MacBethany: The American Dream

by Nicholas Grubbs

Summer break may be over and a new year may be starting at Arlington City High, but simmering tensions between the students are about to reach a boiling point as the annual Student Council elections draw near. In the wake of a ruined clandestine relationship, a scandal that ruined the former football team captain's life, and a suicide that sent shockwaves through the entire student body, this new year is shaping up to be even more traumatic than the one before.

Still reeling over the events of the previous year, Bethany Hill wants to see the school turn to ashes. In the meantime, she will stop at nothing to get her girlfriend, Lauren Bradshaw , crowned the new school queen. Lauren's own reservations about the job be damned, Beth will make her President or die trying.

Head Cheerleader Ashley Williams is out for blood after Beth (allegedly) stole Lauren, her secret ex-girlfriend, and puts forward her new boyfriend and star quarterback, Spencer Barnett , as Lauren's main competition. A true power couple, they stand to run the school unopposed if Spencer decides to take on yet another role as the "most popular guy in school," a role he grows to hate more and more with each passing day.

And then there's poor Katherine Duvall , a sweet naïve girl that just wants to make the world around her a better place for people outside of the top one percent. How is she supposed to run for office one day if she can barely give a book report in front of the class without wanting to throw up?

Unfortunately, Katherine can barely get her foot in the door before the Powers That Be force Tracy Summers , one of the sitting Class Representatives that is very much not apart of the "in-crowd," to befriend Katherine and sabotage her campaign from the inside in exchange for their friendship and a better spot on the Student Council. Knowing she will never get into Harvard if she doesn't get a stronger application, she begrudgingly accepts.

Lies, cheating, and manipulation are the name of the game and only one person can win. In this first entry of the " MACBETHANY " series, we will see just how far people will go to help the ones they love and just how far they will go to help themselves.

474 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 3, 2023

About the author

Hi hello this is Nick Grubbs here. I'm pretty new to the world of writing so this is all very weird to me.

MacBethany has been a passion project of mine for years and I'm really glad people are taking an interest in it. It's going to be a five book series and Book Two is coming very soon. Other books/series are coming soonish, too!!

If you'd like a copy of any of my books and don't want to pay for it, just shoot me a message and I'll send you the PDF. I really don't mind lol. All I ask is you give it a review so more people see it one day!

Thank you for reading, friends <3

Reviews

[HippieWitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Recommend

[Tayler · Rating 3 out of 5]

MacBethany is television-series-I-would-binge-for-the-cliché-drama-esque. I couldn't help thinking this would suit a streaming platform better than a pdf. It's got a certain guilty pleasure essence to it. It's an easy read, a little over 300 pages. It's not by any means boring, the tension between the characters is maintained throughout the book and there are some rather good twists throughout it. If all else fails, some characters will serve irritating enough to stimulate you. I at some points wondered if the book was meant to be a more nuanced commentary of the authentically cruel high school environments that America fosters, in which case I would've thought it was reaching beyond its domain, but I excused that due to the teenage perspectives from which the book is written. The various narrators understand that they exist in a dire social and political environment, but they don't understand the dire social and political environment themselves. They simply understand that it is bad. Bethany, despite striking such an identity with it, is rather ignorant of it, but that might be primarily due to her psychotic personality. Or, it could really just be blamed on her being a teenage high-schooler, which is why I cannot begrudge the book for this quality, because realistically portraying the high school experience is something it achieves quite well. It's suffocating and intense. The book is better absorbed if you view it through the lens that it's not meant to have any grander revelation, meaning you should simply take it face-value as a drama with little depth. While the writing style was slightly jarring, overusing certain phrases and having grammar issues vis-á-vis inconsistent verb tense, it wasn't intolerable. I'd find a young teen audience suitable for this series. It's a needed addition of queer to an overwhelming heterosexual genre. While it doesn't expand much on the sapphic experience, it is refreshing to not be bombarded with main characters who are boy-crazy like many others in the genre.
Expanding on the media format, I think some elements that are lacking (world-building, pacing, time transitions) could be solved be simply an adaptation. It just strangely strikes me as something more like a television script. I suppose that could just be a bias, as I typically read works with more introspective and philosophical undertones.
In all, this is a good start for a debut and thank you so much to the author for allowing me to read this.

Thoughts on characters
I personally appreciated the character Ashley's relationship with her sexuality. It's certain that she's a lesbian, and while she understands that she is, she still hasn't completely come to terms with it. I think that it's a rather untouched dynamic in general. While it may be 'wrong' for Ashley to continue relations with men while understanding she has no attraction to them, it's very raw. Ashley is dealing with overwhelming dread, substance abuse, heartbreak, and an incredibly conservative environment where she can't openly pursue girls. She's looking for any sort of control she can grasp to give her an ounce of solace. For Ashley, having sex with men is a desperate attempt at control, self harm, and societal expectations all at once. Society restrains lesbians to such high standards, invalidating their identity centric on men. I like that this book doesn't attack her sexuality. Ashley is flawed but in hostile conditions. It's understandable that she 'leads' on men. Overall, it's an underrepresented internal conflict and one of my favorite aspects of the book. Definitely my favorite character overall.

I couldn't help but wish that Lauren would have a bigger fraction of the narration. Lauren sometimes seems like less of a character, more of an ideal. Someone for the other characters to project their fantasies onto. She's hot, sweet, charismatic. I would like to know what she's thinking, and also have more insight on why she's into Beth. Beth constantly idealizes Lauren: she makes herself a martyr, claims Lauren her savior. It's her first and foremost concern, and in that she ironically permits herself to bypass all moral standards. Or maybe Lauren's not actually so important to her, and it's simply a way to justify her psychotic and manipulative tendencies. However, it's obviously difficult to see why Lauren would be into Beth. Lauren doesn't even reminisce on romantic experiences with Beth. Their relationship is awfully skewed, and that's intentional, but it's just very unrealistic that Lauren would cease to be skeptic even under Beth's narcissism. I can't force myself believe that she's that desperate for a rebound from Ashley.

I thought Spencer was well-written, I also think he proves that you can still flesh out characters who are possibly more "ethical".

[Venetia Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was good enough for me to keep reading but I did not really enjoy doing so and there are very few books I do not enjoy reading. What I found most disappointing was this book had the potential to be great. There were too many things hinted at too many times like what did Ash do to Beth to make her hate her and what made Ash turn to drugs so hard and no resolutions. I will applaud the author for tackling the issue of how schools ignore the systemic bullying that goes on often punishing the victim not the bully. I am sorry to say I will not worry about the rest of the series as it just was not interesting enough.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book about typical high school politics takes place around the first few weeks of high school during the election for study body council. We see things unfold from different character perspectives and get a glimpse into what each is thinking and feeling. There is drama and extreme emotions, but that is expected of high school teens. They all struggle with finding balance between stereotypical cliques, personal dreams, and expectations placed upon them from parents and teachers.

There were some typos in this text that got me hung up as I was reading so I would recommend they be fixed for future printings, but overall, this was worth my time, and I would recommend this to young readers.

[Summer ReadsBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Macbethany: the American Dream by Nicholas Grubbs
A Goodreads giveaway review

Macbethany does a great highlight of the high school injustice and how bullying can lead to some life altering consequences.
During your read at Arlington City High you take on many students perspectives. I find that this was tastefully done and often brought me on the edge of my seat with anticipation. I enjoyed the jumping back and forth. Pleasantly finding throughout easily comprehended even with the character switches. Skillfully each shift really draws you into each of these characters, their personalities, and the highs and lows of each. I look forward to seeing what happens next at Arlington City High

#goodreadsgiveaway

[Michelle Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drama drama drama!

This story reminds me, in style, of the movie "Election." It's told in first person through 6 different characters, all of whom are high school juniors. This book is filled with real-life issues that teenagers have on a day to day basis. It's been a long time since I've been a teenager, and I forget how everything seems like life is ending. I only gave it 4 stars because some of the timelines were hard to follow. I had trouble figuring out if it was now, last year, or a dream, in some cases. I enjoyed the book, although I'm not a fan of all the unfinished business that I assume will be in book 2.

[Tim Goff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was a decent book, however, not my normal genre. I would recommend it to younger readers.

[Ex Libris Animus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make this a television series NOW

[Squid Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is this a perfect book? No, but it is a damn good book that has had me thinking about it since finishing due to its unique narrative style, diverse topics, interesting characters and unflinching look at the absolutely horrid world high school is.

I really liked the 'main' character and I am looking forward to reading more in the series as they come out. A wonderful mystery wrapped up in school politics and hormones.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Pauline · Rating 5 out of 5]

When school tradition and teenage high school pupils mix, it can get ugly. This is a brilliant look at the hierarchy of schools – the have and the have nots, the popular, their followers, the jocks, the cheerleaders – the competition is merciless. How many students are wearing ‘masks’ just so they can survive being in high school? Why, so they will be accepted? How many of these youngsters are comfortable being themselves? Told by the students concerned, this is a very interesting exploration of these young lives, sorting the real from the presented personalities. It is thought provoking, pushing boundaries, battling societal norms, the expectations of both school and parents. The seek peek behind the masks is fascinating – why, oh why could they just have been allowed to be themselves? Would it have ended differently?

[Alexis Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

MacBethany: The American Dream by Nicholas Grubbs has a bold, striking cover that hints at ambition, corruption, and a darker twist on the classic American-dream narrative. That aesthetic alone gives it a solid visual punch, and the story itself leans into themes of power and downfall that I usually find interesting. There’s an undercurrent of grit and cynicism that fits the tone the cover promises.

That said, it wasn’t completely in my lane. The story focuses more on political and societal commentary than the emotionally heavy, character-driven darkness I normally love. I appreciated the ideas and the sharp edges of the plot, but it didn’t hook me in the same way my usual morally grey, tension-heavy reads do.

Still, it’s thoughtful, well-constructed, and absolutely something other readers—especially those who enjoy modern tragedy and social critique—could really connect with.

[Nathan Bodnar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy

This is a book that is desperately in need of some polish. The potential is there with some truly engaging characters and interesting plot elements. However, the characters are inconsistently written, and the plot jumps around and occasionally loses thread or just decides to make a 360 without any real developed reason. I would watch the hell out the TV show this book could be but as is it just needs more work.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

#Goodreads Giveaway
As an adult reading this book it was very obvious that this book was written from a young adult perspective. The authors use of characters names as chapters was a little confusing to me as I had to continually look back to remember who the chapter was about. Also as a retired teacher I found that much of the activities at Arlington High were a little far fetched and read like a soap opera. All in all it would probably be an interesting read for the intended audience.

[Lani Mokler · Rating 1 out of 5]

If this was a show, I would probably watch the first few episodes and then give up. There's just too much drama for me.

As a book, this thing was really hard for me to follow. It jumped around from character to character so frequently that I had the hardest time following it.

If you absolutely love that young adult drama, this is the book for you. It just wasn't the book for me.

[Crystal · Rating 1 out of 5]

MacBethany

I quit on this book. It’s high school drama but from the viewpoint of the people that are being dramatic. It’s a bunch of girls being petty and two-faced under the guise of needing to be that way to get into a good college. Too much drama for me.

#GoodreadsGiveaways

[Jess Conley · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

I appreciate the warnings at the beginning of the book. I WISH I had seen them before getting the book. Just too much unnecessary drama for me.