Think twice if…
- Content warnings: Bullying, Sexism, Child abuse (referenced), Alcoholism, Attempted sexual assault, Cheating, Drug use, Toxic relationships, Violence, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault (referenced), Sexual content
Bully
by Penelope Douglas
Book 1 in Fall Away
You get a cathartic journey from brutal enmity to a hard-won, deeply emotional love that feels earned.
Goodreads 3.8/5 230,630 ratings
Quick fit
Is this story right for you?
A decision-first view of the reading experience.
Length333 pages
Series statusCompleted series
Spice4/5 · Passionate / intense
PacingFast
Story profile
What the story promises
The strongest reviewed signals about romance, fantasy, and the reading experience.
Romance promise
- Enemies to lovers
- Male/female pairing (M/F)
- Medium burn
- High
- Passionate / intense
- The angst delivered
Show more
- Possessive alpha
- Hurt/comfort
- Angry / hate sex
- Cathartic release
- Morally gray
- Mutual pining
- Rough / aggressive style
- Redemption arc
- Dark/tortured soul
- Power imbalance
- Emotional / vulnerable intimacy
- Addictive read
- Betrayal to trust
- Wall pinning
- Obsessed
- Possessive love interest
- Pinning hands above head
- Obsessive love interest
- Mine declarations
- Push and pull
- Size difference focus
- Hair pulling soft
- Marking hickeys
- Rough but consensual
- Clothed grinding
- Teasing control
- Neck kisses / neck touching
- Scent kink
- Rough/aggressive intimacy
- Power exchange
- Degradation (light)
- Primal play (hunting/chasing)
- Alphahole dynamics
- Possessive
- Claiming
- Dominance
Fantasy promise
- New adult
- Bully romance
- Small town / village
- Contemporary
- Humans only
- Childhood sweethearts reunited
Show more
- Academy / campus
- Second chance
- Forced proximity
- Forbidden love
- Homecoming / small town return
- High school romance
Reading experience
- First person
- Fast
- Dark
- Edgy
- Heavy
- Survivor
Show more
- Intense
- Emotional
- Outcast/loner
- Angsty
- Raw
- Snarky/sarcastic
- Conversational
- Brooding
- Tense
- Dramatic
- Cathartic
- Steamy
- Dangerous
- Gritty
- Forbidden desire
- Page turner
Similar stories
Similar in ways that matter
Matched by the most important shared story signals, with the tradeoffs made explicit.
343 pages Standalone
Punk 57
Penelope Douglas
Similar because
New adult · Betrayal to trust · Mutual pining
Different because
It is standalone rather than completed.
432 pages Completed series
Falling Away
Penelope Douglas
Similar because
New adult · Cathartic · Hurt/comfort
343 pages Ongoing series
Twisted Love
Ana Huang
Similar because
New adult · Mutual pining · Size difference focus
Book details
- Length
- 333 pages
- Language
- English
- Format
- Book