A Girl Called Malice

4 - For one night only, could the real Alice Taylor please step forward. Stars.

It has taken me a while to read this book, and that is not due to it being poorly written, far from it. I have struggled with the storyline itself. Having read and loved Popping the Cherry I was interested to see how Aurelia would tell Alice’s story, and it is a much darker and emotive tale.

In PtC, she was the character you hated, the bully, the belittler, the ring-leader, I didn’t have much sympathy for her when she got her comeuppance, and seeing behind the mask of a bully, usually turns out to be enlightening.

Putting other people down gave me a back-handed boost.

This is one of those books you need to persevere with, Alice for the first 40-50% seems to bumble from one car crash too the next. The glimmers of the person she could be only really shine through when she is spending time with a little boy called Charlie (can’t say too much as it would be a bit spoilery), the rest of the time she is still pretty abhorrent, there is an underlying reason for it though, and it becomes more and more apparent as the book progresses.

From the person she portrays to her peers, to the person she actually is and wants to be, there are glaring differences, and I loved Zac, he definitely bought out the best in Alice, and even when she was at her worst her tried to do right by her. This isn’t an easy book to read some of the time, Alice’s current and early life isn’t a pretty one, but Aurelia has written the story so well, that you get involved, even when you hate something she does, you can see her twisted reasoning behind it. She is a product of her upbringing in a way, and although certainly abhorrent in a lot of her actions, she is also an underdog, and we all like to root for one of those now don’t we.

Stick with this one, you will find it is worth it in the end.

ARC generously provided via Netgalley in exchange for the above honest review.

It has taken me a while to read this book, but not because it was badly written, far from it. It's because every single page of this book was emotional in one way or another! I must declare that Aurelia is the queen of emotions!!!! LOL – she makes her characters hurt, and love, and live. She makes her readers seethe, and laugh, and sniff. But best of all, she makes us HATE! – I didn't like the dark parts at all – nearly-18 year old girls should NOT have to go thru what Alice did, but life is like that, and Aurelia is not afraid to write about it.

This is one of those books you need to persevere with, Alice for the first 50% seems to go from one disaster to the next. The glimmers of the person she could be only really shine through when she is spending time with a little boy called Charlie (that's all the details you're getting because I do not spoil plots), the rest of the time she is still pretty gawd-awful, there is an underlying reason for it though, and it becomes more and more apparent as the book progresses. From the person she portrays to her peers, to the person she actually is and wants to be, there are glaring differences, and I loved Zac, he definitely bought out the best in Alice, and even when she was at her worst her tried to do right by her. Zac is fantabulous – accepting, gentle, adoring, giving...just perfect. AND he makes Because of all things Zac (lol) Alice begins to believe in herself ... damn, he's just fabulous!

This story was written so well, that you get involved, even when you hate something Alice does, you can see her twisted reasoning behind it. She is a product of her upbringing in a way, and although certainly disgustingly awful in a lot of her actions, she is also an underdog, and everyone roots for the underdog, right?! YES WE DO!

Honestly, this IS a long book, and you will need time to process everything because it isn't 'fluff', but it's worth the time! TRUST ME :)

Arc provided by Carina UK via NetGalley for an honest review.

If any of you have read Popping The Cherry (I really hope you have), you’ll already be familiar with Alice, more popularly known as Malice. For those of you who aren’t, simply put, she’s that mean girl at school who makes your life miserable and she relishes every moment of it. Yeah, stay clear of this one! In Malice, this mean girl decides to leave school and her friends behind because she’s had enough of school life. That’s partly thanks to her role in the awful prank gone foul that she played on Lena in the previous book. The repercussions were to big for her to be able to play them off. Leaving school and to be a waitress seems the better option.

The tone of this book is entirely different from Cherry. I was not expecting to get behind Alice’s painstakingly maintained façade. Almost immediately, you’re introduced to her dysfunctional home life that goes a long way in explaining why Alice is the bitter, lizard-tongued monster that she is. Yet you also see her vulnerable side thanks to her tender relationship with her younger half-brother, Charlie. These two sides of her are both eyebrow-raising and sad. Many of you may already know how much I disdain inept parenting. Alice’s mother is probably THE worst of the bunch. In order to hook her current husband, she insisted that Alice not refer to her as “mum” but by her name Michelle, essentially fooling her husband-to-be at the time into thinking that they were sisters. This pretense has gone on for years and even Charlie has grown up believing that his sister is his aunt. Yes, this is all shades of messed up, her mother is a wretched human being and any scene involving her had me desperately hoping that she’d get hers soon.

Even with her home life as an explanation, I still had a hard time endorsing Team Alice especially when she’s intent on being a malicious bully. The flip side of it is that her mother’s consistent berating of her fuels her own self-destruction. It’s difficult to witness as she goes through hell and pushes away everyone she comes into contact with, save her beloved little brother. Her saving grace comes in the form of Zac, a boy she meets at a rather awkward moment. He sees Alice differently and even when she misbehaves, he knows that she’s essentially acting out. He takes his time to make her feel comfortable around him as he genuinely believes in her. Zac seems almost TOO perfect at times. As an example, he’s so forgiving when the sordid details of Alice’s one night gone awry come out. He doesn’t even blink an eye as he’s quick to defend her.

Rowl has done an impressive job in writing Malice, so impressive that despite the main character’s epic flaws, I was still very much invested in her and everyone else - except for the mother. She could bite it. I was glad that she was digging into Alice’s issues. The entire time it had me thinking about how no one ever really knows what the other is going through. That’s exactly what’s happening here where we get to see what circumstances make this particular bully. And when Alice decides to cut ties with her past and everyone in it later on, it’s not so much heartbreaking as it is emancipating. I couldn’t believe that I had come around to being her biggest cheerleader! And for a future for her and Zac.

Malice also welcomes back our favourite friends from Cherry – Lena, Jake, Nathan and Gemma. They’re so much fun, and considering how Alice and Lena were mortal enemies before, they’re reunion is quite interesting. It just goes to show you that sometimes even the worst of the bunch can find forgiveness though not without jumping through hoops first.

A Girl Called Malice, while not the fun romp through ridiculousness that I was hoping for, ends up being far better. The "wow" factor here is that this completely awful person became someone I cared about and for whom I wanted good things to happen to. When you think about it, it takes a certain talent for an author to turn your opinion around about a character. Rowl has done that excellently here!

~ Belinda

Queen Bee, Alice Taylor is losing her crown, her skivvies, and her castle. Bad times! She's also losing her mind. Alice Taylor is the modern day Jekyll and Hyde. The good very rarely is seen, comes with her natural brown eyes and a calm, loving persona. The bad which just happens to be shown every day comes with blazing blue eyes, short skirts, a vile bullying personality and a reputation as a slut and the name Malice.
Trapped in a family made up of secrets, she is secretly working at a nearby hotel to help her build up what she likes to call her freedom fund to get away from them, well, not all of them not her little brother/nephew Charles or to her Charlie bear. If there's anyone in the world who gets to see the good Alice, it's Charlie. He is her world and there's nothing she wouldn't do for him. It's stupidly agreeing to go tree climbing with him that results in Alice being seen by someone else. Someone she has to put her trust in to help her down. That's not easy for Alice because trust, love, and friendship are things she just doesn't know how to do.

I don't think I've ever read a book as long as this one. It is so long. I get why it has to be that long though because the plot is one that full and crazy it's needed. It's a great plot. A well-thought out and structured one. Only let down by a rush in words, roll your eye coincidence or luck and huge leaps in time. There's nothing worse than reading about a situation then it cuts off and you'd then a week, a month ahead. It throws me and confuses me making me feel like I've missed out on something, but with this book I didn't actually want to miss out on anything.

The book is narrated mostly by heroine Alice, but every now and again we will get the thoughts of her new friend Zac. This, I liked. However, I would have loved a bit more Zac. And, to any bibliophile reading this, I'm telling you straight book geek to book geek there is no better book boyfriend that Zac Newton and I urge you all to go find out why. Hell, even if you're not a huge reader but like a bit of scandal, family drama, life drama, and even more drama, then I say go get a copy yourself. You won't be disappointed. From the start it just gives and gives. Yes, I've had a little moan about it, but that's my personal grievances, they're not going to stop me appreciating a great plot, riveting characters, and more drama than the ending bars of the Eastenders theme tune at a crucial part of the show. It's drama central with a bit more drama thrown in for good measures. It's a book which has your opinion of things changed and has your eyes shining with tears whether they be good or bad just depends on what character you get to see Alice or Malice.

3.5/5

I received this novel from NetGalley.

Don't read this book... It will make you cry...
No seriously, tears everywhere, this novel is so moving and emotional and raw that it left me with so many feelings I don't know what to do with them all!
This isn't my typical book to pick up, but wow, I am glad that I did. The growth of the protagonist is astounding, and it allows the reader to experience her hurt, her elation and her love. Rowl has written a masterpiece.

This novel is for anyone who likes a good romance novel, anyone who is into YA and anyone who wants a good cry, this novel will make those tears flow quicker than you can make a cup of tea and grab a box of tissues! A great read!