Unteachable

by Leah Raeder

Maise O'Malley just turned eighteen, but she's felt like a grown-up her entire life. The summer before senior year, she has plans: get into a great film school, convince her mom to go into rehab, and absolutely do not, under any circumstances, screw up her own future.

But life has a way of throwing her plans into free-fall.

When Maise meets Evan at a carnival one night, their chemistry is immediate, intense, and short-lived. Which is exactly how she likes it: no strings. But afterward, she can't get Evan out of her head. He's taught her that a hookup can be something more. It can be an unexpected connection with someone who truly understands her. Someone who sees beyond her bravado to the scared but strong girl inside.

That someone turns out to be her new film class teacher, Mr. Evan Wilke.

Maise and Evan resolve to keep their hands off each other, but the attraction is too much to bear. Together, they're real and genuine; apart, they're just actors playing their parts for everyone else. And their masks are slipping. People start to notice. Rumors fly. When the truth comes to light in a shocking way, they may learn they were just playing parts for each other, too.

Smart, sexy, and provocative, Unteachableis about what happens when a love story goes off-script.

• ISBN10: 1476786402
• ISBN13: 9781476786407
• Publish Date: 23 October 2014 (first published 3 October 2013)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 13 July 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Atria Books
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[liz089]

I was very surprised with this one and LOVED the writing. It was so beautiful and almost like poetry sometimes, just gorgeous writing.
The story itself was very captivating and it kept me interested. Only later on, I did get a bit annoyed with the amount of sex.. I don't mind some.. but I want more dialogue and storytelling, not sex every couple of pages. But apart from that it was a very pretty and thoughtful book.. deep.
And the main character was awesome and kick-ass ^^ I loved how smart she was and even though she made some bad choices.. she kept a level head and made a way out of it.

[Leah]

I've been wanting to read one of Elliot Wake's books for ages. I've got Unteachable, Black Iris & Cam Girl sitting on my shelf, and I've just been waiting for the perfect time to dive in. So I was looking for a new read (I can never pick a book so I just read the first pages until one really grabs my attention) and Unteachable did just that. I knew from the start that I was going to absolutely love Maise O'Malley. She's confident in herself, she knows what she wants, and she isn't afraid to get it (unless it means getting on the first car on a roller-coaster because everyone else on the coaster is a savage). She's the perfect heroine, because I love girls who are confident, because I can live my life through them, because I am so not.

Unteachable is just one of those books that drags you in, until you literally sit and read it until you're finished and that's what I did. Maise's story is fantastic, and her relationship with Evan is completely intense. It sucks you in and doesn't let you go, and because of the nature of their relationship, and the whole teacher-student thing, you're never quite sure if you should be cheering or not, which is hard considering I'm a hopeless romantic, no matter who it's between. I just love a happy ending. But watching Maise and Evan was a bit like watching a car crash, it was too intense, too much, too fast, and I was kind of wanting to read it through eyes hidden by my hands because I couldn't help wondering if it was all going to implode in their faces.

What actually sets this book apart from other books, is not only the intoxicating romance, duh, but the writing. This is one of the best written New Adult books I've ever read - in fact, it's just one of the best written books, ever. So lyrical, there were even words used that I had no idea what they meant, so I had to look them up, but it added to how amazing the book was, because Wake really has a way with words. It makes me want to go and dive into the other two books immediately, because I need that kind of book in my life, it lets me just dive away into a different world for a few hours, and forget my own life and that's hard to do. Not a lot of authors can do that.

I loved this book, and I'm not sure my words could ever do it justice. Unteachable is one of those books that doesn't let you go until the very last page, and even then there's a part of me that would absolutely love a sequel. I need more of Maise O'Malley in my life. And Wesley! I kinda liked him, I kinda feel like he has a story to be told, too. And Evan was kinda dreamy. I KNOW. You need to read this book, if you like the New Adult genre you will love this, and if you just like a well written book, this is for you. It's hard to believe this is a debut novel, but it is and it was amazing.

[Bianca]

You should love something while you have it, love it fully and without reservation, even if you know you’ll lose it someday. We lose everything. If you’re trying to avoid loss, there’s no point in taking another breath, or letting your heart beat one more time. It all ends. That’s all life is. Breathing in, breathing out. The space between two breaths.

[Angie]

Unteachable was very nearly the student-teacher romance I have been searching for! Nearly, only because there was this sudden blackmailing subplot that I could have done without. But I was cheering for Maise and Mr. Wilke! Like, for serious! They meet during summer break and hit it off immediately. Of course, Maise has no idea that he's going to be her Film Studies teacher, and he thinks she's a twenty-one year old intern. But none of that matters once they're reunited and can't fight their feelings.

I love student-teacher romances, and Unteachable made me very happy even when it made me very frustrated. Maise and Evan are sneaking around even though she's 18, and it's technically legal for them to be together even if he is her teacher. She doesn't want to get him fired, because she loves his class (as well as him). And he doesn't want to screw up her future. They are really in love and I really believed them! It's not all sunshine and rainbows when they're together though. They have problems, which I take as a sign that they really care about each other. It's not just sex, sex, sex.

Of course, there has to be a twist. Something doesn't add up about Evan, and I figured it out. But I wasn't mad that it was kind of obvious. I was actually glad that I was right, since it wasn't this huge, unbelievable, out of nowhere thing. I totally believed it, and I understood, but it still didn't make it right! Be honest with each other! Gosh! You're already lying to the world, don't bring that into your love bubble! Get it together!

As for that random blackmail plot, I really think Unteachable would have been stronger without it. I felt like Maise's fear of becoming her mother would have been a great thing to explore without that extra tidbit. It really added nothing for me. I did like how Maise gets herself out of it though, and then sits down with her mother and tells her how things are going to be. That woman needed a wake up call, and it's sad that it had to come from her daughter.

In the end, I really liked Unteachable. And I absolutely loved that last page! I wasn't sure how this story was going to end. It really could have gone either way of Maise and Even getting their happily ever after despite the odds, or they could crumble under the pressure. Either ending would have worked just fine for me if done right. And this ending was definitely done right.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Cocktails and Books]

I don't know what it is about student/teacher relationships that fascinates me enough that I have to reach the story, even when I cringe many times during the story. Maise and Ethan's story was no different, with the exception that Maise, despite being eighteen, had been forced to grow up way to fast and was already jaded by the time she met Ethan. Both them them were broken, but they managed to create something special that helped both of them move forward.

[Jack]

I cannot accurately put into words how amazing this book was. How it took me on a roller coaster ride of emotions and how invested I was in the characters, their lives, their love and Wesley! Not to mention the writing was some of the best I've seen in a long while, it flowed like silk and was just as beautiful.

For once the young woman in this book is not some weepy virgin who doesn't know anything about sex. It's the complete opposite. Maise knows her body, loves it, and uses it. She likes having sex with older men, and isn't afraid to admit it, she enjoys her body and the pleasure it can bring her.

She's drawn to Evan because he's older then her, then there is the fact that he's her teacher so there's always the air of taboo around them, that it's wrong for them to be together but feels so right. But he makes her feel safe and loved as well.

This was a crazy journey filled with so much passion. Which at times I felt was too much, too many smutty scenes which overwhelmed the character and plot development at points. They didn't do much besides have sex, even when they were in St. Louis where no one would recognize them! Why not go out on more dates!. It was clear they loved each other, and it was so nice that Evan wasn't some over powerful, domineering alpha male. When he did show his alpha side, it was so hot it made me melt.


Maise had doubts about being with her teacher, if it would really work past her senior year. There was the fear of people finding out, of both their futures being ruined. It was nice to see them worry about each other, to care about each other and not just live in the moment. Maise was always thinking about her future, as was Evan and they both wanted the other to be successful and happy.


But they both have trouble lives, Evan burying his past, and Maise trying to get away from her present, and move toward a bright future, hopefully with the one she loves so much.

Evan has a past he wanted to keep buried, but it eventually surfaced which caused a split between the two, one that I thought wasn't going to be fixed and Maise would have just moved on with her life and found someone else to love. Especially when people started to find out about the affair, and it got messy.

But the ending! Oh my! It made me so happy and giddy! I really hope there is another book about these two some day because the writing alone is beautiful.

Looking back on it I don't fully understood what kept the two together, what kept their love burning for each other besides the hot romps in the sack.

The characters in this book felt real, I wanted to know their story, I was heartbroken at the lot Maise had been given in life, living with such a horrible mother. And she saw how kind and loving mothers could be in Wesley's mom.

Maise was a very strong character, wise and mature beyond her years. Although she knew and accepted at times that she was still young, still a kid. And it was those times that she relied on Evan to get her through her troubles.

Sometimes the book seemed a little much, almost a bit unbelievable, but I managed to over look it for the story was amazing and the writing held me in a trance it was so exquisite.

[leelu92]

This one will go on my Best of 2013 shelf.
To read more of my review:

http://straightshootinbookreviews.wordpress.com/2013/08/05/review-unteachable-by-leah-raeder/