alisarae's review against another edition
Grungey rural noir set in a gloomy costal town in Maine. In the summer between high school and college, Fin heads back to her hometown to stay with her journalist dad and to try to crack the case of her best friend Betty’s presumed murder. No body, no witness, and yet Fin is dead set on unearthing new evidence using whatever means she can scheme up.
A few random thoughts:
1. The audiobook narrator was not helping this story. I honestly think I would have enjoyed it way more with a different voice. I mean, I think they wanted a cracky scratchy female voice because Fin is always either just waking up, smoking, yelling, or getting done getting it on with someone; also, she is queer and every hot queer woman sounds like Jillian Michaels right? But anyways, she did the “annoying self absorbed teen” thing really well. Too well.
2. How did these teens always have tons of pills and alcohol? And drive around all the time? Like even the DDs drank and stuff? Where was the money for all that coming from if this is supposed to be in a rural town that relies on summer tourism yet the book repeatedly mentions that there aren’t any tourists anymore?
3. I thought the discussion about mental health was going in a “it takes a village” direction, but the end didn’t have the final punch to hammer that home. I did like the end, though.
A few random thoughts:
1. The audiobook narrator was not helping this story. I honestly think I would have enjoyed it way more with a different voice. I mean, I think they wanted a cracky scratchy female voice because Fin is always either just waking up, smoking, yelling, or getting done getting it on with someone; also, she is queer and every hot queer woman sounds like Jillian Michaels right? But anyways, she did the “annoying self absorbed teen” thing really well. Too well.
2. How did these teens always have tons of pills and alcohol? And drive around all the time? Like even the DDs drank and stuff? Where was the money for all that coming from if this is supposed to be in a rural town that relies on summer tourism yet the book repeatedly mentions that there aren’t any tourists anymore?
3. I thought the discussion about mental health was going in a “it takes a village” direction, but the end didn’t have the final punch to hammer that home. I did like the end, though.
notlikethebeer's review against another edition
I really enjoyed this, although I do have some critiques. Mostly, I think the plot and circumstances surrounding Betty's death were a bit contentious- could've done with an author's note in the back maybe, or some kind of 'discussion group' questions to make the reader think a bit more about it all. I was also a little confused by what the takeaway point was, as right at the end it seemed to raise the question of 'what can a human do' even though this didn't really come into it before. Also that Finley's approach towards Calder at the end was a bit odd, especially given - however, admittedly, I don't know how I'd feel towards Calder in the same scenario. Lastly, I think that the character of Silas was somewhat odd- I guess it might be my own stereotypes etc., but I didn't really get how he was so sinister, aside from it being explicitly said, which . That sounds like a lot of critique, but honestly, I did really enjoy this one! It's fully cemented my love for thriller and noir, and has made me add a lot more of the same genre to my reading list, which is definitely a sign of a good read!
Spoiler
what Betty said in her noteSpoiler
made the denouement feel quite out of placeciborium's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
michelle_pink_polka_dot's review against another edition
3.0
3.5ish Stars. The cover made me think this book would be creepy, and in no way was that the case. This isn't a horror, it's a mystery-- and not a very thrilling one at that. The characters are chemically induced for the entirety of the book and the last 50 pages provided nothing new or interesting. I didn't hate it, and found it completely readable, but I was still expecting so much better.
This book is total cover bait. I thought I was going to get a creepy, horror-type book, but this was NOTHING like that. This was a standard YA Mystery with a lot of sex, drugs, and nothing that thrilling happening.
While I didn't hate the book, I think that going into it with expectations of having creepy scenes in the woods threw me off. The tub on the cover is mentioned briefly in the book, but plays no role in anything.
Here's what the book IS about: Finley is visiting her Maine hometown for the first time since her best friend has gone missing/presumed dead, and she's ready to set the town on fire (literally). In a drug induced haze, she sets out to prove that Betty's ex-boyfriend, Calder, killed her.
Here's why this is a 3 star book instead of 5 star mystery: It's not even a mystery!! We know what happened to Betty and nothing new comes to light as a result of Finley's antics. There are drugs like WOAH. Everyone is pill popping in this book-- and I'm no straight-edge, but it got annoying. The last 50 pages were YAWN. Nothing new or exciting happened and I was SO BORED.
I had major issues with the "love triangle" because it just didn't feel all that "loving" on any of the sides. Serena could've been a really interesting character (she's a girl who crushed on Betty and Finley develops feelings for her), but she felt like a placeholder. Owen (a guy Finley looks at like a big brother, but also has sex with) didn't do it for me either. Maybe it was all the drugs?? Maybe they just weren't good people?? Something was definitely missing there.
OVERALL: Confusing cover for a non-horror book. I was expecting creepy, but got a sub-par mystery. I'm going to give it 3 stars because I did want to find out answers, but I was hoping for shocking revelations that never came. I say read if you like YA that doesn't hold back on the drugs and sex.
My Blog:
Pink Polka Dot Books
This book is total cover bait. I thought I was going to get a creepy, horror-type book, but this was NOTHING like that. This was a standard YA Mystery with a lot of sex, drugs, and nothing that thrilling happening.
While I didn't hate the book, I think that going into it with expectations of having creepy scenes in the woods threw me off. The tub on the cover is mentioned briefly in the book, but plays no role in anything.
Here's what the book IS about: Finley is visiting her Maine hometown for the first time since her best friend has gone missing/presumed dead, and she's ready to set the town on fire (literally). In a drug induced haze, she sets out to prove that Betty's ex-boyfriend, Calder, killed her.
Here's why this is a 3 star book instead of 5 star mystery: It's not even a mystery!! We know what happened to Betty and nothing new comes to light as a result of Finley's antics. There are drugs like WOAH. Everyone is pill popping in this book-- and I'm no straight-edge, but it got annoying. The last 50 pages were YAWN. Nothing new or exciting happened and I was SO BORED.
I had major issues with the "love triangle" because it just didn't feel all that "loving" on any of the sides. Serena could've been a really interesting character (she's a girl who crushed on Betty and Finley develops feelings for her), but she felt like a placeholder. Owen (a guy Finley looks at like a big brother, but also has sex with) didn't do it for me either. Maybe it was all the drugs?? Maybe they just weren't good people?? Something was definitely missing there.
OVERALL: Confusing cover for a non-horror book. I was expecting creepy, but got a sub-par mystery. I'm going to give it 3 stars because I did want to find out answers, but I was hoping for shocking revelations that never came. I say read if you like YA that doesn't hold back on the drugs and sex.
My Blog:
Pink Polka Dot Books
elizabethwebb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
skinnygetout's review against another edition
4.0
One of the darkest books I've ever read. Finley returns to her hometown (a coastal town in Maine) the summer after she graduates from high school to investigate the mysterious death/disappearance of her best friend Betty. What she fins out when she returns home is more messed up than she thought. All of the teenagers in the town are eating painkillers like candy, avoiding the ugly truth that their town is dying. As the story unfolds and Fin uncovers more of the mystery, she smokes, drinks, and eats drugs, and develops sexual relationships with more than one person.
A great murder mystery/ghost story/thriller. Not for the faint of heart.
A great murder mystery/ghost story/thriller. Not for the faint of heart.
lazygal's review against another edition
3.0
Nothing surprising here. Fin's grief and reaction to Betty's death, her search for the killer and interactions with people in the incredibly small Maine town she mostly grew up in are all predictable. The unpredictable? Her relationship with Serena, which didn't feel quite real (not that it couldn't happen, just that given her feelings for Owen it wasn't plausible except as shock value... or someone suggesting to the author that adding it would be a good idea). Teens might enjoy this more than I did, hence the three stars.
ARC provided by publisher.
ARC provided by publisher.
blondeeishere's review against another edition
1.0
It kept me reading...didn't care much for the story line...
bolynne's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed reading this and I felt that I had a hard time putting it down, but only because I wanted the payoff. The characters and the dialogue and such weren't especially as interesting as I'd have hoped. But I can't put down a mystery unless I've got the resolution. Overall, it was just good.