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| #TheRulesOfRebellion |
Hello! Welcome to the next stop on The Rules of Rebellion blog tour hosted by Entangled Publishing. I'm really happy to share my thoughts on this book with you, as well as an excerpt from the story! The Rules of Rebellion was released into the world on April 2nd and can be found here.
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1. Skinny dip (her idea)
2. Stargaze (his idea)
3. Prank someone (her idea)
4. Go on a date (his idea)
Leo Zimmerman has had a crush on his curvy friend Kylie Jenkins since forever, so when he discovers the girl with a flair for candy making has a newfound plan to rebel against her overbearing parents, he’s determined to be the one to help her carry it out. Who better than himself to show her the ropes of letting loose?
Sure, taking her to her first high school party, helping her sneak out of the house, or watching a sunset together isn’t exactly a hardship, but much harder is masking his feelings the more time they spend together. And when he suggests adding “a first date” to Kylie’s plan and she accepts…suddenly all his dreams seem to be coming true.
But Leo’s got a secret that could change everything between them, and it’s only a matter of time before it comes to the surface.
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I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is my first book by Amity Hope! The Rules of Rebellion was cute and managed to tackle a tough topic: bullying. In high school, Kylie's sister was body-shamed and bullied so intensely, she begged her parents to let her move in with an aunt. I liked that the author addressed such a serious issue, and brought attention to something so important.
As for the story itself, I started off incredibly confused. Kylie has three older siblings, three girlfriends with three boyfriends, and then Leo. Leo also has three or four older siblings, so it all became a bit too much. There were a lot of names being thrown around in the beginning, and I kept getting them mixed up. Was Meg dating Adam, Nate or Luke? Which guy lived out of town? Did he date Julia or Maddie? Wait, no... Maddie was one of the sisters...
I was almost finished with the book before I started to sort people out. It didn't help that the secondary characters (other than Allie) didn't get addressed very often. They were just fluff for the story and didn't really have any defining characteristics of their own. I think if they had been fleshed out a tad more, I wouldn't have felt so lost when names were tossed around.
I will admit to being super judgmental of Kylie's parents. They wanted to control every male aspect of their daughter's lives, and I felt like they went a little overboard. You can tell two teenagers to keep their hands in "safe places" until you are blue in the face, but you can't watch them forever. I'm pretty sure hands will wander, because that's what teenagers (and adults) do. I think parents should trust their kids, and be confident in their ability to make good decisions. They shouldn't be terrified to bring a love interest home with them.
However, Maddie's circumstances did warrant a little extra protectiveness, and I can see why her parents were on edge when it came to boys. It just sucked for all of Maddie's sisters.
I loved the idea of having a list to cross off. I am a big fan of lists and love how it feels when I complete one. It's like I've accomplished something spectacular! I wish I had made lists like this in high school, because I think it might have made me take a few more chances and try new things.
Leo was adorable, and I loved his projects. I think he and I would have gotten along smashingly, but only after I punched his dad in the face. He's sweet, considerate, but lacked the ability to say what was important. A little more honestly on both sides, and this book would have turned out a lot differently.
This review got away from me, so I guess I had more to say than I thought. I liked the book and thought it was fun, but I wasn't wowed by their story. There were too many things nagging at me while I read this, so it took away from my overall enjoyment.
As for the story itself, I started off incredibly confused. Kylie has three older siblings, three girlfriends with three boyfriends, and then Leo. Leo also has three or four older siblings, so it all became a bit too much. There were a lot of names being thrown around in the beginning, and I kept getting them mixed up. Was Meg dating Adam, Nate or Luke? Which guy lived out of town? Did he date Julia or Maddie? Wait, no... Maddie was one of the sisters...
I was almost finished with the book before I started to sort people out. It didn't help that the secondary characters (other than Allie) didn't get addressed very often. They were just fluff for the story and didn't really have any defining characteristics of their own. I think if they had been fleshed out a tad more, I wouldn't have felt so lost when names were tossed around.
I will admit to being super judgmental of Kylie's parents. They wanted to control every male aspect of their daughter's lives, and I felt like they went a little overboard. You can tell two teenagers to keep their hands in "safe places" until you are blue in the face, but you can't watch them forever. I'm pretty sure hands will wander, because that's what teenagers (and adults) do. I think parents should trust their kids, and be confident in their ability to make good decisions. They shouldn't be terrified to bring a love interest home with them.
However, Maddie's circumstances did warrant a little extra protectiveness, and I can see why her parents were on edge when it came to boys. It just sucked for all of Maddie's sisters.
I loved the idea of having a list to cross off. I am a big fan of lists and love how it feels when I complete one. It's like I've accomplished something spectacular! I wish I had made lists like this in high school, because I think it might have made me take a few more chances and try new things.
Leo was adorable, and I loved his projects. I think he and I would have gotten along smashingly, but only after I punched his dad in the face. He's sweet, considerate, but lacked the ability to say what was important. A little more honestly on both sides, and this book would have turned out a lot differently.
This review got away from me, so I guess I had more to say than I thought. I liked the book and thought it was fun, but I wasn't wowed by their story. There were too many things nagging at me while I read this, so it took away from my overall enjoyment.
