Thursday, March 24, 2016

Rebel Bully Geek Pariah

Rebel Bully Geek Pariah

Rebel, Bully, Geek, Pariah is a book I wanted to read after seeing a reference to The Breakfast Club. Yes, I was skeptical, but the idea of four high schoolers who are thrown together to survive a crazy night appealed to me. Four high schoolers who are about as different as you can be. Sam is the POV and she wants nothing more than to stay out of sight and not be noticed- her mother is a recovering drug addict and has been in and out of prison, and Sam's life has been a mess as a result. A chance encounter with Andi, a dreadlocked former popular girl leads to a party that is rousted by the cops, and together with York and Boston (two brothers who are total opposites) they find themselves suddenly on the run from police and in for the night of their lives.

Like I said I was cautiously optimistic but skeptical at the same time. I can say however that this one worked for me and I'm glad I read it. Is the Breakfast Club comparison apt? Actually it is - some of the same touching moments are here as four young people who have nothing in common are forced together and find that  maybe they're not so different after all. This is no detention though- the stakes are a little higher here involving cops that may be crooked and some decisions they make that could have serious consequences. It's a fast paced story and and strikes a nice balance between thriller and coming of age story.

It's funny at times too. Sam is likable enough and I felt for her with everything she's been through. Andi the former queen bee has a lot of issues and over time we find out what has caused her star to fall, while York and Boston are a former football player and a geek younger brother respectively. York has a little depth and I felt the author did a good job bringing him to life while Boston didn't work as well for me- I found him a little irritating, the only one of the four that I didn't really care for. Still the dynamics between the four of them are compelling, and while this story is a bit unrealistic I still enjoyed it a lot.

There's a sequence roughly in the middle of the book where the four of them are spending time together as they plan their next move, and I thought it was really well done. I already enjoyed it for the thriller aspect but the characterizations there cemented my admiration for the book. I cared about these characters (except maybe for Boston) and I loved how they stuck together- they chose each other when the chips were down. There's a scene at the end of The Breakfast Club where these diverse personalities have become friends- and I got that same feeling from this book.

16 comments:

  1. I am glad to see you enjoyed this. I feel like I have seen some mixed review - maybe because the Breakfast Club comparison through people off or set expectations too high. I like that there is a thriller aspect. Great review!

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    1. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this but I ended up enjoying it. The suspenseful parts appealed to me and made it more than just teen angst.

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  2. I was on the fence about this - drawn in by the Breakfast Club comparison but kinda cautious too. Your review has convinced me and now I definitely want to read it!

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    1. Good, I hope you enjoy it! I will look forward to seeing what you think. :)

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  3. Great review! The Breakfast Club comparison is what has drawn me to it as well. I just love that movie, but I have to be sure I don't get my expectations too high up. I'm glad that you liked this one!! :D

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    1. Thank! It is a great movie and can be the kiss of death I think if a comparison like that is made lol. In this case it turned out okay, but yeah just go in with moderate expectations and I think you'll like it.

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  4. This sounds really interesting Greg! I can see how you were hesitant at first, considering the Breakfast Club comparisons but I'm glad it ended up delivering for you. The interactions between the characters sounds like the best bit but with thriller aspects mixed in? Even better :)

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    1. I was hesitant, big time, but it worked out. And yes, the character developments mixed with the suspense worked. There was only the one character I didn't really like.

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  5. I love the Breakfast Club but don't read much YA so I was cautious about this one as well. I like the sound of the character development and I'm definitely interested in the thriller aspect!

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    1. I liked the thriller aspects a lot! I'm glad it wasn't just a YA drama, the thriller part gave it some momentum.

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  6. I am glad you liked this book. It is on my TBR list.

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  7. This is kinda funny timing because I've just been thinking about how much I like books in which a group of random people who are all different get thrown together and work together and grow and have touching moments and all that. I swear I'm not making this up lol. Except I tend to go for the post-apocalyptic scenario since I'm not big into anything that's not SFF. I can see the appeal of this book though because of the characters, and I'm glad you enjoyed it :-)

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    1. This would have been great as a post apoc. I'd love to read a story like this in a setting like that. This was definitely a story where people had nothing in common, they're all broken to some degree, and it was nice to see them come together. A little SF background would have been icing on the cake, but it was a good story. :)

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    2. Seriously, if this were a post apoc, I'd be all over it right now because I'm in the mood for this type of story. I just started an YA post apoc story yesterday that seemed like it would fit, but so far they're still pre-invasion and I'm a little bored lol.

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    3. Yeah I would be too. I hear ya. I haven't read a good post apoc or dystopian in a while (I guess I'm reading Allegiant actually but that doesn't count) - seems like there was a book about kids thrown together in a mall during an apocalypse or something and I never read it- wish I could remember the name. I'll have to look around. Sometimes you're just in the mood for that stuff. :)

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  8. Hmm I must say, you have intrigued me! I was kind of suspicious of the Breakfast Club hook too- because come on, how can you compare yourself to The Breakfast Club!? But since you understand my skepticism AND still liked it... I feel like I could give this one a shot! Plus, I LOVE when books can be both funny AND serious- it's kind of my favorite! Fabulous review, I am glad you enjoyed this one!

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