Review: Pulled by Danielle Bannister

Pulled by Danielle Bannister
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this eARC from Red Publishing Company. This is my honest review.

Naya went through a horrible event when her parents died in a car accident. Ever since then, she has been disconnected and has panic attacks and black outs. She's hoping that starting over at her dream college will be the right track to get herself under control and make happy memories again. Even though her boyfriend, Seth, decided he was coming with her... despite the fact that he has no interest in performance art, which is what this school is known for.

When she meets Etash for the first time, she is stunned by the connection she feels for her. It's instant and so powerful she has no idea what is going on.

But she's not the only one who feels it. Etash is shocked and confused about this girl who he can't get out of his head. With the scar on his face, Etash is used to being ignored and made fun of and whispered behind his back, but Naya isn't doing any of that. In fact, it seems like she may be feeling the same connection that Etash is feeling.

When Etash and Naya get the lead roles in the upcoming play, they find the connection is only getting stronger the more they are near each other. Both have tried to fight the connection - for multiple reasons - but it's impossible.

Then things go downward fast when Naya runs from Seth. Secrets are revealed, and high strung feelings are being thrown around, and the pressure is on for Naya and Etash.

This book...wow... The connection between Naya and Etash was very intense, and I could definitely see the struggle they had figuring out what was going on between them.

The reason this was rated as 3 stars and not a bit higher is because I was so mad at Naya with her decisions to stay with Seth. I was so mad at her and I just wanted to shake some sense into her. I wanted her to go to the police and get a restraining order against him, but she just accepted whatever he did to her. Even til the very end, she was still making excuses, and I wish that this wasn't true in real life, but it is. And it makes me very sad knowing this, and knowing it's common.

Also, I felt so sad for Etash and the bullying he gets because of his scar on his face. Again this is common in real life, and it's just heartbreaking. Obviously he has been through something terrible if he got that wound, so why do people think it's okay to pick on him?

There were so many bombshells that happened at the end of this book that I feel like a hole has been ripped into my heart. The shocking realization on how Etash and Naya's story really started, and then that ending. So many thoughts and feelings went through me, I couldn't even put it into words if I wanted to.

All I have to say, is thank god Danielle Bannister made another novel, because that was gutwrenching to experience.

I think many readers will enjoy this novel, and now I need to dive into book #2 and hope that it has a better ending than this novel!

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