Chess Club Dropout

Dropout #1

by Lux Carmine

Everyone deserves a happy ending...At least the “good guys” do.That’s what the fairy tales want you to believe.But not everyone wants to live in a fairy tale. Not everyone believes in a happy ending.I certainly didn’t.With the tragic loss of my mother and my grandmother, I was sent away to live with my evil Aunt Sara. I had a new home, a new school and a huge hole in my heart. Trying to get back a piece of who I used to be before the tragedy, I decided to join the chess club. In my old school I was the geeky girl, the one who got straight A’s and never dared to break a rule. I was the girl who’d never been kissed and wondered if I ever would be. But when I was kicked out of chess club one fateful afternoon my life changed forever. Because that's when I met them... The hot drama guys scooped me up and took me under their wings. Jason, Kevin, Mike, Billy and Steven were playing the leads in the school’s production of Grease and that's where they shared something about themselves that they hadn’t shared with anyone.I felt I was in a fairy tale with them...but the secret we all shared had the ability to ruin my new life… Would we be able to live happily ever after or were we the “villains?”** Chess Club Dropout is a contemporary young adult #whychoose novel that touches on first loves, cyberbullying, and other social issues.****Series Complete**Chess Club Dropout (Book 1)Damaged Dropout (Book 2)Hometown Dropout (Book 3)Happily Ever Dropout (Book 4)

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, High School, Young Adult

222 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 16, 2018

Reviews

[queen_of_the_books_18 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really tried my best but unfortunately couldn’t finish this book

[Paula Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readers of The Phantom Paragrapher will know that I have been going through the different bully romances - some have been DNF's, some have been amazing and then you have the in-betweeners. Chess Club Dropout by Lux Carmine was one of those in-betweeners. The book grabbed me by the title as come on, what type of person drops out from Chess? Our main character Ruby that is and on her very first day of Chess tryouts. Ruby has just lost her grandmother and her mother and her father didn't want her so she has landed on her Aunt Sara's doorstep and living with her cousin Maddie. At their high school is a group of hotties called The Lone Wolves, they don't date and do the odd hookup but normally they just stick to themselves and they rule the Drama Club. This year's play is Grease and Maddie has been pushing Ruby to play Sandy. It's not her thing but she soon finds herself in the Drama club as the Lone Wolves have taken a real shine to Ruby. As the book goes along, of course, we see that the boys start a reverse harem with Ruby but not all the students are happy about it and start to post suggestive pictures on Social Media of Ruby and make her out to be a sexual deviant which forces her Aunt's hand and kicks her out. Where will Ruby go? Will the Lone Wolves protect her when she finds herself with nowhere to go? Find out in Book #1 Chess Club Dropout by Lux Carmine. In terms of bullying, this book was quite tame but featured more cyberbullying than physical bullying, yet there is a sexual assault scene.

[Autumn Miller ~ autumnbookreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 Stars
SPOILERS THROUGHOUT:
I liked this book. It was filled with a bunch of high school drama and teenage angst which I am pretty much always here for. A lot of common Young Adult tropes were used and, at times, it was a little much but I still highly enjoyed every moment of it.

My biggest complaint and why this book got such a low rating from me would be the numerous plot holes throughout the book. For example, towards the end of the book, Ruby gets kicked out of her house and goes over to the Lone Wolves' foster dad to ask to stay for a couple days. He tells her no at first, but then tells her she can stay for as long as she needs. I repeat, AS LONG AS SHE NEEDS. The next morning however, Ruby talks about how she needs to find a place soon because she only has a week to stay... What? It makes absolutely no sense and this is only one example of many.

Another problem I had was just the awkwardness of things. Sometimes the characters would be joking around and then someone would bring up something completely non-related and serious in the middle of them laughing. It felt awkward to me and didn't connect with the story. There were also plenty of times when they characters would talk about something and they would have reactions that made no sense at all. It left me going "huh?" constantly and I did not like it.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. Normally, I can look over a few plot holes if I am invested in the characters or the plot is drama filled, but I can only put up with so much before there is just no excuse to overlook it anymore. I will be continuing the series because I enjoy the drama between the characters, but I am not dismissing this series of its problems. I definitely see and agree with why this book has such low ratings because it honestly deserves it.

[❀ Crystal ✿ - PEACE ☮ LOVE ♥ BOOKS · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not sure how I feel about this one. It was very blah, cliche and super fast paced. Ruby the heroine moves in with her aunt and cousin after the death of her grandma and mother. Unlike the blurb says she does not live with “my evil Aunt Sara”, I mean sure she’s a bitch and even kicks ruby out at one point but I’d say she’s more just blase about taking in her niece,she doesn’t care either way until she hears horrible gossip about her. She listens to the gossip, throws it in Ruby’s face and washes her hands of her, seems like she was waiting and maybe even hoping for this moment. From day one of school the guys (5) are into ruby and their relationship progresses in no time. It’s weird because they went into a relationship very causally with very little issue or even discussion it was like they all woke up one day and were like ‘we’re dating.’ As far the guys, I don’t know there wasn’t much individuality to any of them. Nothing makes them separated in my mind aside from maybe Jason whom she has biology with. There was some high school drama and bullying as well as a random and quick sexual assault attempt that all felt added to give the story something extra. It was allkinda cheesy and rushed and I’m just so so about it all. I’ll be giving the next book a shot but at this point I’ll be surprised if I finish the series.

[Margaux Espinosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good YA with happy ending

This was a good read, I enjoyed it, it was well written and I really love the characters. It has the whole bullying and cyber bullying issue brought up but never really addressed as well as having an attempted rape that doesn't really get sorted. To be honest the whole thing was very similar to a series written by Angel Lawson called The Allendale Four. There are five guys in this verses the four in the other and this wasn't based on the mystery of whom was bullying the female MC like Lawson's book. This was more about the people involved in the RH and their relationship. It's a good YA and I do recommend it if you like YA RH.

[Marisa Valle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the MC extremely indecisive & prone to changing her mind easily. I just didn't seen how the guys ended up falling for her. It seemed like insta-love and I would have preferred to see more development of their relationships. She was a bit of a pushover. Every time she got hurt she forgave way too easily. It just didn't seem realistic that a girl with her background would be so open to relationships and especially an RH. There was not a lot of convincing required. She was just a little too good to be true.

[CK · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good start to a new contemporary rh ya/na book. Can't wait for more.

[Jennifer G · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ruby lost her mother and grandmother in a tragic accident and since her bio dad didn't want her to interfere with his new family, she went to live with her aunt and cousin. She's the straight A's, chess club president type; the girl who's never been kissed. But when she's kicked out of her new school's chess club, an offer is extended to join the drama club and try out for their production of Grease. The Lone Wolves, Jason, Kevin, Mike, Billy, and Steven are playing the leads in the school’s production and they want Ruby as their very own Sandy. It's a fairy tale but in a second could become a nightmare. Someone is already targeting Ruby and f they discover their secret it could ruin everything.

I love contemporary RH's. I was so hopeful for this one but it didn't live up to my expectations. There is no character development and the relationships are instant. Plot points are created and never furthered. Someone is stalking, taking pictures, and cyberbullying Ruby but this is never explored. There is bullying at school, intimidation, and attempted rape but this is not addressed. Her aunt is made out to be crazy but seems to be more lacking in patience and intolerant. Her father is neglectful, again not addressed properly. This is all so frustrating. The book also needs more detailing, instead of glossing over events (afternoons spent together, school, drama club), make it descriptive. That way we can relate to the characters and believe their relationships. As it is, there is no emotional connection to Ruby or to Ruby and the Lone Wolves. The characters and their bonds are just too shallow. And the story itself while good, has been done better in other books. It has potential. It needs depth, details, and development. A girl doesn't go from never being kissed to 3 orgasms (2 at school, NO!) in one afternoon. This is more a detailed outline than a story. Flush it out, then you might have something.

[Lola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, not great

This wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. While there's not a lot of typos, the writing felt juvenile. It's reminiscent of the Reasons Series and The Allendale Four series but not quite as good. It could've been much better with some editing and revising, maybe a few added scenes, and a whole lot of character development.
It had an interesting story line and a unique premise but there were quite a few cliches. And I was honestly disappointed that chess was barely a part of the story since it's in the title, and with the way Ruby acts I honestly wonder if she'd really be smart enough to play chess. Ruby started out sassy an all certain that she didn't have any interest in romance which I loved but then barely a paragraph later it seemed like she already had a crush. The book does have a lot of great humor in it, but that's probably the best part.
There wasn't a lot of character development or plot build-up. Her relationship with her cousin felt superficial and other than chess and then acting I never really got a feel for what Ruby was interested in. Her personality seemed too bland and I feel like her grief wasn't adequately portrayed. Something like she went through would've been traumatic but literally in just a few chapters she's opening up and branching out. The bullying is never fully addressed and she doesn't seem to suffer too much from it.
The ending also felt rushed in how it all resolved and I was a like shocked at how easily it all worked out in the end. Also there were some loose ends that weren't tied up.
All in all it's a quick and humourous read, definitely not the best, but with potential. If you're looking for something light then give it a try, but I wouldn't read it for anything deeper.

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

So bad horribly written stay away

There is no character development. Plot points are created and.abandoned. There is no resolution with two of the three villains, it's like they don't exist. All of the relationship building between the characters takes place of the pages with Carmine just saying things like "we hung out for the next couple weeks" or "we fell into a routine hanging out after school doing homework" or "they took me on dates and we did things". An author needs to actually paint those scenes for readers to build the relationship of the characters and the readers connection to the story. We don't need every day after school but you have to actually walk through one. You can't just say things happened and the guys and I are close now. You also have to build the individual characters. We don't know anything about Ruby and she is the main character. I lied. We know her mom and grandma are dead, she's never kissed a boy, and she whines Mon stop about how the guys are too good for her. We know even less.about the five guys other than very generically why they are together and that they all had tough lives. No details. Horribly written. Seriously I have wrinkles from how often I grimaced at this. Bad.

[Britt B · Rating 1 out of 5]

Umm...

Ok this is a no for me. It had potential, thus the 2 stars. There was little to no character development at all (which would have dropped it to a 1star). Yes we got a little of Ruby's mainly through dialog but the rest was missing. I need to understand and see the characters personalities. There was nothing but insta love. I could not connect with any of the guys and their relationships with Ruby.
The development time was rushed by saying "over the next few weeks". The relationships came off as shallow and lacking any relatable feelings since that development time was skipped. You even have one of the guys basically treat her coldly then in like 2 paragraphs do a complete 180 and says he's all in. Ok what was his issue? We also get some of the main guys as just fillers/supporting characters. Ugh I really wanted to like this book, but it's a definite no.

[Melyssa Winchester · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is definitely on the more mature end of YA, so I wouldn't recommend it to younger school age children than say 16, but seeing as I'm way over the target demographic here anyway, it didn't bother me in the slightest.
With that said, I enjoyed this first story. I'm into seeing where it goes and what all of these different personalities with one common denominator bring to the table.
I caught a few inconsistencies throughout the story, otherwise known as minor plot holes, but it wasn't enough to take me away from the overall enjoyment of it.
If reverse harems are your thing, especially when set in a high school environment, I'd recommend.
On to the second story!

[Mae · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit lacking

I liked the idea behind Ruby's story and circumstances of the Lone Wolves but this book lacked description. There was very little description regarding the characters. Only some of the storylines behind the guys were given. The way the book was written different situations were ran together. The ending was also left open without any real closure. I think if the author reworked this story it would be excellent.

[Glittah4every1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wtf happened at the end

I was into it then it just ended and its like when you fast forward a movie to the end and have to watch it speed through she shouldve wrote it longer very disappointed I invested time and emotions into this book how could she ughhh and we didnt even hear how the play went or cali decisions maybe shell write what happened in another book but i wont read it she lost my trust

[Amanda Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a lot of reverse harem books but this was actually my first YA RH and I quite enjoyed it. I liked the characters, the guys were sweet. This touched on cyber bullying but I wish we got more of the resolution of that, it really showed how much it affected Ruby though. I also would have liked to get more into Jason's issues and his discussion about the other guys that made him stop pulling himself away. It was very much mainly about their relationship rather than the outside situations.

[T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a woman of 50+, I often feel weird reading RH with teenagers, but the author handled the relationships well, mixing normal teen issues with interesting conflicts. Good writing style, and snappy dialog. The main female character, Ruby is down-to-earth and has a wicked sense of snarcasim. The writer missed some potential tension due to a lack of story and character development. Overall, I enjoyed the read, but would have appreciated more depth.

[Christy deSade · Rating 1 out of 5]

Shallow

There was no substance to this book at all. There was no character development, there was no relationship building whatsoever and rather than story telling the were info dumps. This was a shallow attempt at writing about a complex situation, the author should be banned from attempting it again.

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

After her mother died she was sent to live with her evil aunt. She is so unhappy and she joins the chess club. One day there is a problem and she is kicked out. She then meets them. Her life is then upside down. What will happen? Where will it take her? See where this will lead

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sarah Caballero · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not impressive

I couldn't finish this book. It started with 0 story line background. The character building is weak. Ruby barely spends any time with the boys and all of a sudden they are so happy to have her in their lives and she can't live with Jason not talking to her? At that point I had to stop. Its shallow and cliche.

[Jasmine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too rushed?

I dunno it was pretty decent I liked where the author was going but things just felt.. a little too rushed and flat. It was like bam this is happening ok this is fixed and then bam another thing happened but everything is ok and forgiven. Just not what I thought it would be.

[Rachel Seumalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute teen read

I mostly liked the main character. Usually I have to ignore some huge annoying things, but not with this one. This was a good read. It needs a little editing (missing words, etc.) but otherwise well written. I did however take issue with the first kiss. I’ll check out this Author’s other books.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sigh another disappointing read. No depth everything was surface level I don't even know what the guys looked like apart from the fact that they all have dark hair and one has brown eyes oh and of course abs. The love they confessed to each other felt so childish and premature. This could have been really good.

[Az · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
i feel like i've read this a million times already a nerdy girl, hot guys ( who definitely don't have high school bodies ) and some type of stalker/social media scandal.
I liked the grease aspect.

[Jutta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the title....the fact that someone could drop out of chess club! And the way it happens is just excellent (I would have done the same too!!). I enjoyed watching the characters as they bonded and I hope that we see the characters again and watch as they grow

[Patricia Ausmus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

This book is really good. I think it is great that these boys from foster care can show a girl who lost her mom and grandma how special she is and she can show them that they are worthy to be loved.

[Briana Holloway · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok

This story has SOOO much potential! Carmine has a great story line but could work on her character building. Make the book a little longer and let us get to really KNOW the characters that way we can fall in love with them.

[Bookwander · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just have a few words. This book was...okay. Don't get me wrong it was intresting at first then it stared to become redundent. Nothing much to say.


Hey go read this yourself don't let my opinon dictate if you want to read this book or no.

[Ahnen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay

I feel like this story line was great but there was a lot of
Holes. And I wasn’t real happy with it.

[catherine lawrence(Nerd_who_reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was interesting. A little slow. I enjoyed how the male characters were written. I'm looking forward to reading the next book.

[Ashley Knipp · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could have been good

This book has potential. The problem is that there’s very little description and relationship DEVELOPMENT which makes it feel like the story jumps a lot.