Shameless by Teresa Mummert

Every student at Shame U has their secrets, and Henley Brooks is no exception. Struggling to pay for college and maintain her perfect reputation has become overwhelming. When her friend Gigi Oxford offers her a night of carefree fun, she can’t pass up the opportunity to unwind. 
After a night of drinking turns to chaos, Henley finds herself alone with Lucas Young, a student from London who has come to America to unravel a few secrets of his own, as well as break a few hearts. 
Covered in tattoos and drowning in liquor, Lucas was everything Henley should avoid but couldn’t resist. She soon begins to fall for him like the many women before her. But after stumbling across something he didn’t want her to see, she learns that Lucas may not be who she thinks he is. 
Henley and Gigi devise a plan to teach Lucas a lesson, but it isn’t long before Henley learns that no one at Shamus Thornton College can be trusted. 
When everything begins to feel like it is falling apart, there is only one person Henley wants to pick up the pieces, even if he is the person who caused her to crumble. 

4 stars
Review by Jen Skewes

I finished this book a few days ago but needed some time to write the review.  And it wasn’t because I didn’t enjoy this book because I most certainly did.  But I needed to figure out how to write this review without giving anything away.  And at the same time find the right words to explain how much this book toyed with my emotions.  This is one of those books where you are not sure who to trust, who is telling the truth and who is playing the game.  How much of it was real and how much of it was all part of the plan.  At times I felt like I got whiplash from the back and forth with these characters.  But that is what I loved about it, the back and forth between the two main characters, the lies, the secrets, the truths, and the angst that went along with it all.

Henley is a shy girl whose home life is in a bit of shambles at the moment.  But she is the smart nerdy type who would rather stay in and study then go to a party and meet boys and make new friends.  When her best friend Gigi convinces her to take a break form studying to go out and have a good time she finally gives in.  She meets Lucas in the elevator of her dorm and there is something about him but she ignores it and moves on.  Until she meets him again when she is out partying with her friend.  She knows that she should stay away from him, but they always seem to find themselves at the same place at the same time.  And staying away is not as easy as it seems.  Especially when you are atalking about Lucas.

Lucas is from London and is here in the States for a reason, which at some point in the book you do see what that reason is.  He is the sexy, tattooed bad boy that has had his fair share of woman.  But when he meets Henley there is something about her and he finds himself wanting her.  He has a reputation with the ladies, which is one of the reasons why Henley should stay away.  When Lucas seems to prove to be the person she thought he was, her and Gigi decide to teach him a lesson, giving him a taste of his own medicine so to speak.  But things start to get out of control, feelings get involved and in the end someone will get hurt. 

Shameless was filled with drama and angst and at times I was so unsure as to who was playing the game and who wasn’t.  Honestly the entire time that Henley was supposed to be teaching Lucas a lesson I felt her falling deeper and deeper for him.  I completely understood why, because he was hard not to fall for.  Now in my opinion, Lucas was nothing like the guy she thought or expected him to be.  He made mistakes just like anyone else but I think deep down he was a really good guy.  He had feelings for Henley but knowing that at some point he was going back home, he was afraid to start anything with Henley.  

As the reader I think you can see and understand Lucas in a way that Henley didn’t which was mainly due to lack of communication.  These two knew how to push each other’s buttons.  Their moments together were intense at times and filled with too many emotions for them to even think clearly.  And that is where the back and forth came it.  Does she like me? Does he like me?  Do I have feelings for him?  You get the picture.  This is also what made this book so good.  It gave the reader just the right amount of angst and drama to keep us on the edge of our seat.  Not knowing how this story would end up and again who can you really trust.  There were some truths and surprises revealed that will surprise you.  And when they come out it all makes so much more sense.

I loved Henley and Lucas together and at times just wanted to smack them both, put them in a room alone until they both figured it all out.  I wanted to see them admit their feelings and be together. I loved the emotions this book brought out and the angst fest that it was. It truly made you think about what was rally going on and how these characters felt.  While this book did not end with a cliffhanger there will be a second book which I cannot wait for.  I feel like there is so much more story to tell.