Your Fault (Culpables, #2) by Mercedes Ron Review

 

This is a spoiler-free review! You can read my review of My Fault (Culpa Mía) on my blog, here. My Fault (Culpa Mía) is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, and Your Fault (Culpa Tuya) will be available to steam on December 27th, 2024.

As a major fan of the After series by Anna Todd, this series has reminded me so much of the complicated love we saw between Hardin and Tessa, and with Nick and Noah, it definitely ups the stakes in terms of tough romances. They are still dealing from the events in My Fault, and it truly feels as though Noah is going through it so much more compared to Nick because of her reactions and how everything has affected her, whereas Nick is constantly worrying when Noah is not with him. They definitely start to form this codependent relationship, and it is much more heavy coming from Nick - he becomes more controlling, and frankly, I found myself not loving his character in this second installment.

Both Steve and Rafaella do not condone Nick and Noah's relationship, and their distaste for it is even more present as this story progresses. Rafaella is certainly the forefront of the anti-Nick-and-Noah's relationship, and while it is understandable considering everything Noah and Rafaella have been through, I will always be rooting for that forbidden romance. Lion and Jenna's relationship has a larger presence in this book, and it was nice to see Nick's dedication to Lion as a friend, as well as Jenna and Noah's friendship as they both struggle with having boyfriends involved in dangerous business.

The introduction of a few new side characters with a bit of a villainous side causes the plot to shift from mostly romance to more of a constant struggle of Nick and Noah's wants and needs, and I will admit that it began to feel repetitive. Each pose a problem for Nick and Noah, yet it seems that Noah is the one who always ends up getting hurt. Their age gap definitely feels more noticeable in this book compared to the first, where they felt closer in age, but with their lives being pulled into different directions in Your Fault, it is a constant reminder that they are in different stages of life.

Nick is really going through it in this book, and she is battling internal battles with everything she has gone through, as well as trying to find a happy medium with Nick that makes her happy without causing her mother to take drastic actions. She is emotionally vulnerable and on edge every second she is alone, and it does not help matters that Nick does love to keep a secret from her, even when he is doing it with good intentions. Their communication really needed to improve, and I understand that there were points where Nick was trying to protect Noah, but with her streak, he should have seen her intercepting everything from a mile away.

So much happened in this book, and it was tough to put it down -- it is something you can definitely finish in one sitting, and from the looks of the trailer for Your Fault, the movie will be pretty book-accurate and fast-paced. Once again we had Nick and Noah's perspectives in this book, and I have to say, Nick's perspective was giving major stalker vibes at some points - he worries about Noah, but he was really taking it to the next level, and it was a hit to his character development for me. He became controlling of her life and was not listening to her, even when she would constantly choose him over literally anything else in her life.

If you are looking for an angsty-romance read, this series is for you -- for fans of After by Anna Todd and the Perfect Addiction movie/Wattpad story, you will be thrown into a romance that has everyone wondering, whose fault is it?

You can add Your Fault on Goodreads now, and follow the author to stay up to date on releases and publications.

You can catch up with me and my current reads by friending me on Goodreads and following this blog, my Twitter, and my Instagram in order to stay up-to-date with any reviews, blog tours, and more!

My Fault (Culpables, #1) by Mercedes Ron Review

This is a spoiler-free review! My Fault (Culpa Mía) is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

After watching Culpa Mía about fifty times in the past year, and with the impending release of Culpa Tuya in December 2024, I knew I had to finally crack this book open. I am an absolute sucker for a forbidden romance trope, especially when they hare each other from the beginning. This book was honestly a blast to read and I ate it up in no time -- the author gives readers a dual perspective with Nick and Noah's chapters, which provides much needed inner thoughts from our leads.

When Noah's mother marries a wealthy man and moves them from Canada to California, Noah is in for a shock when she is finally introduced to her new stepbrother, Nick. Both are not thrilled to be in each other's lives, and with Nick's hush-hush activities, it was only a matter of time before Noah was throne into a world he kept hidden from everyone.

Noah has experienced some serious trauma as a child, and it continues to follow her as she is uprooted and thrown into a new life. As she tries to navigate the new wealth at her fingertips, she is distracted by Nick's presence and taunting, letting her stubbornness get the better of her at every turn. For the first time in his life, Nick is met with someone that does not take his orders and speaks to him freely, causing tension in their home and in Nick's personal life. Everywhere he turns, Noah appears, and despite his intense efforts to kept her away from his less than legal activities, she is there to stay.

As Nick and Noah navigate their combined lives, they find more than step-sibling tension between them, leading them down a complicated and forbidden path as they attempt to make sense of these new feelings. Noah is learning the ins and outs of Nick's personal life, and when his actions leave her fearing a repeat of her past, she pushes herself to stay away from him as he continues to pursue her.

I loved the incorporation of the side characters, and really enjoyed how the author gave both leads support from these characters -- especially with Jenna for Noah, and Lion for Nick. It was refreshing to see side characters be utilized to help the leads on their own journeys, rather be there simply to push them together. The more antagonistic side characters were threatening and certainly served their purpose in wreaking havoc on Nick and Noah's lives, even more so when these characters were using Nick or Noah against the other.

The story moves pretty quickly and paces well, and considering the characters are constantly on the move, it suits the story well. I am sure there were some things lost in the Spanish to English translation, but the writing, especially being originally published on Wattpad, kept me hooked. The ending felt a little slow, but with the POV changes every chapter, it was enough to have readers push through to see the end result. If you are coming from watching Culpa Mia right into reading the book, I will say there are some changes that in my opinion do not take anything major from the story, and are made to consolidate the source material into a single film. 

I will definitely be seeing this series through, and will hopefully have time to read Your Fault (Culpa Tuya) before the movie releases later this year. For fans of After by Anna Todd and Through My Window by Ariana Godoy (I have only seen the Netflix movies for Through My Window, but I will make my way to the books soon!), this young adult forbidden romance is right up your alley.

You can add My Fault on Goodreads now, and follow the author to stay up to date on releases and publications.

You can catch up with me and my current reads by friending me on Goodreads and following this blog, my Twitter, and my Instagram in order to stay up-to-date with any reviews, blog tours, and more!

After by Anna Todd Review

After by Anna Todd

Where do I begin... This book is full of twists and turns, and if you were a fan of the original publication on Wattpad, you'll love it. With only the names changed in the official publication, original fans are able to carry around Hardin and Tessa's beginning in paper - and now, After has been developed into a major motion picture in 2019, with its sequel, After We Collided, headed to the big screen soon.

I have to say that when I first began reading this book, I was skeptical on the plot line, as there was some discourse over the material going around at the time. But I have to say, this has become one of my guilty pleasures. Tessa Young, a sweet and naive rising freshman in college, meets bad-boy Hardin Scott, a boy riddled with piercings, tattoos, and emotional baggage. They quickly find themselves infatuated with one another, and things heat up pretty quickly, but there's just one problem - Tessa's boyfriend, Noah. While Tessa battles with herself whether to tell Noah of her and Hardin's budding relationship, she is faced with Hardin's friends and the secrets that they keep. Despite their relationship forming in what feels like the first five pages, I would definitely consider this book (well, the whole series) a type of slow-burn. We see Tessa and Hardin argue, cry, reunite, argue again, lie, protect one another, and reunite some more - any fan of epic highs and lows in relationship development is sure to be found at the edge of their seat while reading.

Todd is able to hook in readers through this story - there are characters that you love, characters that you hate, and characters you love to hate. You will feel as though you know exactly where the story is going, until you turn the page and something completely unexpected happens - and you know that you just have to keep reading. Every chapter brings something new to Tessa and Hardin, whether it affects them both or only one. Their rocky on-again, off-again relationship knows no bounds when it comes to their actions, reasoning, or protecting each other.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

Now, for my hot take on this worldwide phenomenon. I have to say that I genuinely enjoyed this book - yes, there are cheesy parts and the second hand embarrassment is 100% real, but this was an overall entertaining book. So much so that once I finished this book, I immediately put the next two books in the series in my cart. Tessa's logic can sometimes be hard to understand - she cheats on Noah as soon as she arrives at college, and his anger is understandable when he eventually finds out - no thanks to Tessa's honesty. I really do think for as "nice" as a person Tessa is portrayed to be, she could have handled that situation a whole lot better. As for Hardin, Molly, Zed, and the rest of the gang, I have to say that when I first started the book, I was on edge with them. That is just the beginning with this group, as they continue to wreak havoc in Tessa's life, whether she is involved in their activities or not.

Molly is probably one of the worst characters (morally) I have ever encountered - she truly is trying to "ruin" Tessa's life, even though Tessa is completely oblivious to what is going on. However, everyone involved in the major plot twist can be considered just as bad, and Hardin, even worse. When Tessa arrived to the party with her roommate on one of the first nights at college, unknown to her, a bet was made. Hardin would sleep with her, and bring the evidence to show his friends. He gets close to Tessa, and their relationship first begins with hot and cold aura, eventually stemming into real feelings and not just hooking up. As the book goes on and Tessa and Hardin become closer, it is clear to Hardin's friends that something is not going as planned, as he was supposed to sleep with her and that be the end of things.

I have to say that I originally did not expect there to be any form of bet happening between Hardin, his friends, and Tessa - I went into this book completely blind, only going off on the fact that I knew it was originally a One Direction fanfiction. I knew that there was something fishy going on between Hardin and his friends, as they were constantly trying to find out information from him, as well as make Tessa uncomfortable and doubt Hardin's intentions with her. There were definitely some parts of this book that made me cringe, but more so out of embarrassment for the characters than anything else. And then came all of the sexy, rated R scenes that came from every direction in between Tessa and Hardin's bickering - as someone who read Fifty Shades of Grey, it was almost to that level of description, to give you an idea. However, I think Todd did a decent job on writing those scenes, and did not make them unbearable - they were written well and were not too over the top. *cough* The Lake scene *cough*. I do have to say that this book is lengthy, and at some points it did seem to feel repetitive when it came to Hardin and Tessa becoming angry with each other but not communicating their feelings - but that is also what made me even more devoted to their story.

Overall, I found After a fun read that is great if you need something that has college drama, heartache, passion, betrayal, and that classic put-the-book-down-because-of-second-hand-embarrassment feel. It definitely is a quick read, especially if you have a block of free time to kick back and relax. Tessa and Hardin's relationship is definitely not perfect, not by a long shot - but this is the first book in the series, and you definitely will not expect what happens next...

Title: After (After, #1)

Author: Anna Todd

Publisher: Gallery Books

Release Date: October 21, 2014

Tessa is a good girl with a sweet, reliable boyfriend back home. She’s got direction, ambition, and a mother who’s intent on keeping her that way.

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.