Book Review: Boys of Brayshaw High

Brandy, M. (2018). Boys of brayshaw high. USA: Meagan Brandy.

Author:

Meagan Brandy is a USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of New Adult romance books. She has published seven books and is based in California.

Summary:

Raven Carver is a rebellious teenager from the wrong side of the trailer park. Removed from her mother’s care after another fight at school, Raven is transferred to Brayshaw High. In a new town, new school, she must find her place or fight her way to establish one. Raven never expected to stay there long, but three boys make her question what she really wants and where she belongs.

The story unfolds from two points of view, the first being Raven Carver, and the second being that of Maddoc Brayshaw.

Maddoc and his two brothers are three teenage boys that have been raised without a biological parent. It is by birthright as a Brayshaw that Maddoc, Royce, and Captain control all aspects of their town and school. They are used to a world fueled by corruption, money, blackmail, power, and greed – trusting no one. Until they meet Raven, a girl that isn’t motivated by money, power, blackmail, or status.

Questioning her every move, the Brayshaw brothers confronted by enemies at every turn, ally with Raven in a need that perplexes their very existence. Raven becomes central to their life, filling a hole that they never knew existed, and a romance blossoms between Raven and Maddoc.

Analysis:

After reading Boys of Brayshaw High, the differentiation between character voice and character development was clear. The main characters had strong voices and opinions, and when it changed to their point of view, the difference in voice was definitive. However, the characters hid information from the reader as well as other characters. This made it hard to follow what was happening and why it was. I didn’t know the characters true intentions or motivations, as such it was hard for me to understand why I should care about the conflicts the characters were having.

The second thing I experienced from reading this book was the application of making the main character dislikeable. The main character of Raven is strong, independent, and fierce, but she is caring and has a soft side. It is through her interactions with the Brayshaw boys that as I progressed through the book, the character of Raven became belligerent. It changed her from a likeable character to one that I didn’t like. But the aspect about her change of attitude and behaviour that I couldn’t identify with was that there was no conflict, action, situation, or change to the story or character to justify the change in behaviour.

Application

Hiding information was an aspect of my manuscript that addressed by my assessor, Amanda Ashby, and now after reading this book, I understand why it is important to not hide information from the reader, so that they can understand the goal and motivation of a character, and what the conflict is and why it should be considered a conflict.

Jamie was the one character in my manuscript that was hiding information from the reader. The fact that he was a werewolf was not divulged until the last third of the book. Bringing Jamie’s voice forward, and not hiding who he is and his secrets, it highlighted the importance of his goal, motivation, and all the conflicts both internally and externally he was facing. The reader will now understand why he acts the way he does with Danielle Stone.

Turning a character from likeable to unlikeable was something I did in one chapter. Danielle Stone is arguing with both Jamie and Velkan about where she stayed after being attacked. From her behaviour I identified her as being belligerent. I also identified that while her world has changed, Jamie and Velkan haven’t, and there was no reason for her to be hostile and argumentative with them. There was no reason for her sudden foulness. In the earlier chapters Danielle and Jamie had grown closer, discovering old feelings, and to have her act this way, when there was no deserved action, was nonsensical.

I had to take the chapter out of my manuscript and rewrite it. Applying what I learnt not to do from this author, I continued building the bond of Danielle and Jamie, bringing them closer again through the situation of building up to Gran’s funeral.