Review: Nestled in a Book's Review of Veiled Innocence
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 7, 2014
4.5 StarsWow! What did I just read?! I can barely form a coherent thought right now. I don’t know what I expected out of this book, all I know is that was not it.Okay, let me attempt to review this one. First of all, let me just say that this is one of those books that is extremely hard to talk about because there’s not much I can say without taking away from the story or spoiling it.In case you didn’t know, Veiled Innocence is a teacher/student forbidden love story, which right away makes me nervous. The premise always intrigues me but there are certain elements that have to be present and a certain way the story has to be written to avoid that ick factor. Ella Frank does. You also have to be careful of glorifying sensitive subject matter such as this. Ella Frank doesn’t.[I looked at her—she looked at me. My ending, staring right at me from the very beginning.]Nothing about this story is glorified. The whole time you are on pins and needles, your stomach in a ball of knots, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Someone to walk around the corner or into the room, someone to catch on to a shared look, or overhear a hushed conversation. I had clammy palms through roughly 80% of this book.[“I never knew that I’d risk everything, even my freedom, just to touch someone. Just to touch you.”]Part of what takes away a bit of the ick factor is that the student, Addison Lancaster, is eighteen years old and a high school senior. Her history teacher, Grayson McKendrick, is thirty-two. Fourteen years is a sizable age difference, especially at that stage in Addison’s life, but it’s not unheard of. The other thing that you learn is that Addison has dealt with a lot of tragedy and pain that makes her a bit more than just a delusional teenage girl.Another thing that keeps Grayson from being a villain is the fact that he isn’t a mentally ill monster or sex predator. He’s actually the one being pursued. Relentlessly. To the point of obsession and being stalked. And while he should have said no and kept saying no, you never hate him. In fact, you root for them.[It wasn’t wrong. No—it was just misunderstood.]But the whole book contains a sense of foreboding, a menacing dark cloud in the distance. It leaves you feeling that every tick, tick, tock is the sound of their time running out. And when it does… brace yourself.In fact, I think if I had to sum up this book in one sentence or give any piece of advice to someone about to read this book, it would be exactly that. Brace yourself.