Just finished Pretty Reckless, the first installment of All Saints High Series! I had forgotten how much I love Leigh Shen’s writing! She knows all the Perfect words! she owns all the magic! Everything I want to read🩷🩷🩷 - she just makes it happen! She could set the story in space or in a privileged snobby group of high school kids or in poverty ridden by drugs, abuse and lack of prospects childhood. Yet she always drives the story to the most magical conclusion!

Her writing is powerful, like a hurricane: full of humor, realism, torment, and fast-paced unpredictable plot! She wants it all and she makes it happen with a clever, very logical, unpredictable thought process to drive the plot and a rich, beautiful, enchanting language to give the story all the spectrum of emotions!

You can’t help but fall for the characters even if they are made as “ Love to Hate them/ her (lol)”

Skull Eyes, even though made to hate, was my favorite plot twist! Just icing on the cake!

Favorite chapter is Mel doing the laundry. FAVORITE! Well, Mel and Jaime are always my favorites and, of course, they shine in this story as well!

I did not realize when I was sent an early copy that this book is actually a re-release. I read this book years ago when it first came out. This is still one of my favorite books by LJ Shen and it’s the book that started the whole All Saints High series. Penn is one of my all time favorite book boyfriends, so so hot!! Thank you, Netgalley, for letting me fall in love all over again with this series!

Penn and Daria. Oh boy. So let’s start with, the characters are in high school. And albeit they do both turn 18 during this book, it starts at age 14. Now, Daria is the rich daughter that feels like she is overlooked throughout life. Penn, and his sister, are growing up on the other side of town, the poor side. Two people from two totally different worlds. Penn and Daria are both strongly attracted to each other but everything and everyone is against them.

Daria, although some of her feelings are warranted, she comes across like a spoiled, ungrateful, manipulative brat. Penn, I truly feel for throughout the story and want him to succeed. He was dealt a difficult life. There are many disturbing issues in this book and warnings and triggers should be noted.

Once you fast forward to around the 70% mark, the book becomes tolerable and somewhat good. There was just so much, too much, Daria crap going on, and for too long. So the last 30% of the book, it was nice to see everyone take responsibility for their stupid, childish, manipulative, jealous ways. I did like seeing the growth in the characters and the final results.

This is the very first L.J. Shen book that I read way back in 2020 and it was the best enemies to lovers book that I've read in my entire life and thus my obsession with all of L.J. Shen's books. I freaking love this book sooo much!

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Penn and Daria met one day and their meeting destroys the future of Penn's sister. This became a secret they never tell. Years later, Penn was led to live with Daria. They hate each other, and yet they can't stay away.
I hated Daria at the beginning, but every chapter I felt sorry for her. This is a girl who have everything, everything but love from her mother. And Penn see all of that, all of her.
There is so much twist I didn’t see coming, a lot of anger and love at the same time.
If you love Shein’s book, you’re going to love to hate this one :)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This book was so addictive!!!! The drama, angst, love, everything WOW!!

When Penn and Daria first meet, there is instant attraction. But then Daria does something to betray Penn’s trust and he wants revenge. They don’t see each other for four years, until life brings them back together and somehow under the same roof. Daria and Penn grew up in different worlds.
Despite being so different, they are so perfect for each other.

The characters were so well written and their development was great. I loved Daria and Penn’s chemistry and banter. This book was intense, emotional, and heartbreaking all in the best way. Shen’s writing is excellent and keeps you hooked the entire time!
This was enemies to lovers perfection!!
I highly recommend this book!!


📘: Pretty Reckless by L.J Shen
🗓️: August 22, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley, L.J Shen, and Bloom Books for this ARC!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Reviewed on NetGalley and Goodreads.

Fire! Whew this book is complete fire! It is a high school enemies to lovers book. There are twists and turns in it but I am totally obsessed with this!! This was unputdownable. I am completely obsessed.
I just reviewed Pretty Reckless by L.J. Shen. #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

Pretty Reckless by L.J. Shen is a dark romance following Penn and Daria who's lives are intertwined and pushed together. I was absolutely hooked by this from the prologue and didn't want to put this down. Of course, seeing as this is a dark romance, everyone is kind of toxic and morally grey but I still loved seeing the romance develop and seeing how they bounce of each other and turn out in the end. Overall L.J. Shen is a beautiful writer with enamouring plots and I highly recommend this book and I can't wait to read the rest of the series.

I'll admit i was worried about these next generation books- both because I deeply loved every hothole and just did not see a world where anyone else's love stories or friendship bonds could live up to that but also because I was admit i was worried about these next generation books- both because I deeply loved every hothole and just did not see a world where anyone else's love stories or friendship bonds could live up to that but also because I was anxious about what the tothole kids would be like. I needed the initially self-serving, alpha and jerkish brooding heroes, but a) I didn't want our tothole kid boys to be that (I wanted them to have more of their moms in them) and b) I knew they'd never allow those for their daughters. But, alas, I shouldn't have worried- LJ always finds a way to paint thoroughly complex, nuanced and deeply emotive characters that are flawed and challenging but also deeply lovable and vulnerable at their core- and of course, the totholes are no different.

For our first foray into the tothole world, we get the story of Jamie's eldest, Daria. Her path crosses with our hero Penn, seemingly her opposite in so many ways. They are tied together in more ways than they know, and soon they find their lives thrown closely together. Penn, however, has a grudge, and decides to get revenge on queen Daria. Daria is the queen of her high school, trapped in her cheerleader persona and masking her own disappointments, pain, insecurities, and failures in a carefully curated facade. Penn starts to chip away at this veneer, and we have a enemies to lover, bully to friend new adult explosive story.

The totholes are younger than the hotholes in these stories- in high school, but if anything, I love this more. Our characters are less secure and less self-possessed, they are still evolving and are more open emotionally, they have less baggage (but still have plenty) and the scope of their story feels more intimate.

As for characters, I loved Daria. She's deep and layered, she's hurting and strong, vulnerable but kind, fierce but broken. She's so passionate and so self-aware, even if that leads her to be someone she doesn't always like. And Penn- swoon, his motives are meaningful, he's protectiveness sexy, and his badboy kind heart swoon worthy. Their chemistry is AMAZING- and oh me, their banter. Meow.

Like our other stories, this one is intense, deeply emotional and at times painful, but still beautiful and and soul fulfilling at the end. This book gave me all the butterfly feels I love in my romances, made my heart hurt multiple times, and left me with a deep and long lasting book hangover. I've re-read multiple times.

Well written, smart and captivating, emotional and consuming- this is everything we love about LJ's writing, and everything we love about the Todos Santos crew. I'm so excited for the next kiddos! What an epic beginning to the next chapter!

This book deserves so so much more than 5 pretty stars. The plot and everything was wonderfully planned out. I was putting this book on hold because I know LJ have the power of breaking me. I was so scared! Lol also because they're all in high school so makes me too old to be reading it, but DON'T LET THAT STOP YOU! I have to let it sink in for a day before I write this review. I haven't read Sinners of Saint Saint series, but after reading this, I'm really thinking about reading it.⁣
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This book is about love, family, hatred, healing, betrayal, forgiveness, friendship, finding yourself, and so much more. It's EVERYTHING. It's intense, emotional, angsty, twists and turns. It broke me. My tears just keep on falling, and I couldn't stop it. There were quite a lot of characters that I have to write down who's who. Besides that, each character are so complex, really evil, just devious. ⁣
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"𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘧"... 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘚𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘏𝘪𝘨𝘩. 😄⁣
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Daria..Daria...a really devious Queen B, but so broken. Full of insecurities, pain, jealousy, vulnerable, and very hulky indeed. Just thinking about her makes me want to cry again, and it's been a day. Lol She's not your typical nice heroine. LJ perfectly wrote Daria's character. So complex and full of layers that makes your heart ache for her. ⁣
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Penn Scully... Definitely my newest book boyfriend! He has a heart of gold. Even when he went through so much, he's still so resilient. He can be a jerk at times when he said those mean words, but actions speaks louder. You just can't help but just love him. ⁣
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Penn and Daria are the COUPLE!!! Their life, pain, and heartache will break you. I love how Penn always get Daria to talk about her problems when she doesn't tell anyone, and vice versa. They have each other's back. Definitely one of the best enemies to lovers book. Highly, highly recommended. You wouldn't want to miss this one. Can't wait to read about Knight's and Vaughn's story.

3.5 rounded down.

Let me start out by saying that this was my first LJ Shen book and overall I feel that I wasn't the best audience for this particular story. I did end up enjoying it but the first that was tough for me. The first half is a bully romance that's all angsty and dark but the second half was more like a normal romance. There were some tropes I don't like that made the beginning hard to get through. The author also talks about multiple characters like you know them without explaining their connections so that made getting into the book more difficult. It took me a while to figure out that Vaughn and Knight were actually the good guys. Daria and Penn were both very unlikeable in the first half. BUT I loved the poems in the beginning of each chapter and enjoyed the ending. I definitely plan on trying out Knight and Vaughn's stories. They seemed like the best out of the bunch 🙃

Thank you to the author and Bloom Books for this copy.

Pretty Reckless by L.J. Shen is a dark romance that follows two people from different sides of the tracks whose lives are forced together. Penn Scully might have crushed on Daria Followhill before but after what she did to his sister he hates her. Daria is rich and the most popular girl at All Saints High. When Penn's mother overdoses, the Followhills take him in.
This is a romance with a lot of toxic relationships, revenge, lies, and manipulation. It is important to keep this in mind when reading because these characters behaviors can get frustrating. It reminded me of Gossip Girl, specifically Chuck and Blair because Daria and Penn are toxic together. The thing I liked most about this book was the rich people friend group and family drama. There is a lot at play like high school rivalries and Daria keeping her queen status. Pretty much every relationship from her friends to family is toxic in Daria's life. The first half of this book was harder to get through than the second half because I could not connect with the characters. However, I am glad I sticked with it because the second half was much more interesting. The romance turned more real then too. I loved the ending when everything came together!
Thanks to NetGalley and Bloom Books for the ARC in exchange for a review!

Ok, so, this just wasn't for me so take my review in the context that I don't think I am the target audience.

That being said, I think some of the flaws may be universal. I was hoping for a gripping tale of revenge, but ended up disappointed by characters I cared little about and a poor plot. The lead characters were hard to root for and their interactions were frustrating.


, the supporting characters, like the Followhill family and their friends, felt more like caricatures than fully fleshed-out individuals. Their actions and motivations were often inconsistent, making it difficult to understand their roles in the story.

The writing style didn't help either. While I expected angst, the author seemed to overdo it, drowning the plot in a sea of melodrama. The emotional rollercoaster became more of a tedious ride, and I found myself skimming through pages just to get to the point.

The plot twists that were meant to be shocking often felt forced and predictable. It's as if the author was trying too hard to keep the reader on the edge of their seat, but instead, it left me feeling detached and uninterested.

I had hoped that as the story progressed, the characters would evolve and grow, but sadly, that wasn't the case.

In the end, Pretty Reckless was a letdown for me. The premise had potential, but the execution fell flat.

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review

This was my first LJ Shen book and it will definitely not be my last.

Everything from the way Penn and Daria met to their subsequent years of avoiding and hating each other was perfect. This story sucked me right in from the prologue, and I loved watching their relationship develop from the very hateful rivalry it was. Given all of their less than desirable personality traits, they do really end up bringing out the best in each other.

The romance aspects aside, I think the teen angst and the strained relationship between Daria and her mother (or just about everyone, depending on how you look at it) were portrayed well. She had some big feelings and had no idea how to handle them. Most importantly, when she did decide to finally talk about it, there was no judgement or overreaction on her parents' part, just support to get her through a really tough time. I loved the chapters from her mom and dad's POV, it added so much to the story.

Overall I enjoyed this one, and I will definitely be reading the rest of the series!

Je voulais relire cette série depuis un petit moment et quand j’ai vu que Bloom Books allait la rééditer avec des nouvelles couvertures et des bonus, j’ai sauté sur l’occasion!

Dans ce premier tome, on suit Daria, la fille de Jaime et Melody. On pourrait penser qu'elle a une vie de rêve avec de tels parents mais pourtant la réalité est toute autre. Daria ne s'entend pas avec sa mère, elle n'a pas de véritables amis hormis Vaughn, Knight et Luna… Un jour, sa mère décide de sauver le monde et de ramener Penn chez eux... l'ennemi à domicile... Un véritable jeu du chat et de la souris va commencer entre eux mais aussi une attirance qui va continuer à complexifier leur relation... Rien ne se passe comme prévu et pourtant l'ennemi n'est pas toujours celui que l'on pense...

LJ Shen a réussi un twist que l'on ne voit pas venir. C'est haletant, on a les larmes aux yeux à certains moments et les papillons dans le ventre à d'autres. On a aussi parfois envie de frapper des personnages comme Melody qui m'a paru insupportable à ne pas protéger sa fille et se voiler la face... ou Daria qui se comporte un peu trop comme une princesse… Quant à Penn, c’est un bad boy avec une armure. C'est une personne avec un grand cœur qui essaye d'aider les autres mais pourtant sa vie n'a jamais été facile...on ne peut qu'être séduit par lui et avoir envie de le serrer dans nos bras. J’ai apprécié le bonus où l’on voit Penn sous un autre jour

Bref, c'était une très bonne relecture et j’ai hâte de relire les autres tomes!

Thank you Bloom Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

I found this book to be really interesting and a nice change of pace from other bloom releases. It has a more down to earth vibe. It's definitely a lot sadder than I expected. However still an amazing read.

I could not put this book down!
it was the perfect amount of drama and sweet moments. The character development for Daria and Penn was perfect!
Jaime is such an amazing dad, so protective of his daughter but never got in the way of her happiness. so so good!!

I hate writing negative reviews about a book but I honestly couldn't finish this one. From the very beginning I couldn't stand Daria, which doesn't happen so often to me.
I'm a sucker for an enemies to lovers story but this one wasn't for me

This is the second time I have read this book, and I liked it a lot more this time. I'm not sure if she made any changes, but it felt like it flowed better, and it sucked me in, and I couldn't put it down.
This is the story of rich mean girl Daria, who is a ballerina like her mother, but not an exceptional one. Via is the ballerina her mother adores and dotes on. Via is ruthless to Daria and Daria back to her. She sees a letter in her mother's purse that is Via's acceptance letter to the Royal Ballet Academy in London. Daria is very upset, and a boy approaches her to ask what is the matter. He figures out it's the letter and without looking at it, tears it up and throws it in the trash. They kiss, and he gives her a piece of sea glass and tells her to save him all her firsts. After this, Via runs off and disappears. The boy, Penn, is Via's twin and blames Daria and vows to destroy her.
Four years later, they meet again. Sparks and harsh words fly. Then Penn is living with her family. What ensues is a story of love, redemption, family, and how everyone has their own issues, even those who seem to have it all. I definitely recommend this one!

4.5 Stars made of Sea Glass.

I've recently re-read (most) of the original Sinners Of Saints series (I'll get to you Bane...soon) because this is hands down one of my most anticipated releases of the year.

It didn't let me down. Although one character did and how.

Daria didn't let me down. In Scandalous we all knew she was going to be trouble and she was. I laughed out loud a few times (not at anything funny per se, but at the antics of the Tot-holes)

I'm back to counting down the days until Knight's book comes out. I'll be re-reading this and the HotHoles again before it happens