, this first book ended with a huge cliffhanger. I started reading the second book immediately. You'll want to do the same, so have 'Broken Prince' ready to go when you finish 'Paper Princess'. Loved it!
August 15, 2017
★★★★★! Paper Princess, book 1 of 3. Modern tale rags to riches Cinderella in high school setting with six potential suitors & all the elements of a fairytale!
“You may have lost your family, but you’re not alone anymore, Ella. You’re a Royal now.”
Books in The Royals series should be read in order:
Book 1: Paper Princess
Book 2: Broken Prince
Book 3: Twisted Palace
Paper Princess (book 1) is the riveting opening to a glued to-your-kindle saga.
One woman, six men, money, greed, excess, sex deceit, betrayal, secrets.
Forced into stripping to pay her mother’s medical bills Ella Harper has tried to fly under the radar until she can turn eighteen and not risk ending up in the foster care system. But one day her meager and humble strip club is graced with the visit by a too-handsome-for-his-own-good billionaire father of five, Callum Royal who claims to be her father’s friend and her guardian.
In an instance her life goes from rags to riches.
Settled into the Royals’ castle high upon the hill she is faced with five handsome princes, Gideon, Reed, Easton, Sawyer and Sebastian none too happy to see her. The story goes on to follow them at school, home and the party scene, as Ella gets to know a little bit about each brother. Unlikely friendships are formed, lines drawn, truces forged and suitor aligning themselves with each prince having a stake.
It’s a modern day fairy tale that will leave you pining not for one, not even five, but six to-die-for heroes!
Seven words to describe Ella Harper: Strong, independent, loyal, private, charismatic, reflective, naïve and unforgettable.
Paper Princess, brilliantly told from Ella’s POV, spellbound me all the way to its shocking and oh so perfect ending. I am considering hibernation until book 2, Broken Prince.
“You want this?” He pumps himself slowly. “You can have it. Lick it, suck it, fuck it, anything you want, baby. As long it’s just with me.”
***
Ella’s rating: 5 stars
Callum’s rating: 5 stars
Reed’s rating: 5 stars
Gideon’s rating: 4.5 stars
Easton’s rating: 4 stars
Sexual tension rating: 5 stars
Sex scenes rating: 4 stars
Sex scenes frequency: 4 stars
Plot rating: 5 stars
Dialogue rating: 5 stars
Storytelling rating: 5 stars
Story ending rating: N/A
**********************************************
Overall rating: 5 stars
Would I recommend this series: Yes.
Would I re-read this series: Yes.
Would I read future books by this author: Yes.
September 29, 2019
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeGb9...
YAYY!!! I've finally done a YouTube review of my one of favourite books!
Channel is slow coming, but absolutely loving my new hobby!
Would love to connect with other readers with channels of their own on YouTube!
YAYY!!! I've finally done a YouTube review of my one of favourite books!
Channel is slow coming, but absolutely loving my new hobby!
Would love to connect with other readers with channels of their own on YouTube!
November 29, 2016
Not sure if 2.5 or 3 stars? This book deserves its own category in my GR bookshelves, really, I was tempted to make a new shelf called: "WTF" just to put this book in (still tempted, so maybe I'll end up doing it). I mean, this book was ridiculous. The amount of drama was astounding. I was rolling my eyes ALL THE TIME and not only because of the drama, but also because everything that happened was (I repeat) ridiculous! I think I said "wtf" out loud more than 50 times while reading this.
Nevertheless, it was a fast read and an addictive one, so I might give the second book a try. Because of that and also because this one ended on a massive cliffhanger and I have to admit I'm curious about what will happen.
Nevertheless, it was a fast read and an addictive one, so I might give the second book a try. Because of that and also because this one ended on a massive cliffhanger and I have to admit I'm curious about what will happen.
July 13, 2016
You're kidding me.
You're kidding me.
You're fucking kidding me!!
I am the one ruined beyond repair. I am livid. You can practically see smoke steaming from my ears and pieces of my heart falling to the floor.
I have fallen apart.
I beg you to forgive me for not writing a proper review, it seems that my thoughts and emotions are really tangled. Frankly, a part of me wonders why I liked Paper Princess. Every single character was broken, every relationship twisted and dysfunctional, and I couldn't help but cringe at some scenes. I couldn't relate with Ella nor understand her actions, I hated the boys at first and at the end all I could do was yell at a certain someone who did a certain something and damaged my faith in him.
But Paper Princess was addictive.
It's definitely one of the books I'd call guilty pleasures, there were so many things wrong with the characters and their decisions and their life styles I can't even begin to describe, but they grew on me despite my will. And I am pretty certain that 17 year olds don't act this way. When I was seventeen, me and my classmates used to pretend we'd film a movie, Indiana Jones style, with me as an archaeologist searching for the secrets of the sanctuary of Deplhi and everyone had a ridiculous part, like my Chinese sidekick or the "random stranger that passed by and said hi". My point is, we were a bit childish. We didn't drug other people or obey the rich kids at school. We were normal. And nothing about the Royals was normal.
Like I said before, I hated the Royal boys at first. They were dirty and horny and mean. But eventually, when I understood their behavior and how hurt they were, I felt a pang of sympathy. Nothing justifies making another person's life miserable, but not everyone deals with their grief and resentment in socially acceptable ways. While I hated Easton, he suddenly became my precious cinnamon roll. And Reed, well, what can I say about him?
The rich, fucked up asshole. The Destroyer. There wasn't a chance I wouldn't fall for him, God knows how easily attracted I am to characters beautiful and broken. His chemistry with Ella was a being of its own, I could feel the flames licking my body and I sweat under their meaningful looks and scorching scenes. Angst and tension at their finest, ladies and gentlemen!
I don't know how I feel about Ella. She was ballsy and I liked it, but she tended to be provocative without reason. I don't judge her for her profession, she did everything she could to survive and that was admirable. I do blame her mother though. Yes I understand that given the circumstances she did the only thing she knew, but when you have a young daughter you don't change boyfriends that often and move across the country every time you fall in love! That's just selfish!
After that ending, I'm starving for the next book like a junkie craving her dose. Paper Princess found its way to my heart and now owns it. Oh, Erin Watt,
You're kidding me.
You're fucking kidding me!!
“These Royals will ruin you”
I am the one ruined beyond repair. I am livid. You can practically see smoke steaming from my ears and pieces of my heart falling to the floor.
I have fallen apart.
“You should know whatever game you're playing, you can't win. Not against all of us. If you leave now, you won't be hurt. If you stay, we'll break you so bad that you'll be crawling away.”
I beg you to forgive me for not writing a proper review, it seems that my thoughts and emotions are really tangled. Frankly, a part of me wonders why I liked Paper Princess. Every single character was broken, every relationship twisted and dysfunctional, and I couldn't help but cringe at some scenes. I couldn't relate with Ella nor understand her actions, I hated the boys at first and at the end all I could do was yell at a certain someone who did a certain something and damaged my faith in him.
But Paper Princess was addictive.
It's definitely one of the books I'd call guilty pleasures, there were so many things wrong with the characters and their decisions and their life styles I can't even begin to describe, but they grew on me despite my will. And I am pretty certain that 17 year olds don't act this way. When I was seventeen, me and my classmates used to pretend we'd film a movie, Indiana Jones style, with me as an archaeologist searching for the secrets of the sanctuary of Deplhi and everyone had a ridiculous part, like my Chinese sidekick or the "random stranger that passed by and said hi". My point is, we were a bit childish. We didn't drug other people or obey the rich kids at school. We were normal. And nothing about the Royals was normal.
“I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at myself. I did this. Well, Easton and I. I brought this on you. I'm Reed the Destroyer.”
Like I said before, I hated the Royal boys at first. They were dirty and horny and mean. But eventually, when I understood their behavior and how hurt they were, I felt a pang of sympathy. Nothing justifies making another person's life miserable, but not everyone deals with their grief and resentment in socially acceptable ways. While I hated Easton, he suddenly became my precious cinnamon roll. And Reed, well, what can I say about him?
The rich, fucked up asshole. The Destroyer. There wasn't a chance I wouldn't fall for him, God knows how easily attracted I am to characters beautiful and broken. His chemistry with Ella was a being of its own, I could feel the flames licking my body and I sweat under their meaningful looks and scorching scenes. Angst and tension at their finest, ladies and gentlemen!
“Look, I like you. Didn’t think I would but I do, and because I like you, I feel the need to warn you that we Royals are pretty fucked up. We’re good in bed, but out of it? We’re like a stage four hurricane.”
I don't know how I feel about Ella. She was ballsy and I liked it, but she tended to be provocative without reason. I don't judge her for her profession, she did everything she could to survive and that was admirable. I do blame her mother though. Yes I understand that given the circumstances she did the only thing she knew, but when you have a young daughter you don't change boyfriends that often and move across the country every time you fall in love! That's just selfish!
After that ending, I'm starving for the next book like a junkie craving her dose. Paper Princess found its way to my heart and now owns it. Oh, Erin Watt,
March 21, 2016
5 Stars
Let's talk about things that trigger my one-clicker for a second here, shall we?
Authors: we have a book that's basically an angst filled love child of Cruel Intentions and Gossip Girl. There's YA kind angst but with NA kind scenarios. There's hate lust, an incredible tough as nails heroine, a bunch of sexy rich and entitled brothers that have enough issues to fill up Grand Canyon, a broody as hell alphahole hero that you'll love to hate but secretly mainly love, and all of it is wrapped up in a story that's more addicting than crack.
Me:
That about sum it up for you then? Good. Because if ever there was ever a book that was custom written for me, this is that book. At first the YA tag turned me away because I'm not a reader that enjoys YA. But the only thing YA about this book are the characters' ages; the heroine is 17 and the setting is in high school. However, the events that take place are focused towards a more mature NA, which just happens to be my catnip.
Ella Harper is exactly the kind of heroine I love to read about. She's led a hard life in her young 17 years. Her mom may have been flighty and jumping from one boyfriend to the next all her life while struggling to support the both of them, but she's all she's ever known. Now that her mother has passed away, Ella has nothing and no one and struggles to make ends meet just to make it through high school so she can go on to college. When a man shows up at her school claiming to be her legal guardian and her father's best friend, she's rightful skeptical. But Callum is determined to help once he sees the way Ella's been living and it's not long before she arrives on the Royal doorstep much to the disgruntlement of Callum's five sons.
To say they're not happy to see her, is an understatement. The Royals rule the school Ella now goes to and what they say goes. They're determined not to go easy on the new girl, especially one that clearly doesn't belong in their world. But Ella is no wilting wallflower. This girl gives as good as she gets and boy does that make for some entertaining reading.
This book was the perfect combination of angst with a slow burn of hate/lust all wrapped around an undercurrent of a slow burn sexual tension. Reed Royal is a character that you can't help but love even while you love to hate him. He's not nice to Ella, not at all, but yet the way that he's written you can't help but know there's something beneath the surface of what he lets you see.; something dark and deep and you're just itching to scratch at it to know what it is.
I absolutely devoured this book, and by devoured I mean I couldn't put it down for even a second. It's been a long while where a book has managed to suck me in as much as this one did. It's filled with teenage angst and drama and characters that you can't help but fall for. The authors did a phenomenal job creating these characters that are so real they practically jump off at the pages. I was enamored with the story. I was hooked on each page like a junky craving their next fix and angst just happens to be my drug of choice.
As for that ending? Well let's just say I may or may not be rocking myself in a corner as we speak while I wait for July 25 to finally get here
ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review
Find me on:
You should know whatever game you're playing, you can't win. Not against all of us.
If you leave now, you won't be hurt. If you stay, we'll break you so bad that you'll be crawling away."
Let's talk about things that trigger my one-clicker for a second here, shall we?
Authors: we have a book that's basically an angst filled love child of Cruel Intentions and Gossip Girl. There's YA kind angst but with NA kind scenarios. There's hate lust, an incredible tough as nails heroine, a bunch of sexy rich and entitled brothers that have enough issues to fill up Grand Canyon, a broody as hell alphahole hero that you'll love to hate but secretly mainly love, and all of it is wrapped up in a story that's more addicting than crack.
Me:
That about sum it up for you then? Good. Because if ever there was ever a book that was custom written for me, this is that book. At first the YA tag turned me away because I'm not a reader that enjoys YA. But the only thing YA about this book are the characters' ages; the heroine is 17 and the setting is in high school. However, the events that take place are focused towards a more mature NA, which just happens to be my catnip.
Ella Harper is exactly the kind of heroine I love to read about. She's led a hard life in her young 17 years. Her mom may have been flighty and jumping from one boyfriend to the next all her life while struggling to support the both of them, but she's all she's ever known. Now that her mother has passed away, Ella has nothing and no one and struggles to make ends meet just to make it through high school so she can go on to college. When a man shows up at her school claiming to be her legal guardian and her father's best friend, she's rightful skeptical. But Callum is determined to help once he sees the way Ella's been living and it's not long before she arrives on the Royal doorstep much to the disgruntlement of Callum's five sons.
To say they're not happy to see her, is an understatement. The Royals rule the school Ella now goes to and what they say goes. They're determined not to go easy on the new girl, especially one that clearly doesn't belong in their world. But Ella is no wilting wallflower. This girl gives as good as she gets and boy does that make for some entertaining reading.
This book was the perfect combination of angst with a slow burn of hate/lust all wrapped around an undercurrent of a slow burn sexual tension. Reed Royal is a character that you can't help but love even while you love to hate him. He's not nice to Ella, not at all, but yet the way that he's written you can't help but know there's something beneath the surface of what he lets you see.; something dark and deep and you're just itching to scratch at it to know what it is.
I absolutely devoured this book, and by devoured I mean I couldn't put it down for even a second. It's been a long while where a book has managed to suck me in as much as this one did. It's filled with teenage angst and drama and characters that you can't help but fall for. The authors did a phenomenal job creating these characters that are so real they practically jump off at the pages. I was enamored with the story. I was hooked on each page like a junky craving their next fix and angst just happens to be my drug of choice.
As for that ending? Well let's just say I may or may not be rocking myself in a corner as we speak while I wait for July 25 to finally get here
ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review
Find me on:
December 8, 2016
Well that was a hoot, wasn't it?
I would say more, but this has been reviewed to death and I have absolutely nothing to add.
These are quite the "high schoolers," though, no?
I would say more, but this has been reviewed to death and I have absolutely nothing to add.
These are quite the "high schoolers," though, no?
April 18, 2016
TRIGGER FOR DATE RAPE VICTIMS
I hate when this happens. When everyone loves a book that I don't. I hate being minority. I signed up to goodreads to fangirl over books with other people, to like the five star reviews and ignore the haters.
I love when all my friends read the same book and love it as much as I did.
I hate to rate this book. A lot of my goodreads friends have LOVED IT! And I can see why. For the most part of the book I loved it, too. Then the twist happens and everyone still loves the book, but I don't. I'm left outside. So, yeah it sucks to be minority.
I hate giving bad ratings. I'd rather not finish a book than give a bad rating. However if in other occassions I prefer not to post a review or even a rating because
a) I don't want to waste more time than the book deserves
or
b)I can't pinpoint what I didn't like,
In this case I think I have to warn other readers who might have the same problem than I have. If you are warned, you might enjoy the book more than I did. In addition, I can tell when the book was ruined FOR ME. If you are warned of what you will find you might even give a 5 star rating, that I think the authors deserve because for the most part their book is not bad.
I think everyone will love this book way more than I do. People should give it a try. The authors have a way with words and for the majority of the book I THOUGHT THIS WAS FANTASTICLY compelling and AWESOME, I never considered not finishing it because the emotions, the characters, the journey were so good that I just couldn't put the book down. I would recommend this book to anyone who isn't a freak like me: A freak who has a high sensibility on
Why? Oh Why? Can't authors think of another way to create drama? Everything was going so well, then that twist. IIt ruins the sequels for me. I asked a refund from amazon and I'm not continuing with the series. Again that's me. I'm extremely sensitive to
I wish there had been a warning for that twist. I hate hate hate hate when the authors
This is also a NA book marketed as YA. I'm okay with sex scenes, actually I get bored if a NA book doesn't have at least a bit of sexual tension and I prefer self-published authors because they cross the YA/NA boundaries more often than traditional published books. I just think the ethical thing to do is to warn the readers that there's sex in the book so people who like sex will buy it, and people who prefer "clean" reads stay away. Readers under 18 should stay clear from this book as it contains
This book reminded me of Tijan's fallen crest series, except the twist I mentioned. I think that I wouldn't have hated the ending as much as I did if I haven't been so involved with Ella and Reed. If you don't mind and you like Tiijan give this book a try. If you hate when NA is labeled as YA then this book might not be for you.
I hate when this happens. When everyone loves a book that I don't. I hate being minority. I signed up to goodreads to fangirl over books with other people, to like the five star reviews and ignore the haters.
I love when all my friends read the same book and love it as much as I did.
I hate to rate this book. A lot of my goodreads friends have LOVED IT! And I can see why. For the most part of the book I loved it, too. Then the twist happens and everyone still loves the book, but I don't. I'm left outside. So, yeah it sucks to be minority.
I hate giving bad ratings. I'd rather not finish a book than give a bad rating. However if in other occassions I prefer not to post a review or even a rating because
a) I don't want to waste more time than the book deserves
or
b)I can't pinpoint what I didn't like,
In this case I think I have to warn other readers who might have the same problem than I have. If you are warned, you might enjoy the book more than I did. In addition, I can tell when the book was ruined FOR ME. If you are warned of what you will find you might even give a 5 star rating, that I think the authors deserve because for the most part their book is not bad.
I think everyone will love this book way more than I do. People should give it a try. The authors have a way with words and for the majority of the book I THOUGHT THIS WAS FANTASTICLY compelling and AWESOME, I never considered not finishing it because the emotions, the characters, the journey were so good that I just couldn't put the book down. I would recommend this book to anyone who isn't a freak like me: A freak who has a high sensibility on
Why? Oh Why? Can't authors think of another way to create drama? Everything was going so well, then that twist. IIt ruins the sequels for me. I asked a refund from amazon and I'm not continuing with the series. Again that's me. I'm extremely sensitive to
I wish there had been a warning for that twist. I hate hate hate hate when the authors
This is also a NA book marketed as YA. I'm okay with sex scenes, actually I get bored if a NA book doesn't have at least a bit of sexual tension and I prefer self-published authors because they cross the YA/NA boundaries more often than traditional published books. I just think the ethical thing to do is to warn the readers that there's sex in the book so people who like sex will buy it, and people who prefer "clean" reads stay away. Readers under 18 should stay clear from this book as it contains
This book reminded me of Tijan's fallen crest series, except the twist I mentioned. I think that I wouldn't have hated the ending as much as I did if I haven't been so involved with Ella and Reed. If you don't mind and you like Tiijan give this book a try. If you hate when NA is labeled as YA then this book might not be for you.
March 15, 2018
What the fuck did I just read?
Like this is a joke, right?
This book was so frustrating in so many different ways and degrees that I'm not sure how I'll be able to write a coherent review for this utter piece of shit. But I'll try.
Let's start with the most glaring fault in this book imo: Erin Watt's writing is fucking trash. It's so bad that I'm convinced that's why she took on a pseudonym; it's because she doesn't want people she personally knows to realize that she, an adult, who probably passed basic high school level English, is so much of a bad writer that a middle-schooler could probably form more articulate and eloquent sentences than she can. It legit read like the Justin Bieber wattpad story my 13 year old cousin asked me to read so that she could get more views on her chapters.
Now for the more specific faults:
First of all, what the actual fuck was the plot in this novel, because I'm still confused? I get the premise in general: poor girl goes to live with rich man, rich man's children don't like her for no logical reason. Ok. Fair enough. But beyond that, what the hell happened??? This was such a mess. It seemed like Watt brought forth not one love triangle, but two love triangles in which 2/3 of the characters in both love triangles were the same. So it was like 2 consecutive love triangles? But that's not even what annoyed me most! What frustrated me to no fucking end was that this shitty author realized her love triangles were half assed after about 30 pages of developing them and so she nipped one in the bud, only to bring forth another love triangle and do the same again because this bitch lacked the creativity to follow her ideas through, but also severely lacked in editors to tell her she should just cut that shit off from her book completely if she's not going to follow through with it. It was a fucking disaster.
And aside from those shitty overall plot points, this book, being a contemporary or whatever, was so unrealistic. Like fucking hell, it deserves its own category of books called "Wishful thinking gone wrong" because this bitch was a pauper turned into the 21st century version of a "princess", out of nowhere?? Only because she's the illegitimate love child of a guy who never cared enough to meet her, not even once? And like seriously, who is actually able to control the actions and choices of their siblings and the whole student body the way that our main love interest does? you don't even see that shit done by jocks in 80-90's teen movies. I had such a hard time believing aspects of this book being real life events that could potentially occur that I started to laugh out loud--not because the book was funny like it's meant to be at times, but because of what a horrible life decision the author made when choosing to write this catastrophe. Seriously, Watt should donate all the proceeds of this book to the Hurricane Harvey cause only because it would be the only way to lower the calamity that is this wretched disaster.
I'm writing this review furiously tapping on my keyboard because of how frustrated this book made me, and I'm actually worried I might need to make an appointment with the Apple Store today following this next part of the review because some letters will most likely be broken off from the sheer force and momentum of my anger punching through the keys while I write about the fucking piece of shit asshole that is supposed to be the love interest in this novel.
Fucking Reed.
Has there ever been a more vile love interest in a book series ever? I highly doubt it. Name me a single one and I'll pity you for going through a shitstorm worse than this douche.
I get that this was supposed to be a hate-to-love relationship. That's fucking fine; in fact, they're my favorite type of contemporaries/NA/smutty reads. But there's a way to do it right and this was on the complete opposite spectrum of that way.
Especially in the beginning, every time Reed talked, I wanted to gouge my eyes out. He was a dreadful human being. We're first introduced to him barging in to Ella's room--after she explicitly told him not to because she's not decent--because he "doesn't care". WTF. NO SERIOUSLY WTF. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK???????????????????? And he only gets worse! That's the worst part! He slut-shames her constantly, and puts her down, and makes her feel unwelcomed at the school and at her new home, and blames her for being a gold-digger and sleeping with his dad (when she's not??? and he has no proof to go by that she's doing this???), and bullies her and makes his brothers and the whole student body bully her, and orders her around, and she's still down for him??? We're still supposed to root for them??? We're meant to like this metaphorical human garbage of a person???? Fuck that shit. That's fucked up.
And as an encore for his ultimate douchebaggery, ponder on this:
Like fuck. You can't make this shit up.
Reed kind of redeems himself towards the end and suddenly becomes a semi-good guy, but horrendously enough, even then, he's insufferable. The piece of shit is more undecided on whether he should act on his feelings and attractions towards Ella than on how undecided I get on whether I should wear one black t-shirt over another black t-shirt to school on any given day.
Actual summary of the last 100 pages of this book:
Reed: *hooking up with Ella* This is the last time we're doing this. We can't be doing this because of hugely invalid reason that makes no sense.
- next night -
Reed: *hooking up with Ella* This is the last time.
- next night -
Reed: Ok but seriously this one is the last time I solemnly swear
- five centuries later -
Reed:*plays Taylor Swift's Last Time but doesn't mean it*
Literally his attitude towards hooking up with Ella is a direct parallel to how I act when I'm thinking of going to the gym [Ok I'll work out tomorrow! I've been saying every day unconvincingly for the past 7 years.]
Also this is minimal but at one point he starts out of nowhere calling her 'baby' which is uncalled for because at this point, they still haven't done anything with each other and are not together, and that pet name already makes me cringe when used by a guy so I just felt like barfing at that point and was seriously tempted to go and get some Gravol for myself. And I'm still confused as to what caused him to start actually liking Ella? Because absolutely nothing drastic changes in their circumstances for him to suddenly start liking her? It's hella dumb.
um what else??? this book is such a huge display of fuckery that I actually have to think about what all the bad things are because the list is impossibly endless.
oh YeAH fucking Ella. I'm going to ignore the fact that Ella's into Reed because if you want to be treated like you're the scum of the earth and get turned on by that, even though you yourself literally acknowledged that said person treats you as if you are no better than a fucking spider not paying the rent in a human household, than that's your prerogative. But her characterization? My g0D. You're telling me that this person has experienced abandonment from their biological father, the loss of a mother to cancer at a young age, extreme poverty, abuse and harrassment from her mother's various boyfriends, an underage career as a stripper, social isolation, harassment from her peers and the people fucking living with her, potential rape, and yet, she has no issues whatsoever? You're telling me she doesn't suffer from any form of PTSD, that she doesn't suffer from an other mental disorder, that she doesn't partake in any form of high-risk behaviour or has any social development issues, when this is unfortunately and tragically the reality of most people who suffer from at least one of those similar traumatic life events? Like there's being resilient, and then there's this. Which is basically, a "let's throw a bunch of shit at our MC to give the impression that she's three-dimensional and has a tragic backstory but fail to explore any of those harmful or triggering themes bcuz I'm not down and a douchebag is being his regular-ol'-douchebaggery-self-to-me-and-it's-getting-me-hot-and-bothered" mindset.
Also to make things even worse (like how is that even possible at this point??? if you've reached this far into the review i seriously applaud you), there's a shitton of girl-on-girl hate and slut-shaming and ISN'T THAT JUST THE BEST? :) :) :) :) fucking die. fuck you.
Also, somehow, this book, that is written by a woman, sexualises typical women behaviour and perpetuates the idea that girl-on-girl-anything = erotic for boys so you should do it for that sole reason. physically fighting with a girl? sexy. dancing up on a girl? sexy. (which don't get me wrong, you should dance with your girlfriends however you please, but you shouldn't do it for a guy ogling at you and dehumanizing you). Also they were dancing in cages to get the attention from boys and took pride in it???? Like that is the literal definition of oppression being a direct result of the objectification of women? How was it a woman that wrote this anti-feminist bullshit of a manifesto?
I don't know what else to say except to repeat myself yet again on the fact that this was shit.
OH. And there's a cliffhanger at the end which basically just reinforces the fact that these shitty characters are shitty people and this cliffhanger is essentially there to try to convince you to not listen to your instincts that tell you to RUN AWAY FROM THIS SEQUEL because cliffhanger guise omg!!111!1.
Like honestly can someone who actually liked this book or didn't but dared to read the rest tell me what happens because I'm not spending more of my valuable money or time on this?
Overall sentiments regarding this book: I wanted to throw away this book across the room so many times but I couldn't because I read it on my Kindle and that made me sad because this book deserves destruction and I hope that one day future me will be able to suppress the traumatizing memory of having read this treachery to English literature.
Like this is a joke, right?
This book was so frustrating in so many different ways and degrees that I'm not sure how I'll be able to write a coherent review for this utter piece of shit. But I'll try.
Let's start with the most glaring fault in this book imo: Erin Watt's writing is fucking trash. It's so bad that I'm convinced that's why she took on a pseudonym; it's because she doesn't want people she personally knows to realize that she, an adult, who probably passed basic high school level English, is so much of a bad writer that a middle-schooler could probably form more articulate and eloquent sentences than she can. It legit read like the Justin Bieber wattpad story my 13 year old cousin asked me to read so that she could get more views on her chapters.
Now for the more specific faults:
First of all, what the actual fuck was the plot in this novel, because I'm still confused? I get the premise in general: poor girl goes to live with rich man, rich man's children don't like her for no logical reason. Ok. Fair enough. But beyond that, what the hell happened??? This was such a mess. It seemed like Watt brought forth not one love triangle, but two love triangles in which 2/3 of the characters in both love triangles were the same. So it was like 2 consecutive love triangles? But that's not even what annoyed me most! What frustrated me to no fucking end was that this shitty author realized her love triangles were half assed after about 30 pages of developing them and so she nipped one in the bud, only to bring forth another love triangle and do the same again because this bitch lacked the creativity to follow her ideas through, but also severely lacked in editors to tell her she should just cut that shit off from her book completely if she's not going to follow through with it. It was a fucking disaster.
And aside from those shitty overall plot points, this book, being a contemporary or whatever, was so unrealistic. Like fucking hell, it deserves its own category of books called "Wishful thinking gone wrong" because this bitch was a pauper turned into the 21st century version of a "princess", out of nowhere?? Only because she's the illegitimate love child of a guy who never cared enough to meet her, not even once? And like seriously, who is actually able to control the actions and choices of their siblings and the whole student body the way that our main love interest does? you don't even see that shit done by jocks in 80-90's teen movies. I had such a hard time believing aspects of this book being real life events that could potentially occur that I started to laugh out loud--not because the book was funny like it's meant to be at times, but because of what a horrible life decision the author made when choosing to write this catastrophe. Seriously, Watt should donate all the proceeds of this book to the Hurricane Harvey cause only because it would be the only way to lower the calamity that is this wretched disaster.
I'm writing this review furiously tapping on my keyboard because of how frustrated this book made me, and I'm actually worried I might need to make an appointment with the Apple Store today following this next part of the review because some letters will most likely be broken off from the sheer force and momentum of my anger punching through the keys while I write about the fucking piece of shit asshole that is supposed to be the love interest in this novel.
Fucking Reed.
Has there ever been a more vile love interest in a book series ever? I highly doubt it. Name me a single one and I'll pity you for going through a shitstorm worse than this douche.
I get that this was supposed to be a hate-to-love relationship. That's fucking fine; in fact, they're my favorite type of contemporaries/NA/smutty reads. But there's a way to do it right and this was on the complete opposite spectrum of that way.
Especially in the beginning, every time Reed talked, I wanted to gouge my eyes out. He was a dreadful human being. We're first introduced to him barging in to Ella's room--after she explicitly told him not to because she's not decent--because he "doesn't care". WTF. NO SERIOUSLY WTF. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK???????????????????? And he only gets worse! That's the worst part! He slut-shames her constantly, and puts her down, and makes her feel unwelcomed at the school and at her new home, and blames her for being a gold-digger and sleeping with his dad (when she's not??? and he has no proof to go by that she's doing this???), and bullies her and makes his brothers and the whole student body bully her, and orders her around, and she's still down for him??? We're still supposed to root for them??? We're meant to like this metaphorical human garbage of a person???? Fuck that shit. That's fucked up.
And as an encore for his ultimate douchebaggery, ponder on this:
Like fuck. You can't make this shit up.
Reed kind of redeems himself towards the end and suddenly becomes a semi-good guy, but horrendously enough, even then, he's insufferable. The piece of shit is more undecided on whether he should act on his feelings and attractions towards Ella than on how undecided I get on whether I should wear one black t-shirt over another black t-shirt to school on any given day.
Actual summary of the last 100 pages of this book:
Reed: *hooking up with Ella* This is the last time we're doing this. We can't be doing this because of hugely invalid reason that makes no sense.
- next night -
Reed: *hooking up with Ella* This is the last time.
- next night -
Reed: Ok but seriously this one is the last time I solemnly swear
- five centuries later -
Reed:*plays Taylor Swift's Last Time but doesn't mean it*
Literally his attitude towards hooking up with Ella is a direct parallel to how I act when I'm thinking of going to the gym [Ok I'll work out tomorrow! I've been saying every day unconvincingly for the past 7 years.]
Also this is minimal but at one point he starts out of nowhere calling her 'baby' which is uncalled for because at this point, they still haven't done anything with each other and are not together, and that pet name already makes me cringe when used by a guy so I just felt like barfing at that point and was seriously tempted to go and get some Gravol for myself. And I'm still confused as to what caused him to start actually liking Ella? Because absolutely nothing drastic changes in their circumstances for him to suddenly start liking her? It's hella dumb.
um what else??? this book is such a huge display of fuckery that I actually have to think about what all the bad things are because the list is impossibly endless.
oh YeAH fucking Ella. I'm going to ignore the fact that Ella's into Reed because if you want to be treated like you're the scum of the earth and get turned on by that, even though you yourself literally acknowledged that said person treats you as if you are no better than a fucking spider not paying the rent in a human household, than that's your prerogative. But her characterization? My g0D. You're telling me that this person has experienced abandonment from their biological father, the loss of a mother to cancer at a young age, extreme poverty, abuse and harrassment from her mother's various boyfriends, an underage career as a stripper, social isolation, harassment from her peers and the people fucking living with her, potential rape, and yet, she has no issues whatsoever? You're telling me she doesn't suffer from any form of PTSD, that she doesn't suffer from an other mental disorder, that she doesn't partake in any form of high-risk behaviour or has any social development issues, when this is unfortunately and tragically the reality of most people who suffer from at least one of those similar traumatic life events? Like there's being resilient, and then there's this. Which is basically, a "let's throw a bunch of shit at our MC to give the impression that she's three-dimensional and has a tragic backstory but fail to explore any of those harmful or triggering themes bcuz I'm not down and a douchebag is being his regular-ol'-douchebaggery-self-to-me-and-it's-getting-me-hot-and-bothered" mindset.
Also to make things even worse (like how is that even possible at this point??? if you've reached this far into the review i seriously applaud you), there's a shitton of girl-on-girl hate and slut-shaming and ISN'T THAT JUST THE BEST? :) :) :) :) fucking die. fuck you.
Also, somehow, this book, that is written by a woman, sexualises typical women behaviour and perpetuates the idea that girl-on-girl-anything = erotic for boys so you should do it for that sole reason. physically fighting with a girl? sexy. dancing up on a girl? sexy. (which don't get me wrong, you should dance with your girlfriends however you please, but you shouldn't do it for a guy ogling at you and dehumanizing you). Also they were dancing in cages to get the attention from boys and took pride in it???? Like that is the literal definition of oppression being a direct result of the objectification of women? How was it a woman that wrote this anti-feminist bullshit of a manifesto?
I don't know what else to say except to repeat myself yet again on the fact that this was shit.
OH. And there's a cliffhanger at the end which basically just reinforces the fact that these shitty characters are shitty people and this cliffhanger is essentially there to try to convince you to not listen to your instincts that tell you to RUN AWAY FROM THIS SEQUEL because cliffhanger guise omg!!111!1.
Overall sentiments regarding this book: I wanted to throw away this book across the room so many times but I couldn't because I read it on my Kindle and that made me sad because this book deserves destruction and I hope that one day future me will be able to suppress the traumatizing memory of having read this treachery to English literature.
May 12, 2019
Was hoping for a trashy but entertaining read. Turns out it was just trash.
April 30, 2016
*****FIVE STARS*****
{ARC Generously Provided by Authors}
Just FABULOUS!!
I've been dying to get to this one and so happy I finally got to read it!
This house is an illusion. It's polished and pretty, but the dream Callum is trying to sell is as flimsy as paper. Nothing stays shiny forever in this world.
When the buzz first started going around about this book months ago, I was extremely intrigued. I was told this was one hell of a book that was going to knock my socks off. IT DEFINITELY DID!! It was compared to the tv series Gossip Girl. I have seen that show and it really wasn’t my cuppa. In my opinion, this book beats the hell out of Gossip Girl. Except for some of the sad things that have happened to Ella, I would say, for the most part, this is a teenage girls’ fantasy come to life.
Ella is a sixteen-year-old who has been living on her own for the past couple of years after her mother died of cancer. She has been able to keep her lack of parental guardianship a secret from the authorities and to survive, she works as a stripper in a seedy night club. The girl keeps all of her savings and belongings in a backpack that she takes with her everywhere, just in case she ever needs to go on the run at a moment’s notice. Ella has never met her father and actually has no idea who he is. One day a man appears at her school and he claims to be her legal guardian. He knows all about her mother’s death and how she has been living and supporting herself. Callum Royal tells Ella that her father has recently died and that he was named her guardian in his will. Having lived in some of the worst environments, Ella isn’t quick to trust Callum and tries to run away. She’s quickly found by Callum and he brings her back to his home to live with him and his five sons. FIVE VERY ALPHA & SEXY AS HELL SONS!!! The Royals seem to have it all – wealth, looks, and power!! Now you see why I said this is like a girl’s dream come true????!!
To get Ella to agree to come back with him and stay at his place, Callum offers her $10,000 up front and promises an extra $10,000 for every month she stays. If she goes off to college, she gets $250,000, and once she graduates there is more $$$ to come!! Now who could say no to that offer??!! Certainly not Ella! But she’s definitely not a gold digger, which is what the five Royal boys all seem to think she is. They all give her a really frosty reception when she first arrives and make her life a bit hellish at the school they attend, Astor Park Prep Academy. Somehow Ella can’t help but fight this strong attraction she feels for Reed Royal, the second oldest son who has a very hot temper and seems to rule the school and the Royal clan. Reed has gotten under Ella’s skin. But she may have succeeded in affecting Reed as well.
There is a lot of drama going on with the Royal boys, Callum’s slutty girlfriend, Ella’s father’s widow, and some snobby classmates from Astor Park Prep. I loved every minute of it!! I can tell you that it was so good I read it in one day. Once you start it, you will find it hard to put down. The only problem is, we end on a big cliffy and book two isn’t out until July!! I mean that is not as bad as having to wait SIX MONTHS for The Walking Dead to come back on, BUT STILL!!!! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!!!
What is it with authors deciding to co-write books lately??!! I’ve read several just recently and they ALL were FIVE STAR reads for me!! Elle Kennedy & Jen Frederick are no exception!! These two have created the most intoxicating story I have read yet!!! If you haven’t read this one, you definitely need to bump it up your TBR!! It is a book that is not to be missed!!
{ARC Generously Provided by Authors}
Just FABULOUS!!
I've been dying to get to this one and so happy I finally got to read it!
This house is an illusion. It's polished and pretty, but the dream Callum is trying to sell is as flimsy as paper. Nothing stays shiny forever in this world.
When the buzz first started going around about this book months ago, I was extremely intrigued. I was told this was one hell of a book that was going to knock my socks off. IT DEFINITELY DID!! It was compared to the tv series Gossip Girl. I have seen that show and it really wasn’t my cuppa. In my opinion, this book beats the hell out of Gossip Girl. Except for some of the sad things that have happened to Ella, I would say, for the most part, this is a teenage girls’ fantasy come to life.
Ella is a sixteen-year-old who has been living on her own for the past couple of years after her mother died of cancer. She has been able to keep her lack of parental guardianship a secret from the authorities and to survive, she works as a stripper in a seedy night club. The girl keeps all of her savings and belongings in a backpack that she takes with her everywhere, just in case she ever needs to go on the run at a moment’s notice. Ella has never met her father and actually has no idea who he is. One day a man appears at her school and he claims to be her legal guardian. He knows all about her mother’s death and how she has been living and supporting herself. Callum Royal tells Ella that her father has recently died and that he was named her guardian in his will. Having lived in some of the worst environments, Ella isn’t quick to trust Callum and tries to run away. She’s quickly found by Callum and he brings her back to his home to live with him and his five sons. FIVE VERY ALPHA & SEXY AS HELL SONS!!! The Royals seem to have it all – wealth, looks, and power!! Now you see why I said this is like a girl’s dream come true????!!
To get Ella to agree to come back with him and stay at his place, Callum offers her $10,000 up front and promises an extra $10,000 for every month she stays. If she goes off to college, she gets $250,000, and once she graduates there is more $$$ to come!! Now who could say no to that offer??!! Certainly not Ella! But she’s definitely not a gold digger, which is what the five Royal boys all seem to think she is. They all give her a really frosty reception when she first arrives and make her life a bit hellish at the school they attend, Astor Park Prep Academy. Somehow Ella can’t help but fight this strong attraction she feels for Reed Royal, the second oldest son who has a very hot temper and seems to rule the school and the Royal clan. Reed has gotten under Ella’s skin. But she may have succeeded in affecting Reed as well.
There is a lot of drama going on with the Royal boys, Callum’s slutty girlfriend, Ella’s father’s widow, and some snobby classmates from Astor Park Prep. I loved every minute of it!! I can tell you that it was so good I read it in one day. Once you start it, you will find it hard to put down. The only problem is, we end on a big cliffy and book two isn’t out until July!! I mean that is not as bad as having to wait SIX MONTHS for The Walking Dead to come back on, BUT STILL!!!! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!!!
What is it with authors deciding to co-write books lately??!! I’ve read several just recently and they ALL were FIVE STAR reads for me!! Elle Kennedy & Jen Frederick are no exception!! These two have created the most intoxicating story I have read yet!!! If you haven’t read this one, you definitely need to bump it up your TBR!! It is a book that is not to be missed!!
March 18, 2016
Looking for angst and drama that's so good it hurts, but you can only find it in YA romance? Do you hate fade to black sex scenes but love sexual tension that will obliterate you ovaries? Well I have just the book for you!
Okay, so the infomercial's over now, but you get my meaning right? Man did I love reading this book!
Five brother's (including twins), all of them smoking hot, arrogant, entitled and rich man-whores.
Where do I sign up?!
Enter Ella, the poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks, thrust into their world of elitists complete with mean girls and all sorts of high school paraphernalia. The ruling family is the Royals, you're nothing until you've received their stamp of approval and no one is safe from their reign least of all, Ella, even if she lives with them.
Yes there're five brothers but Ella has an immediate connection with Reed Royal, who also happens to be the leader. Did I mention he was smoking hot? Well, he is. He's also stoic, broody, prone to bouts of just staring angrily at Ella and YASSSSS, did I love it!
"Here's the deal," he says. "My brother and father are off-limits to you. If you have an itch, you come to me. I'll take care of it.
Ella has been working at a strip bar while trying to finish high school, that is until Calum Royal walks into her life. He's the long time friend of the father she never knew and now that both her parents are dead he's her legal guardian. Ella being the feisty heroine that she is fights him tooth and nail but she is a minor so she grudgingly moves in with him and his five sons.
The Royal boys are not what I expected. They don't look like rich pricks in preppy clothes. They look like terrifying thugs who can snap me like a twig.
Paper Princess is a smashing start in what promises to be an amazing series and I am so freaking excited! If you happen to see this but don't feel like reading my review just have a look at "Who I would recommend it to and you'll know if it's something you would enjoy and if you're still not sure then just give it a go because trust me, it just sucks you in.
"You belong with us. You're the best thing that ever happened to this family."
ARC kindly provided by authors in return for an honest review
October 29, 2023
this story is too much! its absurd and over the top and too dramatic and… i liked it!
this book (and im hoping the rest of the series) falls perfectly into my ‘guilty pleasure’ category. i know im not getting any more intelligent by reading this and it is by no means a literary masterpiece, but there is something so captivating about the drama of highly fictional lives that draws me in and wont let go. if only i were a destitute 17 year old girl, who gets scooped up by a millionaire and has to live with his five attractive sons. sigh. one can dream.
3.5 stars
this book (and im hoping the rest of the series) falls perfectly into my ‘guilty pleasure’ category. i know im not getting any more intelligent by reading this and it is by no means a literary masterpiece, but there is something so captivating about the drama of highly fictional lives that draws me in and wont let go. if only i were a destitute 17 year old girl, who gets scooped up by a millionaire and has to live with his five attractive sons. sigh. one can dream.
3.5 stars
July 1, 2017
5 Royal Stars!
DAMN FEELS.
Let's just say this one quickly made it to my new favorite reads this year. So absolutely freaking good! I'm telling you guys, this is the kind of book that will stay glued to your hands as you race through the pages in one or two sittings. All the delightful elements, swoon factor, name it all, they're here.
The storyline of Paper Princess was a little cliché to me maybe because in my younger years I used to go gaga over Boys Over Flowers and F4 and this book's story is pretty much similar to this Asian telenovela. Ella Harper's life suddenly changed after her mother died and a billionaire showed up in her school and claimed as her new guardian. Having been used to poverty where she does everything to survive, even working part time as a stripper in a club to pay off her and her mom's needs, the sudden twist of event in her life was kind of crazy and overwhelming. And just when she thought it couldn't get any crazier, she found herself living together with the billionaire's aloof and brooding sons which are all... yum.
Meet theF5 Royal brothers.
Gideon, Reed, Easton, Sawyer, and Sebastian.
If you think Ella was completely welcome to live in the Royal's mansion, you're wrong. These Royal brothers did everything in their power to send her back to where they thought she belongs. They were simply a-holes and they made her life a living hell despite all the luxurious things she was beginning to enjoy.
It didn't even stop there because stepping into her new school, Astor Park, meant stepping into a disaster because the spoilt little rich kids who think they live on the edge bullied her. And what's even worse, she found herself slowly falling in love with one of the Royals-- Reed.
And soo I'm telling you all right now why this one was a WINNER for me:
The concept was typical swoon-worthy. Guilty-pleasure. Twisted in a way but still, you end up savoring it.
Beautifully written. I am such a huge fan of Elle Kennedy. When I heard that she's one of the authors of this book, I immediately added it to my tbr even without reading its synopsis. I haven't tried any Jen Frederick book but after reading this, I thought I'm going to grab her works one of these days. The writing of the authors was so engaging and it simply draw me quickly to the story.
Well-portrayed characters. All the characters were vibrant. There was just something so raw and real about them, especially Ella. I loved how kick-ass she was and how she was able to handle her situation which was not easy and how she handled the boys. I should've been nervous at some point because of all the craziness that surrounded her but I was so confident in her tough character that I did not worry for her.
Page-turner. The entertainment factor in this book was too much. You can't help yourself from devouring it until you're finished. No dull moments. Heck, every little detail was so exciting!
Sexy banters and romantic and steamy scenes. There was 100% chemistry between the characters and a lot of sexual tension and it helped built up those scenes. Plus, the banters were so fun and hilarious! The authors really know how to tastefully write scenes that can make you grin. And the emotions the characters presented... they're right down to the bones.
The ending, however, was a huge CLIFFHANGER. But I don't consider it a drawback despite my freak-out fest after reading it. lol
If you are a guilty-pleasure reader, staaahp what you are doing and read this book already while I am here.... eagerly waiting. Waiting for the second book.
(I buddyread this book together with my lovely friend Rachmi)
DAMN FEELS.
Let's just say this one quickly made it to my new favorite reads this year. So absolutely freaking good! I'm telling you guys, this is the kind of book that will stay glued to your hands as you race through the pages in one or two sittings. All the delightful elements, swoon factor, name it all, they're here.
The storyline of Paper Princess was a little cliché to me maybe because in my younger years I used to go gaga over Boys Over Flowers and F4 and this book's story is pretty much similar to this Asian telenovela. Ella Harper's life suddenly changed after her mother died and a billionaire showed up in her school and claimed as her new guardian. Having been used to poverty where she does everything to survive, even working part time as a stripper in a club to pay off her and her mom's needs, the sudden twist of event in her life was kind of crazy and overwhelming. And just when she thought it couldn't get any crazier, she found herself living together with the billionaire's aloof and brooding sons which are all... yum.
"These Royals will ruin you."
Meet the
Gideon, Reed, Easton, Sawyer, and Sebastian.
If you think Ella was completely welcome to live in the Royal's mansion, you're wrong. These Royal brothers did everything in their power to send her back to where they thought she belongs. They were simply a-holes and they made her life a living hell despite all the luxurious things she was beginning to enjoy.
It didn't even stop there because stepping into her new school, Astor Park, meant stepping into a disaster because the spoilt little rich kids who think they live on the edge bullied her. And what's even worse, she found herself slowly falling in love with one of the Royals-- Reed.
"Reed Royal is the villain disguised as a pretty prince. Taking a bite out of him would be a huge mistake."
And soo I'm telling you all right now why this one was a WINNER for me:
The concept was typical swoon-worthy. Guilty-pleasure. Twisted in a way but still, you end up savoring it.
Beautifully written. I am such a huge fan of Elle Kennedy. When I heard that she's one of the authors of this book, I immediately added it to my tbr even without reading its synopsis. I haven't tried any Jen Frederick book but after reading this, I thought I'm going to grab her works one of these days. The writing of the authors was so engaging and it simply draw me quickly to the story.
Well-portrayed characters. All the characters were vibrant. There was just something so raw and real about them, especially Ella. I loved how kick-ass she was and how she was able to handle her situation which was not easy and how she handled the boys. I should've been nervous at some point because of all the craziness that surrounded her but I was so confident in her tough character that I did not worry for her.
"My skill, if I have one, isn't dancing. It's my ability to believe that tomorrow can be a better day."
Page-turner. The entertainment factor in this book was too much. You can't help yourself from devouring it until you're finished. No dull moments. Heck, every little detail was so exciting!
Sexy banters and romantic and steamy scenes. There was 100% chemistry between the characters and a lot of sexual tension and it helped built up those scenes. Plus, the banters were so fun and hilarious! The authors really know how to tastefully write scenes that can make you grin. And the emotions the characters presented... they're right down to the bones.
"Maybe another time, away from this place, you and me would have a different story."
The ending, however, was a huge CLIFFHANGER. But I don't consider it a drawback despite my freak-out fest after reading it. lol
If you are a guilty-pleasure reader, staaahp what you are doing and read this book already while I am here.... eagerly waiting. Waiting for the second book.
(I buddyread this book together with my lovely friend Rachmi)
February 14, 2020
Apparently this is supposed to be YA and I didn't really know that until I saw other people's reviews where they were horrified after reading it. I just wanted to say though that when I was 13/14 I read fanfiction that was just as bad as this book so like it doesn't seem that strange to me that this is YA.
Ella's mom dies and she works at a strip club to support herself when one day someone named Callum Royal appears to take her away from it all. She goes to live with him and his three sons in their gigantic home and soon finds out that Callum was her dad's best friend. The plot line is of course far fetched and ridiculous but I really enjoyed this book. Maybe because like I said I used to read fanficiton and this reminded me of what I used to enjoy about it. The writing isn't literature and there's a lot of sex but I enjoyed the sexual undertones as well as the romance. It was amusing and well paced story that kept me reading. I liked Ella and I enjoyed all the hijinks she gets to. I can totally get why some people may not have enjoyed it but I really enjoyed it and I really want to read the next one. It's a good pleasure read, sometimes you just want to be entertained.
Ella's mom dies and she works at a strip club to support herself when one day someone named Callum Royal appears to take her away from it all. She goes to live with him and his three sons in their gigantic home and soon finds out that Callum was her dad's best friend. The plot line is of course far fetched and ridiculous but I really enjoyed this book. Maybe because like I said I used to read fanficiton and this reminded me of what I used to enjoy about it. The writing isn't literature and there's a lot of sex but I enjoyed the sexual undertones as well as the romance. It was amusing and well paced story that kept me reading. I liked Ella and I enjoyed all the hijinks she gets to. I can totally get why some people may not have enjoyed it but I really enjoyed it and I really want to read the next one. It's a good pleasure read, sometimes you just want to be entertained.
August 24, 2017
On sale! 99 cents http://amzn.to/2w5aaoL
8/23/17
5 stars
“No one wants to be ruined. We all want to be saved.”
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG
Where do I even start? Well obviously from my rating I absolutely loved this book. When I saw the blurb I was intrigued and immediately requested the arc. Plus Elle Kennedy is a co-author and she has NEVER let me down. I’ve loved everything I’ve read by her so far. I’m a bit new to Erin Watt (Jen Frederick) and haven’t read any of her books, but I’ll be sure to remedy that very soon.
Paper Princess is about a teenage girl named Ella, who after the passing of her mother has been living on her own. Deceiving her high school and working multiple jobs her only goal is to get a diploma so she can continue on to college. One day a man appears at her school, claiming to be a friend of her recently deceased father (a man she never knew) and saying he is now her legal guardian.
Ella is grudgingly taken to Callum Royal’s home where she is to live. Callum makes a deal with her that she cannot refuse and a part of the agreement was for her to stay in his home with his five sons. Five sons who are not at all happy to see Ella. From rags to riches Ella does her best to catch her bearings and adjust to an entirely new life. But despite wanting to remain overlooked she is constantly hurdled into the attentions of her peers, and she can either take it, or fight back.
“No matter what Callum says or tried to do, I’m never going to be a Royal.”
When I say I loved this book, it is an understatement. This is a book you stay up until 3am to finish and end up feeling tired but happy the next day because it was so worth it. There was not one moment when I was bored or wanted to skim, I was completely absorbed in it until the very end. I loved being in Ella’s head and sharing her experiences with her. She’s a strong female character who doesn’t need or want saving, but in this book she realizes it doesn’t hurt to accept help from others. Ella also recognizes the value in hard work and doesn’t shirk away from jobs that others see as below themselves. She doesn’t apologize for who she is either. I found her to be a very admirable character, refreshing from all of the weak heroines we see flooding the genre.
All of the Royal boys have me intrigued, I really hope that some get their own book (like Easton and the twins). There’s so much going on and I would have loved the perspective of some of them while reading. Now Ella and Reed: my goodness someone get me a fan because their chemistry was off the charts!!!!
I am shipping these two so hard right now!!!! I loved them together, whether they were fighting or you know, other stuff. Good stuff ;-)
“I can’t decide what I like more. The calm Royal household with the voiceless Reed or the one where he’s yelling at me to stay away and threatening me with his penis.”
Anyway if you didn’t get it by now I loved this book. This book has a very Tijan feel to it, and those who loved the Fallen Crest series will love this story. Warning! There is a very large cliffhanger at the end that I may need to join a support group to get over. But, I still think you should read this book despite the cliffhanger because I think it’s totally worth it.
And I do want to clarify, while this book is about high school students/young adults, it is not a young adult book due to language and adult content. So don't be handing it to a sixteen year old to read. Save it for when they hit college and hand it to them then!
ARC kindly provided by authors in exchange for an honest review
8/23/17
5 stars
“No one wants to be ruined. We all want to be saved.”
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG
Where do I even start? Well obviously from my rating I absolutely loved this book. When I saw the blurb I was intrigued and immediately requested the arc. Plus Elle Kennedy is a co-author and she has NEVER let me down. I’ve loved everything I’ve read by her so far. I’m a bit new to Erin Watt (Jen Frederick) and haven’t read any of her books, but I’ll be sure to remedy that very soon.
Paper Princess is about a teenage girl named Ella, who after the passing of her mother has been living on her own. Deceiving her high school and working multiple jobs her only goal is to get a diploma so she can continue on to college. One day a man appears at her school, claiming to be a friend of her recently deceased father (a man she never knew) and saying he is now her legal guardian.
Ella is grudgingly taken to Callum Royal’s home where she is to live. Callum makes a deal with her that she cannot refuse and a part of the agreement was for her to stay in his home with his five sons. Five sons who are not at all happy to see Ella. From rags to riches Ella does her best to catch her bearings and adjust to an entirely new life. But despite wanting to remain overlooked she is constantly hurdled into the attentions of her peers, and she can either take it, or fight back.
“No matter what Callum says or tried to do, I’m never going to be a Royal.”
When I say I loved this book, it is an understatement. This is a book you stay up until 3am to finish and end up feeling tired but happy the next day because it was so worth it. There was not one moment when I was bored or wanted to skim, I was completely absorbed in it until the very end. I loved being in Ella’s head and sharing her experiences with her. She’s a strong female character who doesn’t need or want saving, but in this book she realizes it doesn’t hurt to accept help from others. Ella also recognizes the value in hard work and doesn’t shirk away from jobs that others see as below themselves. She doesn’t apologize for who she is either. I found her to be a very admirable character, refreshing from all of the weak heroines we see flooding the genre.
All of the Royal boys have me intrigued, I really hope that some get their own book (like Easton and the twins). There’s so much going on and I would have loved the perspective of some of them while reading. Now Ella and Reed: my goodness someone get me a fan because their chemistry was off the charts!!!!
I am shipping these two so hard right now!!!! I loved them together, whether they were fighting or you know, other stuff. Good stuff ;-)
“I can’t decide what I like more. The calm Royal household with the voiceless Reed or the one where he’s yelling at me to stay away and threatening me with his penis.”
Anyway if you didn’t get it by now I loved this book. This book has a very Tijan feel to it, and those who loved the Fallen Crest series will love this story. Warning! There is a very large cliffhanger at the end that I may need to join a support group to get over. But, I still think you should read this book despite the cliffhanger because I think it’s totally worth it.
And I do want to clarify, while this book is about high school students/young adults, it is not a young adult book due to language and adult content. So don't be handing it to a sixteen year old to read. Save it for when they hit college and hand it to them then!
ARC kindly provided by authors in exchange for an honest review
April 17, 2023
— 1 star ✰
damn i was so close to giving this book at least three stars but let me tell you what bothered me shitless 🧍🏽♀️
before i start, little back story:
ella's parents are dead and callum royal, who was her father's best friend, takes her in... and he has five sons 🤨
first point, why the fuck does easton keep calling her little sis as a joke when they literally made out like two times??? it's disgusting and disturbing, stop calling her that. on top of that, there was this scene where ella and reed were making out & ethan banged on the door with "little sis! big bro! banging time is over, dad is on his way home and wants us out for dinner later" I MIGHT PUKE 🤮
second point, she was drugged at a party, and oh wonder.. her "brother's" saved her. instead of tucking her into bed, the other brother, reed, starts making out with her, touching her, knowing damn well that she's on drugs and i don't care if she said "i want you. it's not the drugs" bla bla, i get sick just thinking of these guys smh
third point, girl please have some self esteem. reed tells ella that he can't start anything with her because he's leaving for college and in the same night he sneaks into her bed and says "just for tonight" bffr 🧌 why take him back!? kick him out of your stupid bed
fourth point, the ending was so predictable. i can already guess what the explanation for that conflict is and i am so incredibly underwhelmed and annoyed 😒
okay but one quote i must share with you because she was so real for that 💅🏻
"all i want to do is to make it to college"
"and take a chunk of royal money with you?"
"maybe with a few royal hearts in my pocket too"
damn i was so close to giving this book at least three stars but let me tell you what bothered me shitless 🧍🏽♀️
before i start, little back story:
ella's parents are dead and callum royal, who was her father's best friend, takes her in... and he has five sons 🤨
first point, why the fuck does easton keep calling her little sis as a joke when they literally made out like two times??? it's disgusting and disturbing, stop calling her that. on top of that, there was this scene where ella and reed were making out & ethan banged on the door with "little sis! big bro! banging time is over, dad is on his way home and wants us out for dinner later" I MIGHT PUKE 🤮
second point, she was drugged at a party, and oh wonder.. her "brother's" saved her. instead of tucking her into bed, the other brother, reed, starts making out with her, touching her, knowing damn well that she's on drugs and i don't care if she said "i want you. it's not the drugs" bla bla, i get sick just thinking of these guys smh
third point, girl please have some self esteem. reed tells ella that he can't start anything with her because he's leaving for college and in the same night he sneaks into her bed and says "just for tonight" bffr 🧌 why take him back!? kick him out of your stupid bed
fourth point, the ending was so predictable. i can already guess what the explanation for that conflict is and i am so incredibly underwhelmed and annoyed 😒
okay but one quote i must share with you because she was so real for that 💅🏻
"all i want to do is to make it to college"
"and take a chunk of royal money with you?"
"maybe with a few royal hearts in my pocket too"
March 27, 2016
Erin Watt is the brainchild of two of my fave authors in NA right now: Elle Kennedy and Jen Frederick. So when I heard they're writing releasing a "cracktastic" book, I was like...
Four hours and a cliffhanger later....
A word of warning. Do not read this book if you have something important to do the next day, like go to work or go to school or just doing something that needs you to be alert and awake because you're gonna fail at it. Hard. And all because of this book.
Paper Princess is one of the most addicting books I've read in a while. It's pure fantasy, pure fun and pure unadulterated cracktastic read.
Set in a very privilege world of the rich and the insanely rich, Paper Princess follows a story of a young high school girl named Ella who, at the start of the book was struggling to get through her life. She just lost her mother and she's been on her own trying to finish high school. Fate intervened in the form of Callum Royal. A man claiming to be Ella's biological dad's best friend and Ella guardian. Suddenly, Ella finds herself in the middle of the Royal world, which includes Callum's five young sons, one of whom caught Ella's attention immediately.
The Royals are rich, privileged and entitled. They're not really good people. They're amoral but they are also utterly fascinating. They have skeletons in their closets and you can't help but question their motives all the time especially Reed Royal, the Royal brothers' de facto leader and all around asshole.
Oh my gosh. This guy just pushes all of Ella's buttons even the ones she doesn't want pushed. They have insane chemistry and hate-lust going on, which is one of the most addicting factors in this book. I'm not gonna lie. There were times in the books where I want so bad to knee him in the balls. Normally, I would hate a hero like Reed because he is just horrible sometimes but because Ella was no wilting flower and has no intention of laying down and letting Reed or any Royal for that matter, walk all over her, made the story more interesting to me.
All the Royal brothers have their own personalities and little ticks and secrets that you want to uncover. I am so hoping that the authors are going to give each brothers a book because I would totally read all of them! But I'm getting ahead of myself.
As much as I loved reading about the Royals and can't help but be fascinated by them, the main attraction or the main character that keeps me glued to its pages was Ella. This girl slays. She's the perfect combination of vulnerability and toughness. And she's not afraid to stand up to the Royals and their friends who look down on her.
Paper Princess is her story. And it is only the beginning. I cannot wait for the second book to come out. And as much as I loathed that cliffhanger, there is no way to fit everything in just one book. There is still too much to uncover about the Royals, about Ella's biological dad, about Callum...everything. And I really, really want to know more about the Royal boys.
So if you're in mood for a crazy addicting story, I would highly, highly recommend this book. Yes, it's tag as YA but honestly, I wasn't bothered by the age of the characters even with the stuff that's been happening. I was too caught up in the story. It was that addicting.
ARC provided by Erin Watt in exchange for an honest review.
Four hours and a cliffhanger later....
A word of warning. Do not read this book if you have something important to do the next day, like go to work or go to school or just doing something that needs you to be alert and awake because you're gonna fail at it. Hard. And all because of this book.
Paper Princess is one of the most addicting books I've read in a while. It's pure fantasy, pure fun and pure unadulterated cracktastic read.
Set in a very privilege world of the rich and the insanely rich, Paper Princess follows a story of a young high school girl named Ella who, at the start of the book was struggling to get through her life. She just lost her mother and she's been on her own trying to finish high school. Fate intervened in the form of Callum Royal. A man claiming to be Ella's biological dad's best friend and Ella guardian. Suddenly, Ella finds herself in the middle of the Royal world, which includes Callum's five young sons, one of whom caught Ella's attention immediately.
The Royals are rich, privileged and entitled. They're not really good people. They're amoral but they are also utterly fascinating. They have skeletons in their closets and you can't help but question their motives all the time especially Reed Royal, the Royal brothers' de facto leader and all around asshole.
Oh my gosh. This guy just pushes all of Ella's buttons even the ones she doesn't want pushed. They have insane chemistry and hate-lust going on, which is one of the most addicting factors in this book. I'm not gonna lie. There were times in the books where I want so bad to knee him in the balls. Normally, I would hate a hero like Reed because he is just horrible sometimes but because Ella was no wilting flower and has no intention of laying down and letting Reed or any Royal for that matter, walk all over her, made the story more interesting to me.
All the Royal brothers have their own personalities and little ticks and secrets that you want to uncover. I am so hoping that the authors are going to give each brothers a book because I would totally read all of them! But I'm getting ahead of myself.
As much as I loved reading about the Royals and can't help but be fascinated by them, the main attraction or the main character that keeps me glued to its pages was Ella. This girl slays. She's the perfect combination of vulnerability and toughness. And she's not afraid to stand up to the Royals and their friends who look down on her.
Paper Princess is her story. And it is only the beginning. I cannot wait for the second book to come out. And as much as I loathed that cliffhanger, there is no way to fit everything in just one book. There is still too much to uncover about the Royals, about Ella's biological dad, about Callum...everything. And I really, really want to know more about the Royal boys.
So if you're in mood for a crazy addicting story, I would highly, highly recommend this book. Yes, it's tag as YA but honestly, I wasn't bothered by the age of the characters even with the stuff that's been happening. I was too caught up in the story. It was that addicting.
ARC provided by Erin Watt in exchange for an honest review.
January 18, 2018
Skończyłam Paper Princess za drugim podejściem. Przy pierwszym poległam koło setnej strony. A to wiele znaczy, bo właściwie zawsze czytam książki od początku do końca, nieważne jak złe są. Dałam radę z "twórczością" E.Lockhart, E.L. James i Katy Evans. Paper Princess mnie pokonała. I gdyby nie fakt, że ta historia wychodzi w marcu w Polsce, w życiu nie sięgnęłabym po nią po raz drugi. Ale chcę Was ostrzec przed tym jak bardzo ta książka jest zła i krzywdząca.
Historia Elli, nastoletniej ex-striptizerki rozpoczyna się, gdy w jej szkole pojawia się człowiek podający się za jej prawnego opiekuna. Callum Royal (#SUBTELNE) jest milionerem, mieszka w willi nad plażą, ma pięciu synów i młodą kobietę u boku. Z powodzeniem prowadzi firmę zajmującą się produkcją samolotów. Okazuje się, że był on najlepszym przyjacielem zmarłego niedawno ojca Elli, która nigdy nie miała okazji go poznać, gdyż porzucił jej matkę krótko po tym, jak spędził z nią noc. Po przyjeździe do rezydencji Royalów Ella "poznaje" synów Calluma, którzy, co tu dużo mówić, odnoszą się wobec niej skandalicznie. I to zupełnie bez powodu.
Właśnie w tym momencie zaczyna się długa, nudna, pozbawiona jakiejkolwiek fabuły i ciekawych bohaterów historia o seksizmie, wykorzystywaniu seksualnym oraz znęcaniu się psychicznym i fizycznym. A wszystko to autorki (bo Erin Watt to dwie panie, a nie jedna) wszystko zgrabnie wytłumaczyły! Narkotyki, nałogowo uprawiany seks, uzależnienie od hazardu czy alkoholu jest w tym świecie absolutnie normalne, a nawet jeśli ktokolwiek zauważa problem, nic z tym nie robi. No bo po co? Nie zrozumcie mnie źle, nie chodzi mi o to, że w Paper Princess mamy do czynienia z dysfunkcyjną rodziną i szeroką gamą uzależnień. Chodzi o to, że nic z tego nie jest tu pokazane jako coś złego. Nie ma tu rozwiązań, nie ma próby, nie ma nawet chęci piętnowania takiego zachowania. A największy cham tej historii zostaje oczyszczony ze wszystkich zarzutów, jakie przez niemal 3/4 książki stawiała mu główna bohaterka - bo jest piękny, przystojny, ma sylwetkę młodego boga i niebieskie oczy, w którym można utonąć. I tyle. Dla tych, którzy mają lekturę za sobą - tak, chodzi mi o Reeda.
Ale to nie wszystko! O bohaterach nie wiemy nic. Jeśli chodzi o braci Royal to: Reed ma wyraźny problem z agresją, nienawidzi wszystkiego co związane z Ellą z jakichś kompletnie dziecinnych i niezrozumiałych pobudek, Easton jest uzależniony od alkoholu, hazardu i seksu, Sebastian i Sawyer to bliźniacy, a Gideon, najstarszy z rodzeństwa studiuje poza miastem i pływa. I to tyle. Sama Ella jest przezroczysta jak celofan. Kreowana na siłę na buntowniczkę, dziewczynę silną, która potrafi sobie poradzić z trudnościami losu, pokonującą kłody rzucone pod nogi przez życie, ale jednak wciąż wrażliwą, czułą i potrzebującą miłości. Nieudolne były starania autorek, by stworzyć z niej postać typu "smart female heroine" - nie w tej historii, nie w tym otoczeniu, nie z takim zestawem cech. O Callumie także nie wiemy wiele. Mogłabym właściwie tak wymieniać wszystkich po kolei, a wniosek byłby wciąż ten sam. Ale nic w tym chyba dziwnego, skoro nawet nie wiemy w jakim mieście dzieje się akcja książki.
Najgorszym jednak co mogła zrobić ta książka, było wyidealizowanie chorego, toksycznego związku, powstałego na bazie z niczego, a mianowicie relacji Reeda i Elli. Reedowi nagle coś się odmienia, z dnia na dzień przestaje nazywać Ellę suką, nie rozpowiada o niej wstrętnych rzeczy w szkole, nie ostrzega swoich braci przez chorobami wenerycznymi, na które z pewnością Ella cierpi, przestaje wydawać jej polecenia i naruszać jej przestrzeń osobistą. Co robi Ella? Nie może mu się oprzeć. Dosłownie. Mogłabym przytaczać cytaty, ale szkoda mi na to czasu. Bohaterka zapomina w mgnieniu oka o wszystkim co wycierpiała przez działania Reeda i rzuca mu się z chęcią w ramiona. Nie dosyć, że Reed i Ella nie wiedzą o sobie absolutnie NIC, to na dodatek ich relacja oparta jest wyłącznie na fizycznym pożądaniu. I ok, powiecie, tak się przecież czasem dzieje. Ale to co dzieje się na kartach tej książki... To nie jest wytłumaczalne. Jest obrzydliwe. Przeraża mnie fakt, co taka historia może zrobić z kimś młodym, zagubionym, kto przyswaja sobie obrazy przedstawiane w książkach. Przeraża mnie fakt, że dwie kobiety napisały książkę o tym, jak poniżana kobieta zakochuje się w swoim oprawcy i co więcej, ta książka została wydana, zbiera wysokie oceny na GoodReads oraz LubimyCzytać i mało kto widzi w tym coś złego.
Historia Elli, nastoletniej ex-striptizerki rozpoczyna się, gdy w jej szkole pojawia się człowiek podający się za jej prawnego opiekuna. Callum Royal (#SUBTELNE) jest milionerem, mieszka w willi nad plażą, ma pięciu synów i młodą kobietę u boku. Z powodzeniem prowadzi firmę zajmującą się produkcją samolotów. Okazuje się, że był on najlepszym przyjacielem zmarłego niedawno ojca Elli, która nigdy nie miała okazji go poznać, gdyż porzucił jej matkę krótko po tym, jak spędził z nią noc. Po przyjeździe do rezydencji Royalów Ella "poznaje" synów Calluma, którzy, co tu dużo mówić, odnoszą się wobec niej skandalicznie. I to zupełnie bez powodu.
Właśnie w tym momencie zaczyna się długa, nudna, pozbawiona jakiejkolwiek fabuły i ciekawych bohaterów historia o seksizmie, wykorzystywaniu seksualnym oraz znęcaniu się psychicznym i fizycznym. A wszystko to autorki (bo Erin Watt to dwie panie, a nie jedna) wszystko zgrabnie wytłumaczyły! Narkotyki, nałogowo uprawiany seks, uzależnienie od hazardu czy alkoholu jest w tym świecie absolutnie normalne, a nawet jeśli ktokolwiek zauważa problem, nic z tym nie robi. No bo po co? Nie zrozumcie mnie źle, nie chodzi mi o to, że w Paper Princess mamy do czynienia z dysfunkcyjną rodziną i szeroką gamą uzależnień. Chodzi o to, że nic z tego nie jest tu pokazane jako coś złego. Nie ma tu rozwiązań, nie ma próby, nie ma nawet chęci piętnowania takiego zachowania. A największy cham tej historii zostaje oczyszczony ze wszystkich zarzutów, jakie przez niemal 3/4 książki stawiała mu główna bohaterka - bo jest piękny, przystojny, ma sylwetkę młodego boga i niebieskie oczy, w którym można utonąć. I tyle. Dla tych, którzy mają lekturę za sobą - tak, chodzi mi o Reeda.
Ale to nie wszystko! O bohaterach nie wiemy nic. Jeśli chodzi o braci Royal to: Reed ma wyraźny problem z agresją, nienawidzi wszystkiego co związane z Ellą z jakichś kompletnie dziecinnych i niezrozumiałych pobudek, Easton jest uzależniony od alkoholu, hazardu i seksu, Sebastian i Sawyer to bliźniacy, a Gideon, najstarszy z rodzeństwa studiuje poza miastem i pływa. I to tyle. Sama Ella jest przezroczysta jak celofan. Kreowana na siłę na buntowniczkę, dziewczynę silną, która potrafi sobie poradzić z trudnościami losu, pokonującą kłody rzucone pod nogi przez życie, ale jednak wciąż wrażliwą, czułą i potrzebującą miłości. Nieudolne były starania autorek, by stworzyć z niej postać typu "smart female heroine" - nie w tej historii, nie w tym otoczeniu, nie z takim zestawem cech. O Callumie także nie wiemy wiele. Mogłabym właściwie tak wymieniać wszystkich po kolei, a wniosek byłby wciąż ten sam. Ale nic w tym chyba dziwnego, skoro nawet nie wiemy w jakim mieście dzieje się akcja książki.
Najgorszym jednak co mogła zrobić ta książka, było wyidealizowanie chorego, toksycznego związku, powstałego na bazie z niczego, a mianowicie relacji Reeda i Elli. Reedowi nagle coś się odmienia, z dnia na dzień przestaje nazywać Ellę suką, nie rozpowiada o niej wstrętnych rzeczy w szkole, nie ostrzega swoich braci przez chorobami wenerycznymi, na które z pewnością Ella cierpi, przestaje wydawać jej polecenia i naruszać jej przestrzeń osobistą. Co robi Ella? Nie może mu się oprzeć. Dosłownie. Mogłabym przytaczać cytaty, ale szkoda mi na to czasu. Bohaterka zapomina w mgnieniu oka o wszystkim co wycierpiała przez działania Reeda i rzuca mu się z chęcią w ramiona. Nie dosyć, że Reed i Ella nie wiedzą o sobie absolutnie NIC, to na dodatek ich relacja oparta jest wyłącznie na fizycznym pożądaniu. I ok, powiecie, tak się przecież czasem dzieje. Ale to co dzieje się na kartach tej książki... To nie jest wytłumaczalne. Jest obrzydliwe. Przeraża mnie fakt, co taka historia może zrobić z kimś młodym, zagubionym, kto przyswaja sobie obrazy przedstawiane w książkach. Przeraża mnie fakt, że dwie kobiety napisały książkę o tym, jak poniżana kobieta zakochuje się w swoim oprawcy i co więcej, ta książka została wydana, zbiera wysokie oceny na GoodReads oraz LubimyCzytać i mało kto widzi w tym coś złego.
July 30, 2017
Imagine the movie Mean Girls. We've all watched it, right? It's a classic.
Now reimagine it as an R-rated movie with smut galore.
Now give all the mean girls dicks and a sexist attitude.
Enter Ella, a modern Cinderella forced into stripping for money.
Put it all together and you've got Paper Princess.
Paper Princess is fun, feisty, addicting and entertaining as all hell. It revolves around Ella the high schooler and part-time stripper. Her mother died a few years ago, leaving her to work and move around constantly to try to make a living and a future for herself. Then Callum Royal shows up, claiming to be the best friend of Ella's unknown father and assuming guardianship of her. She is whisked away to his palace mansion, where she starts school with Callum's five megalomaniac narcissistic sons.
Let's take a look at the characters, with corresponding gifs!
Ella Harper:
Idol Queen. Slays regularly. Doesn't take shit from anyone, especially not the Royal family (excepting Reed cause she's putty in his hands). When girls try to bully her for her poor background, she kicks some ass - I mean literally.
Reed Royal:
Total hot stuff, runs the school; he can even issue "decrees" concerning the student body's behavior towards certain people. Honestly, I found Reed overly broody, bordering on sketchy. This is not the kind of guy you start a healthy relationship with.
Easton Royal:
Not to be slut shaming but DAMN this boy gets around. Bit of a sexist pig, but he's still my uncontested favorite Royal! Easton has a sweet side to him.
Callum Royal:
I don't know what's worse: his drinking problem, his failures as a parent, his blatant PDA with his girlfriend, or the way he throws around money like it's chicken feed.
The Twins:
No comment on their "sharing" habits.
Val:
Ideal best friend. Knows all the gossip but doesn't get sucked into all the high school evil and drama that surrounds her. Val knows what's up.
I loved the book but kind of saw the ending coming. Nevertheless I'm slide-to-the-floor relieved that Book 2 is already out and I don't have to wait for it!
Now reimagine it as an R-rated movie with smut galore.
Now give all the mean girls dicks and a sexist attitude.
Enter Ella, a modern Cinderella forced into stripping for money.
Put it all together and you've got Paper Princess.
Paper Princess is fun, feisty, addicting and entertaining as all hell. It revolves around Ella the high schooler and part-time stripper. Her mother died a few years ago, leaving her to work and move around constantly to try to make a living and a future for herself. Then Callum Royal shows up, claiming to be the best friend of Ella's unknown father and assuming guardianship of her. She is whisked away to his palace mansion, where she starts school with Callum's five megalomaniac narcissistic sons.
Let's take a look at the characters, with corresponding gifs!
Ella Harper:
Idol Queen. Slays regularly. Doesn't take shit from anyone, especially not the Royal family (excepting Reed cause she's putty in his hands). When girls try to bully her for her poor background, she kicks some ass - I mean literally.
Reed Royal:
Total hot stuff, runs the school; he can even issue "decrees" concerning the student body's behavior towards certain people. Honestly, I found Reed overly broody, bordering on sketchy. This is not the kind of guy you start a healthy relationship with.
Easton Royal:
Not to be slut shaming but DAMN this boy gets around. Bit of a sexist pig, but he's still my uncontested favorite Royal! Easton has a sweet side to him.
Callum Royal:
I don't know what's worse: his drinking problem, his failures as a parent, his blatant PDA with his girlfriend, or the way he throws around money like it's chicken feed.
The Twins:
No comment on their "sharing" habits.
Val:
Ideal best friend. Knows all the gossip but doesn't get sucked into all the high school evil and drama that surrounds her. Val knows what's up.
I loved the book but kind of saw the ending coming. Nevertheless I'm slide-to-the-floor relieved that Book 2 is already out and I don't have to wait for it!
May 1, 2016
”You’re a Royal now.”
…and the cheese stands alone.
This story simply never got me to the point where I felt like I was enjoying it. It’s in the vein of the The Prince and the Pauper story but with rich spoiled mean teens and felt like one big cliché. Even when the heroine’s love interest is clear and his feelings seem similar for her I was confused by what she found so attractive about him.
"Smile, I beg silently at him. Smile at me. Touch me. Kiss me. Anything."
The story felt like drama for the sake of drama occurring page after page. The plot devices were nothing special but the cliff and the uncovering of all these Royal’s secrets maybe possibly enough for me to try the next book who knows.
I have read an awful lot of YA and these characters are supposed to be juniors in high school is laughable. As a mom of a seventeen year old junior, I’m sad to inform you that this age group doesn’t speak like this at all. Perhaps if this was a college setting it would have been more fitting for the descriptions, actions and dialogue for this group of characters. Also, the ecstasy/cocaine scene was completely off the mark and her reactions to the drug far fetched.
Easton Royal and the heroine are the only characters that I did actually care for. I would recommend this story for audiences eighteen years and older and not younger.
”My life is mine. I live it. I control it.”
…and the cheese stands alone.
This story simply never got me to the point where I felt like I was enjoying it. It’s in the vein of the The Prince and the Pauper story but with rich spoiled mean teens and felt like one big cliché. Even when the heroine’s love interest is clear and his feelings seem similar for her I was confused by what she found so attractive about him.
"Smile, I beg silently at him. Smile at me. Touch me. Kiss me. Anything."
The story felt like drama for the sake of drama occurring page after page. The plot devices were nothing special but the cliff and the uncovering of all these Royal’s secrets maybe possibly enough for me to try the next book who knows.
I have read an awful lot of YA and these characters are supposed to be juniors in high school is laughable. As a mom of a seventeen year old junior, I’m sad to inform you that this age group doesn’t speak like this at all. Perhaps if this was a college setting it would have been more fitting for the descriptions, actions and dialogue for this group of characters. Also, the ecstasy/cocaine scene was completely off the mark and her reactions to the drug far fetched.
Easton Royal and the heroine are the only characters that I did actually care for. I would recommend this story for audiences eighteen years and older and not younger.
”My life is mine. I live it. I control it.”
January 21, 2018
Masakryczna, obrzydliwa, ociekająca przemocą psychiczną i fizyczną. Wulgarna, ORDYNARNA i niesamowicie seksistowska pozycja, która za nic w świecie nie powinna zostać wydana.
Nie istnieje tutaj absolutnie żadna fabuła, całość jest bezsensowna, chaotyczna i okręcona wokół, proszę wybaczyć, ru****ia, je***ia i pie*****nia.
W żadnym stopniu nie jest to historia miłosna, nie jest to młodzieżówka, tylko chora, poroniona fantazja autorek na temat zniewolenia i niższość kobiet, których jedynym celem jest sprzedawanie swojego ciała i służenie mężczyznom.
Bohaterowie to seksistowskie ameby nastawione tylko i wyłącznie na spełnianie swoich popędów i dzikich fantazji. Każda postać tej historii jest przezroczysta, niekonsekwentna i kompletnie odcięta od rzeczywistości. W ich postępowaniu absurd goni absurd.
Podsumowując: nie czytać.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MByze...
Nie istnieje tutaj absolutnie żadna fabuła, całość jest bezsensowna, chaotyczna i okręcona wokół, proszę wybaczyć, ru****ia, je***ia i pie*****nia.
W żadnym stopniu nie jest to historia miłosna, nie jest to młodzieżówka, tylko chora, poroniona fantazja autorek na temat zniewolenia i niższość kobiet, których jedynym celem jest sprzedawanie swojego ciała i służenie mężczyznom.
Bohaterowie to seksistowskie ameby nastawione tylko i wyłącznie na spełnianie swoich popędów i dzikich fantazji. Każda postać tej historii jest przezroczysta, niekonsekwentna i kompletnie odcięta od rzeczywistości. W ich postępowaniu absurd goni absurd.
Podsumowując: nie czytać.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MByze...
February 4, 2017
And to think that when I bought this book I thought I was about to read a story with princes and princesses, crowns and court, victorian dresses and probably boring dances...
Never again will I start a book without reading the blurb correctly or checking a review or two. Because what I got was the lousiest, tackiest, most unhealthy NA contemporary romance I ever had the chance to read so far. (except you, Abomination )
Remember what I was complaining about? "Please stop those six-pack book covers"? Well, I take it back. Please keep them so we can actually KNOW what we're getting into.
So goodbye princes and victorian drama. Think about this book as Gossip Girl meets Mean Girls meets a low budget erotica film.
It's about Ella, an orphan stripper (yes) who's forced to go to live with the Royals. Yes, that is their actual name. She's basically kidnapped by his legal guardian, her dead dad's super rich best friend, to live in a manor that she will have to share with him, Gold Digger Girlfriend and the five sons he had with Deceased Wife : Irrelevant, Douchy, Almost Fun But Not Really and The Useless Twins.
For unclear reasons, the five sons hate Ella and decide to make her life a living hell.
Also, this is a book about abs. No need to say that all the five sons are hot as models and total sex gods. The abs thing should be an obvious deduction, but it has to be specified. ABS. ABS EVERYWHERE. I'm pretty sure it's to make up for the lack of abs on the cover.
SPOILERS, OBVIOULSY But really, who cares?
The dad is certainly, by far, the best character of this book. Have you ever watched One Tree Hill? Remember Dan Scott? The Shittiest Dad of All Shitty Dads? The Dad who's an insult to the word "father"? Well, if I had to be adopted and had the choice between Callum Royal and Dan Scott, I'd pick Dan anytime! At least Dan was cray-cray fun...
Callum Royal, subsequently called Creepy Dad, is the most awkward and unhealthy father EVER.
Not only does he regularly fuck around the house with Gold Digger under the nose of his sons but plays on the fact that he's a heartbroken widow to justify him lusting around like a perv. His relationship with his sons is, to say the least, completely fucked-up but enough with the serious analysis because come on, this book is garbage and therefore makes no sense.
So on some pages, you wonder if Creepy Dad is some kind of borderline pedophile because his sons seems to hate when he's around Ella ("he likes them young" says one of the sons to Ella - EW!), especially when he's putting his arm around her shoulders for no reason.
The next minute, Creepy Dad is compared to "a lonely puppy" or a clichéd wannabe-daddy who's super excited and pees his pants when he learns Ella made a friend at school?
Creepy Dad also has a problem with alcohol, which lead us to this tremendous scene between his sons and him, after seeing Ella hungover at breakfast (actual quotes in italic):
Almost Fun But Not Really : "you're a drunk"
Creepy Dad : "That's enough, Almost Fun But Not Really!"
Almost Fun But Not Really : "Hey just pointing out the hypocrisy, Dad. And, apparently, the double standards. You don't give a shit when any of us get wasted, so why can't Ella?"
*Creepy Dad pauses and thinks about it for a minute*
Creepy Dad : "I guess I should be happy that you all are sticking up for each other now."
I have to slow clap to that, Creepy Dad! Of all the things you could and should have said, this was not one of them! You're priceless though, don't change a thing because without you in this book, I would have DNFed it.
Don't look for any coherence, it doesn't matter. Creepy Dad is a tool to create tension and bumps on the oh-so-angsty-and-lusty road walked by Ella and Douchy (and also Almost Fun But Not Really for some time because apparently, it's not a problem to put your own tongue where your brother's has been yesterday).
Ella would have been an okay MC if it was not for her very quick tendency to excuse the rude, aggressive and douchy behaviour of any Royal. Because they're Royals. They treat her like shit but she always find a good excuse for them.
HEY, CLUMSY AUTHOR! If you want us to like your characters, don't create obnoxious pricks! Because it's clearly not "Ella is weak and likes to be bullied", it's "I wanted to write complex characters and failed, so I make my MC understand their attitude so the reader will forgive them too." NOPE. THEY'RE STILL JERKS.
Ella is not a character, it's the voice of the author. So Ella loves the Royals even if she met them 4 hours ago. But she also hates them. Whatever.
Douchy now. He's supposed to be the guy you swoon for. He's got abs (no shit), he's the hottest guy on the planet, he got a - and I quote - magic tongue. Blahblahblah. Well, Douchy, I have only one word for you : MEH.
The book is basically a succession of "Ella is horny for Douchy" moments. You have to cope with sentences like :
"He looks so hot in his untucked uniform shirt that I have to force myself to look away."
Or what? He's so hot that you have to force yourself to look away or what, Ella? OR NOTHING BECAUSE YOU'RE IN THE HALLWAY OF YOUR SCHOOL AND HE'S NOT GONNA BANG YOU THERE.
You also witness deep thoughts like :
"It's really not fair how hot this guy is. And he's got this whole bad boy vibe that I'm not usually into, but for some reason, it makes him even hotter. I guess I like bad boys."
I don't even know what to say.
So, there are no Princes, no Princesses and no Crowns in Paper Princess. Just a bunch of horny young people, and a horny Creepy Dad.
On top of that, the book's ending claims a cliffhanger. Wow. I CAN'T. WAIT. Please hold me back.
Never again will I start a book without reading the blurb correctly or checking a review or two. Because what I got was the lousiest, tackiest, most unhealthy NA contemporary romance I ever had the chance to read so far. (except you, Abomination )
Remember what I was complaining about? "Please stop those six-pack book covers"? Well, I take it back. Please keep them so we can actually KNOW what we're getting into.
So goodbye princes and victorian drama. Think about this book as Gossip Girl meets Mean Girls meets a low budget erotica film.
It's about Ella, an orphan stripper (yes) who's forced to go to live with the Royals. Yes, that is their actual name. She's basically kidnapped by his legal guardian, her dead dad's super rich best friend, to live in a manor that she will have to share with him, Gold Digger Girlfriend and the five sons he had with Deceased Wife : Irrelevant, Douchy, Almost Fun But Not Really and The Useless Twins.
For unclear reasons, the five sons hate Ella and decide to make her life a living hell.
Also, this is a book about abs. No need to say that all the five sons are hot as models and total sex gods. The abs thing should be an obvious deduction, but it has to be specified. ABS. ABS EVERYWHERE. I'm pretty sure it's to make up for the lack of abs on the cover.
SPOILERS, OBVIOULSY But really, who cares?
The dad is certainly, by far, the best character of this book. Have you ever watched One Tree Hill? Remember Dan Scott? The Shittiest Dad of All Shitty Dads? The Dad who's an insult to the word "father"? Well, if I had to be adopted and had the choice between Callum Royal and Dan Scott, I'd pick Dan anytime! At least Dan was cray-cray fun...
Callum Royal, subsequently called Creepy Dad, is the most awkward and unhealthy father EVER.
Not only does he regularly fuck around the house with Gold Digger under the nose of his sons but plays on the fact that he's a heartbroken widow to justify him lusting around like a perv. His relationship with his sons is, to say the least, completely fucked-up but enough with the serious analysis because come on, this book is garbage and therefore makes no sense.
So on some pages, you wonder if Creepy Dad is some kind of borderline pedophile because his sons seems to hate when he's around Ella ("he likes them young" says one of the sons to Ella - EW!), especially when he's putting his arm around her shoulders for no reason.
The next minute, Creepy Dad is compared to "a lonely puppy" or a clichéd wannabe-daddy who's super excited and pees his pants when he learns Ella made a friend at school?
Creepy Dad also has a problem with alcohol, which lead us to this tremendous scene between his sons and him, after seeing Ella hungover at breakfast (actual quotes in italic):
Almost Fun But Not Really : "you're a drunk"
Creepy Dad : "That's enough, Almost Fun But Not Really!"
Almost Fun But Not Really : "Hey just pointing out the hypocrisy, Dad. And, apparently, the double standards. You don't give a shit when any of us get wasted, so why can't Ella?"
*Creepy Dad pauses and thinks about it for a minute*
Creepy Dad : "I guess I should be happy that you all are sticking up for each other now."
I have to slow clap to that, Creepy Dad! Of all the things you could and should have said, this was not one of them! You're priceless though, don't change a thing because without you in this book, I would have DNFed it.
Don't look for any coherence, it doesn't matter. Creepy Dad is a tool to create tension and bumps on the oh-so-angsty-and-lusty road walked by Ella and Douchy (and also Almost Fun But Not Really for some time because apparently, it's not a problem to put your own tongue where your brother's has been yesterday).
Ella would have been an okay MC if it was not for her very quick tendency to excuse the rude, aggressive and douchy behaviour of any Royal. Because they're Royals. They treat her like shit but she always find a good excuse for them.
HEY, CLUMSY AUTHOR! If you want us to like your characters, don't create obnoxious pricks! Because it's clearly not "Ella is weak and likes to be bullied", it's "I wanted to write complex characters and failed, so I make my MC understand their attitude so the reader will forgive them too." NOPE. THEY'RE STILL JERKS.
Ella is not a character, it's the voice of the author. So Ella loves the Royals even if she met them 4 hours ago. But she also hates them. Whatever.
Douchy now. He's supposed to be the guy you swoon for. He's got abs (no shit), he's the hottest guy on the planet, he got a - and I quote - magic tongue. Blahblahblah. Well, Douchy, I have only one word for you : MEH.
The book is basically a succession of "Ella is horny for Douchy" moments. You have to cope with sentences like :
"He looks so hot in his untucked uniform shirt that I have to force myself to look away."
Or what? He's so hot that you have to force yourself to look away or what, Ella? OR NOTHING BECAUSE YOU'RE IN THE HALLWAY OF YOUR SCHOOL AND HE'S NOT GONNA BANG YOU THERE.
You also witness deep thoughts like :
"It's really not fair how hot this guy is. And he's got this whole bad boy vibe that I'm not usually into, but for some reason, it makes him even hotter. I guess I like bad boys."
I don't even know what to say.
So, there are no Princes, no Princesses and no Crowns in Paper Princess. Just a bunch of horny young people, and a horny Creepy Dad.
On top of that, the book's ending claims a cliffhanger. Wow. I CAN'T. WAIT. Please hold me back.
April 4, 2016
Title: Paper Princess
Series: The Royals #1
Author: Erin Watt (Elle Kennedy and Jen Frederick)
Release date: April 4, 2016
Cliffhanger: Yes
HEA
This book surprised the hell out of me. I'm just going to put that out there right from the start. I knew that this was written by two of my most trusted authors, so I was willing to give this book a chance regardless of what the blurb was. But I didn't know how this would completely draw me in from page one.
There were several things about the story that would have normally made me pause before requesting a copy. Not only is it YA (which I rarely read), it has the type of hero that doesn't always work for me. Just my personal preference, I know a lot of readers go for the asshole hero every time, but I'm very, very picky when it comes to that. These authors weaved their magic for me because they made me addicted and desperate for more of Ella and Reed's love/hate
What made me accept Reed's attitude and behavior? A combination of the spellbinding writing and the heroine who doesn't take one ounce of his shit.
I loved this girl. LOVED For every hit he tried to make with her, she hit back just as hard, or harder. She's seen more struggle and tragedy than most people see in a lifetime. And it's made her tough-a fighter. Living in the Royal's house and inner circle, it's a life skill that she desperately needs.
Ella comes to live with Reed when his father becomes her guardian. She never knew her father, and her mother recently passed away from cancer. She's an (underage) ex-stripper, supporting herself through high school trying to find a way to a better life. Then Callum comes along and whisks her away to a whole new world. A world of privilege, excess, and people who are most likely to hug her with a smile while they stab her in the back and laugh. She's learned some valuable life lessons through all her hardship, though, and one thing she knows is that the fairytale is an illusion. Trust is something she doesn't know the meaning of.
This will never be my home. I don't belong in splendor, I belong in squalor. That's what I know. It's what I'm comfortable with because squalor doesn't lie to you. It's not wrapped up in a pretty package. It is what it is.
The five Royal boys are what I would describe as entitled teens with a god complex. Not only do they have power over their father, but they hold court as the monarchs of their private school. No one dares to question or cross them. Until Ella came to town. This was one of the most addictive parts of the story for me. Seeing this power struggle between Elle and the Lion's Den that she landed in. Though she had moments of intimidation, she never backed away from any of their challenges. She was witty, strong, and had an overall unique character with a fascinating personality.
If you're hoping for a hearts and flowers type of romance, you won't find that here. Reed can be downright despicable and intolerable at the best of times. He uses his mother's death as a free pass to cause havoc on anyone whom he sees fit. That being said, it didn't deter me one bit from the story as it played out in its grim glory. There were manipulations around every corner and I blissfully ate it up with a spoon.
All the power play between Ella and Reed developed into the kind of ripe sexual tension that readers dream of. It was positively decadent and made my heart flutter. It was passionate. Thrilling. It had my heart racing and turning the pages until I saw that tension reach its breaking point.
To sum things up, I was thoroughly ensconced in this glittering world of privilege and wealth. That glitter concealed a whole lot of depravity and sins. I took off half a point from my rating because of the events that occurred right before the cliffy. My jaw dropped and I was ready to kick Reed in his gold plated nuts. I'm really hoping that what happened wasn't what it appeared. (Though that seems pretty impossible)
Paper Princess was a far cry from your typical YA book, maybe that's one of the things I enjoyed about it the most. It was bold and brilliantly executed. Now after that horrendous cliffy, I'm just going to pretend that I don't have to wait until this summer to continue with the insanity with the Royals. I don't think I'll have the patience otherwise.
May 4, 2016
Paper Princess is the result from a collaboration between two erotica or more exactly new adult authors Jen Frederick, author of Sacked (never read it) and Elle Kennedy author of a book I really like The Deal trying and failing to ultimately write a YA romance.
I said that they failed because the book is 100% New adult and for me, it wasn't romantic. At times it even touches taboo territory, more specifically rape, pedophilia and dubious consent, features that you would expect come from the erotica genre. I normally don't have problem with teens reading adult material. I started reading hentai in my fresh year of highschool and I know I wasn't the only one. But I read this book expecting a cute, young adult romance featuring a badass heroine. Instead I found a heroine that goes from really strong to meek, weak and TSTL (too stupid to live) who doesn't speak her mind against rape as long as it is not against her. She even apologizes to that Savannah girl after she practically threw her to the lions.
What I hated the most was the cold approach to rape that was used in this book.
Contrast the offhand attitude of the royal twins, and even worst, the main character Ella who thinks that rape is a laughing matter with the tear-jerker and emotional depiction of the real pain that comes from pushing consent that you can find books like The Coincidence of Callie & Kayden, Hopeless, The V Girl, SpeakRape Girl, Wait for You
Rape is not a laughing matter. It's a crime that shreds the lives of those who suffer it. Perhaps if I hadn't read Rape Girl I would feel differently. I just can't stand the way this was trivialized in this book.
I'm talking about several scenes in this book, not an isolated incident. I practically puked the moment when two twin teenage boys trick a 15 YO girl into sleeping with the other twin switching personalities. She's dating a twin and consents to have sex with him, but with the other twin she needs to be tricked if said twin wants to take her to bed. That's rape. And it's very difficult to sympathize with the heroine when she laughs at this and promises that she won't prevent the unsuspecting girl.
Now, If I had been ready to read a mature book, an adult book that portrays unlikeable twisted characters I might have understood this. But this book was offered to sale to me through amazon Young adult recommendations.
Unfortunately, this is not the only instance of rape taken as a laughing matter. Later in the book a guy drugs the heroine and is about to rape her. Good thing Hero appears right? But no, hero has sexual activity with our underage heroine. Later he asks her if that's okay, and she says "yes, I wanted to" but even though she wanted to, it was an effect of the drugs she consumed at a party. That's rape even if she says it isn't because she is
a) underage and her partner is not
b) under the effects of drugs.
I think that because the authors are more used to write erotica, a genre that pushes boundaries and feeds on taboo, they just didn't know when to stop. Or they don't care if unsuspecting teens read this material as long as these authors keep making the NYT bestseller lists. New adult is a crowded market, but if a couple of authors bring their erotica fanbase, have them rate their book 5 stars and they also bring new readers from the YA genre, they can increase their sales. If that's the caSE, if that's the intention (not saying it is) I hope they one day regret what they did. It's not cool and since both of them are best-selling authors I think this was unnecessary. This is a new adult book almost an adult book so don't try to pass it as a teen read. Or at the very least add a trigger warning for rape scenes.
The romance aspect didn't work for me because of this. Hero and heroine, up until that moment didn't bond beyond of lusting for each other, nothing made me feel like that they are falling in love and the off-hand attitude the couple takes toward the rape attempt by the villain and the real rape that happens with the hero is just anti-romantic.
Another thing I didn't like is how the heroine starts the book really strong. I really liked her, then she meets hero and she becomes a Mary Sue. Bella Swan from twilight never obeyed Edward as much as Ella obeys reed.
Rather than stay in Easton’s cabin, Reed walks next door and gestures for me to follow him inside.
I stay put, crossing my arms. “What do you want?”
“To talk.”
“Then talk here.”
“Get in here, Ella.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
I drop my arms and walk into the cabin. Something about this guy…he issues a command and I obey.
Seriously? She walks into a cabin with a guy she doesn't know? one who had threaten to rape her? When his twin brothers have proved that they don't value women? Not only that, she makes out with another of the brothers. I was at least expecting that the relationship between these two damaged people was growing into a dark romance, but she was too flickery for even that. Moving from one brother to the other.
Then there's this moment when the royals are planning a revenge that is so unbelievable. Not even a drugged guy would fall for that plan. I know there's an audience for the book, because it's dramatic and gritty, but the moment TSTLness showed her ugly teeth and the rape issues, I lost interest.
You'll see a lot of 5 reviews for this one, but remember that this is not a debut author. Both authors have already eager readers that will support their books, so take the five reviews with a grain of salt. Mine too. I might be too biased against rape to appreciate this book.
Read, if you are curious. I don't think you'll get bored, it's compelling and gritty, but hopefully you'll get annoyed and will report to Amazon that they are selling teenporn in the teen category instead of the New adult category.
I said that they failed because the book is 100% New adult and for me, it wasn't romantic. At times it even touches taboo territory, more specifically rape, pedophilia and dubious consent, features that you would expect come from the erotica genre. I normally don't have problem with teens reading adult material. I started reading hentai in my fresh year of highschool and I know I wasn't the only one. But I read this book expecting a cute, young adult romance featuring a badass heroine. Instead I found a heroine that goes from really strong to meek, weak and TSTL (too stupid to live) who doesn't speak her mind against rape as long as it is not against her. She even apologizes to that Savannah girl after she practically threw her to the lions.
What I hated the most was the cold approach to rape that was used in this book.
Contrast the offhand attitude of the royal twins, and even worst, the main character Ella who thinks that rape is a laughing matter with the tear-jerker and emotional depiction of the real pain that comes from pushing consent that you can find books like The Coincidence of Callie & Kayden, Hopeless, The V Girl, SpeakRape Girl, Wait for You
Rape is not a laughing matter. It's a crime that shreds the lives of those who suffer it. Perhaps if I hadn't read Rape Girl I would feel differently. I just can't stand the way this was trivialized in this book.
I'm talking about several scenes in this book, not an isolated incident. I practically puked the moment when two twin teenage boys trick a 15 YO girl into sleeping with the other twin switching personalities. She's dating a twin and consents to have sex with him, but with the other twin she needs to be tricked if said twin wants to take her to bed. That's rape. And it's very difficult to sympathize with the heroine when she laughs at this and promises that she won't prevent the unsuspecting girl.
Now, If I had been ready to read a mature book, an adult book that portrays unlikeable twisted characters I might have understood this. But this book was offered to sale to me through amazon Young adult recommendations.
Unfortunately, this is not the only instance of rape taken as a laughing matter. Later in the book a guy drugs the heroine and is about to rape her. Good thing Hero appears right? But no, hero has sexual activity with our underage heroine. Later he asks her if that's okay, and she says "yes, I wanted to" but even though she wanted to, it was an effect of the drugs she consumed at a party. That's rape even if she says it isn't because she is
a) underage and her partner is not
b) under the effects of drugs.
I think that because the authors are more used to write erotica, a genre that pushes boundaries and feeds on taboo, they just didn't know when to stop. Or they don't care if unsuspecting teens read this material as long as these authors keep making the NYT bestseller lists. New adult is a crowded market, but if a couple of authors bring their erotica fanbase, have them rate their book 5 stars and they also bring new readers from the YA genre, they can increase their sales. If that's the caSE, if that's the intention (not saying it is) I hope they one day regret what they did. It's not cool and since both of them are best-selling authors I think this was unnecessary. This is a new adult book almost an adult book so don't try to pass it as a teen read. Or at the very least add a trigger warning for rape scenes.
The romance aspect didn't work for me because of this. Hero and heroine, up until that moment didn't bond beyond of lusting for each other, nothing made me feel like that they are falling in love and the off-hand attitude the couple takes toward the rape attempt by the villain and the real rape that happens with the hero is just anti-romantic.
Another thing I didn't like is how the heroine starts the book really strong. I really liked her, then she meets hero and she becomes a Mary Sue. Bella Swan from twilight never obeyed Edward as much as Ella obeys reed.
Rather than stay in Easton’s cabin, Reed walks next door and gestures for me to follow him inside.
I stay put, crossing my arms. “What do you want?”
“To talk.”
“Then talk here.”
“Get in here, Ella.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
I drop my arms and walk into the cabin. Something about this guy…he issues a command and I obey.
Seriously? She walks into a cabin with a guy she doesn't know? one who had threaten to rape her? When his twin brothers have proved that they don't value women? Not only that, she makes out with another of the brothers. I was at least expecting that the relationship between these two damaged people was growing into a dark romance, but she was too flickery for even that. Moving from one brother to the other.
Then there's this moment when the royals are planning a revenge that is so unbelievable. Not even a drugged guy would fall for that plan. I know there's an audience for the book, because it's dramatic and gritty, but the moment TSTLness showed her ugly teeth and the rape issues, I lost interest.
You'll see a lot of 5 reviews for this one, but remember that this is not a debut author. Both authors have already eager readers that will support their books, so take the five reviews with a grain of salt. Mine too. I might be too biased against rape to appreciate this book.
Read, if you are curious. I don't think you'll get bored, it's compelling and gritty, but hopefully you'll get annoyed and will report to Amazon that they are selling teenporn in the teen category instead of the New adult category.
April 4, 2016
NOW LIVE! http://amzn.to/1qkoZzP
Where to begin???? Paper Princess was like Cruel Intentions, Gossip Girl, and some crazy ass soap opera all mixed into one. AND I LOVED IT! Angst and drama galore! If you're looking for a read with:
-Revenge plots
-Sex and lust and hate
-Crazy high school drama
-Family secrets
-A feisty heroine who falls for her kinda/sorta step brother who is a total asshole when he's not being sexy as all hell
...then this right here is it. Take note though - this has been marked as YA/NA. And while majority of the main characters are in their teens, TRUST me when I say the situations in here are more along Rated R territory.
So what's the crazy world of the Royals all about?
Ella is living on her own after her mother passing away and never having known her father. To support herself along with saving up for college, she is forced to resort to stripping and dancing for money. Did I mention Ella is 17? Yep. A TEENAGER taking care of herself and doing whatever she can to survive.
Insert Callum Royal, best friend to Ella's deceased father. Once he learns of Ella's existence, he makes it his mission to take her under his wing and treat her as the daughter he never had. But Callum's 5 sons, (Gideon, Reed, Easton, Sebastian and Sawyer) are NOT having it. They all believe Ella comes to live with them for more scandalous reasons and make it their mission to make her so uncomfortable she is forced to leave.
Reed, the second oldest at 18 and pretty much the leader of the boys (and his entire school), takes a special interest in Ella. And by special interest, I mean he totally tries to hate her but winds up wanting in her pants.
...he pulls out and glides a hand over my thigh. "I'm going to make this feel so good for you."
"I already feel good," I protest, drawing up my legs.
A cocky, familiar grin shines up at me.
"You haven't seen anything yet."
Yep. I love an 18 year old named Reed Royal and I don't care if you're judging me. Go ahead. Because once you read about this boy you'll be a part of the Reed Fan Club right along side me.
But does he really care for Ella? Is he using her as a pawn in some grand scheme? YOU JUST DON'T KNOW!
"The apple is dangling in front of me, juicy red and delicious, but, like the fairy tale, Reed Royal is the villain disguised as a pretty prince. Taking a bite out of him would be a huge mistake."
Andddddddddddd then that's when all the crazy starts to happen. Between the lust-filled moments, the revenge, and the twists, my head was spinning! Once I finished, my mind was reeling with theories, trying to figure out who is in on what, what everyone's motives really are, who's lying, who's being set up. And I am STILL thinking about it. I loved every single character in this (I didn't forget you Easton. You stole my heart!), both good and evil.
Be warned: This does end on a cliffhanger that caused me to almost throw my kindle across the room. I immediately messaged a friend where we began to swap theories on what the hell is going on for almost an hour. It was that good and it will suck you in just as much, I can guarantee it.
This was such an amazing start to what will definitely be an incredible series. I just know I will be thinking about this non-stop until the second book is out.
ADD THIS DRAMA FILLED BABY TO YOUR TBR NOW.
For a sneak peek at a few sample chapters of Paper Princess :
https://www.wattpad.com/story/6614116...
Short book trailer I made:
https://www.facebook.com/TheCrazyWorl...
Paper Princess is out NOW!
Find Me On:
Instagram ❤ FB ❤ Blog
Where to begin???? Paper Princess was like Cruel Intentions, Gossip Girl, and some crazy ass soap opera all mixed into one. AND I LOVED IT! Angst and drama galore! If you're looking for a read with:
-Revenge plots
-Sex and lust and hate
-Crazy high school drama
-Family secrets
-A feisty heroine who falls for her kinda/sorta step brother who is a total asshole when he's not being sexy as all hell
...then this right here is it. Take note though - this has been marked as YA/NA. And while majority of the main characters are in their teens, TRUST me when I say the situations in here are more along Rated R territory.
So what's the crazy world of the Royals all about?
Ella is living on her own after her mother passing away and never having known her father. To support herself along with saving up for college, she is forced to resort to stripping and dancing for money. Did I mention Ella is 17? Yep. A TEENAGER taking care of herself and doing whatever she can to survive.
Insert Callum Royal, best friend to Ella's deceased father. Once he learns of Ella's existence, he makes it his mission to take her under his wing and treat her as the daughter he never had. But Callum's 5 sons, (Gideon, Reed, Easton, Sebastian and Sawyer) are NOT having it. They all believe Ella comes to live with them for more scandalous reasons and make it their mission to make her so uncomfortable she is forced to leave.
Reed, the second oldest at 18 and pretty much the leader of the boys (and his entire school), takes a special interest in Ella. And by special interest, I mean he totally tries to hate her but winds up wanting in her pants.
...he pulls out and glides a hand over my thigh. "I'm going to make this feel so good for you."
"I already feel good," I protest, drawing up my legs.
A cocky, familiar grin shines up at me.
"You haven't seen anything yet."
Yep. I love an 18 year old named Reed Royal and I don't care if you're judging me. Go ahead. Because once you read about this boy you'll be a part of the Reed Fan Club right along side me.
But does he really care for Ella? Is he using her as a pawn in some grand scheme? YOU JUST DON'T KNOW!
"The apple is dangling in front of me, juicy red and delicious, but, like the fairy tale, Reed Royal is the villain disguised as a pretty prince. Taking a bite out of him would be a huge mistake."
Andddddddddddd then that's when all the crazy starts to happen. Between the lust-filled moments, the revenge, and the twists, my head was spinning! Once I finished, my mind was reeling with theories, trying to figure out who is in on what, what everyone's motives really are, who's lying, who's being set up. And I am STILL thinking about it. I loved every single character in this (I didn't forget you Easton. You stole my heart!), both good and evil.
Be warned: This does end on a cliffhanger that caused me to almost throw my kindle across the room. I immediately messaged a friend where we began to swap theories on what the hell is going on for almost an hour. It was that good and it will suck you in just as much, I can guarantee it.
This was such an amazing start to what will definitely be an incredible series. I just know I will be thinking about this non-stop until the second book is out.
ADD THIS DRAMA FILLED BABY TO YOUR TBR NOW.
For a sneak peek at a few sample chapters of Paper Princess :
https://www.wattpad.com/story/6614116...
Short book trailer I made:
https://www.facebook.com/TheCrazyWorl...
Paper Princess is out NOW!
Find Me On:
Instagram ❤ FB ❤ Blog
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