| Title | : | After (After, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1476792488 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781476792484 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 582 |
| Publication | : | First published October 21, 2014 |
But she’s barely moved into her freshman dorm when she runs into Hardin. With his tousled brown hair, cocky British accent, tattoos, and lip ring, Hardin is cute and different from what she’s used to.
But he’s also rude—to the point of cruelty, even. For all his attitude, Tessa should hate Hardin. And she does—until she finds herself alone with him in his room. Something about his dark mood grabs her, and when they kiss it ignites within her a passion she’s never known before.
He’ll call her beautiful, then insist he isn't the one for her and disappear again and again. Despite the reckless way he treats her, Tessa is compelled to dig deeper and find the real Hardin beneath all his lies. He pushes her away again and again, yet every time she pushes back, he only pulls her in deeper.
Tessa already has the perfect boyfriend. So why is she trying so hard to overcome her own hurt pride and Hardin’s prejudice about nice girls like her?
Unless…could this be love?
Now newly revised and expanded, Anna Todd’s After fanfiction racked up 1 billion reads online and captivated readers across the globe. Experience the Internet’s most talked-about book for yourself!
There was the time before Tessa met Hardin, and then there’s everything AFTER ... Life will never be the same.
After (After, #1) Reviews
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No puedo creer que logré terminar este libro. OMG. Tengo muchos pensamientos. Prometo volver para escribir algunos por aquí.
PD: No, no voy a leer los demás libros de la saga.
----Actualización:
Tengo un video completo en el que hablo de mi opinión sobre AFTER, pero me centro específicamente en la relación tóxica de Tessa y Hardin, así que, si quieren ver eso, aquí les dejo el link:
https://youtu.be/wSs-Yh0E27E
Ahora, no quiero decir por aquí lo mismo que dije en mi video, aunque supongo que será imposible no repetir algunas cosas. Empecemos por los puntos buenos de AFTER:
+ Creo que sí es adictivo. Al inicio solo se me hacía algo tonto, pero conforme iban avanzando las páginas, me resultaba más difícil soltarlo. Entonces: ¿Me entretuvo? Sí.
+ La autora tiene una habilidad increíble para dejarte con ganas de leer más en cada final de capítulo. Siempre los termina con un giro o con un punch, con algo que te hace querer voltear la página. Eso me gustó.
+ No creo que la autora escriba súper mal (como muchos dicen), creo que escribe bastante normal. No me molestó para nada su forma de escribir. AUNQUE no puedo creer que usara la frase más cliché de todo el mundo literario: "I Let Out a Breath I Didn't Realize I Was Holding." ---OMG, ¡y la usó así, tal cual! Cuando leí eso casi escupo mi agua.
Y ufff, para hablar de lo que no me gustó va a estar complicado, es que son muchas cosas.
Primero que nada, es un libro ultra repetitivo. Todo el tiempo estaba pasando LO MISMO. Tessa y Hardin se peleaban, luego se buscaban, se perdonaban, se besaban y pasábamos a la escena erótica de turno. ESO UNA Y OTRA Y OTRA VEZ. Cada vez que estaban relativamente en paz, yo ya sabía que faltaban pocas páginas para que el tarado de Hardin volviera a hacer algo y se pelearan DE NUEVO. Y jamás me equivoqué.
Obviamente no me gustaron los personajes. Hardin se me hace un sujeto de lo peor. Sus acciones violentas no se justifican con su pasado tormentoso. Tampoco tiene derecho a tratar como basura a los demás solo porque "no sabe cómo ser de otra forma" (en palabras de él). Odié que usara el sexo como manipulación (por ejemplo la vez que estaban en pleno sexo y le dice a Tessa que la dejará llegar al clímax solamente si le jura que lo va a obedecer). También ODIÉ que le rogara a Tessa que se fuera a vivir con él para que luego le restregara en la cara que él pagaba las cuentas y que por él, ella tenía trabajo. Odié que criticara todo el tiempo la forma de vestir de Tessa y que la llamara patética. Y en general odié muchas cosas más de este personaje. No puedo creer que haya logrado enamorar a tantas lectoras (y lectores) desde este primer libro.
Tessa es otra que no soporté. ¿Dónde quedó su dignidad? ¡No tiene! Acepta que es el saco de boxeo de Hardin y tiene pensamientos tales como: "sé que me lastima, pero lo amo", WTF. Se la pasa llorando todo el libro por culpa de Hardin (que le grita, la humilla, la ignora, la critica, la manipula, y un largo etcétera), y sí, se enoja con él, pero siempre vuelve a él porque LO AMA, está dispuesta a aguantar todos esos tratos tan humillantes porque lo ama. OK TESSA, diría: you do you, pero la verdad es que no puedo.
Y bueno, además de eso, Tessa se cree superior a las demás mujeres. Tiene frases como: "no soy como las otras chicas" (es única y no se pone minifaldas), y también: "Hardin, perdón si no me visto como una zorra como las otras chicas con las que te juntas" (UFFFFFFF). Juzga a las demás mujeres por cómo se visten y por lo que les gusta hacer, y eso es algo que detesto tanto en la vida real como en ficción.
No lo sé, chicos, mientras leía el libro, todo el tiempo estuve poniendo los ojos en blanco. Es que cada situación era más absurda que la anterior.
Y les juro que tengo mil cosas más qué decir sobre la relación de esos dos, pero ya me explayé sobre eso en mi video, entonces no lo voy a repetir por aquí.
Tal vez la autora quiso reflejar una relación tóxica real con esta saga, pero el libro lo están vendiendo como una historia de amor infinito que todos quieren vivir (???), en varias páginas de librerías me topé con frases así, ¡y eso no está bien! Ya he leído miles de comentarios de niñas diciendo que quieren un novio como Hardin y una relación como la de #Hessa. Y ok, si tú lo leíste y no por eso quisiste a un Hardin, ¡bien por ti! Pero la realidad es que hay miles de niñas que leen el libro y piensan que es una historia de amor y que así es el amor.
Y YA SÉ QUE ES FICCIÓN, sé que muchas personas leen un libro simplemente como entretenimiento, pero para mí fue imposible leer este libro de esa forma. Fue una historia que leí con un ojo muy crítico y no puedo dejar pasar todo lo malo que hay en sus páginas.
La ficción podrá ser solo eso, pero afecta a las personas de una forma fuerte (y diferente en cada caso particular). Los libros cambian a la gente, las palabras son capaces de movernos todo por dentro.
Creo que, de todo, lo que más me molesta de AFTER es esto: que se venda como una historia de amor (porque así lo están vendiendo) y que esté dirigido a un público juvenil. -
I don't normally read fan fiction on Wattpad. One Direction fanfiction, even less so. But given that this trilogy nearly has one BILLION reads altogether, I thought to myself: this can't be that bad -- after all, it's literally the most popular unpublished trilogy on the internet right now. I should give it a try.
And I regret it. I'm never again judging a book by its popularity. I honestly have no idea how the movie rights for this were bought, much less how a Big Six publishing house like Simon & Schuster actually agreed to publish it! The plot is like the other 90% of the stories on wattpad involving good girls and bad boys, only it includes the infamous Harry Styles, which is probably the only reason why it has accumulated so many views. And let me tell you, I can name at least thirty stories that are based on the same idea but are written ten times better. Yet somehow they didn't make Wattpad blow up as much as After did.
They say that this is the new 50 shades of grey. I admit that I haven't read James' books but the situation does seem similar: 50 shades was initially a Twilight fan fiction, was it not? And this 1D fanfic is ''the next big thing'' with bidders for the movie and the publishing rights. God forbid it ever became a best seller. Books like A Proscriptive Relationship, Love at Last Sight, Late Summer Rain: that's what Wattpad's about, and that's what should be made popular by Wattpad. If After gets published with ''made popular by Wattpad'' on its front cover, I will be very disappointed because the last thing I want to see is fiction like this representing a community filled with brilliant authors.
This, however, was so poorly written that I'm having a hard time grasping how the editor is going to make it better. Not only that, but the plot itself lacks any depth whatsoever: at least some of the similar stories I've read actually carried a message.
This story does not.
It is not based on love, it is based on lust. It does not portray an honest and evolving relationship. Instead, it's centered around a boy with serious anger management issues and a lovestruck girl who barely knows him but will put up with anything. The majority of the chapters consist of him abusing her emotionally and then making it all better through make up sex. It does not even follow a story line: it's chapter after chapter of the same thing.
No. Just no. Absolutely no meaning. Absolutely no depth. Absolutely no character development. Absolutely no plot development. Absolutely nothing.
Perhaps after its publishing it will get better. Maybe, just maybe, I'll actually bother to finish the trilogy. I would never buy this, but I would be willing to finish it on Wattpad -- although I suspect it will not get edited theре. So that's an unlikely scenario.
But until I see a more decent version, I'll be stuck here wondering how many of the people who made this story so popular are over 13 years of age.
(And mind you, I'd consider After 18+.)
Sorry for being harsh. But this story does not even deserve one star in my eyes. -
EDIT 11/22/14
“Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.”
This appears as a quote from After.
THIS. APPEARS. AS. A. QUOTE. FROM. AFTER.
I can't even. I just can't even. My fuck-o-meter exploded with this. Emily Brontë would be choking herself to death if she were alive.
So, really, to those who believe this book is well written and Todd has a way with words, better to know this lovely quote belongs to Wuthering Heights.
* * * * * * *
You know what?
FUCK THIS.
Fuck the industry, fuck the media, fuck everything that promotes abusive behaviour as something romantic and appealing. As something women have to put up with in the name of love. As something women deserve. As something women must strive for.
As a woman, as a person, this makes me sick in so many levels. Especially due the fact that nowadays, most teens believe such behaviour is okay after reading so many books that romanticize manipulative, abusing bastards. This definitely needs to stop, for once.
And what about the mediocre writing? The fact that there's no plot whatsoever apart from an abusive relationship and make up sex? Is this the literature we want? Is this the literature that will survive, the legacy we'll leave to future generations? As a future editor, this disgusts me. It annoys me and it also saddens me, because I can't understand why things like this are being published. You can still make money by selling quality books, but apparently quality doesn't matter anymore. And some readers do not care about it either, as it seems by now, which saddens me even more. -
yeah so this was not fuckin great...However, there was this page where there were two Is lined up and I made a doodle:
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Im going to re-read After. I read the Fanfic and wasn't too impressed with it but I've heard from friends that the book is better so i'm giving it another go!
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I read this book and it was great. I don't want to spoil anything, so the rest of this review is going to be invisible.
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"u wont to succ my coq tessuh????"
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Bitch please, this entire books is about Hardin getting a Hardon
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Keeping in mind what harry styles always says:-
"treat people with kindness!"
Let's start the review of the entire series!( Because it's easy this way!! I can't joke about same thing over and over again!)
I fucking fucking fucking hate this book( this is an understatement)
Someone once said,
"once you have got a Xerox of a Xerox you have some real quality issues"
That's what this book is COPY of a COPY!
SUCCESSFUL PARTS OF TWILIGHT and FIFTY SHADES + HARRY STYLES LIKENESS= AFTER~ CRAP
Let's introduce you to history's most immature, stupid and fucked up protagonist Tessa and Hardin ( yes I am not gonna use harry, I love harry , I love one direction)
Tessa,the saint( who never had sex and never touched herself even with a boyfriend coz she was waiting for the right one huh?) who loves books( just like Ana and Bella) and her motive in life is :-
• going in parties and being with people you know are fucked up
• pissing off hardin by kissing a random guy so that he can beat the shit out of that person and they can live happily ever after!!!( and repeat the same shit again)
Next is Hardin aka emotionally damaged bad boy who treats Tessa like shit throughout the book but is really romantic deep( symbolised by him having read deep novels)
And our baby boy can't sleep w/o her beside him,thr fact that being near her make his nightmares go away is used by him over 2000+ pages!!
overall the two of them are trapped in a cluster fuck of a co dependent relationship that would make Sid Vicious and Nancy look tame!
Lastly ,
"nothing can change the way I feel about you"
- quote from WUTHERING HEIGHTS
Thank you! -
It's okay to cheat on someone if you lose interest in them. It's okay to choose an abusive, toxic relationship over a real and a healthy one. It's okay to slut-shame anyone whenever you feel like it.
Lesson learnt 🙌 -
Before you read this, please remember that this is my own personal opinion and that, with this very negative review, I'm by no means bashing those who liked this book or related to its characters.
That being said, I think this is the first time in my reading experience where I wish I could rate a book -5 stars. Why? Because After is the most horrible thing I've ever read in my life.
It praises moral/verbal abuse and very unhealty relationships. Not to mention the slut-shaming and the way it speaks to good girls as if being naive and inexperienced is something they need to fix right away. Sorry to bother you, Anna Todd, but 1940 called to say it wants its mysogyny back when you're done using it.
I mean, I've read bad books before, and I sometimes found myself even liking them or what you may call problematic characters, anyway, but this? This is not problematic, this not even slightly twisted.
This is a straight up mess that was most certainly created for the sole erotic purpose and the "plot" that was attached to it for the sake of calling it a book and not fan-fiction, is just funfetti.
(speaking of fan-fiction; I thought it was a running joke I didn't understand but it turns out this REALLY is a freaking wattpad monster. And it was based on no other than the cutiepie that is Harry Styles?? I'd sue if I were him, no joking intended.)
The main character is one of the most unrelatable, annoying, judgy girls I've ever encountered in books (say hi, Lara Jean), and Hardin, her male counterpart, should really consider therapy or else self-employ himself in a circus because he's nothing but a rabied bear.
If he doesn't, please someone come collect him and lock him away where he can't harm anyone anymore. He's so scary, moody and crazy I was afraid he'd jump out the pages and scold me for reading.
Imagine what a happy relationship these two must have.
Of course, there's the sex - another meh to add to the collection - that should patch all this up, but not even all the positions of Kamasutra could save these two and their madness. Hardin makes Christian Grey look like a maltese teacup and Tessa should move stares, buy a vibrator if it's the sex she needs to function, or simply learn to love herself.
Also, the stereotypes killed me. In this book people are evilized or seen as the bad guys because they have tattoos and piercings, dye their hair, have casual sex and wear tight clothes. Should I tell 9o% of people I know they're walking disasters or should I recommend them this book so they can find out themselves?
Character development? Redemption? You won't find them here or in any other book of the series.
This story left me so uncomfortable and shaken that I had to finish a whole jar of pickles to get over it.
Again, if you liked it, I'm happy for you, but I will never understand how this is considered 'a masterpiece', or where it got all its success. Sometimes, fanfictions should stay fanfictions.
I wish I could unread it or at least forget stories as toxic as this one are being published and praised for their portrayal of romance like it's nothing, while real works of art get rejected every day.
Honestly, just slap a dark romance tag on this, already, and let readers know it's full of shit you can romanticize all you want as long as you recognize it's questionable in terms of morality.
edit Oct. 10 2019
I just watched the movie because it was on and I had no idea I was watching it until names were made. I kept watching it because I wanted to see if maybe it suffered from the Twilight Effect which imo made the movies more tolerable than the books (I'm still crying over that long khaki skirt) buuuuut nope. Movie adaptation not doing it for me, either.
I must admit that it was slightly less cringy than the books, tho, but only a bit. Those longing looks, the Truth or Dare, the peer pressure, the slut/purity-shaming and fighting were more than enough to last for weeks.
The actors were good and extremely pretty, so I'm giving the movie an additional quarter of a star for this!
And, why not, I'm also giving myself 10 gold star for the effort of not throwing my remote to the TV.
🚩𝙿𝙾𝚂𝚂𝙸𝙱𝙻𝙴 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙱𝙻𝙴𝙼𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙲 𝙲𝙾𝙽𝚃𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝙰𝙻𝙴𝚁𝚃!*🚩
*𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚜 𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜, 𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚞𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜, 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍/𝚘𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚌/𝚝𝚘𝚡𝚒𝚌/𝚍𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎.
𝙸, 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠, 𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚝𝚜 𝚗𝚎𝚐𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍, 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝 𝚣𝚘𝚗𝚎, 𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚎𝚗𝚓𝚘𝚢𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚘𝚗, 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎:
-𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢;
-𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚋𝚎𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚛𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎;
-𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚊𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚘𝚛 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 "𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚌" 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚜/𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙𝚜/𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗;
-𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚐𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝙾𝙽𝙴 𝙾𝙵 𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚂𝙴 𝙱𝙾𝙾𝙺𝚂, 𝚢'𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠? -
Decidí leer algunas páginas de este libro, porque no quería odiarlo sin fundamentos. Esto fue lo que encontré:
–Pero ¿a ti que te pasa? Actúas como si no ocurriera nada, como si no nos hubiéramos peleado, como si no hubieras hecho nada. Estás mal de la cabeza, Hardin, loco de atar. Necesitas un manicomio, medicación y paredes acolchadas. ¿Me dices unas cosas horribles y luego re ofreces a llevarme? –No puedo con él.
*Vuelve con él después de un poco de sexo*
Hardin podría ponerse cualquier cosa rebozada en barro que seguiría estando más guapo que cualquier otro tío que haya visto. «Excepto Noah», me recuerdo.
TU NOVIO, te recuerdo.Hardin me quiere. A su manera tarada, pero me quiere. Si llega a ser un león, me come. WTF?
Si ambos admitimos lo que sentimos por el otro, ¿cambiará todo lo demás? ¿Cambiará él? ¿Es capaz de quererme como necesito que me quiera? Y, de ser así, ¿seré capaz de aguantar sus cambios de humor?
ÉL. NO. VA. A. CAMBIAR.Cuando llegamos a su habitación, Hardin me da la vuelta, me sujeta por las muñecas contra la pared y se me acerca. Nuestras caras están a escasos centímetros.
—No vuelvas a hacer eso nunca —masculla.
—¿El qué? Suéltame ahora mismo.
Pone los ojos en blanco pero me suelta y se dirige a la cama. Yo me quedo junto a la puerta.
—No vuelvas a decirme cómo debo hablarle a mi padre. Preocúpate de tu
relación con el tuyo antes de intentar meterte en la mía.
En cuanto ha terminado de pronunciar la frase, se da cuenta de lo que ha dicho y de inmediato le cambia la expresión.
—Perdona... No quería decir eso... Se me ha escapado.
Se me acerca con los brazos abiertos, pero yo me pego a la puerta.
—Sí, siempre se te escapa, ¿verdad?
No puedo evitar que los ojos se me llenen de lágrimas. Se ha pasado mucho
metiendo a mi padre en esto, incluso para ser Hardin. Es demasiado.
—Tess, yo... —empieza a decir, pero se calla cuando levanto una mano.
«¿Qué hago aquí?» ¿Por qué sigo pensando que pondrá fin a la retahíla de insultos el tiempo suficiente para mantener una conversación de verdad conmigo? Porque soy imbécil, por eso.
—No pasa nada, de verdad —digo—. Es tu forma de ser, siempre haces lo mismo. Buscas el punto débil de los demás y vas a por él. Lo aprovechas. ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas esperando para poder decir algo sobre mi padre? ¡Apuesto a que desde que nos conocimos!— grito.
—¡Joder, no! ¡No es verdad! —grita aún más fuerte que yo—. ¡Lo he dicho sin pensar! ¡Y no te hagas la inocente porque me has provocado a propósito!
DE NINGUNA JODIDA MANERA
Tessa es una futura víctima de violencia doméstica. Harry terminará en prisión algún día. ¿Qué clase de ejemplo le están dando a las mujeres con esta clase de novelas? -
(0.25/5: 0.1 for Landon, 0.1 for Noah, 0.05 for Steph. That's it. Fuck everyone else.)
Shoutout to the Cursed Books Club, without whom this rant would not be possible, because I would havecommitted arsongone insane two days ago.
Real footage of me being convinced to read this.
Here's your spoiler warning because I honestly have no patience to be funny right now. This book was terrible. I'm going to talk about everything that I found problematic or even vaguely annoying in this book. Please keep all trigger warnings in mind while reading this review. If you enjoyed this book and think I should have as well, I don't want to hear it. Otherwise, well, have fun.
TW/CW:
(To everyone who has been anticipating this review, apologies that it has taken me a week to type up. Apparently thinking about 'After' for any period of time makes me prone to fits of fury and general rage. Sorry about that.)
Objectively, 'After' is the worst book I've ever read. It has absolutely everything, and to top it all off, it's Harry Styles Wattpad fanficton. This book honestly infuriated me even more than
Ignite Me did, and that's saying something. However, unlike 'Ignite Me', 'After' also had exactly three somewhat redeemable points.
(That's not saying much, because the entire book is a sea of 'nope', with about three droplets of 'not-as-shitty-as-the-rest-of-it'.)
Real footage of my braincells dropping dead because of this dumpster fire.
'After' tries to tell the story of Tessa Young, a perfect little college student whose life is turned absolutely upside down after meetingbad boy Harry StylesHardin Scott, because of a relationship that is as long as it is fun to read about. So that is to say, notfunlong at all.
Tessa is your classic good girl. All she does is study and never has any fun. She just wants to be successful in life and not get in trouble, and is therefore not like other teenagers, let alone other girls. Logic 100. Additionally, because of her financial situation, despite her AmAzInG gRaDeS she only applies to one school. Not even ONE safety school. Logic 1000.
As you can see, Tessa is the smartest person on the planet, ever. When she meets Hardin, things aren't exactly off to a great start for this pErFeCt CoUpLe. She goes as far as to acknowledge that she's judging him for his tattoos and piercings, but turns right around and says that she's being polite. She claIMS THAT THERE ARE ONLY TWO GENDERS. SHE INSINUATES THAT PEOPLE WITH OCD ARE CRAZY.
*visibly attempts to remain sane*
She hates Steph, her roommate, on-site because she wears revealing clothes and has tattoos/piercings. (I actually somewhat liked Steph because she defends Tessa and remains supportive of her even when Tessa is so outright judgemental about her, even if Steph peer-pressures Tessa somewhat.) This brings us to one of the biggest problems with this book: all the slut-shaming.
You see, Tessa holds herself in such high regard because of how 'perfect' and 'innocent' she is. She hates everyone who "looks different", especially girls who dress differently from how she does. It gets particularly worse when a side character, Molly, is introduced.
Girl-on-girl hate reaches its peak in this book, because Molly exists solely to make Tessa jealous, and she goes as far as to call Molly a 'skank' and a 'whore' multiple times. Just because Molly used to sleep with Hardin.Which Tessa now does.
((Call-out paragraph for Tessa's mother, who takes one look at the band posters, piercings, andpentagramsblack leather, and demands that Tessa change dorms, and occasionally shows up from time to time. No joke. Tessa's mother is more of a Karen than the character named 'Karen' in this book.))
Tessa goes to a party with some other people and drinks for the first time. She stumbles into a bedroom with books in it. Because Tessa is the most intelligent of all intellectuals, her favorite book is 'Wuthering Heights', which she notices with the books. Just as she sits down to read it, Hardin walks into the room. We learn that not only is Hardin a bad boy, but an intellectual because he reads ✨classics✨.
There is instant kemistree between the two of them, and we know this because we get more descriptions of Hardin's eyes than what goes on at school. In one of the few chapters that we do get to see what goes on at school, Tessa befriends Landon, who turns out to be Hardin's step-brother, but is one of the only characters I actually liked because of how genuinely nice he is.
Apart from all of that, Tessa has actually had a boyfriend this entire time - Noah. Noah is also nice but basically has no role in the story other than to build part of Tessa's love triangle. He's worried about Tessa and calls her mother on a few occasions, on account of how Tessa seems unable to make good decisions anymore.
Time passes, drunken games of truth-or-dare are played, and Hardin and Tessa decide to try to be friends. They decide to go out one day...
...and Hardin fingers her at a lake.
Tessa comes to the conclusion that she doesn't want to be with Noah, but actually Hardin. Of course, for how smart she is, Tessa can't figure out how to break up with him, bEcAuSe ThEy'Ve BeEn BeSt FrIeNdS fOrEvEr. So, basically, it's okay to cheat on your boyfriend if you ✨feel bad✨ about it. She repeatedly acknowledges that cheating is wrong but continues to do it because she's nOt LiKe OtHeR gIrLs.
The level of drama in this book genuinely rivals that of a soap opera. Noah finds out that Tessa has been cheating on him with Hardin in the most dramatic way possible, but decides that he can put it behind them if Tessa stops seeing Hardin. So she does.
Kidding! Of course not! Tessa and Hardin get caught by Landon of all people and continue messing around with each other. Poor Noah finds out about them again and they properly break up.
And so begins a disturbing montage of push-and-pull between Tessa and Hardin, as they decide to properly date. Except not really. Hardin starts oPeNiNg Up to Tessa, and shows her a SoFtEr SiDe of him, which convinces her that he really does like her, but just feels conflicted sometimes.
So when the two of them argue (which is almost constantly), instead of standing up for herself, Tessa thinks that it's better for her to just be quiet and let him work through it. Hardin will yell at her, and then thirty seconds later we're getting ghastly descriptions of him going down on her. All while being told how rOmAnTiC he is.
This brings us to the biggest problem of the book: the relationship itself. Tessa and Hardin's relationship is emotionally and at times physically abusive. Hardin manipulates Tessa to the point where she thinks that their relationship is normal. Hardin is actually so terrible that everytime he acts even remotely decent, he is lauded for how incredible he is.
He also constantly called Tessa 'bAbY', which absolutely grated on my nerves. If I ever have to hear that word again, I am going to ✨yeet myself into a void✨ and die a traumatized human.
Hardin is terrible to everyone, a behavior which seems to stem from the fact that his father was a neglectful alcoholic at one point. And so because of that, Hardin is still incredibly disrespectful to his father, his step-mother, his step-brother, and the world at large.
There's one scene in particular that comes to my mind. Tessa is screaming about how miserable she is when she's with Hardin, and how being with him was terrible for her. She acknowledges that his behavior is borderline sociopathic, and tells him that he brings out the worst in her.
His response? That even though he brings out the worst in her, she brings out the best in him, so it's good for them to stay together.
Yeah. uMM-
AKA Hardin in a gif.
To make matters worse, they move in together. Tessa's mother shows up, and drama ensues.
However I'd like to point out one VERY big problem with this: Tessa doesn't really know Hardin. She met him, what, 6 months ago, when she started college? She doesn't even know his favorite color, let alone who he truly is. He could be an axe-murderer for all she knows, luring her into a false sense of security, getting her to trust him completely and abandon all of her friends only to betray her in the worst way at the end.Oh wait.
Tessa also gets an internship at Vance Publishing, where she gets her own office and basically reads manuscripts all day. I'd like to point out that Tessa is a COLLEGE. STUDENT. If she spends all day at her internship, and all night fucking Hardin, where the hell does she find the time to go to classes? Does she even go to classes?? What about hOMEWORK???
One day, Hardin stays out all night and refuses to tell Tessa where he had been. It's clear to her that he has been drinking, even though he had initially claimed to almost never drinkalthough he spends a good portion of this book drunk, but we're not going to start questioning that now.
Tessa decides that she's going to be strict with him, and tells him that she isn't going to sleep with him that night, or something. He tells her something along the lines of "bUt YoU kNoW i GeT nIgHtMaReS wHeN i DoN't SlEeP wItH yOu" (which, hey, again, manipulation!), and explains why: when he was really young, he saw his mother raped in front of him, and has had nightmares ever since.
I know, that's a terrible thing to happen to someone, especially at a young age. But what does giving Hardin a tragic backstory do, other than "excuse" him for his disgusting behavior? Absolutely nothing. Trying to garner sympathy because you witnessed something that horrible is not okay. It does not, in any way, shape, or form give you special permission to treat everyone like dirt.
Things actually seem to get better between Tessa and Hardin, to the point where he acts like a decent human being at his father's wedding. Of course, they have sex. However, things aren't adding up, and Tessa decides to go meet Steph (who, surprise surprise, is still alive!) and the rest of their friends.
When she gets to the restaurant where they're all meeting, she finds Hardin with Molly and immediately sees red. She demands an explanation from everyone there and finds out that her relationship with Hardin thus far has been a farce. It was all a bet to find out who could take Tessa's virginity first.
Definitely didn't see that coming.
Tessa leaves the restaurant in a heartbroken fury, all whilst Hardin attempts to console her, and claims that he had never meant to hurt her, and all sorts of irritating drivel.
Tessa and Hardin's relationship right now. Probably. Hopefully.
And so this dreadful dumpster fire goes out. Except not really, because there are four more books. I'd like to think that Tessa really means it, splits with Hardin for real, and gets her life back on track, but something tells me not to be optimistic.
All of that being said, if you think about it, there's really no plot whatsoever. It's just a couple of college kids being horny and making bad decisions.
We're not even going to talk about character development, because it's nonexistent.
The writing was simultaneously slow and rushed, and ultimately very painful to read.
The narrator was... oh god. Let's not even talk about this. The narrator must have been desperate to go through with all of this, but their voice only made it worse for me.
That's actually a lie. I managed to make my way through this book, didn't I?
There's just one last thing I'd like to address: the 60,000 five-star ratings. To everyone who gave this book that high a rating, I'd just like to know one thing: why??? There's literally no redeemable aspect of this book. It isn't even remotely fun. The smut is dry and stale. Hardin's relationship with Tessa is disturbing and abusive. Harding isn't even hot!
Essentially this book accomplishes two things:
1.) Embodies every terrible trope that is characteristic of Wattpad fanfiction, and
2.) Tells readers that the sort of relationship Tessa and Hardin have is okay. That it's perfectly fine, good even, to be emotionally abused the way Tessa is in the book if he's "hot" and has a tragic past. (If I'm being completely honest, however, it is difficult for me to even show any sympathy for Tessa because of how awful and hypocritical she is.)
Live footage of me yeeting all my memories of this book.
So yeah. I'm done.
Pray for my braincells. ✌
~~~~~~~~
i know i said i would never read this
but here we are.
buddy read with the cursed books club! (yes, that is a thing now. don't ask.)
~~~~~~~~~
update: my teacher was playing a harry styles song in english class today
i'm disappointed in myself to say that this is where my thought process ended up at.
~~~~~~~~~
what the actual fork
apparently this is harry styles wattpad fanfiction
what has the world come to -
This book is harmful garbage. Don't read it. Just don't.
-
in response to my friend request question, someone really said this was their favorite diverse book.....hello goodreads 911
-
First of all I just want to say that I was 100% ready to hate this book with a passion. I’m not a fan of Harry Styles or One Direction (haha this has since changed), but I honestly just wanted to read it so that I could form my own opinion of it and let you guys know how I felt about it.
I want to start off by saying that this was a Harry Styles fanfiction on wattpad that received so many views that it got published. Anna Todd has never written anything else and it’s a fanfiction, so I had to take that on board when I started reading it, but I was genuinely surprised.
I understand where people are coming from when they say that Tessa and Hardin’s relationship is abusive. But I watched an interview with the author and I thought it was so interesting. She straight up said that he’s a bad person and that not all people are good. This story is realistic in that sense. Everyone has issues and he’s obviously trying to deal with those, but it’s obvious to anyone who reads this book that he’s trying so hard to change. When this is all he’s ever known, how can he just all of a sudden forget all of his past issues and be a good person? That’s just not realistic. That’s what I liked about After, that it depicted something that wasn’t necessarily good or healthy, but it was real.
I think I may have hated this book if Tessa just took the abuse and kept crawling back to him, but she doesn’t. She sticks up for herself and is a feisty, independent character who knows what she wants, and she will tell him if he needs to get back in line and I really, really appreciated this. I don’t think this book is glamorising abusive relationships. I think it’s teaching people empathy, that not all people are perfect and how to stick up for yourself – not only did she stick up for herself to Hardin, but also to her mother.
Going into this, I thought it would be all about the romance, but it’s not. It’s got so many other aspects in it that revolve around family, friends, university and work life. This isn’t just a love story, it’s a coming of age story. Tessa really grows as a person and realises what she wants in life and I admire that.
Obviously this wasn’t going to be the most beautifully written book out there, but it sure was addicting and I raced through the almost 600 pages in less than 3 days. I grew to really care for these characters and want the best for them.
Just know that I understand where the haters are coming from, but Hardin is changing for the better and is trying so hard to be good for Tessa and Tessa is a badass who can hold her own and is trying to help Hardin get over his past and become a better person. And that’s what matters, that he’s trying and that she has the compassion to help him.
I am so surprised that I didn’t turn out to be one of the people hating on this book, and I’m so glad I gave it a chance. Don’t be embarrassed to read this book because of all of the hate it’s receiving. I say to give it a go and form your own opinion and I ask you not to judge it based on the fact that it’s a fanfiction.
I don’t recommend this book for younger readers as there is explicit sex, swearing, drug and alcohol references and is just generally not for younger readers. -
AVISO de que mis reseñas son la peste. Y, adaptándome al nivel del libro, ésta lo es aún más.
AVISO 2. Si algún susceptible fan del libro termina perdido por estos lares, y ya que yo lo he leído con el único fin de reírme, aviso de que voy a ser cruel y sarcástica a más no poder y lo invito a dejar de leer.
AVISO 3. Hago un poquito de spoiler, los más graves los marcaré, pero alguno queda suelto, aviso para no estropearle la trama a nadie (TRAMA jajajaja, esto era el primer chiste de la reseña)
Empecé este libro porque hace unas semanas parece que hubo algún tipo de conspiración en mi teamline de Goodreads y todo el mundo lo estaba leyendo a la vez, acompañando los estados de lectura con comentarios muy llamativos la mayoría (vamos, de todo menos bonito) y movida por la curiosidad, las ganas de reírme e invitada por Beatriz (no sé si darle las gracias o qué…) y para cumplir la opción de “Libro con malas críticas” del reto de PopSugar, decidí unirme a ellos.
Y reír, me he reído.
Y he lloradosangre.
Y, sobre todo, he rabiado.
Aclarar, para aquellos pocos que no lo sepan, que este libro empezó siendo un fan fiction sobre el grupo británico One Direction. No tengo nada en contra del fan fiction, de hecho entre los 14 y los 16 años me hartaba de leer fics de Harry Potter, aunque la verdad es que lo que yo leía era mucho más inocente que esta clase de fantasía erótica que se ha montado la autora.
EmpecemosAnna ToddTessa, la protagonista, empieza su primer año de universidad y se nos presenta como doña perfecta, organizada, súper sensata y superior a la media, que tiene a bien juzgar a los demás por su forma de vestir o color de pelo, pero que luego se enfada cuando hacen lo mismo con ella. CÓMO NO
Así que se sorprende mucho cuando descubre que su compañera de habitación es una chica tatuada y llena de piercings, que viste de manera desenfadada, ya que para ella es claro síntoma de poseída por el demonio.
Y aún se sorprende más cuando descubre que sus amigos van igual de tatuados y agujereados que ella.
Y aquí es donde entraJardínHardin, a.k.a Harry Styles.
De quien por cierto, hasta ahora yo tenía una imagen así:
(angelito)
Pero parece que la autora le ha añadido unos cuantos tatuajes y piercings y algo de hijoputismo para hacerlo irremediablemente sexy.
Algo así:
(adorador de Satán)
Y la protagonista, sehumedeceemociona nada más verlo. Y a partir de aquí, no dejará de pensar en él.
Y es literal.
Porque el libro va simplemente de eso, cada dos páginas aparece el nombre de Hardin, y es un tira y afloja de: “no me gusta lo odio me encanta voy a dejar de pensar en él cuando cuente tres:Uno...Dos...Dos y medio, Dos y tres cuartos…”, ¡sin ningún tipo de subtrama!
¡Sólo va de eso!
Pelea-Reconciliacón-Sexo
Te odio-Te amo-Vamos a hacerlo aquí mismo, en el suelo.
Y sí, de fondo están los amigos, la compañera de habitación, típico relleno que sólo sirve para la típica escena en la que maquilla, peina y presta vestidos a la protagonista, los otros miembros de One Direction (por cierto, sólo localicé al rubio y al moreno, los otros, ni idea, como la autora profundiza tanto en las descripciones...), y todo el tema del novio, Noah.
¿No he mencionado que Tessa tenía novio?
Da igual, no importa, a Tessa no le importa, a nadie le importa.
Para colmo, la historia es aburridísima y poco original.
El pilar central y único, es la relación de Hardin y Tessa, no sabemos nada de la vida de los amigos, o de las clases de la universidad, y hasta la relación de éstos dos se vuelve aburrida y repetitiva, y se mueve por una pauta ya muy usada:
Chica sosa y mojigata, conoce a chico sexy y malote, que la trata fatal, y como es lógico se enamora, y tras unos cuantos tira y afloja, terminan juntos, el consigue que ella deje de ser tan sosa y mojigata (o no..) y ella cura sus traumas, mejora la relación con sus padres y descubre al chico cursi que hay debajo de los tatuajes.
Precioso :’)
NO.
Hardin está obsesionado con Tessa, y Tessa está obsesionada con Hardin. En el peor de los sentidos.
Y cuando están juntos, es enfermizo.
Y lo peor de todo es que Tessa, que va de ejemplo de buena conducta, la mayoría de veces piensa como una persona normal pero actúa de manera contraria, y durante la lectura eso ha hecho que la odie el doble.
Para colmo ella queda de angelita y nadie más en el libro logra ver la basura de persona que es.
Pese a todo, he de decir que igual que he rabiado, me he reído con el libro.
A costa de él, básicamente.
Todas las escenas subrealistas de la madre de Tessa, las ridículas escenas de sexo, cada vez que Hardin decía “una guarrada”, lo insoportablemente cursi que era la madrastra de Hardin, los súper intensos momentos de amor, el juego de la botella al que juegan 200 veces, el complejo de perro que tiene Tessa oliendo las cosas de Hardin, lo nada realista que era lo de las prácticas de Tessa, el final….
El final…..
AY, EL FINAL
De veras que aquí sí que no he sabido si reír o llorar, ahí va el spoiler, para quien lo quiera:
Para terminar, frases que he marcado del libro, que sirven para presentar a los protagonistas (algunas son spoiler)
Tessa:
”Siempre produce el mismo efecto en mí; en cuestión de segundos se me mojan las bragas.”
Yo creo que hacia el final del libro, en ellas ya se podía crear un ecosistema.
”Lleva una camiseta de tirantes y una falda roja de cuero. Sólo estamos a martes y ya ha hecho el zorrón para toda la semana. Debería reservarse esos modelitos para los fines de semana.”
“Las miro y tengo que contenerme para no juzgarlas. Llevan unas faldas minúsculas y unas camisetas idénticas, salvo por los colores.”
“Espero que ese «todos» no incluya a la guarra de Molly”
“«No la soporto, con ese ridículo pelo rosa y esa ropa ordinaria. Es una zorra.»”
“No tengo lo que hay que tener para ser su amiga con derecho a roce, a pesar de cómo me hace sentir. Tengo demasiado amor propio como para meterme en algo así, y soy demasiado sentimental.”
Tessa, reina de la moral y la decencia.
”quiero estar casada cuando cumpla los veinticinco y tener al menos dos hijos. Tengo planeado todo mi futuro.”
¿Te has enterado de en qué siglo estamos? ¡Ni mi abuela es tan antigua!
”Por muy enfadada que esté con él, nunca me perdería la oportunidad de verlo desnudarse.”
Mojando bragas otra vez...
”No he hecho nada más que llorar desde que conocí a Hardin, y ahora ha intentado acabar con mi relación con Noah”
Claaaroo que síii… Porque él te ha obligado a ponerle los cuernos unas 100 veces, ¿no? Aish pobrecita, si es que tú nunca haces nada mal…
“Hardin me quiere. A su manera tarada, pero me quiere. Si llega a ser un león, me come.”
“Me da miedo, pero no puedo negar que estar cerca de él, aunque esté así de borracho, hace que me sienta viva. He echado de menos cómo me hace sentir”
“No le tengo tanto miedo como debería”
Cosas bonitas que Tessa piensa sobre Hardin.
”Me coge la mano cuando intento pegarle un manotazo y me la besa. Sonrío y entrelazo los dedos con los suyos, largos y finos. Me inundan los recuerdos: yo tumbada sobre la camiseta mojada mientras Hardin me regalaba mi primer orgasmo.
Jajajaja qué otra cosa iba a hacer, ¿cobrártelo?
Hardin:
”—Y ¿ahora qué? ¿Vas a evitarme durante otra semana? Ambos sabemos que, para cuando llegue el fin de semana que viene, volverás a estar en mi cama —me suelta.”
“—No me gusta que me digan que no —dice con un tono mucho más dulce que el de hace un instante.”
“—¡Joder, no! ¡No es verdad! —grita aún más fuerte que yo—. ¡Lo he dicho sin pensar! ¡Y no te hagas la inocente porque me has provocado a propósito!”
“—¡Siempre me estás buscando las cosquillas! ¡Siempre buscas pelea conmigo! ¡Estás saliendo con Zed, joder! ¿Acaso crees que me gusta ponerme así? ¿Crees que me gusta no poder controlarme? Odio que me saques de quicio. ¡Detesto no poder dejar de pensar en ti! ¡Te odio… de verdad! Eres una cría pretenciosa… “
“—¡A esto justamente me refiero! —añade. Se pasa las manos por el pelo y empieza a dar vueltas por la habitación—. ¡Me vuelves loco, joder, loco de remate! ¿Y luego vas y tienes el valor de preguntarme si te quiero? ¿Por qué coño me preguntas eso? ¿Porque te lo dije una vez por accidente? Ya te he dicho que no lo dije en serio, ¿por qué tienes que sacar el tema otra vez? ¿Es que te mola que te rechacen? ¿Por eso vuelves siempre a por más?”
“ —Si alguien me hubiera dicho que iba a vivir contigo, o a salir contigo, hace dos meses, me habría partido de risa en su cara… O se la habría partido de una hostia… Cualquiera de las dos cosas”
“—Claro que sí —dice levantando la voz—. Se cree mejor que yo, Tessa, e intentará recuperarte. ¡No soy imbécil! Tu madre también quiere que vuelvas con él. ¡Y no les permitiré que me quiten lo que es mío!”
“—Me dejaste que te follara con los dedos. Para mí, eso es una cita.”
“—No hagas que te meta en el coche y te eche un polvo aquí mismo”
“—Pues siento decirte que, si vas a cogerles manía a todas las chicas con las que me he acostado, deberías ir pensando en cambiarte de universidad.”
Momentos románticos de Hardin. Imposible no enamorarse.
Y nada, al final me ha quedado una reseña muy larga, lo siento, pero tenía demasiadas cosas sobre las que quejarme x(
No recomiendo el libro en general a nadie, pero si no te importa leer algo demasiado sencillo, aguantar a una protagonista odiosa, y fantaseas con Harry Styles, quizás no lo odies tanto como yo he hecho.
♥♡♥ -
I read After when it was 'The Book' on wattpad a few years back and I'm embarrassed to admit that I read all the 3 books in the series (the original one before Ms.Todd decided to milk this for all it's worth and came up with more unnecessary drama in an already fucked up relationship). In my defense, I wanted to see if the girl would grow some balls and dump Harry's sorry ass, which does happen time and again, till Harry strips and Tessa falls head over heels in lust. Needless to say I was repulsed.
The girl in me hated the character Harry/Hardin. But the reader in me was furious with the way the author romanticised every red flag and abuse.
Still I suffered 300 chapters in the hope of redemption or closure or anything to make me believe I hadn't wasted time on these books, but it was a hopeless cause. So being the mature person that I am (erm, sometimes), I tried to forget I ever read such a shitty piece of literature and moved on.
I wouldn't have wasted more time on writing this review if it weren't for a friend of mine who said she wanted a boyfriend like Harry/Hardin. I was stumped and gave her a 40 minute lecture, which ended with me being called a grandma.(!!)
If anyone's reading this, come out of your After ever happy bubble and smell the fucking coffee. Try to understand that what Hardin and Tessa had was not love. Or the kind of relationship you would want to aspire for. It was a disproportionate mess of lies, games, manipulation, emotional abuse, unhealthy attachments, unresolved mental issues and lots of sex!
And I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that this book is a bestseller (and now, a movie deal?!)
Just what the heck is wrong with everyone??? -
Another fanfiction P2P.
Except instead of using Twilight to establish a fan base, this idiot used British boybander Harry Styles. Now I'm not a fan of One Direction & Co in the slightest, but even I know how messed up this is.
No one knows how this POS/After got out of control. And yea, it is a POS. While reading through the first chapter I was mentally editing it in my brain. Run on sentences, lack of semicolons, past tense bullshit. And knowing that it was bought for six figures by one of the most recognized publishers in the world, Simon & Schuster.
The same publisher, mind you, responsible for Stephen King, Dan Brown, Becca Fitzpatrick, and R.L. Stine.
A few reasons this book could (and probably will) bomb
1) There's a damn petition for #suspendannatodd, to prevent this broad from fuckin up Harry Styles reputation.
2)Yahoo has written an article slamming this book for being a piss poor rip off of Fifty Shades.
3)The author is a liar. It was revealed that the author, Anna Todd is 25, married, and not going to any educational institute. Whereas a year ago she was 18, single, and a student of neuroscience at UCLA.
4) Author says Styles will have no involvement in any of this mess, yet she keeps posting pictures of him as "Harry" and going on about After.
5) The book is very monotone.
6) It glamorizes Harry Styles as a rapist ect..
All of the other publishers are probably shaking their heads...
Harper Collins publisher:
Razorblade publishing:
Little Brown:
What's funny about all of this (Aside from the massive amount of views on Wattpad), is the fact that this book has thrived by 11-16 year old readers, who probably had to hide under their covers and read this POS via cell phone.
Parents on release day:
Kids:
It's gotten so bad, in fact, that Harry Styles has blocked this author from Twitter.
Read at your own risk, I guess. But I sure as hell won't recommend it. And yea, I'll be one of those people pushing Beautiful Disaster, Easy, and other titles in front of it at Books-A-Million.
UPDATED 10/22/2014
The published version of after has finally hit shelves, so it's time to compare. Based on what I've read, I hope the editor got a BIG payday.
(OLD UNEDITED VERSION: Beginning of Chapter 1)
(NEW EDITED VERSION: Beginning of Chapter 1)
Sorry to disappoint Harry Styles lovers & Co, but Todd can't write. An editor got a hold of that bad boy and tore it up.
-
After blurb reveal:
With his tousled brown hair, cocky British accent, tattoos, and lip ring, Hardin is cute and different from what she’s used to.
Hardin? Seriously? You couldn't be bothered to make it an entirely different name from Harry?He’ll call her beautiful, then insist he isn’t the one for her and disappear again and again. Despite the reckless way he treats her, Tessa is compelled to dig deeper and find the real Hardin beneath all his lies. He pushes her away again and again, yet every time she pushes back, he only pulls her in deeper.
Tessa already has the perfect boyfriend. So why is she trying so hard to overcome her own hurt pride and Hardin’s prejudice about nice girls like her?
Unless… could this be love?
I think I just wet myself laughing.
Pre-review: One Direction fanfiction got published and movie rights have been sold.
http://www.sugarscape.com/main-topics...
I'm sincerely happy for the author, but SERIOUSLY?
-
First DNF book of the year.
One of the things I hate doing so much is DNF-ing a book because it feels bad to leave it when you've invested yourself in it in the first place. But sometimes you just have to quit because it just doesn't work out for you. And you can no longer fool yourself and hope that things will get better as the story goes.
So yeah.. I DNF-ed this book for these reasons:
1. Writing Style - This book is poorly written and executed. I see so much potentials in this book but it fails to hold my attention most of the time because of the boring writing.
2. Plot - You can never find an absolute plot in this book. Every chapter is a complete waste because of so many unnecessary scenes that don't make any sense at all.
3. Main Characters - If you can't love the main characters, then there's no reason to continue it. Why pretend and fool yourself? Tessa and Hardin are both immature characters. They always bicker like children and wow, their childish behavior annoys the crap out of me! And don't even get me started on Hardin's attitude! Gaaah this guy makes me want to pull my hair out because he's simply such a prick!
4. Cheating - Just so we're clear, I despise books with cheating, but I admit that there are books that I loved even when there's cheating involved but that's because they're simply well-written and well-justified. But this? A girl cheats on her boyfriend just because her boyfriend is boring and omg there's a tattooed and pierced boy-next-door who's way hotter and exciting than him. What the actual f*ck? And damn Hardin. This guy! He knows the girl has a boyfriend and yet he continues to seduce her just so he can prove that he's a sex god!
I did try to like this book, honestly. But I just can't. It was a waste of time. Nuff said. -
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! After, book 1 of 5. The unlikely against-all-odds romance between tatted rebel Hardin Scott & good girl Tessa Young!
“Hardin is like a drug; each time I take the tiniest bit of him, I crave more and more. He consumes my thoughts and invades my dreams.”
Books in The After series should be read in order:
Book 1:
After
Book 2:
After We Collided
Book 3:
After We Fell
Book 4:
After Ever Happy
Book 5:
Before
The After series is the epic love saga between flawed rebel bad boy student and editor Hardin Allen Scott and naïve good girl student and intern editor Theresa Lynn Young, Tessa.
After, book 1 follows Hardin and Tessa from an unlikely friendship and beyond. Their, at times, tumultuous relationship will be tested with demons from their pasts, jealousy, secrets, lies and betrayal.
Yet their biggest obstacles will always come from within. It’s their journey of self-discovery, testing boundaries, pushing limits and surrendering it all for love.
Nine words to describe Hardin Allen Scott: Unpredictable, moody, flawed, broken, aloof, secretive, demanding, conflicted and possessive.
Nine words to describe Theresa Lynn Young, Tessa: Organized, meek, compulsive, goal-oriented, determined, naïve, trusting, curious and forgiving.
After is told from Tessa’s POV, but next-coming books will be dual. It’s an unlikely, all-consuming, addicting, at times angsty love story between two polar opposites. It ends shockingly with truth and understanding leading right to book 2,
After We Collided for the continuation of their journey.
“You told me once that I bring out the worst in you. Well, you bring out the best in me.“
***
Hero: ★★★★★
Heroine: ★★★★
Plot: ★★★★★
Storytelling: ★★★★★
Sexual tension: ★★★★★
Sex scenes: ★★★★
Story ending: N/A
******************************************
OVERALL RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Angst: | MEDIUM FOCUS |
Darkness: | MEDIUM FOCUS |
Humor: | LOW FOCUS |
Kink: | LOW FOCUS |
Romance: | MEDIUM FOCUS |
Sex frequency: | MEDIUM FOCUS |
Suspense: | LOW FOCUS |
-
update: 11/16/15
wow this review is actually getting some attention, so i read the whole thing again and wow i was so embarrassing. please don't judge me lmao. this was written over a year ago (still hate the book with just as much passion tho)
CORRECTION: this book does not even deserve one star. it deserves 0/5 because you cant even call this thing a "book".
IM PRETTY F****** SURE EVERYONE WHO RATED THIS HIGH DONT EVEN READ REAL BOOKS. YOU ALL JUST LIKED THE SMUT (read: sex scenes) SO MUCH YOU DONT EVEN KNOW WHAT A GOOD BOOK LOOKS LIKE
AND DONT TELL ME "i didnt like this book bc of the smut. it's harry and tessa's love story" BC OH HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I HEARD THIS ONE
1. THEIR LOVE STORY IS SH*T
2. THERE ARE MILLIONS (DO YOU HEAR ME? M I L L I O N S) OTHER BOOKS/FANFICS THAT HAVE BETTER LOVE STORIES BUT YOU DONT WANT TO READ THEM
first off: the writing style is so sh*tty i almost sh*t my pants reading it. to everyone who disagrees, let me give you a short fictional writing lesson:
Original first paragraph from the fic:"TESSA!!" I hear my mom's voice call from downstairs. I groan to myself and roll out of my tiny, yet comfortable bed. While neatly tucking the corners of my bed sheet into the headboard, I take my time because this is the last morning that I will be competing the task for months.
DO YOU SEE WHAT IS WRONG? DO YOU SEE IT?
IF YOU DON'T THEN I HIGHLY SUGGEST YOU SIT YOUR A** DOWN AND STOP TELLING HOW "AMAZING" AND "BEAUTIFUL" THIS FIC IS
AND TO THINK, THE FIRST PART OF THE FIC IS ACTUALLY QUITE DECENT COMPARED TO THE REST.
YES, MY PEOPLE,
IT. GETS. WORSE
there are so many mistakes here. and to think, this is the first paragraph. smh at you anna smh read: shaking my head)
also, this fic romanticizes aggression, abuse and many other things you wouldnt want your future little daughter to read about
are you starting to see my point?
her are the other things that i hated about the fic:
-boring, plain, crap and rushed writing style
-typos anna is too lazy to correct
-tons of huge, gaping plot holes
- no character development at all
-stupidity of the characters
-tessa young
-the fact that anna did not only change the one direction boys' personalities but she also made them into sick womanizing as*holes which, by the way, REAL FANS are trying to get off harry's image to the media
IM 200% SURE ANNA TODD WROTE THIS BASED ON HERS AND HER HUSBANDS SEX LIFE (im not sure about the abusing tho probably not... well maybe irdk and idc) AND IM PRETTY EFFING SURE SHES THE CARROTIEST CARROT (read: fake one direction fan) OF ALL
SHE DOESNT EVEN GET THE CARROT JOKES FFS
AND WHY DOES THIS FIC HAVE ITS FANDOM AGAIN????
ALSO, THE MERCH. T H E M E R C H.
HOW DARE ANNA SELL AFTER MERCHANDISE THATS 517161716 TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THE ONE DIRECTIONS MERCH THEMSELVES
AND IF SHE REALLY IS A FAN OF THE BOYS ESP HARRY, SHE WOULDNT SELL THIS TO A PUBLISHER. SHE WOULD KNOW HOW IT WOULD AFFECT THEM. THIS AND THE FACT THAT SHE HAS DANG EXPENSIVE MERCH PROVES HOW ATTENTION-SEEKING, MONEY-THIRSTY SHE IS
LET ME ASK YOU, DO YOU WANT TO SEE THIS AGAIN?
[image error] -
So, Planeta va a publicar ESTO en español.
PLANETA VA A PUBLICAR ESTO(!) EN ESPAÑOL.
EN ESPAÑOL.
ESTO.
SÍ.*Se va a escribir un fanfic de cualquier libro/boy-band popular para ver si la publican algún día*
*suspira*... ¿A dónde iremos a parar?
-
Pretendo la votazione negativa. After merita le meno cinque stelle.
ABOMINIO.
CLAMOROSA PALLA DI FANGO.
CIABATTATA
BRUTTO
VERY VERY BRUTTO
PARTE UNO:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvb9D...
PARTE DUE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTbCe... -
I’m just going to start off this review by saying that this is the worst book I’ve ever read.
My shelf (which were all made because of this book, by the way) names should speak for themselves:
1-star, abusive-love-interest, books-i-wont-admit-i-read, disgusting, do-not-read, end-me-now, lost-faith-in-humanity, my-brain-cells-are-suffering, never-again, no-just-no, problematic, recommend-to-my-worst-enemy, toxic-relationship, what-the, why-was-this-written
I don’t want anyone else to go through the torture I and my friends went through from reading this. I’ve seen some people say that this book is like a drug, and I actually agree with them. You know why? BECAUSE IT’S BAD. Didn’t we all learn this in elementary school? Don’t do drugs, kids. I mean that literally and figuratively. If someone ever compares a book to drugs, run far, far away. This isn’t addictive or even a “guilty pleasure”. Hardin is also compared to a drug in this book if that tells you anything. No. Just no. I have lost all hope for humanity if this is what we’ve come to.
I rarely hate books, and when I do, there’s usually at least one thing I like about it. Not with this book. I actually hate everything about it. Of course, opinions on books are subjective, but I can not think of one reason someone would like that book. Just thinking about it makes me rage. I want to kill someone. Preferably T*ssa or H*rdin.
**this review will have spoilers, although I hope you don’t care because you shouldn’t want to read this**
TW/CW: [rape, slut-shaming, emotional/domestic abuse, descriptive sex, drinking, alcoholism, past trauma, peer-pressure, general nastiness.]
Here are only a few of the many problematic things in this book:
- Hardin being abusive towards Tessa
- Hardin being extremely controlling
- Hardin kissing Tessa to shut her up
- Tessa saying something that implies that people with OCD are crazy
- Tessa slut-shaming a lot
- Tessa cheating on Noah even though she knows it's bad
- Tessa lying to Noah constantly
- Hardin threatening to watch Tessa get changed if she doesn't hurry up
- The theme of the book being that all it takes for a bad boy to become "better" is a good girl (girls are not your medication my guy)
- That weird line about Hardin not being straight in the beginning
- The "two genders" line
- The implication that it's ok for Hardin to be an asshole because his dad was always drunk and left him when he was ten
Think that’s almost everything?
First off I just want to say that abuse is not a joke. It shouldn’t be romanticized. If you are experiencing something similar to Tessa and Hardin’s relationship, please call the domestic violence hotline. Stay safe and please get help if needed.
This book follows Tessa as she goes into her first year of college. She’s not like other girls, she’s a good girl. All she does is study and she never has fun. So not other girl-like. She wants to be successful in life and she never gets in trouble, making her not like other girls. She’s a virgin, unlike those other girls, or as she would say “those other sluts”. And guess what? She reads! Classic literature! *gasp* Did I mention she’s not like other girls?
Then she meets Hardin. And surprise surprise, he’s a bAd BoY. What else did you expect? He has a lip ring, which we are reminded of constantly. Hardin is also not like other boys. He’s British. He has tousled hair. He has dark, but somehow soft eyes. And he’s very hot, which we are also constantly reminded of because apparently being “hot” makes up for the abuse and literal rape. He also reads classic literature, therefore very smart and a good person. Definitely.
After Tessa’s first interaction with him, she automatically decides that he is extremely rude. He is rude. But of course, Tessa is drawn to him. Even though she shouldn’t be. She has a boyfriend. A good, reliable, kind one. He’s actually one of the only decent characters in the book. So why would she want anything to do with him? We’re all asking the same question.
Surprise surprise, they end up getting together. While Tessa is still with Noah and Hardin is still messing around with literally every girl in the school. End me now.
Tessa and Hardin’s relationship is terrible, horrible, no good, very bad, I could go on. All they do is fight -> have sex -> say they love each other -> fight, and then the cycle repeats. FOR ALMOST 600 PAGES. It’s emotionally and physically abusive. Tessa herself realizes this. But does she still go back to him every time? Of course. She just can’t stop herself because when she looks into his eyes-- I’m going to stop. Hardin is so awful that whenever he’s nice to her (which is only after they do the deed, obviously) he is praised and Tessa says stuff about how she wishes he could always be nice. The thing that got me most is when he was nice Tessa knew he was just going to be mean soon enough. SHE LITERALLY SAID IT. So why doesn’t she cut all ties with him? SHE’S AN IDIOT IS THE ONLY ANSWER. I don’t even feel bad for her because she’s not even making an effort and she’s extremely hypocritical.
Sorry, I’m angry just thinking about it. Deep breaths.
Hardin is extremely overprotective of Tessa. And not in a good way. Apparently it’s okay for him to go with other girls every time Tessa doesn’t do exactly what he wants but if Tessa so much as waves to another guy all hell breaks loose. You don’t even care about her anyways, why does it matter so much to you?
Who thought this was a good idea? This is Wattpad fanfiction. Not even good Wattpad fanfiction. And you can tell. You write every single stereotype and overused trope but make them 10000x worse, add lots of problematic things, and you have After. I would sincerely apologize to Harry Styles (who this is a fanfic of), but he already has the author blocked on Twitter. Rightfully so. I’m sure the actual Harry is a kind person, but I will never view him the same. This is creepy fan behavior.
The writing is truly the quality of a Wattpad fanfic, as expected. It just deteriorates throughout the book and slowly descends into negative levels of quality. All of it is more funny when you imagine Hardin’s “mad” lines in a British accent. I was wheezing, and to be honest, that was the only thing getting me through this book. I don’t think this was edited before it was published. Or even read over, because this is so problematic I don’t know how any publisher could publish this. It gives me hope that maybe my book can actually get published.
The characters are all awful. I hate everyone. Except maybe Landon, Noah, and Steph. Those are also the only characters who have a bit of sense.
I feel bad for them because they have to deal with everyone’s idiocy.
The girl-on-girl hate and slut-shaming in here are off the charts. Tessa is extremely judgemental of Steph, her roommate, just because she has piercings, tattoos, and doesn’t dress modestly. Steph puts up with her through all of this and defends her even in spite of all of this. Molly, a side character who only exists to make Tessa jealous and Hardin to cheat on Tessa with, gets called a “skank” and “whore” by Tessa multiple times just because she has slept with Hardin before.Who’s going to tell Tessa she sleeps with him later
Anyways. Moving on.
One line of many that were extremely problematic:I grab my books and lay them out neatly, in order of my class schedule, and stack the notes for each class on top of them.
“Are you OCD or something?”
“No, Hardin. Not everyone’s crazy because they just like things a certain way.”
As someone with diagnosed OCD, this is extremely offensive.
1. That’s not even what OCD is. OCD is not wanting everything to be perfect.
2. You aren’t OCD, you have OCD.
3. People with OCD are not crazy. You are if you think this is okay.
I could go more into this, but I’m mad enough already.
Another:Everyone seems to be comfortable with half-naked bodies of both genders walking around; college life is strange so far, and it’s only the second day.
In case you didn’t know, there are more than two genders. Idiots. *rage* Wondering how Tessa got into college with an IQ in the negatives. (Which also happened to be the only school she applied to, further proving how dumb she is. Seriously. She didn’t even apply to one safety school.)
That brings us to.. the smut.
Real footage of my drowning myself in holy water after reading this.
Before reading this, I was reading reviews and I saw
this one.
I thought it was joking.
THIS WAS AN ACTUAL SCENE IN THE BOOK. I AM NOT LYING. TRUST ME. I HAD TO GO THROUGH THIS PAIN. WHY. WHYYYYY
Some other questionable and concerning things happened, like Hardin fingering Tessa at a lake, them taking a shower together, doing it at Tessa’s job (how did this idiot even get the job), doing it A WEDDING, and more but that’s all I’m going to say.
Not to mention that many of these scenes can be classified as rape.
Tessa was cheating on Noah this whole time. But apparently it’s okay because she felt bad. She acknowledges that cheating is not okay, but continues to do it. It’s fine though!! She’s not like other girls so she can do that!!! She didn’t even break up with him but just had to be with Hardin because they were meant to be together apparently.
Ahahahahaha. No.
Noah finds out that Tessa is cheating on him in the most dramatic way ever, and this poor kid (bless his soul for tolerating Tessa) decides that they can still be together if Tessa never interacts with Hardin again.
Do you really think Tessa’s going to follow that?
Spoiler: She doesn’t.
Noah finds out yet again after Hardin and Tessa are caught by Hardin’s stepbrother (also one of the only decent characters) Landon. Then they finally break up.
While all this drama is happening, apparently Tessa is going to school and has a job?? But we see none of that?? Tessa and Hardin are too busy having sex and fighting?? I am done with this.
The reason Tessa and Hardin stay together is that he brings out the worst in her, but she brings out the best in him. Which is apparently a good reason for them to be together. Right. Because that’s totally not bad at all. Even though Hardin has been through terrible things, that doesn’t excuse any of his behavior. Being traumatized isn’t a free pass for you to go traumatize other people. The whole theme of this book that all Hardin needed to become a good person was a good girl is extremely problematic and wrong. It didn’t even work, because all they did was scream at each and have sex and guess what? Hardin���s still an asshole. He is a perfect example of why many women are scared of men.
The plot twist was just so shocking! Who would have known Hardin was just using Tessa to win a bet!! I can’t believe it.
It was revealed in the most dramatic way and of course Tessa is hEaRtBrOkEn. Hardin tries to apologize, but does he really think that’s going to work?
In conclusion, this is the worst and most problematic book I’ve ever read and my brain cells are suffering immensely. Please don’t read it. If this review convinces anyone not to read it, that will make up for the torture.
This review is dedicated to the Cursed Books Club. They have also lost many brain cells, but at least we did it together. I would have gone insane if it weren’t for you guys, and I can’t thank you enough. Show their reviews some love:
Andrea
Human
Ollie
And finally, Kade, Mel, Em, Cyrus, and Pluto, who are no longer with us.
Rest in pieces to our brain cells.
---
Update: I’ve decided that since my brain cells are not yet fully functional to write a rant, I will be holding a funeral in honor of all the members of the cursed books club and the suffering we were put through at the hands of this book.
One like = one condolence and one cent to help fund therapy for us and Anna Todd.
—
Um. I finished. I can now say that I have a least favorite book.
Rant to come, once my brain cells recover.
—
I never thought I would read this book. But here we are.
This is the worst decision I’ve ever made.
At least I won’t suffer alone.
-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
buddy read with the cursed books club! -
If you've never been on a roller coaster before, this book will fix it. I have read this book 3 times already and I’m not tired of the relationship between Tessa and Hardin. It’s constantly changing and you don't even have time to get bored.
Two fools. Oh God. -
everyone: omg. a wattpad fanfic of harry styles got published AND turned into a movie!? fdlafkjdlakdakjsl.
me, an intellectual: niall is actually the best member of one direction and thats a fact.
____________________________________
my boyband preferences (and truth) aside, i really dont know what to say about this. it was... well, it just was.
can i see why its so hated? absolutely. this is one of the most toxic relationships (real or fictional) i have ever seen. i have no respect for either MC and they are both beyond frustrating. harry styles should be livid that hardin is inspired by him. also, the writing just straight up sucks. i get that its fanfic, but at least edit it before its published.
can i also understand why people say its a page turner? you betcha. i was constantly hooked, wondering how the heck hardin and tessa were ever going to work it out. also, that ending!! holy crap. that was one of the hardest things i have ever had to read. i never knew i could experience so much secondhand humiliation and heartbreak.
so i get everything everyone has been saying. i agree with both the 1 and 5 star reviews. so im gonna put my rating right in the middle for now.
↠ 2.5 stars -
If you thought the 'Fallen Crest High' series was full of angst and teenage melodrama, you haven't seen anything yet! 'After' is like many other teenage/college-aged romances, with all the "end of the world" dramatics...on steroids. I found this book to be equal parts irritating and addicting.
The "adult" part of me has to acknowledge the truth in much of the criticism I've seen regarding this story. Hardin and Tessa's relationship was a train wreck. I spent a lot of time rolling my eyes and thinking "hang it up already". However, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy this story. It was a total guilty pleasure. Even though I was often annoyed, or even infuriated, by the goings on in this book, I couldn't turn away. I really enjoyed this book, despite the responsible adult in me saying I should run far in the other direction.
The story centers on Theresa "Tessa" Young and her relationship with Hardin Scott. Tessa is portrayed as the quintessential sheltered prude. She is a sweet virgin, who dresses conservatively and arrives at her dorm with her over-bearing mother and high school sweetheart in-tow. Immediately, Tessa stands out and becomes a target for her roommate's hard-partying group of friends.
More so than anyone else, Hardin seems to take extreme pleasure in tormenting Tessa. He is constantly toying with her and trying to humiliate her. He goes out of his way to put her down, but he's always there. Despite all of his insults, he is constantly showing up in her daily life.
Little by little, Tessa and Hardin form a tenuous friendship. Eventually, it grows into more. There are plenty of obstacles along the way -- none larger than Hardin's broody, closed-off, and often volatile nature. Time and time again, Tessa forgives Hardin for his reprehensible behavior.
These two might take the prize for the number of times a single couple can go back and forth, breaking up and making up, in a single book. It did start to wear on my nerves, even as I couldn't turn away. They were the perfect example of everything that only works in fiction. In real life, these two needed some serious counselling and intervention. They were toxic, to an extreme degree. No way would I ever want to be any where near a couple like this in real life. However, for a smutty romance, they definitely kept things interesting.
While I don't want to give anything away, I will say that the ending of this book gutted me. I actually cried. I was so furious, I think I might have felt the betrayal as acutely as Tessa did!
So many times, I told myself that when this book was over that I wouldn't be diving back in for another round of their melodramatic, childish antics. I was kidding myself. There was no way that I was going to skip the next book after that ending. It's on to the next book for me.
As an aside, this book was apparently written as fan-fiction originally. It is supposed to be based on the lives of the boy band "One Direction". Since I'm not very familiar with this group, I don't have anything to offer in terms of how closely this book follows any of those band members. If it does closely follow one of the bandmate's lives, God help the poor girls that are his prey.
