WOW! First of all, what a freaking cliffhanger! I absolutely love all of J.L. Beck's books, but this one is hands down, the best. It took me a bit to get into it, but once I did I couldn't put it down! I love a book that keeps me guessing and this one definitely did! It had everything I need in a book, possessive MMC, sassy FMC, loads of unexpected twists, and a well written plot that left me wanting more! I can't wait to read The Wildflower and see how Drew and Bel's story ends!

3.5 ⭐️ (rounded up)

-secret society
-nerd x jock / poor x rich
-bully
-CNC
-college romance
-dual POV
-ends on cliffhanger
-tw: parental abuse/physical violence

Please read the trigger warnings before reading this book, it is a dark romance.

I had a hard one with this one... I found it really hard to not dislike the MMC, especially with his actions during the beginning of the book. While I know the fact that the FMC agreed to be apart of The Hunt, the scene played out more NC than CNC to me. There also felt like there was a light bit of insta-love/lust/obsession? By the of the book I was really enjoying the story and the relationship between the FMC and MMC! Plus that ending twist! Can't wait to read the second book in the series! I feel like a lot of plot points were left unfinished (like wtf illness does Maybell's mom have?) and I'm hoping to get some answers in book 2.

I received an audiobook version of the book and felt that the narration was really good! It was narrated by Renee Thorn and Ryan Stone and they did an excellent job!

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced audio copy for an honest review.

I will say this book definitely disappointed me. First of all, I listened to the audiobook and the man narrating for the MMC sounded like an older man and that was very not enjoyable. Second of all, I love primal play and CNC but this book actually starts off with straight NON CON. The author may argue that by signing the agreement to start the game of chase, she is consenting. However, it is most definitely clear that she is not consenting at the time. From there, the book just was not enjoyable for me, with the narration and the bad start. I rarely give a book 2 stars, but this one earned it. If you would like to read this book, I highly recommend reading the ebook or paperback.

📕 BOOK REVIEW: The Wallflower
by J. L. Beck
⭐⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶🌶🌶

You might need a cold shower after reading this book because it was H O T! 🥵🔥

The Wallflower is the first book in the Oakmount Elite series. It offers a dual point of view which let's us in the mind of both main characters, which I love!

Drew is a bad boy! His personality will drive you to the edge of the world, but yet will still make you hesitant on how much you trully hate him.

Maybell is the complete opposite. She is sweet, reserve and everything a good girl is. Her niceness unfortunately leads her on the trails of Drew who is ready to chase her down on the night of The Hunt, a yearly event where girls are sent out in the forest hoping to win money but they have to find their way to the end while being chased by the "hungry" boys. If your head is in the gutter here, keep it there. This is exactly what you think.

This dark romance is not to be read or listened to in a public place as it has a lot of steamy and extremely explicit intimate scenes. But behind all those scorching moments, you get dragged on some more human and emotional parts through both characters. You discover that bad boys also has some softer parts while good girls might hide some dark secrets.

Overall, I will say this book was A LOT more steamy than I anticipated, but it was quite enjoyable. The story was interesting, but predictable. Although I did enjoy this book, I am not sure if I will continue the series.

If you enjoy dark romance and bully romance this book is right up your alley. Both are my favorite to read about and I can’t wait to dive into the rest of the books in this series. The mmc is morally grey and that’s just how I like them! Give this book a try if you’re a fan of Rina Kent or Penelope Douglas. You’ll be a fan of J. L. Beck too!

This was not at ALL what I was expecting it to be. There was a twist at the end that I thought was going to ruin it for me, but then we twisted again and left me flabbergasted! Epic read!

This audiobook just did not do it for me. It was too… “I’m such a deviant, no one can capture my attention” to “I’m in love” too fast.

Spicy and possessive. A no body nerdy girl gets caught up in a rich quarter backs sights. Bell doesn’t know how to take Drew. He’s positive of her and doesn’t want anyone to touch her. Bell wanted to win the money in the Hunt. But Drew had other plans for her. Drew claimed Bell and slowly they started to know each other. Drew started to feel for Bell but he had to play tough when he was around his father and act like she was nothing to her. Both Bell and Drews moms were sick in the same way. And this book has one hell of a plot twist at the end. I hope it doesn’t end there. Are Drew’s mom and Bells mom connected somehow. And they are siblings?!!?!?

Ok, this was one of my first "bully romance" and though I wouldn't deal with half the stuff the MMC puts the girl through, it was very fun to read. It's the perfect mix of love/hate with a great ending.

I loved Maybell and can't wait to see what's next for her.

The Wallflower is exactly what I want from a dark, secret society, college romance. Make sure to check the triggers before reading this! I honestly loved this entire book. It’s been awhile since I’ve read a dark romance, but oh my god, I’ve missed it! This book isn’t for everyone but if you know, you know you’ll love it. Fans of Rina Kent will eat this book up!

The narration of this book was done by Renee Thorn and Ryan Stone, who both did a great job!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the audio-arc of The Wallflower!

This was so dark and disturbed...

I LOVED IT. It had some issues, mainly that the next book wasn't immediately available, but I really enjoyed it. Everything was so crazy and the ending WHAT EVEN HAPPENED WITH THEM?!

This storyline was fine. A typical dark college romance. I felt no connection to either main characters and Drew the MMC just wasn't it for me. It wasn't my favorite. I definetely think that the audiobook would have been better as a duet instead of dual. The narrators were very good though.

I really wanted to like this one but it fell a little flat for me. The Wallflower has a fun and sexy premise but the execution was a little off. Overall, I found myself struggling to focus and stay immersed in the story. That being said, I'm sure fans of dark romance, cat and mouse games, and secret societies will enjoy The Wallflower. The narration for the audiobook was definitely my favorite part. I loved how alive the characters felt.

Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I ended up having to borrow this from Hoopla because the title archived before I had a chance to download it. This book should have so many trigger warnings / trope warnings. This is an enemies to lovers, bully, dark romance. One of trigger warnings that was NOT listed for this book was parental physical abuse (father abuses son), first it is off the page, then it is described in detail near the end of the book. I listened to the audiobook version, and right off the bat, I did not feel like the narrators voices matched the supposed ages of the MMC and FMC. Both of the narrators sound much older than college students, which bothered me throughout the book The MMC is seriously twisted and seeing how his father acts, it's not surprising that the apple does not fall far from the tree. I did not find the MMC or the FMC likable in any degree, even their friends were a bit annoying, and some of those friends show their true colors near the end of the book (one was good, the other was bad). I feel like the 'plot twist' didn't really make sense, and it felt like an afterthought to the storyline, crammed into the last quarter of the book. This book ends on a cliffhanger, but unfortunately, I didn't find either character likable enough for me to want to pick up the second book in this series. #TheWallflower #NetGalley

I love Rina Kent and was excited for book as it seemed to in that same genre. Unfortunately it didn’t live up to my hopes. The narrators weee okay but didn’t totally fit the characters. A lot of discussion and the plot felt forced and didn’t flow. And I love read a lot of dark romance but none that give the straight up nonconsensual sex vibes like this one. Overall, couldn’t get into this book due to the general ick.

This was an okay story with okay narrators. It was a bit hard to keep track of what was happening but it was okay. 3 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free copy of The Wallflower by J. L. Beck in exchange for my honest review.

I want to thank NetGalley, Publishers Dreamscape Media, and the author J.L. Beck for providing this audio-ARC. Which, I will be giving my honest and sincere review.

The Wallflower is full of trigger warnings
Adult speech, Adult behaviour, Family dysfunction, cancer, Non Consenting acts, Rape, Degrading speech, Abuse, Family Violence, Betrayal.

This was a fast-paced read from the start you get to see the plans for the book explained, Drew has his eyes on someone who dared to defy him, and now he wants to toy with it. If you are expecting an Icebreaker-type book move away.

The scenes are so well described and portrayed gave me all the emotions, I gasped, cried, and laughed especially with our Female main character's best friend.
The book is heavy with abuse and non-consensual behaviours, or maybe CNC. I felt rage at times.

In every chapter, you will see some kind of triggering behaviours that I mentioned above. So please proceed with caution.

A Hint "Drew" the main male character is one of the first characters I hate, that might be on purpose since I feel that the author left us on a cliffhanger but I kind of saw the plot twist coming, it least was very obvious to me.

Netgalley ALC received!
JL Beck is a new author to me, but I've seen this book everywhere so wanted to give it a go.
I loved Maybell from the start, she's sassy, social awkward, smart and keeps herself isolated.
Drew is a asshole, possessive, and goes after what he wants.
I loved the push and pull between Maybell and Drew, the are complete opposites, but they are perfect together. I was so addicted to this book from the very first page, I was hooked and couldn't get enough.
If you enjoy bully romance, which is a little bit of darkness and a lot of emotions, read this one.
I thought this book was a standalone so wasn't expecting the cliff-hanger.
I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW!!!!

The Vibes:
Dark bully romance
sports romance
alphahole jock
enemies to lovers
touch her and die
secret society
obsessed hero

If you're a big fan of Rina Kent's Legacy of Gods series with the private clubs and initiation, a darker side of college romance with found0-family friendships, look no further
This book actually reminds me so much of God of Malice and Deviant King which is amazing because I love both those books

Now where to begin?
I suppose I should start by saying that I got the audiobook version of this book which helps a lot for someone with attention-span deficit and the fact that my schedule lately only allow me to read through audiobook (yay technology!)
But the thing about audiobook is you don't really focus on the smallest little detail which I think would make this book more enjoyable
Another thing I think I should mention is the fact that this book is a little bit on the darker side of dark romance so keep that in mind and please do read the trigger warnings just to be on the safe side

Now let's talk tropes because I can't really talk about the plot without spoiling it
Bad boy MMC? Check
MMC with daddy issues? Check
Reluctant good girl FMC? Check
MMC who doesn't take no for an answer and would pursue her to the point of stalking? Check!

Somehow this book conveys so much reality into the detail that I wouldn't be surprised if something like this happens in real life
And my heart really broke for Maybell with how bad her family and her home life is

I'm giving it a 4.5 stars and I can't wait to see what shenanigans these two would get into next
Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape media and JL Beck for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review

#TheWallflower #NetGalley

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the early copy of this audiobook. It took me so long to finish it cause apart from life has been too busy, it's my first time to be in this specific genre.

I entered into the audiobook with an open mind but was caught off guard by its contents. Although I was intrigued by the two main characters individually, their dynamic together was unpleasant. I'm interested in learning more about both of their mothers and why they share the same illness. The story does a good job of addressing family matters and answering questions towards the end, but I couldn't muster any interest in the romantic aspect of the plot.

I will still probably explore more of the genre and see for myself if this is something I am okay with.