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Indecent
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
16 posts | 10 read | 28 to read
Blurring the lines of blame and moral ambiguity, Corinne Sullivan's smart, sexy debut is perfect for fans of The Girls and Sweetbitter.Shy, introverted Imogene Abney has always been fascinated by the elite world of prep schools, having secretly longed to attend one since she was a girl in Buffalo, New York. So, shortly after her college graduation, when she's offered a teaching position at the Vandenberg School for Boys, an all-boys prep school in Westchester, New York, she immediately accepts, despite having little teaching experience--and very little experience with boys. When Imogene meets handsome, popular Adam Kipling a few weeks into her tenure there, a student who exudes charm and status and ease, she's immediately drawn to him. Who is this boy who flirts with her without fear of being caught? Who is this boy who seems immune to consequences and worry; a boy for whom the world will always provide? As an obsessive, illicit affair begins between them, Imogene is so lost in the haze of first love that she's unable to recognize the danger she's in. The danger of losing her job. The danger of losing herself in the wrong person. The danger of being caught doing something possibly illegal and so indecent. Exploring issues of class, sex, and gender, this smart, sexy debut by Corrine Sullivan shatters the black-and-white nature of victimhood, taking a close look at blame and moral ambiguity.
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Clwojick
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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“There was never a simple answer to attraction, I decided. It was a series of looks and touches, of small, strange exchanges. It was private and inexplicable, something an outsider could never try to understand, something you rarely even understood yourself.”

59 likes2 stack adds
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Clwojick
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Finished off the tagged audiobook while studying on the balcony with the boys. They sure love napping out where there‘s a good breeze. ♥️

brit91 Beautiful cat!!😍😻 5y
Crazeedi ❤❤❤😻😻 5y
rretzler 😻 5y
80 likes3 comments
review
Victoriahoperose
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Mehso-so

I have to say I liked the writing a lot and I felt a strong sense of ambiguity which really worked for this book and the story. But, the story felt like something I‘ve heard too many times and I didn‘t really think the characters were overly unique. I‘m in the middle on this one because I liked the writing, but the story was lacking for me.

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h.madeline93
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
Mehso-so

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saresmoore
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Mehso-so

Too many thoughts for 451 characters. Suffice it to say that this book made me think, even if most of my thoughts sounded like, “This protagonist makes me want to cry. I hate her so much!” Maybe that‘s because I really hate myself? Or maybe she is just too terribly human and/or genuinely pitiable? I don‘t even know.

Full(er) review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2376984460

Reggie I felt like we were all once her, and that‘s the part we pity. Whereas she had her first real heartbreak at 22-23, the rest of us had it in different ways way earlier in life. I felt she was from that generation of kids who watched MTV‘s Sweet Sixteen Birthday Party and allowed that to make her think the rest of her life sucked. And then she just kept looking for validation from the elite. 7y
saresmoore @Reggie Yes! I think you nailed it! That 5-7 years between being a teen/excusably immature and taking a position as a teacher who is responsible for teens is a time in which we expect one to have some personal growth. Still, I think about what the implications would be if the story had the genders swapped. 7y
Reggie @saresmoore My aunt‘s ex husband, he had a sister. She was in a marriage where she got beat pretty badly on a regular basis despite her family begging her to leave him. Later on she spent time in a mental facility. While in there she met a guy who had been repeatedly beaten by his wife. This was in the early 90‘s and as a kid I remember thinking “That‘s weird, a guy?” So if genders were flipped, there would be a lot less sympathy I think. 7y
saresmoore @Reggie Ugh, how awful—for both of them! I think with this book, I really wanted to see some justice served, for both parties to be culpable, for consequences. Or for Imogene to go totally off the deep end. Or for her to show some real growth. Something, anything! But perhaps the author left it ambiguous on purpose. Perhaps that apathy is the reality we live in. 7y
70 likes4 comments
review
Reggie
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Pickpick

This is a well written first person story in which we follow Imogene Abney as she starts her first year teacher apprenticeship at a prestigious, all boy, prep school. It is there we will discover how much of a naive fantasy world she still lives in as we see her become involved with a 17 year old student. Following her thoughts made me feel pity towards her, infuriated at times, and definitely had me cringing. Not bad for a character study. Pick.

batsy Definitely agree on the feeling infuriated and cringing. A whole mix of emotions and a constant, "Girl, what *are* you doing???" 7y
Reggie @batsy “sometimes you gotta stop living up here and start living down here.”-Eminem, 8 Mile 7y
Reviewsbylola I already have this stacked. It sounds so good. Possibly similar to 7y
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Reggie @Reviewsbylola I feel like she was never the predator, though. Just, she shoulda known better. 7y
Cinfhen My daughter was just asking me about this book???it sounds like a cringe worthy but addictive read???!! What say you @saresmoore (edited) 6y
Reggie @Cinfhen I say tell your daughter to give it a go. Not my favorite read so far but I had no regrets reading it. Also, the girl in here is a crash waiting to happen that you don‘t want to look away from. 6y
76 likes1 stack add6 comments
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saresmoore
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Oh, just another library hold that my husband picked up for me... It smells strongly of perfume. Weird.

@batsy Look how strong your influence is on me!

JanuarieTimewalker13 Ughhh!! That would kind of annoy me. Poor book, wonder if you can somehow damp cloth it? I wonder how they clean books in libraries? 7y
saresmoore @JanuarieTimewalker13 It‘s very strange, but not totally unpleasant. I think it got sprayed on the pages! I imagine it will fade with time and subsequent readings. 7y
batsy Now I'm nervous! 😆 I hope you don't hate it 🤞🏽 7y
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LeahBergen I want to read this, too! 7y
saresmoore @batsy Haha! I definitely don‘t hate it. I like the narrator a lot so far. @LeahBergen She mentioned Villette and A Separate Peace so I have a good feeling about it. (edited) 7y
LauraBrook Hi friend! Missed you and wanted to check in. Hope you‘ve got a nicely Bookish weekend planned! ❤️ 7y
saresmoore @LauraBrook Hello! How lovely to hear from you! I am doing home improvement this weekend, which is almost as fun as reading. No, wait, no... But anyhoo, I see you‘re doing the Readathon! I‘m just about to check in on your posts! 7y
LauraBeth I came here for your living room reveal! 😀 7y
saresmoore @LauraBeth I ended up renovating a bathroom instead of shelving books. 😬 Oops! 7y
88 likes1 stack add9 comments
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Reggie
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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@batsy So I‘m reading this book and all I can think is this phrase over and over as I follow Imogene, but only said as Christopher Walken says it in my favorite James Bond film. Just for fun, it‘s this scene and he says it at :18. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_E0yxgdkneE Lololol, all this for that? Yes.

batsy Hahaha that's pretty apt 😆 7y
Cathythoughts Great clip .. just saw it & heard it 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 I love it 7y
Reggie @Cathythoughts lol, thanks. 7y
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ValerieAndBooks Wow that takes me back! I remember watching this movie with my boyfriend (now hubby)! And being Northern Californians then, I do recall the Golden Gate Bridge 🌁 and earthquake faults scenes!! 7y
Reggie @ValerieAndBooks yeah, that scene where Stacy, the hot geologist, uncovers Zorin‘s plans to flood the fault with seawater to cause a huge earthquake. Lol, I hate to admit this but I used to think Roger Moore was so hot growing up. Lol, RIP, RM!!! 7y
ValerieAndBooks Haha! For me it was Sean Connery ☺️. And yes, RIP Roger Moore. Those blue eyes!! 7y
51 likes6 comments
review
batsy
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Pickpick

This book hit me harder than I expected. Imogene is a 22-yr-old teacher's apprentice at an elite boys boarding school who has an affair with a 17-yr-old student, Kip. He is the Daisy to Imogene's Gatsby. She is a lower middle class "good girl" who is insecure, lonely, & sexually-naive. He comes from serious $$, is attractive, popular & sure of his place in the world. The book explores this class dynamic via her obsession & her slow breakdown ⬇️

batsy From the start, Imogene makes disastrously wrong choices & shuts out people. She has a deep insecurity complex born out of a yearning for all that Kip represents via his social position. Her stew of self-loathing is complex; a mix of class & gender & lack of power. Told entirely from her POV, you begin to see how she unravels. The book becomes less about a sordid affair than a revelation of her self-destructive depression. It was sad & felt real. 7y
sisilia Stacked! I like this kind of mess 😅 7y
batsy @sisilia Haha, me too! 7y
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BooksForEmpathy Wow. I am intrigued. Can‘t wait!!! 7y
twohectobooks Uhhhhh this sounds amazing 7y
Cathythoughts An excellent review 👍🏻💫stacking. 7y
TrishB Lovely review 💕 ‘stew of self-loathing‘ is wonderful. 7y
saresmoore Yep. Want to read this. Great review! It will probably make me grateful that I didn‘t end up working at a boys‘ boarding school because it sounds like a pretty believable scenario... 7y
RohitSawant Terrific & thoughtful review! 👏🏼👏🏼 7y
batsy @BooksForEmpathy @twohectobooks @Cathythoughts @TrishB @rohit-sawant Thank you! I think it can be a divisive book but I was pretty impressed with how unpredictable & bleak it was; no easy endings here... 7y
batsy @saresmoore Thanks Sara. I felt it pretty believable, too. It's that mix of yearning for a better social position + insecurity + distance from humanity in general, it's fairly common I think but fiction rarely addresses it from a woman's perspective. 7y
Reggie Does she end up in jail? 7y
Reggie Great review btw. 7y
LeahBergen I‘m looking forward to this one. 👏🏻 7y
erzascarletbookgasm Wonderful review. Sounds quite depressing and sad 7y
Centique Great review! I had a female teacher at my high school that dated one of my fellow 17yo students! I went to a very liberal high school and it was kind of accepted as far as I remember although they were told they couldn‘t go to the school ball together. 😂Wouldn‘t be accepted anywhere now and if the genders were reversed back then, dont think it would have been. 7y
Suet624 Look at how many people have stacked the book due to your intriguing review! Gotta join the crowd. 7y
ValerieAndBooks It really does look intriguing!! Stacking! 7y
batsy @Reggie Thanks! She doesn't because apparently the age of consent in NY is 17 (which I learned for the first time reading this...) 7y
batsy @erzascarletbookgasm Thank you! Yes, it actually was :( 7y
batsy @Centique Oh wow. I'm guessing she was in her early 20s? It does become a bit weird beyond that. It was interesting in the book because of the gender dynamics; the student was more sexually experienced than the teacher, for one thing, and did pursue her... Though she allowed it to happen, obviously. 7y
batsy @Suet624 @ValerieAndBooks @LeahBergen It was a strange and memorable read. Just a lot of polarising stuff that the author brought to the table. 7y
GatheringBooks sounds like an intriguing premise - plus the question of who is wielding the power here and who is in a position of authority, really. great review. i wouldn‘t have picked it up based on the cover so am glad you shared your thoughts. 7y
batsy @GatheringBooks Thank you! It really raised a lot of layered, complex questions and I just felt sad for the main character, really. She wasn't getting off on power as you might expect with this kind of scenario. 7y
94 likes14 stack adds24 comments
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KerriArista
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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About 100 pages in and having a VERY hard time putting this down. So far SO good.

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shanebeth
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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kinda fun when an author likes your book review! first time that‘s happened for me! I did give it a five star rating...😂

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shanebeth
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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my very modest stack of September reads, alongside my fave fall candle! 🍁🍂

fave: Indecent ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
least fave: The Hot One ⭐️⭐️⭐️

three fiction (2/3 graphic novels) + two nonfiction. #septemberwrapup

[DELETED] 3803335244 I love your pumpkin 🎃 7y
shanebeth @ForeverNerdy thanks! I think it came from Dollar Tree, haha. 7y
[DELETED] 3803335244 @shanebeth I love Dollar Tree! 7y
Saramissy Awkward and Smile are great! 7y
43 likes4 comments
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shanebeth
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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not the first time she's used a book as a pillow. happy Caturday! #catsoflitsy

mrsmarch 😻😻😻 7y
Coleen Awwww! 7y
kspenmoll Sweetie! 😻 7y
37 likes3 comments
review
shanebeth
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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Pickpick

Imagine the academic setting of Dead Poets Society mixed with the scandalous shenanigans of Cruel Intentions, and you'll have an idea of what this novel is like. Imogene Abney is a character who makes terrible decisions, but her story was a riveting read. This book will hit the shelves in March 2018, and I kind of can't wait to see what other readers think! #arc #recommendsday

30 likes1 stack add
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shanebeth
Indecent | Corinne Sullivan
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my latest Goodreads win. thanks to Wednesday Books and St. Martin's! #arc

28 likes1 stack add