A review by emilylovesbooks94
Scum by K.A. Merikan

4.0

Shane and Rosen's romance defied my expectations, and I'm not sure if I loved it or hated it. Rosen and Shane gravitated together so quickly, the lines blurring from hookup to boyfriend so fast that I couldn't keep up with Shane's poorly defined revenge plan. Despite what he claimed, I honestly saw no signs that he ever planned to seek revenge until his and Rosen's horrible fight, and the aftermath of that day left a bad taste in my mouth. It's not that I was under any illusions that Shane was a spotless hero, but I didn't expect him to turn into such a monster, even if he was emotional and off-kilter. My inability to understand Shane's motivations bothered me for most of the story, if I'm being honest, and it's why I had such a hard time trusting that he really cared about Rosen. I don't think he truly won me over until the last 20% of the story, and while those last chapters were a lot more enjoyable for it, I wish I'd been able to connect with him earlier. Rosen was such a naive sweetheart, and it really bothered me how quickly he trusted everyone's intentions. The idea that he'd made it to college without becoming even a little bit jaded was hard for me to believe, but maybe his feelings were what blinded him when it came to Shane. Either way, I was shocked by how passively Rosen allowed Shane back into his life after what he did. Sure, they didn't immediately jump back into bed or anything, but I don't think I would have been as forgiving. Everything seemed to work out for the two of them in the end though, so I can't stay mad, but boy did it make for an emotionally confusing ending. I wanted to be satisfied to see justice served to the real villain of this story, but I was still torn about Rosen and Shane's spotaneous reunion.

**I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. This review expresses my honest thoughts and opinions.