Bitter End

Sep 18, 2012 Nenia Campbell rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: x-2011s, ya-baby-ya

Cole Cozen: Hi, my name is Cole and I'm . . . an abusive boyfriend.

Everyone: Hi, Cole.

Therapist: Hello, Cole. Thank you for coming today. Admitting you have a problem is the first step―

CC: I don't have a fucking problem.

Therapist: Okay. Well, your ex-girlfriend seems to feel otherwise―

CC: She's a slut. A cheating, goddamn slut who wants to fuck her best friend. Both her best friends. She's a bi-cheater. Not my problem.

Travis Maddox: Preach.

Therapist: Now that is not appropriate language, Mr. Mad...more

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Mar 27, 2011 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-mt-bookpile

I wanted so much to love this book the way I loved The Hate List but, well... it's so much about the message that it just gets lost there. What I mean is, there are other books (like Cut or Wintergirls) where I felt that the author had a character who, as she developed, had a problem, but in this one I felt that the author had a problem she tried to fit characters around.

Alex's relationship with Zach and Bethany is so close that they're the Terrible Three, in and out of each other's homes all th...more

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Apr 26, 2013 Amaryliss White rated it 3 of 5 stars

My main problem with this was Alex, our protagonist. I'm not holding the fact that she fell into an abusive relationship against her — no, she was just plain unlikeable to me, and sometimes a really awful friend.
But honestly, the author is a great one, and I love how she writes about REAL things and portrays it well.

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Jun 04, 2013 Miss Clara rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'm sorry but I was hoping for a strong woman coming out from a shell.
But noooooooo. She had to be self-centered, selfish and stupid.

I do not blame girls to fall for the bad boys. But once you do, you gotta know how to handle 'em and not the other way around.

The reason why I did not even rate this as two stars is because the events that surrounded Alex are believable and real. Some teenagers do actually become a victim of abuse and love has a way to easily forgive what cannot be forgiven at onc...more

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May 31, 2013 Ariel is currently reading it

I really enjoyed reading the book, Bitter End by Jennifer Brown. It is a story about a teenage girl named Alex who has an interesting life. During the book she has two best friends. They have been her best friends since they were in diapers. They are planning a trip to Colorado to find the answers to Alex’s mothers death for closure. In the process of their school year, Alex finds herself dating a new guy at school. He is a full sports guy and he seems like the world to her. The problem is her f...more I really enjoyed reading the book, Bitter End by Jennifer Brown. It is a story about a teenage girl named Alex who has an interesting life. During the book she has two best friends. They have been her best friends since they were in diapers. They are planning a trip to Colorado to find the answers to Alex’s mothers death for closure. In the process of their school year, Alex finds herself dating a new guy at school. He is a full sports guy and he seems like the world to her. The problem is her friends hate him. As the story goes on, her “amazing and loving” boyfriend starts to show aggressiveness and mean sides to him. I believe this book was created to entertain readers and also have a reality aspect to make readers understand and feel a closer connection to the book. The author of the story has not only written Bitter End, but many others. She is mostly known for the book called, Hate List. The theme of most of her books are tragedies which she does a very nice job of showing.
In Bitter End, it is told from a first person view from a girl named Alex. It is easy to understand because when it is told from one person you can see the views of that person and feel the feelings and connections they feel where as if it was told in third person or jumped around from person to person, it wouldn’t have as greater of a feeling aspect to it. The main reason I like this book is because it relates so well to a teenagers life. So many teens have family issues which Alex has in the story. In high school, relationships become rocky and boyfriends and girlfriends sometimes ruin friendships. With everything that happens in the book it makes me feel as if I’m there and I have that connection to knowing the feelings and ways they think about what is happening because I am also going through that experience. Because of this, I think this book would be perfect for someone to read that is in high school or recently got out of high school. Adults may like it, but they wouldn’t feel that same connection because they aren’t living it during the time of the book. The one part that I felt really explained the turn in the book is when Alex says, “ I opened my mouth to say something, but I honestly didn’t know what to say. I was furious at Cole, furious at Zack, furious at myself, and so embarrassed” (135). This happens so much in high school where something happened and you just don’t know what to do or say. That’s high school, a confusing mess.
This book to me was a strong, readable book. The setting of the book and the situations that happen are so realistic that it made me like the book even more. I would highly, highly recommend this book to any high school student especially a teenage girl, because it will show them that this doesn’t just happen to them but so many other times in the world.
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May 28, 2013 Kourtney rated it 4 of 5 stars

Bitter End
Bitter End by Jennifer Brown has a meaningful story behind it. Alex is a tutor for students that need help on some subjects in school. A new guy named Cole goes to a new school and Alex is going to be his tutor. Cole is a athletic, handsome, and smart guy that Alex starts to believe she has found her perfect match, her soul mate.
Alex has a rough life at home. She is not close to her dad at all and she lost her mom at an early age. Bethany and Zach have been there for her through everyt...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Silverina La Mees added it

Shelves: other-books-of-author-better

CONTAINS HYPERSPOILERS

The start was cheesy.
The start was prolonged and boring.
The middle was still cheesy.
Nothing really happened.
It was only there in the end. That interesting glint.
But it was quickly gone again.
It didn't stay.
I don't think I felt any sympathy.
I didn't even like Cole in the beginning.
I felt that Jennifer Brown had this information about people who get abused and wrote it down mechanically.
Like the girl has to find something likeable in the boy.
The girl has to think that...more

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Jan 21, 2013 Courtney Koslowski rated it 5 of 5 stars

“Bitter End”
By Jennifer Brown
Review by Courtney Koslowski
Bitter End has not only a catchy title, but you start reading and you don’t want to put it down. Jennifer Brown made the main character Alex who is a teenager in love and she doesn’t realize how abusive her relationship is and it only gets worse. She doesn’t listen to her friend Zack when he tells her the real Cole.
The first few chapters are boring, but it’s actually worth it when you start reading and actually get a few chapters in. Tha...more “Bitter End”
By Jennifer Brown
Review by Courtney Koslowski
Bitter End has not only a catchy title, but you start reading and you don’t want to put it down. Jennifer Brown made the main character Alex who is a teenager in love and she doesn’t realize how abusive her relationship is and it only gets worse. She doesn’t listen to her friend Zack when he tells her the real Cole.
The first few chapters are boring, but it’s actually worth it when you start reading and actually get a few chapters in. That’s really when the sparks start to fly and everything starts to go the way Alex wants it to. Cole gives her this fake image and she is blinded by the love.
Alex is very smart; she has a lot of potential going for her and is Cole's tutor. She was thought she had a good thing going and she said, “He told me he loved me and I believed him.” When you fall in love with someone you start to ignore everything and everyone that happens around you. That is exactly what Alex did she ignored Zach, her father, and even started to ignore her boss.
This book was real life. There are relationships out there that are abusive like the one in this book. You think you’ve found your prince charming then you realize he’s not who he says he is. The author really made it seem like it was based on a real life relationship with lots of abuse, like when she had Cole say “Did my slut girlfriend just tell me to shut up? She wouldn’t dare because she knows I’d kick her ass for even thinking it.” Alex keeps going back to Cole and when you are in an abusive you go back an average of seven times before you finally get out. Most of the time you don’t know how to say goodbye, or it’s too hard. It’s not always going to be the guy who is abusing the girl; girls can be very abusive too. This book just so happened to show the girl being abused.
Eventually, she ended it and said, “It’s over. Get away from me. Don’t ever come near me again. ” For her sake I think it’s a good thing she ended it, but it would have been interesting if she would have stayed in and there would have been a second book. That might have defeated the title though. That was the thing I didn’t like was the ending it sort of ended so quick and kind of left you hanging. Alex, to Bethany, and Zack had planned a trip to go to the Cheyenne Mountains and they did, but that was in the epilogue.
Jennifer Brown is one of my favorite authors. She has two more books out called Perfect Escape and Hate List and I really want to read them. Bitter End was a book based off of an abusive relationship and I know how those relationships can get. Jennifer majored in psychology and her independent study in high school is what inspired her to write the book. She said her goal was to answer the most popular question everyone asks “Why doesn’t she just get out?” she answers the question, but you have to read the book to find out. I highly recommend it because it could help you answer a lot of questions about abusive relationships. If you’ve ever been in one and are currently in one, it could also help you get out of it.
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Jan 18, 2013 Lyra Gill rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm still reeling from this one.

I don't like how Bethany and Zack were portrayed later on in the book. That ruined it all for me. If it were my friend being abused (and Alex admitted it to Bethany), I would help her. I don't care if she hates me for doing so, I don't care if she never talks to me again, I WILL help her. I would do anything that I can to reach out to her. I won't look at her with sadness and disappointment and slowly remove her from my life. I wouldn't treat her formally and stop...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Britany Dudley rated it 5 of 5 stars

The book Bitter End by Jennifer Brown is an amazing book! It is a huge thriller. This book makes you not want to put it down, it keeps you flipping till the next page. Bitter End is a book about a girl named Alex and her two best friends Zack and Rachel. Throughout the book Alex goes through so many different struggles in her life. Alex’s mom died when Alex was very young. Her mom was trying to leave Alex and her family and as she was on her way to Colorado to start her new life something very t...more

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Jan 03, 2013 Mignnette Osorio added it

Basically, what the theme of the book Bitter End by Jennifer Brown is when youre blinded by love in a abusive relationship you do not see the harmful comportment towards you. In this book Alex has never been told that they love her before, she meets this charming, handsome, athletic new boy at school and begans to fall for him as he treats her as if she were in paradise. Alex wants the relationship with Cole so bad that she pays no mind to Cole's controlling behavior, the squeezes, pinches and t...more Basically, what the theme of the book Bitter End by Jennifer Brown is when youre blinded by love in a abusive relationship you do not see the harmful comportment towards you. In this book Alex has never been told that they love her before, she meets this charming, handsome, athletic new boy at school and begans to fall for him as he treats her as if she were in paradise. Alex wants the relationship with Cole so bad that she pays no mind to Cole's controlling behavior, the squeezes, pinches and threatening whispers. Alex realizes that he's a controlling, jealous, over protected boyfriend but whats stopping her from speaking up and searching for help is the love she has for him. Alex is stuck in this lust of love that she cant decide between choosing to save her relationshipwith her "true love" or herself. Throughout the story Alex is a victim, to the loss of her mother and her father never really being there. At the beginning of the story she starts off as a loyal friend to Zach and Bethany, dedicated only to looking at a box of old pictures of her mother and her increasing curiosity of what had happend to her and why she left. She feels misunderstood and lonely until she meets Cole. Throughout the sory after she meets Cole she isolates herself from her only true bestfriends because of her controlling "true love", Cole. He loves her, understands her, and cares for her. Whenever he acts a "bit" violent he apologizes and Alex automatically forgives him. The character develops a new personality as soon as she meets Cole because she struggles to actually realize that her sweet, perfect of a boyfriend is actually an abusive figure. I really liked the book because many teenagers now in days are faced with difficult situations that they think they can handle on there own so they decide to not reach out for help. I believe that violence is a very huge factor in many youndg adults' life and Jennifer Brown writes about this topic to help out young females. The theme of this story, when youre blinded by love in a abusive relationship you do not see the harmful comportment towards you, fulfills the difficult sest of circumstances that abusive relationships can bring to a person. (less)

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Dec 19, 2012 Claudia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-book-challenge-160-books, ya-books, chick-lit

Alex has great friends, but feels lonely in her own home. Her mother's sudden death and her father's inability to cope with three active daughters has made her easy prey for Cole...Cole, new kid - handsome, mysterious, athletic. Cole seems to appreciate her like no one else does, not Bethany or Zach, her best friends.

So what if Cole is sometimes controlling, or grabs her wrist too hard, or says hateful things. He loves her. He always says sorry and gives her roses. He loves her. He understands...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Rosalia Garcia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Alex is in high school and starting her senior year. She has her two best friends, Bethany and Zack. She lost her mother when she was little, and doesn’t remember much of her. Her father speaks of her little and her curiosity of what happened to her mother seems to increase as the years go by. She feels lonely and misunderstood, until she meets Cole. He’s the new guy at school. He’s sweet, charming, and they click immediately. She finally feels understood and that she has found her soul mate. Bu...more

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Jul 25, 2012 Marybeth (Manhattan Reader) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: borrowed

When I first saw this book I wanted to get it, but I was also a little skeptical about it. I instead hopped over to the library to read it, and I have to say I'm a little glad I didn't buy it.

I had only ever read one other book that dealt with this type of abuse and it was twice as short but two times better. I could feel the character slowly slipping and I could feel the power he weld over her, but in this book I didn't really feel it. In fact, it felt more like Cole was just the bully down t...more

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Apr 27, 2012 Krissie rated it 2 of 5 stars

I almost gave this book three stars, but after finishing my review the first time, I decided my initial two-star rating was more accurate. Yes, this is Jo’s Review 2.0. Yes, the book addresses an important issue that needs discussion. Yes, the author wrote a book that I read in two days.

However… I have several issues, which I shall now discuss in a convenient list format, ‘cause that’s just how I roll.

1. The plot is predictable. (view spoiler)...more

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Apr 25, 2012 Casey P. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Bitter End
By Jennifer Brown
4 out of 5 stars
Finished on February 27, 2012
Publisher: Hachette Book Group
354 Pages
$17.99 ISBN: 978-0-316-08695-0

This was a very good read; it was easy to follow and really kept my interest. It didn’t have very many “dead” or slow spots so reading it went by quite quickly. The author did a really nice job of keeping you’re interest because not only did she have the drama between Cole and Alex but she kept you wondering about the mystery of Alex’s mother and what happe...more

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Feb 01, 2012 Sierra rated it 4 of 5 stars

Book review: Bitter End by Jennifer Brown

Jennifer Brown’s second major publishing was this book, Bitter End. Bitter End was packed full of a somber plot, but was impacting on many levels and definitely reached out and helped many girls and women in real life. It did this with a great story, descriptive, experienced writing, and a heartfelt, meaningful truth that rang out in an ingenious and subtle way. Bitter End is somewhat similar to Brown’s first major publishing, Hate List (both books I str...more Book review: Bitter End by Jennifer Brown

Jennifer Brown’s second major publishing was this book, Bitter End. Bitter End was packed full of a somber plot, but was impacting on many levels and definitely reached out and helped many girls and women in real life. It did this with a great story, descriptive, experienced writing, and a heartfelt, meaningful truth that rang out in an ingenious and subtle way. Bitter End is somewhat similar to Brown’s first major publishing, Hate List (both books I strongly recommend!) but has a more relatable feeling about it. This novel is primarily centered on domestic abuse and violence.

Bitter End is a book about a senior girl named Alex, who’s never really been in a serious relationship. Her two best friends are Bethany, a quiet but determined girl, and Zach who’s the clown with some serious acting skills. Alex’s mother passed away when she was younger, in a tragic car accident on her way to Colorado- but her practically absent father is really sketchy on the details. All Alex has left of her is a dream catcher necklace and a secret box of old pictures. Always left to wonder why her mother left, her and her friends (also known as the terrible three) have planned for years to go to Colorado on vacation after they graduate. They’re always working on the plan- but when Alex meets Cole, a mysterious but seriously cute boy who’s a new student, and her tutor-ee (I think that’s right…) she falls for him. Hard. Soon he becomes the center of her world, and Bethany & Zach are forced to take a backseat. But Cole becomes increasingly jealous- and suspicious of his now girlfriend Alex and her “best friend” Zach. Despite constant efforts, he doesn’t believe they’re just friends. One thing leads to another and relationships are in chaos and Alex is constantly sporting bruises, black eyes, cuts, and eventually, much worse. Later rather than sooner, she stands up for herself- resulting in her near death hospitalization, but freedom from Cole’s abuse.

Jennifer Brown does, in my mind a spectacular job with such a grim and serious topic. To those who’ve been abused, this book has a lot to offer, including a help-line and various references for abuse in the back of the book. This book is entertaining, heartbreaking, and has you on the edge of your seat most the time. It tells the tragic tale of a girl too blinded by love to see that her boyfriend is seriously hurting her, and he isn’t really going to stop. At first she may think it’s her fault, or she deserves it, but to break free from him she really has to realize that nothing is her fault, and he isn’t going to change. At times Cole will even leave flowers on her car, apologize and act like he’s changing when really, he’s bound to beat her again when he gets angry. One quote from the book that stood out was “That boy is going to kill someone someday. I guarantee it. You just need to make sure that it’s not you.” This was said to Alex by one of Cole’s ex-girlfriends. The only thing I didn’t like about this book was that Alex’s friends never called anyone about things. Her friend Bethany was told by Alex that she was being abused, and she never did anything about it. I also wish that there was less cussing, but I understand why the author used it, they are high school seniors and the situation is pretty rough.

Personally, I enjoyed Brown’s book Hate List a bit more than this one, but both were great novels. Hate List is about a girl who’s boyfriend becomes a school shooter, killing dozens and injuring even more- including her. To make things worse, she is now a suspect in the crime, because her and her late boyfriend created a book called the Hate List. The Hate List is a long, spiteful list of people they absolutely hate, some people are in there up to six times. The girl didn’t mean anything by it, it was just her way of coping with being more of an outsider, but her boyfriend took it to the extreme. He’d always talk about killing people, but she thought he was just blowing off steam… Now she’s left with a bullet hole through her thigh, no friends to call her own and a gaping hole in her heart consumed by guilt, loneliness, hurt and fear. Hate List hit me harder because it dealt with a lot more grim of a subject, but it was also a more intriguing story. Both novels are alike in the fact that the main characters had psychotic boyfriends (who didn’t seem like it), terrible, broken homes, bad but later repaired relationships with siblings, and friendships that looked more like roller coaster rides.

Bitter End was a brutal story to read, it left me sympathetic for Alex, and I really felt like I was along for the ride when I was reading. I couldn’t put this book down. There really aren’t a lot of teen-section authors who have the guts or ability to write a hard-hitting book on a serious subject. Jennifer Brown deserves a big pat on the back for her writing. Most teen books are light-hearted romance, fantasy jam-packed with cliched vampires, werewolves and witches, or things that really shouldn’t be in the teen section. This author truly writes out of the box in a refreshing and fascinating way. Good luck putting Bitter End or any of her books down!
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Jan 09, 2012 Minerva rated it 4 of 5 stars

Jennifer Brown's Bitter End is a complete success at showcasing the mentality of a young woman who finds herself in an abusive situation without realizing when or how it happened. Alex falls for the new, goodlooking jock transfer from another highschool when he washes her with a zealous amount of boyfriend sweetness. But Cole soon turns into a monster, and it turns out he has been a monster for quite somewhile due to the awesome role model dad he has at home who keeps Cole's mother as an annoyin...more Jennifer Brown's Bitter End is a complete success at showcasing the mentality of a young woman who finds herself in an abusive situation without realizing when or how it happened. Alex falls for the new, goodlooking jock transfer from another highschool when he washes her with a zealous amount of boyfriend sweetness. But Cole soon turns into a monster, and it turns out he has been a monster for quite somewhile due to the awesome role model dad he has at home who keeps Cole's mother as an annoying pet he can control.

Bitter End is very well written in regards to pacing of events and overall realism, but I found myself getting bored with some the scenes between Alex and her BFF's, Bethany and Zack. By bored I mean skimming through them really quickly because their relationship and behavior did not seem genuine. My opinion though...

I would have liked more realist dialogue between them, and I would have liked some more intervention from her friends who knew her since childhood. They are too passive for Alex, and I know that sometimes people will not listen to their friends' advice or opinions, but so what? Get angry, shake some sense into her, don't just be all sad for her and all angry against the guy who beats up his girlfriend. If she doesn't listen after trying to repeatedly get her to see and admit the truth, then I guess there comes a time when you have to let her go. This does not happen in the book. I even could have done without Bethany in the picture. Zack would have been enough, as well as Georgia, the mother-figure she finds in one of her co-workers at The Bread Bowl. I also wanted a big emotional scene with her father.

What I do like...Alex is a very believable character. She knows the situation she is in but neither wants to be known as the victim or wants to be the victim. This is true not just for her realtionship with Cole but for her lost relationship with her mother who died in a car accident when Alex was a child. Although nothing pretty to read about, the abuse scenes are spectacular--specific, graphic, realistic. And Alex's reaction to these specific instances of abuse are spot on. Any reader can empathize with Alex, hurt with Alex, and understand why she repeatedly goes back to Cole. Any reader can also grasp her need to search for her mother and for closure in the mountains of Colorado. Cole even threatens to ruin this--he does not even want to share her with her mother's memory because this is a bond threatening his own power and control over her.

Sorry for all the spoilers here. And last, I will add this book to the "Books I Wished I Had Written."(less)

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Oct 19, 2011 Courtney rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: abuse, realistic-fiction, teen-fiction, potential-gateway-noms-2013-14

Jennifer Brown nails it again. This woman has crazy-good insight into the teen mind. Her years studying psychology have definitely paid off, but she's written yet another amazing book that takes the idea of a "problem" novel and turns it into a multi-faceted exploration of some very difficult topics. This, her newest novel, is an anti-love story of sorts. Our protagonist, Alex, is a teen who has lost her mother and has been dealing with that for most of her young life. She's convinced that her m...more

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Oct 17, 2011 Jessie Bear rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: absent-parent, ages-14-17, abuse, broken-family, friendship, high-school, psychological-novel, relationships, si-624, young-adult, sisters

Alex struggles through an abusive relationship in this psychological portrait. Bitter End reads as an “issue” or “problem” young adult novel, and not too much else. Brown found inspiration for this novel from previous academic study, so the textbook case presented here has been researched, if not well presented. Complex issues bombard the reader within the first fifteen pages with exposition sentences such as, “That there would always be a hole in my heart where Mom should have been, and if I di...more

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Oct 15, 2011 Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars

Well.
As much as I hate sucker-punch sob stories, this book really is something..

The story starts off with Alex, a senior in high school, who lives with her absent-minded dad, and younger sister Celia. Alex's mother died in a tragic accident years ago. Alex finds all of her support in her two best friends, Bethany and Zach. Then one day Alex meets Cole. Alex believes its love at first sight, and everything is good. At least for a little while. Eventually, Cole starts getting violent. He begins ab...more

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Oct 07, 2011 stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, psychological-fiction, young-adult

once again, i really love jennifer brown for tackling these hard subjects with such panache and development.

this is the story of how a perfect relationship ends up not so perfect. alex has lost her mother, and in the process, her father and her two sisters. her two best friends, bethany and zack, are her support for pretty much everything.

but then alex meets cole, and falls in love. the most amazing part is that cole loves alex back. they understand each other in ways that no one else has. ale...more

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Sep 28, 2011 Reading Teen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Alex Bradford is the middle daughter in her family and lives at home with her younger sister and her father. Her older sister is away at college and her mother died when Alex was very small. Even though Alex was too young to even remember her mother, the facts about her death have always played a huge role in Alex's life. She cannot understand why her mother left in the first place and why she was in the car accident that killed her. Alex's father refuses to discuss his wife and chooses to disco...more Alex Bradford is the middle daughter in her family and lives at home with her younger sister and her father. Her older sister is away at college and her mother died when Alex was very small. Even though Alex was too young to even remember her mother, the facts about her death have always played a huge role in Alex's life. She cannot understand why her mother left in the first place and why she was in the car accident that killed her. Alex's father refuses to discuss his wife and chooses to disconnect from his 3 daughters. Her sisters seem to have been able to move ahead and only Alex feels the great void of not having a mother. The main support for Alex comes from her two best friends, Bethany and Zack. The three of them do everything together and they know all about Alex. When Alex meets a new guy at school her life changes dramatically. Cole thinks that she is smart and funny and beautiful. He wants to spend time with her and makes her feel loved and protected.....something that she has longed for all her life. As Alex says, she "finally felt as if...for the first time in my life...someone loved me." At first, the only negative in their relationship is that Bethany and Zack don't like him and the feeling is mutual. More and more Alex is forced to choose between Cole and her best friends, and Cole always wins. The relationship between Alex and Cole takes a tragic turn when he begins to abuse her physically. It started slowly with him grabbing her knee or arm and squeezing tightly and escalated from there. Ironically, they also became closer romantically during this time. Alex struggles with her love for Cole and her mounting fear of him. She has lost her closeness with her best friends, her father is not interested and she is afraid and embarrassed to talk to anyone about what is going on. Alex's internal battle is epic and she questions and doubts every decision she makes. Does she deserve the things Cole says and does? Why can't she be the girlfriend he wants? If she breaks up with him will she ever find someone else to love her?

My review:

This was a very sad story and, unfortunately, is all too common among teens today. Alex is a nice, hardworking girl who has a great yearning for love in her life. She fears that her mother didn't love her enough to stay with her. Her father is cold and distant, refusing to get involved with his daughters lives in any way other than providing a home and food. Her sisters do not seem to have the same void that she has and have no sympathy for her. She even shares her best friend with another best friend. Then when a good looking guy comes along and gives her everything she has longed for she falls like a rock. This story helps us to see how someone can get sucked into a relationship that becomes verbally and physically abusive. It also helps to answer the questions that we all like to ask: Why doesn't she break up with him? Why does she keep going back to him? Why didn't she tell someone? How can she still love him? I hope that teens and parents will read this and use it to open up a discussion about verbal and physical abuse.

There is quite a bit of language and the violence is not muted. I highly recommend this book for what it can bring to the discussion of teen violence.

Janeth(less)

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Sep 14, 2011 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Powerful, realistic tale of an abusive relationship. Alex has been on a quest to learn more about her mother's death and believes she will find answers in Colorado (where her mother was headed when she died in a car accident). Her quest involves her two best friends - Zach, a theatrical goofball who loves to flirt and Bethany, an earnest and intelligent girl.

When Alex meets Cole in a tutoring session, her friendships are jeopardized because of his controlling nature and, ultimately, Alex ends up...more

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Aug 15, 2011 Jodi rated it 5 of 5 stars

It is very rare for me to give a book at 5-star rating. To me, that essentially means that the book was so perfect that I wouldn't change a thing. That I wish it didn't have to end and that I could follow the character's story past the final pages of the book. Well, Bitter End absolutely did it for me. I had been waiting for this book to come out for awhile. I was a little apprehensive as to how Brown would handle it. I had read Hate List and thought that while it was a captivating story, thing...more It is very rare for me to give a book at 5-star rating. To me, that essentially means that the book was so perfect that I wouldn't change a thing. That I wish it didn't have to end and that I could follow the character's story past the final pages of the book. Well, Bitter End absolutely did it for me. I had been waiting for this book to come out for awhile. I was a little apprehensive as to how Brown would handle it. I had read Hate List and thought that while it was a captivating story, things just ended to nicely for the main character. It didn't seem altogether realistic which ruined it for me. However, Bitter End did not leave me disappointed in any way.
Alex can't believe it when the new hot guy at school asks her out. He is so sweet to her and so gentle. Alex finds herself spending more and more of her free time with him and less with the two best friends - especially when Cole tells her how uncomfortable her close and "handsy" relationship with Zack makes him. When everything seems so perfect, Alex is shocked and confused when Cole begins to unexpectedly snap. He starts throwing insults at her and then, eventually, begins to hurt her physically. Of course, after he hurts her, he becomes very remorseful and assures Alex that he will never do such a thing again. Alex, torn between knowing what is happening isn't right and loving Cole, decides to forgive him. Unfortunately, this begins to happen over and over again til it finally reaches a point where it can no longer be ignored.
The scenes where Cole abuses Alex are so gut-wrenching and well written. You truly feel like you are standing there watching, completely unable to help Alex. However, just as gut-wrenching are the tender make up scenes with Cole where Alex begins to truly believe that he can and will change.
Although Alex clearly had pushed Zack and Bethany away to spend more time with Cole, I couldn't help but point an accusing "bad finger of friendship" at them. They clearly knew that Cole was hurting Alex and yet they didn't try to step in and help. They didn't tell her father, an authority figure at the school, no one. Rather, they loosely asked Alex and when she denied it they kind of had an attitude of "you made your bed, now lie in it" which aggravated me. I should hope that if someone who is reading this book has ever been, or is, in this situation, their friends and family are more supportive.
In the epilogue, I wish that Brown had told us a little bit about what had happened to Cole. After reading this book with an abusive character, it would have been closure for the reader to know that he had been rightfully punished. That was the only thing that had been missing for me, however, it was still not enough to detract from giving Bitter End 5 stars.
Not only was this a fast-paced, captivaing book, it is one that touches on a subject that, unfortunately, is very realistic. I think that it is an important book for those in a relationship to read as it will hopefully give them the empowerment they need to get out of an abusive relationship should they ever find themselves in one.
I would easily recommend this to anyone.
(less)

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Aug 15, 2011 Jodi Papazian rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-reads

It is very rare for me to give a book at 5-star rating. To me, that essentially means that the book was so perfect that I wouldn't change a thing. That I wish it didn't have to end and that I could follow the character's story past the final pages of the book. Well, Bitter End absolutely did it for me. I had been waiting for this book to come out for awhile. I was a little apprehensive as to how Brown would handle it. I had read Hate List and thought that while it was a captivating story, thing...more It is very rare for me to give a book at 5-star rating. To me, that essentially means that the book was so perfect that I wouldn't change a thing. That I wish it didn't have to end and that I could follow the character's story past the final pages of the book. Well, Bitter End absolutely did it for me. I had been waiting for this book to come out for awhile. I was a little apprehensive as to how Brown would handle it. I had read Hate List and thought that while it was a captivating story, things just ended to nicely for the main character. It didn't seem altogether realistic which ruined it for me. However, Bitter End did not leave me disappointed in any way.
Alex can't believe it when the new hot guy at school asks her out. He is so sweet to her and so gentle. Alex finds herself spending more and more of her free time with him and less with the two best friends - especially when Cole tells her how uncomfortable her close and "handsy" relationship with Zack makes him. When everything seems so perfect, Alex is shocked and confused when Cole begins to unexpectedly snap. He starts throwing insults at her and then, eventually, begins to hurt her physically. Of course, after he hurts her, he becomes very remorseful and assures Alex that he will never do such a thing again. Alex, torn between knowing what is happening isn't right and loving Cole, decides to forgive him. Unfortunately, this begins to happen over and over again til it finally reaches a point where it can no longer be ignored.
The scenes where Cole abuses Alex are so gut-wrenching and well written. You truly feel like you are standing there watching, completely unable to help Alex. However, just as gut-wrenching are the tender make up scenes with Cole where Alex begins to truly believe that he can and will change.
Although Alex clearly had pushed Zack and Bethany away to spend more time with Cole, I couldn't help but point an accusing "bad finger of friendship" at them. They clearly knew that Cole was hurting Alex and yet they didn't try to step in and help. They didn't tell her father, an authority figure at the school, no one. Rather, they loosely asked Alex and when she denied it they kind of had an attitude of "you made your bed, now lie in it" which aggravated me. I should hope that if someone who is reading this book has ever been, or is, in this situation, their friends and family are more supportive.
In the epilogue, I wish that Brown had told us a little bit about what had happened to Cole. After reading this book with an abusive character, it would have been closure for the reader to know that he had been rightfully punished. That was the only thing that had been missing for me, however, it was still not enough to detract from giving Bitter End 5 stars.
Not only was this a fast-paced, captivaing book, it is one that touches on a subject that, unfortunately, is very realistic. I think that it is an important book for those in a relationship to read as it will hopefully give them the empowerment they need to get out of an abusive relationship should they ever find themselves in one. I would easily recommend this to anyone.(less)

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Aug 13, 2011 Lisa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: y-a, abusive-relationship

I think anyone who has been in any sort of abusive relationship will read this and see some form of themself in Alex. It's hard to read about what she goes through and see how many chances she has to get out.

I will say that my first boyfriend was a bit abusive. Not in a physical way, but emotionally. And the worse he made me feel about myself, the more power I gave to him and the deeper I fell into what felt like a neverending hole. I think most girls will go through an abusive relationship in t...more
I think anyone who has been in any sort of abusive relationship will read this and see some form of themself in Alex. It's hard to read about what she goes through and see how many chances she has to get out.

I will say that my first boyfriend was a bit abusive. Not in a physical way, but emotionally. And the worse he made me feel about myself, the more power I gave to him and the deeper I fell into what felt like a neverending hole. I think most girls will go through an abusive relationship in their life and you can never say "I'd never let someone abuse me" or "I'd be gone so quick if..." because you don't know until you are living it.

I used to think that way before my first relationship and then I lived over 4 years of my life letting someone kick me emotionally. And reading this book made my eyes well up a few times because there were a few times where it just put me back in the past. (view spoiler)

The thing I envied about Alex is that she had two amazing best friends. I've never had best friends like that. The most important people in my life have always been my parents and my sister. But I got why she didn't want to tell what was happening. I kept every bad thing inside me as well and only let it all out after I finally got up the nerve to call my ex and say "I can't do it anymore". After that call, I went to my mom and let it all out. She knew I wasn't being treated well but she didn't know the specifics. Then later I let it all out again to my sister and thats when I realized there was nothing to be ashamed about anymore. Sometimes, keeping things inside just hurts us more than anything.

So I understood why Alex didn't want anyone to know. No one wants to admit they are being treated badly and letting it continue happening. No one wants to admit that things are bad and they need help.

What Alex went through in this book was heartbreaking. No one deserves to be abused in any way. It's hard being in the situation and feeling trapped and confused. But most people have a group of people who love them and would do anything for them. And once I started talking about everything, I realized I had a lot of people who loved me and they all knew I was being treated wrong. (And they all hated my ex with a passion)

I found the beginning of Bitter End to be slow but after the first 100 pages, it picked up and I couldn't really put it down. It's not a happy story but it's one a lot of girls have been through.

I don't know what to say. The person you are with should make you feel proud and happy. You shouldn't feel ashamed of the way they treat you or others. And you should always feel safe with them.

Also, you should never be ashamed to ask people for help or to talk to someone if you feel unhappy about anything. Life is too short to be sad and scared. I learned a lot from my abusive relationship. But I wouldn't wish all that pain and misery on anyone. (less)

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Jul 14, 2011 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-girl, ya-issues

I thought that Jennifer Brown did a good job tackling the subject of dating violence. A couple of things didn't ring 100 percent true, so she didn't nail it completely, but close (and this is just my opinion). She obviously did her homework, and her writing was strong. In her author's note, Brown says that she studied domestic violence in college for a semester as part of a psych degree, and that's where she got a lot of her knowledge of domestic violence. But in some places in BITTER END it did...more I thought that Jennifer Brown did a good job tackling the subject of dating violence. A couple of things didn't ring 100 percent true, so she didn't nail it completely, but close (and this is just my opinion). She obviously did her homework, and her writing was strong. In her author's note, Brown says that she studied domestic violence in college for a semester as part of a psych degree, and that's where she got a lot of her knowledge of domestic violence. But in some places in BITTER END it did feel like she was just checking the block and making sure she got into the plot all the "factors" or "characteristics" of victims of Domestic Violence and in doing so missed a bit of the depth and the issue's complexity.

It took me a while to get into the characters -- they seemed a little flat at first -- but as the book got going, I really felt that Zack and Bethany were real people, for example. I don't think Brown made a strong enough connection between his parents' relationship with each other (was his mom abused, too? Or just emotionally beaten down?) and the way Cole treated his girlfriends. And even WHY he did and acted as he did -- I know the book wasn't HIS story, but a little more insight into WHY he abused his girlfriends would've been better. Was he just following the example of his dad and how he treated Cole's mom (whom we only saw one time, and he did not really seem to fit w/ the good looking, athletically gifted Cole that we saw in the story. His family seemed too, I don't know, white trashy? And that didn't really mesh with the type of family background Cole seemed to come from early on in the story.) Cole alludes that his dad cared a great deal about his basketball -- was Cole pushed and had too high expectations placed on him? Was he himself abused (no evidence of this at all)? So, a little clarity there would've made this book stronger. Also, it was obvious that Alex and Cole had a sexual relationship, but I think Brown handled it very classily -- no graphic sex scenes -- and I think that touch was just right. A little over the top was how many girls Cole had abused in the past (there was an implication that there were more than just Alex and Maria), and weird that his mom didn't give the slightest indication or seem worried that Cole had another girlfriend coming to the house. I do think that Brown developed this issue better with BITTER END than Sarah Dessen's DREAMLAND.

Sorry this is so stream-of-consciousness, but just trying to get my thoughts down here, jumbled as they are. I did enjoy this book and would def recommend it.(less)

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Jul 11, 2011 Page Turners Blog rated it 5 of 5 stars

Jennifer Brown has written a heart stopping, hard hitting contemporary; Bitter End delves deep into the mental aspects of an abusive relationship.

Every since her mom died on her way to Colorado, Alex has felt like something was missing in her life. Her father won't answer her questions and what she has learned from her older sister, just left her with more questions. Alex has always wanted to visit Colorado; she thinks it will hold the answers she seeks. Since they were kids Alex and her two be...more

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Jun 14, 2011 Corinne added it

I had some mixed feelings about this book. While it kept my attention and was an easy read, I was irritated with the ending. I know that sometimes the author will leave it to the reader to sort things out, make judgements or draw their own conclusions, but in this case, I definitively wanted to learn about Cole's fate. What he did to Alex was criminal and punishable and I needed to know how he paid for his crime. We know he is still "on the scene" somewhere because of his incessant phone calls a...more

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IR Project	1	9	29 oct. 18:34
IS THERE ANYONE WHO HATED THIS BOOK AS MUCH AS ME!?	7	25	04 sept. 16:08
YA Lovers: Love And Abuse	1	10	22 août 08:51

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