A review by geo_ix
The Perfectionists by Sara Shepard
1.0
1.5 stars.
Now I don't quite know if I didn't like this because I've read a few of the Pretty Little Liars books and watched the show. This book really felt like a remake with a popular kid (boy this time) doing cruel things to people and having heaps of dirt on students and teachers and probably the town shrink etc. Each girl didn't feel new because I just compared them to the others. See, there's a girl that wants to tell what happened, just like Aria. There's a musician and soccer player who's lives revolve around getting into Juilliard and some other school with her boyfriend. There's a kid who hides (which more reminds me of the show and how Charles/Cici hid etc with hoodies and stuff but very loosely. There was a girl who used her looks which could be Allison or anyone really.
I just felt like PLL's characters had a few elements taken and moved and voila there's these girls. Each of them have something to 'hide' and have been victimised by Nolan - who is now dead. Now I grew up in a small town in Australia and was bullied/bullied some people, and reading this I'm just baffled. This shit isn't bullying it's legit psychopathic. Even these girls. Their prank to get back at him for his crimes (bullying a brother until he killed himself, spreading a rumour that she slept with teachers to get better grades, getting nudie photos of a girl to hold it over her head, drugging a girl who then went home and was brutally beaten by her father, and her friend also hates him for that) is to drug him with Oxy because he takes that and draw on him in sharpies. Turns out when they stupidly planned it in class, someone heard and elicited their other more sinister plan of killing him with cyanide and they think they're trying to pin them for the murder.
Anyways, there's a super creepy teacher who gets it on with kids and obviously trying to take advantage of one of them. There's lots of boyfriends and some cheating and backstabbing and it was all super dramatic, HOWEVER, it all felt a little flat and not very exciting until around page 200, then fell flat again for the last few chapters. It did interest me to find out who their framer is and who killed Nolan/why, and I'm full of a few theories, but if I didn't already buy book two I wouldn't continue because they're so slow and the silly kind of dramatic that is Young and the Restless/Bold and the Beautiful kind of drama but in High school.
Also, the crazy cat lady/hoarder. Legit I know people with kids like that and it's ridiculous how scared she is of people hating her to the point she's utterly terrified of people finding out. I get people bullied her before but why is there such a big thing on popularity here? You've got friends, and by the sounds of all this, one guys a bully. I'm just so baffled at their mindsets like life will be over. Maybe it's a bigger school thing or something but they're all legitimately batshit crazy.
Now I don't quite know if I didn't like this because I've read a few of the Pretty Little Liars books and watched the show. This book really felt like a remake with a popular kid (boy this time) doing cruel things to people and having heaps of dirt on students and teachers and probably the town shrink etc. Each girl didn't feel new because I just compared them to the others. See, there's a girl that wants to tell what happened, just like Aria. There's a musician and soccer player who's lives revolve around getting into Juilliard and some other school with her boyfriend. There's a kid who hides (which more reminds me of the show and how Charles/Cici hid etc with hoodies and stuff but very loosely. There was a girl who used her looks which could be Allison or anyone really.
I just felt like PLL's characters had a few elements taken and moved and voila there's these girls. Each of them have something to 'hide' and have been victimised by Nolan - who is now dead. Now I grew up in a small town in Australia and was bullied/bullied some people, and reading this I'm just baffled. This shit isn't bullying it's legit psychopathic. Even these girls. Their prank to get back at him for his crimes (bullying a brother until he killed himself, spreading a rumour that she slept with teachers to get better grades, getting nudie photos of a girl to hold it over her head, drugging a girl who then went home and was brutally beaten by her father, and her friend also hates him for that) is to drug him with Oxy because he takes that and draw on him in sharpies. Turns out when they stupidly planned it in class, someone heard and elicited their other more sinister plan of killing him with cyanide and they think they're trying to pin them for the murder.
Anyways, there's a super creepy teacher who gets it on with kids and obviously trying to take advantage of one of them. There's lots of boyfriends and some cheating and backstabbing and it was all super dramatic, HOWEVER, it all felt a little flat and not very exciting until around page 200, then fell flat again for the last few chapters. It did interest me to find out who their framer is and who killed Nolan/why, and I'm full of a few theories, but if I didn't already buy book two I wouldn't continue because they're so slow and the silly kind of dramatic that is Young and the Restless/Bold and the Beautiful kind of drama but in High school.
Also, the crazy cat lady/hoarder. Legit I know people with kids like that and it's ridiculous how scared she is of people hating her to the point she's utterly terrified of people finding out. I get people bullied her before but why is there such a big thing on popularity here? You've got friends, and by the sounds of all this, one guys a bully. I'm just so baffled at their mindsets like life will be over. Maybe it's a bigger school thing or something but they're all legitimately batshit crazy.