I really wasn't too excited about this one because I don't like any book that includes a heroine falling in love with a bully. So, I didn't have my expectations set very high and I wasn't sure I was going to like Cal and Nellie's relationship.

I was half right? There were a few parts I absolutely did not like at all, but the rest was good and Cal really did seem to redeem himself in the end. I did think it was a bit weird how one minute they were enemies, then it was abruptly revealed that they were prior fuck buddies who secretly hooked up on occasion, then were currently hooking up, then didn't like each other again and were apart, then all the sudden in love and together for real. It was kind of a weird transition. Not to mention, Cal stole her high school journals just to get dirt on her in order to make amends and make himself "feel better" but hides it from her for his own gain and he doesn't even grovel or apologize for the things he did. And the things he did to Nellie were SO CRUEL and mean and just horrible, and yet she's just supposed to act like he's changed and that he's a good guy but he really wasn't. He did sort of redeem himself, but man, it's hard to look past all of the bad things he did to Nellie and making her life a living hell in school. Most of the time, they were arguing and trading hurtful banter, so when they finally "fell in love", it was a tad bit unbelievable. I honestly think Nellie could have done better, but Cal seemed to be the model husband and father in the epilogue, so...

Also, there's a trigger warning for some pedophilia. Basically, Cal's dad was into Nellie when Nellie and Cal were in high school and he was like a 35-40 year old man. So, look out for that.

All in all, I thought this had so much potential and could have been so much better and just fell completely flat.