scrollsofdragons's review against another edition
3.0
slow start but then it got quite good and unputdownable. I totally guessed the killer, just not the motives.
annarose_x's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
paperpix's review against another edition
2.0
Standard weekend afternoon read. But what a disappointing reveal!
hachisgf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
lo_oneill's review against another edition
5.0
"Everyone has the face they show people and the face for when they’re alone in bed with only their thoughts."
"In a weird way Alisha had got her wish – the old gang was back together again. For eternity. They were all bound together by their terrible secret, until the day they died. That was a terrifying thought."
Another Dawson Dazzler!
Juno Dawson is quickly becoming one of my favourite YA writers having devoured two of her books in as many weeks. I would highly recommend her book Clean which is one of my favourite reads this year.
Cruel Summer was a wonderful mix mystery, witty British dialogue and friendship that from the first page was impossible to put down. With wonderful pacing as the story developed up until the heart-pounding ending (and make no mistake my heart was actually pounding) I could not pry myself away and when I absolutely had to I was counting down the minutes until I could reunite with the gang in their Spanish villa.
Dawson has a wonderful way of luring you into the world that she is creating, with characters that are constantly developing in a very holistic way until the last word. All of the characters have their flaws but they have this sense that you have met these people before that allows the reader to feel like these are your friends, they all have a great depth without taking away from the flow of the story by becoming overly cumbersome with backstory.
The framing of the story as a TV show in the imagination of Ryan (in my head it came to life as a The OC meets Pretty Little Liars meets I Know What You Did Last Summer) was expertly done and framed the story in wonderful way. I have to say this element really drew me into story and allowed the author to create an element of realness in this clever and twisty mystery, allowing the main narrator to acknowledge that in a TV show this would represent different elements of the season which would be expected but in real life it was insane. It was also a very interesting way to show a different type of coping mechanism as Ryan uses this as a way of trying to disassociate harder times in his life from the reality of what is happening.
Throughout the story there were so many times that I (smugly) thought that I had beaten the author and figured out who had done it, only to completely change my opinion in the next chapter. The story is so cleverly plotted that I had a blast reading it. I hope that Dawson continues to write stories like that this for a long time to come, she is one of the most captivating authors that I have read in very long time.
This need to be mad into a movie because it would be perfect and it is about time we had another great ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ style of movie.
If you haven’t read this I would highly, highly recommend it. I am actually worried for the next book I read because Juno Dawson is setting the bar high.
"In a weird way Alisha had got her wish – the old gang was back together again. For eternity. They were all bound together by their terrible secret, until the day they died. That was a terrifying thought."
Another Dawson Dazzler!
Juno Dawson is quickly becoming one of my favourite YA writers having devoured two of her books in as many weeks. I would highly recommend her book Clean which is one of my favourite reads this year.
Cruel Summer was a wonderful mix mystery, witty British dialogue and friendship that from the first page was impossible to put down. With wonderful pacing as the story developed up until the heart-pounding ending (and make no mistake my heart was actually pounding) I could not pry myself away and when I absolutely had to I was counting down the minutes until I could reunite with the gang in their Spanish villa.
Dawson has a wonderful way of luring you into the world that she is creating, with characters that are constantly developing in a very holistic way until the last word. All of the characters have their flaws but they have this sense that you have met these people before that allows the reader to feel like these are your friends, they all have a great depth without taking away from the flow of the story by becoming overly cumbersome with backstory.
The framing of the story as a TV show in the imagination of Ryan (in my head it came to life as a The OC meets Pretty Little Liars meets I Know What You Did Last Summer) was expertly done and framed the story in wonderful way. I have to say this element really drew me into story and allowed the author to create an element of realness in this clever and twisty mystery, allowing the main narrator to acknowledge that in a TV show this would represent different elements of the season which would be expected but in real life it was insane. It was also a very interesting way to show a different type of coping mechanism as Ryan uses this as a way of trying to disassociate harder times in his life from the reality of what is happening.
Throughout the story there were so many times that I (smugly) thought that I had beaten the author and figured out who had done it, only to completely change my opinion in the next chapter. The story is so cleverly plotted that I had a blast reading it. I hope that Dawson continues to write stories like that this for a long time to come, she is one of the most captivating authors that I have read in very long time.
This need to be mad into a movie because it would be perfect and it is about time we had another great ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ style of movie.
If you haven’t read this I would highly, highly recommend it. I am actually worried for the next book I read because Juno Dawson is setting the bar high.
thethirteenthcloud's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
ohnoflora's review against another edition
3.0
Trashy in the best possible way: light-weight but such good fun.
whybeanonymous's review against another edition
3.0
This book had some nice twists to it.
I feel that the reason the murderer had for killing a few of the characters was rather shallow and I wish the author had made the murderer's reason more substantial with more kick.
Overall this book kept me glued to it. I was looking forward to finding out who the murderer was and it sure did surprise me.
I tried guessing who it was and was half correct in relation to who was present when Janey died.
The plot wasn't anything entirely new. It was a bit similar to plot-lines of movies like "I know what you did last summer." etc.
Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it.
The style of writing it like a tv show was new and different. I rather liked it. It also gave a few different perspectives from the various characters which was refreshing.
Generally it is well written and is worth a read. :)
I feel that the reason the murderer had for killing a few of the characters was rather shallow and I wish the author had made the murderer's reason more substantial with more kick.
Overall this book kept me glued to it. I was looking forward to finding out who the murderer was and it sure did surprise me.
I tried guessing who it was and was half correct in relation to who was present when Janey died.
The plot wasn't anything entirely new. It was a bit similar to plot-lines of movies like "I know what you did last summer." etc.
Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it.
The style of writing it like a tv show was new and different. I rather liked it. It also gave a few different perspectives from the various characters which was refreshing.
Generally it is well written and is worth a read. :)
bustedsunsets's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fun read that reminded me of a soap opera in a good way.