Willow Heights Prep Academy: The Elite

Bully Me (Willow Heights Prep Academy: The Elite, Book 1) is a dark bully romance with its own twisted moments. I've read and listened to a quite a few bully romances, however; this one is quite different and some actions were stomach puking feelings. And a bit much for my taste as I read/listen to a lot of dark bully books but just some of things were too much for my taste. The writing is very good, the characters are fleshed out, the plot unfolds smoothly, and the writing style is vivid and bold.. if you are looking for a different darker bully romance this series is for you.

Nararated by Amanda L'Orien; her inflection was smooth and easy to listen to. But with so many characters; Darlings & Dolce's it would have been more pleasurable with more narrators.

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The Narrator Makes This Story

When I first started listening to this story, I didn't know if I would enjoy it. However, after listening to the narrator go from a New York to a southern drawl in the span of a few seconds, Amanda L'Orien made me keep listening. This fued between the Darling and Dolce families is getting interesting!

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Good and scandelous

I'm enjoying this series by Selene,Since soap operas are kind of thing from the past..I enjoying all the juicy tidbits and craziness....10s across the board!!!

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Could’ve been more.....

2.5 STAR SERIES.....

This review is for all three books. Bully Me ~ 4 stars, Betray Me ~ 2 stars and Bury Me ~ 2.5 stars.

This series had a Romeo and Juliet kind of vibe. Which I found entertaining and interesting. Who doesn’t like a good Forbidden story.

“If the Capulets and Montagues had known how it would end, would they have done things differently?” Even Crystal seems to think her families are like the epic love story.

Crystal Dolce and Delvin Darling families are sworn enemies. Making it impossible for them to be together. Sounds good...right?
Well sorry to disappoint. I was really hoping this book was going to be something I could have written home about....
Seriously this book had so much potential, but unfortunately Selena fell short with her female main character. For starters not only was Crystal annoying, but she was beyond pathetic! To the point it was embarrassing, because there is no possible way someone can be that stupid and pathetic!

I know this was a dark bully romance, but when there are that many disturbing and disgusting scenes happening to the heroine and she doesn’t do crap about it, well for one, I loss complete respect for the heroine. Plus I feel there is no way for the Hero to redeem himself and I felt that Selene tried to do exactly that in her third book, but no amount of groveling can make up for what Devlin and his cousins did. Nope! I wasn’t having any of it. Delvin and his cousin went WAY pass the point of no return in my opinion.

Also If your going to write about the Mafia then you better have a strong FMC and she better be able to hold her own and Crystal was soooo not that at all. Me being Italian myself I was disgusted how Crystal acted and behaved. If Selena would’ve had Crystal put up fight or do some repulsive things back to the Darlings this series would’ve been awesome! But Instead she was a doormat that pinned over the Hero throughout the series. All the while Delvin and his cousins treated her like a dog. Literally....if I had to hear one more time about that freakin dog collar or how her traitorous body betrayed her I seriously thought my ears would start bleeding!
Authors, Stop! with that would you!!! You make women sound stupid, like we have no willpower. 🙄

All Crystal talks about in book 2 is how she’ll get her revenge. I was so excited thinking “yes” finally she going to get back at these guys! Good lord was I ever wrong...The so called revenge...was so weak it was laughable...(due to Amazons guidelines some words had to be altered below)

“See, that’s where you’re wrong,” I say. “You think your family is better because they’ve had money for generations, but the truth is, you’re just living in the past. Your family will never reclaim its glory because you can’t go back in time. Everyone here is so enamored with the glory days of old, but the truth is, it’s over, Devlin. And those stupid traditions and attitudes you hold onto aren’t doing anything but holding you back. Because you think you can ruin a woman by screwing her, but I’ll let you in on a little secret. We’re not living in the 1800s anymore. A woman’s worth isn’t judged by the thickness of her hymen anymore, Devlin.” “I didn’t say it was,” he says, giving me a stormy look. “Then you should know that screwing me won’t ruin me any more than it ruined you.” “Your reputation probably says otherwise.” I shrug. “You think I care what all these backwards hicks think of me? So you tricked me into giving you my virginity. That shows what kind of person you are, not me.” “I thought we talked about that.” “And you thought I forgave you,” I say. “That’s cute, Devlin. You’re not used to girls playing you, so I’ll make it clear for you. I don’t like you, Devlin. I don’t want anything to do with you. You were nothing but a means to an end.”

Yep! there you have it folks! The Ultimate humiliation revenge....Wow! such powerful words! Seriously a 8-year-old could’ve done better than that! Like come on Selena that’s all you could come up with? Even Devlin’s comments in that revenge speak was more degrading then hers words. What was even more laughable then her revenge was that Crystal actually thought she broke Devlin’s heart with those words and even apologized for it in the third book. (Due to Amazons guidelines words had to be altered below)

“He tenses, and I don’t blame him. I made him screw me until he cared about me, and then I ripped his heart out like some heartless witch who needed it to fill the void where her own should be.”

Umm....Did I miss something, because I never even got that impression that Devlin was devastated? He barely blink n eye after that so called revenge. It wasn’t until the third book that he seem to show some feelings and that even seem nonexistent. I never felt that connection between Crystal and Devlin, because it went from nothing to Bam 💥 I’ll die for you kind of love. The only time I felt there connection was during the sex senses. Now the sex between them was off the charts hot! That I can say Selena didn’t miss a beat on. They were hot, steamy and dirty! I absolutely loved Devlin’s dirty talk!

It was beyond annoying that Crystal always referring herself as a monster, which was the biggest joke of all! Someone clearly needs to send Selena the definition of what a monster is, because Crystal wasn’t even close to being a monster. She was more of a weasel... not only was Crystal a doormat to the Darlings, but she was a doormat with her own family. Seriously I would’ve told Royal where he could stick it!

Needless to say by the time I got to book 3 I just wanted to get this series over with. At this point it was like Crystal forgot all the horrible things that happened to her, but still found the time to be such a hypocrite with her ridiculous comments...

“Just… Don’t let him walk all over you, okay? I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Umm hello! Is anyone home up there? She would say things like this throughout the series. Did she have amnesia?

Anyhow I just wanted this book to be over with. I can’t even write anything positive about the ending either, because that was a complete disaster/disappointment too. Way to many un-answered questions and of course it wasn’t a shocker that Crystal ended up being pregnant since her and Devlin never used any type of birth control. Way to go to show responsibility! Overall the series was such a disappointment, because it really could have been an awesome series if it was written with a strong FMC because the storyline was great.

Audiobook: This was my first time listening to Amanda L’Orien and she was absolutely awesome! It looks like this was her first time narrating a Romance book. I hope she will continue doing more audible narrating in the future. Her performance is a five-star!

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1 person found this helpful

Intense and Captivating!

This is the first book in the Willow Heights Prep Academy: The Elite, a Dark Bully Romance. This is a great start to the Series! The storyline is intense, and captivating! The world building between the Dolce and the Darlings is complex, and intriguing. The characters are great and well developed. The story ends on a big cliffhanger, and I can't wait to listen to Betray Me, the next book in the Series, to know what happens next. Amanda L'Orien did a great job with the narration.

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1 person found this helpful

bully me

I did enjoy this book. It's not like the others that I have read because it's more about one family versus another family and the things each does to the other to be the top of the food chain. Both sets are pushed hard by family members to be the best, and it seems like there's lots of ancient history between the two that we don't know about.
I read and listened to this and enjoyed it. I will read more to see what happens next

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Not a loveable character in the batch.

Ugh! I didn't know this was a cliffhanger. I was gifted an Audible version of this book from Story Origin. This is my voluntary review.
Don't get this book if you want to fall in love with the characters. None of them are likeable let alone loveable! Two privileged families vying for dominance in high school. No holds barred. Despicable acts. Lewd behavior. Very violent. I couldn't put it down!
The narration is super. The story is read by Amanda L'Orien and she is a perfect voice for Crystal Dolce, the main character, who is the teller of this story. A 5+ star read.

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3 people found this helpful

dark, intense

Crystal Dolce and her brothers ruled their school in Manhattan. But when their father gave them the news that they were moving to a small town Arkansas they were totally shocked. They have the confidence, but can they take over their new school like they did in New York? A run-in the Darlings is a fight for dominance. The Darlings, all cousins , are old money, family history, own the small town and school. They are conniving, ruthless, and cold hearted.
Crystal just wants to figure out the school hierarchy and use that information to her family's advantage.
Crystal does not have the confidence but she doesnt want to show weakness either. She knew if she did, they would prey on it. The writer slowly draws you into the twisted world of the Darlings. Their view of entitlements, bullying, and devil may care attitude. They're small town royalty. The Dolce brothers cause havoc to try to bring them down.
Amanda L'Orien really brought this story to life! Every emotion, every voice , every character was perfection! She flawlessly transitioned from one character to another. Thank you for the great listen! I was gifted This story by Story Origin and offered my honest review

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I completely fell into a rabbit hole with author!

My very first read/listen by this author and I am not disappointed. Its definitely not sweet and pretty. Its angsty and dark. The author delivers this story in a way that traps you in, leaving you breathless and wanting, no, needing more. I want to know more about these characters, especially Devlin. He's hiding things, hiding himself, and I so desperately want to know his truths. I admire the risks Crystal is taking to prove that she can be different and make changes to better herself. I got to the end and that cliffhanger made me cry out because I need to know what happens next! I can't wait to dive into the next book!

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Excellent Bully Romance

I absolutely love this dark and twisty bully romance, but I will caution you to review content/trigger warnings prior to diving in. The narrators did a fantastic job being the warring Darling and Dolce families to life. The story had so many omg moments that I couldn’t put this one down.

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