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jelkebooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I received a galley of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ugh, reviewing this is going to be difficult, because arguably this book was dogshit. However, I did read it in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down. I honeslty think the writing is absolutely terrible. The switching between scenes or different character's POV's just felt so chaotic. The writing was also just extremely simplistic and repetetive. It got a bit grating at times, especially at the start when the plot hadn't really started yet. There was also so much info-dump, most of which wasn't nececary.
I do think the mystery was very gripping though. It definitely isn't a great plot either. Characters just kept just giving everything to our main characters out of nowhere. Our two main characters were also just so incredibly stupid, and honestly it's good that the side characters just told them everything with no prompting because otherwise they would have never gotten anywhere at all. They have 0 researching skills, and it was absolutely shocking when I was told they had been taking a journalism class for 3 years now, because their journalistic "skills" were abysmal. The reveal at the end was also just not shocking at all. However, it still had me completely gripped, and I just didn't want to put the book down.
I also just really didn't like the two main characters. Cam and Blair were just insufferable. I mean, Blair was just annoying, Cam was the absolutely worst. Like I mentioned before they had 0 journalistic skills, they also had 0 interest in true crime they just decided to make a true crime podcast because it's a get famous quick scheme basically. I also think it was very obvious that this book was written by a man. Like, teenage girls do absolutely not behave like that. At times it also felt a bit cringe in the way the author tried sound young. I don't know if that makes sense? It just didn't really make this book work for me.
On top of that I also just think this book tried to say some meaningful things about true crime, the justice system, and all the issues within it but I just don't think it did so succesfully. The talking points just felt very basic, and also a bit forced into the book. It just didn't feel natural. I also just feel like it could have gone a bit more in depth if it really wanted to have something to say, because now it didn't really. So yeah, in conclusion I didn't think this book was good at all but for some reason I couldn't look away, and I will probably read more (woops).
Ugh, reviewing this is going to be difficult, because arguably this book was dogshit. However, I did read it in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down. I honeslty think the writing is absolutely terrible. The switching between scenes or different character's POV's just felt so chaotic. The writing was also just extremely simplistic and repetetive. It got a bit grating at times, especially at the start when the plot hadn't really started yet. There was also so much info-dump, most of which wasn't nececary.
I do think the mystery was very gripping though. It definitely isn't a great plot either. Characters just kept just giving everything to our main characters out of nowhere. Our two main characters were also just so incredibly stupid, and honestly it's good that the side characters just told them everything with no prompting because otherwise they would have never gotten anywhere at all. They have 0 researching skills, and it was absolutely shocking when I was told they had been taking a journalism class for 3 years now, because their journalistic "skills" were abysmal. The reveal at the end was also just not shocking at all. However, it still had me completely gripped, and I just didn't want to put the book down.
I also just really didn't like the two main characters. Cam and Blair were just insufferable. I mean, Blair was just annoying, Cam was the absolutely worst. Like I mentioned before they had 0 journalistic skills, they also had 0 interest in true crime they just decided to make a true crime podcast because it's a get famous quick scheme basically. I also think it was very obvious that this book was written by a man. Like, teenage girls do absolutely not behave like that. At times it also felt a bit cringe in the way the author tried sound young. I don't know if that makes sense? It just didn't really make this book work for me.
On top of that I also just think this book tried to say some meaningful things about true crime, the justice system, and all the issues within it but I just don't think it did so succesfully. The talking points just felt very basic, and also a bit forced into the book. It just didn't feel natural. I also just feel like it could have gone a bit more in depth if it really wanted to have something to say, because now it didn't really. So yeah, in conclusion I didn't think this book was good at all but for some reason I couldn't look away, and I will probably read more (woops).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Cancer, Homophobia, and Suicidal thoughts
lore_r's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Vomit
Minor: Addiction and Suicidal thoughts
chronicacademia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol
sallenreads's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I've inhaled many a YA mystery in the last couple years, and MISSING CLARISSA is a fresh take on the genre. Like SADIE, it's framed as a podcast, with excerpts interspersed throughout the book. What I loved was how the process of researching Clarissa's disappearance and creating the podcast was also a means to critique the true crime genre, whether through Cam and Blair thinking through what their motivations for telling Clarissa's story were, or secondary characters explicitly sharing their issues with true crime on the page. This critique was woven in with a well-plotted mystery, as well as Cam and Blair's character development. Overall, MISSING CLARISSA is a strong addition to the YA mystery fold.
Thank you to Wednesday Books for providing a copy for review.
Thank you to Wednesday Books for providing a copy for review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail