Review: Very Awful Things-
Rating: 1 out of 5
Date: 05 17, 2014
One of the worst books I have read in a long time.....Where to start?There are absolutely no redeeming qualities about Cuba-(stupid name…) the main male lead in this book. Oh, he has a rough life, oh something horrible happened to his family, oh he is rich- like way rich, oh he is hot, of he is the star of the football team, etc. This would be fine- well not fine, but tolerable, instead I read through the whole book thinking that something, anything would change him (I say this because this is the current theme in these NA and YA books, that a girl will change the boy for the good) and even though this method is overused and often done poorly, I would’ve accepted it here- but nothing like this happened. There are a few slivers of him trying to be a ‘good guy’ but it’s a little too late and annoying. SLIGHT SPOILER: Cuba helps a girl who is essentially his ‘booty call’ when she gets pregnant- but doesn’t now the father and then forgives Dovey for selling herself to pay of a debt- is this supposed to show the reader how mature he is? Or that he is somehow just misunderstood? Oh he sold his car for her- he is so great and mature he loves her sooo much- puke. END SPOILER Cuba is a character that had potential to be a reformed, complicated, redeemed character, instead I just hated him- the things he does, how he talks, the way he jerks around Dovey, his friends, and how little he values himself throughout- I mean if you are writing a character on the cusp of manhood at some point he has to make the transition and grow the eff up.Dovey (stupid name....) is almost as bad as Cuba. Dovey starts as this strong, take nothing from Cuba and indifferent to the BA school and its people- she ends as the complete opposite of who she is set-up to be- if that even makes sense. The beginning is riddled with she is tough yet sweet, witty and smart and she has struggled her whole life to be where she is and somehow a few weeks with Cuba and she has lost the essence of who she is. That is the BIGGEST problem with this book- once character changes and one does not change in the slightest. I am not saying characters must change in a book- but something like this when the story is so character driven there has to be some sort of quid-pro-quo. What the author writes for Dovey is quite awful and I am not sure what the angle was with it. Are we supposed to believe that Dovey is this martyr for her ‘family’ and that excuses what she does? I don’t buy it. Ridiculous.Overall: Steer clear of this one. There are no redeeming characters here. Having the mob involved to make them the obvious villain of the story is lazy and stupid. There was enough drama here (not in a good way) that this part was unnecessary. Sometimes shock is a plot tool- here is was just irresponsible.The story is frustrating, lacks honesty and consistency.Moderate amounts of drug and alcohol use and distribution speak.High levels of language, sexuality (including talk of abortion and threesomes) and prostitution all involving teens.