Saturday 16 August 2014

Review ~ All About You (Love & Hate #1) by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

Reviewed by Donna ~ 3.5 Stars

“Oliver. That name rolls in my head like a snooker ball. It curls my toes and increases my heartbeat. It’s like a poison that crawls into my pores and wrecks my body. His name brings on both good and bad within me. It’s the name that I have been trying to forget for the past two years.”

Being a trawler of Facebook I came across a thread posted on several pages that I am a follower of…you know the ones…can anyone remember the name of this book…the plot goes like this…Well I read the plot, I thought darn…I want to read this book…I started posting and asking people and eventually we got the answer. So I 1clicked and started reading…

Please do not be deterred by the 3.5 star rating, I really loved this book and it would have been a solid 4 star read had it not been for quite a few “errors,” I am by no means the grammar police, but when there are a lot of misspelled or incorrect words used you have to reflect that in your rating. All this book needs to make it perfect is a decent edit/proof read, but even with those littered mistakes it did not take away any enjoyment I had from reading this book.

Bullying is a sore subject; unfortunately it still remains a huge part of everyday life and is a subject that remains close to my heart to this day. Having been a victim of bullying at school I am all too aware of the pain and distress that bullying causes and call me sadistic but I love to read these types of books. Yes it does bring back painful memories, but I can relate and I can understand and even though this is fiction I cannot help but feel the need to help…I know I am sad!!

This story is about Oliver and India, these two have a love/hate relationship, they love to hate each other, yet they hate that they love each other…I know you are wondering…what??? These two have history and it goes back a couple of years. You are not treated to the full story in one hit, but slowly but surely India’s past is eked out through the pages. Oliver had a brother called Christian, Christian was the golden child, and his mum thought he was perfect…but we all know that appearances can be deceptive! Seeing that his brother had shown a flicker of interest in India, Christian nabbed her in spite before shy and quiet Oliver could make his move. Christian then continued to flaunt it in his face for years. Oliver and India were friends but there was always that underlying spark that both of them knew was there, yet never acted upon because India was with Christian. Christian changed as their relationship progressed and just as things were being sorted out, something happened that would forever change Oliver and India’s relationship.

India goes from Oliver’s friend to Oliver’s worst enemy, making his life a living nightmare at school. Incessant bullying leaves Oliver wondering what the hell happened. How could someone that he saw as a close friend go from love to hate? This was refreshing as it was the boy that was bullied by a girl. We all know that girls can be mean and cruel to other girls but I had not seen the roles reversed and this was a totally different insight. The end of Oliver’s bullying only comes about by his move to university when he leaves without trace.

India starts University and is shocked when she runs into Oliver on campus, he was supposed to be at a different University, but now he was here…and he has a new mission…revenge! The roles are now reversed…Oliver is no longer the shy, quiet boy that hides to keep out of the limelight. Oliver is the limelight…he is the most popular guy, handsome and a player. Their paths have crossed once more and now Oliver is intent to make India pay.

“I’m afraid to touch him, to make a connection with his body. Christian was a monster, and Oliver is a man who desires his payback. He wants to break me, though, not caring that we were friends once before.”

I cannot say any more as this where the book starts and I don’t want to give too much away, all I can say is that I want more!! I need to read the next book as this story is far from over and I am going to be hounding the author for details. After reading this book from start to finish you see how India has changed, how life changed her, then how her recovery changed her for the better. She is determined to be a better person. She is taken off balance seeing Oliver and even more so when she realises that those flickers that she had for Oliver before are fast becoming flames.

Oliver wants to hate her, feels the need to hate her, but even while acting out his revenge he cannot damp down those feelings. He loved her years ago and much to his disgust his heart seems to be interfering with his head. He is determined not to let his heart win, but can he really be that cruel? Or has what has happened in the past, scarred him so much, that his heart doesn’t stand a chance in winning this particular battle.

This book is full of twists and turns, it was an addictive page turning read and even though I knew that there was another book after this one, I was happy with the ending. Yes, I was left wanting more, but this just shows that the author has done her job. She pulls you into their story and you cannot help but become engrossed in this sad story. Great start to this series, I cannot wait for more.

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