A review by erinarkin20
Get Even by Gretchen McNeil
3.0
Get Even by Gretchen McNeil is the first in the Don’t Get Mad series and I did enjoy it. I do have to admit, there are quite a few characters and I felt like that although the story moved forward, not one thing was resolved in this book of the series. I’m pretty sure everyone knows how I feel about that but with that said; I still think the story was very well done.
Bree, Olivia, Kitty, and Margot are the main characters and have nothing in common…except for DGM. Through a twist of fate – or just school assignments – these four ended up working on a project together, which led to them collaborating on more than just homework. They ended up forming Don’t Get Mad (DGM) to get revenge on those that deserve it. It works out beautifully that they are not even remotely connected as it allows them to avoid drawing attention to themselves and being considered as the perpetrators.
I really liked how McNeil tied these characters together. She also made them seem real – they are in high school and acted like they were which I appreciate. Also, while there were a number of characters introduced, I thought all added value to the story. In addition to the array of main characters in DGM, there are some great secondary characters that fill the roles of best friend, boyfriend, and ex-boyfriend. McNeil did a great job of creating a group of students that cover the breadth of backgrounds you would see in a typical high school setting which was great.
As for the story, when one of their classmates ends up dead and holding a DGM card, things start to get serious. Now the girls need to find out what is really going on and who is trying to pin this murder on them. As they begin to dig into what is going on, they find out their identities may not be as secret as they thought and because of this, they need to find out who knows about them…and is trying to frame them for something they didn’t do. While it is true that there is no resolution (or even a clue) as to who is behind anything that is going on, I’m not sure it would have been possible for McNeil to give us a hint. With that said, I am impatient enough to say that I really do wish I would have gotten something that clued me into who may have “done it”. I can honestly say, I have absolutely no idea who it is at this point. Besides - I wouldn't tell you anyway...so I will stop here and just encourage you to check this out when you can!
If you’re looking for a mystery that introduces some solidly built characters, definitely check this one out. I flew through this one and will definitely be checking out book two when it comes out.
Thank you to the Publisher and Edelweiss for the review copy.
Bree, Olivia, Kitty, and Margot are the main characters and have nothing in common…except for DGM. Through a twist of fate – or just school assignments – these four ended up working on a project together, which led to them collaborating on more than just homework. They ended up forming Don’t Get Mad (DGM) to get revenge on those that deserve it. It works out beautifully that they are not even remotely connected as it allows them to avoid drawing attention to themselves and being considered as the perpetrators.
I really liked how McNeil tied these characters together. She also made them seem real – they are in high school and acted like they were which I appreciate. Also, while there were a number of characters introduced, I thought all added value to the story. In addition to the array of main characters in DGM, there are some great secondary characters that fill the roles of best friend, boyfriend, and ex-boyfriend. McNeil did a great job of creating a group of students that cover the breadth of backgrounds you would see in a typical high school setting which was great.
As for the story, when one of their classmates ends up dead and holding a DGM card, things start to get serious. Now the girls need to find out what is really going on and who is trying to pin this murder on them. As they begin to dig into what is going on, they find out their identities may not be as secret as they thought and because of this, they need to find out who knows about them…and is trying to frame them for something they didn’t do. While it is true that there is no resolution (or even a clue) as to who is behind anything that is going on, I’m not sure it would have been possible for McNeil to give us a hint. With that said, I am impatient enough to say that I really do wish I would have gotten something that clued me into who may have “done it”. I can honestly say, I have absolutely no idea who it is at this point. Besides - I wouldn't tell you anyway...so I will stop here and just encourage you to check this out when you can!
If you’re looking for a mystery that introduces some solidly built characters, definitely check this one out. I flew through this one and will definitely be checking out book two when it comes out.
Thank you to the Publisher and Edelweiss for the review copy.