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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
LOVE this series. I’m always thinking about how it would be like if it became a tv series. Maybe someday <3
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Cool setting and fun concept, but it didn’t fully grab me. The dual timelines were interesting, but the pacing felt uneven and the mystery dragged. I liked Stevie as a lead, just wish the payoff had been stronger. Might pick up the sequel, maybe.
i honestly have no clue what i just read
all i know is this book was sold to me as an agggtm alternative with a love interest that is reminiscent of JD from heathers
for one, this cannot at all be comparable to aggtm. this is way more dull and unfortunately shallow, and i was not connected to the story or the characters at all. ( well, i was kind of connected to dottie )
and two, David does not at all remind me of JD and that sucks because that’s the main reason i wanted to read this.
maybe it’s because i’ve only read the first book, i’ll give it the benefit of the doubt
⭐️⭐️⭐️
all i know is this book was sold to me as an agggtm alternative with a love interest that is reminiscent of JD from heathers
for one, this cannot at all be comparable to aggtm. this is way more dull and unfortunately shallow, and i was not connected to the story or the characters at all. ( well, i was kind of connected to dottie )
and two, David does not at all remind me of JD and that sucks because that’s the main reason i wanted to read this.
maybe it’s because i’ve only read the first book, i’ll give it the benefit of the doubt
⭐️⭐️⭐️
I just finished this book and I feel like I need to read it again. Actually read it, since I was listening to the audio book the first time around. This, at least for me, definitely feels like the sort of book that needs to be read so more focus is on what's going on. While listening to it, I wanted to take notes. I think that in itself shows that it was a good mystery.
And yeah, it was a pretty damn good mystery. The clues were trickled in a little at a time. I still feel like I missed something, though, and that may be because I was listening to the audio. But getting all the pieces and seeing how they fit together was really fascinating. The one downside is that the mystery wasn't fully solved at the end. Parts of it were, but so many other parts were still left as a question. I guess that leads into sequels, but other mysteries can give a conclusion while still continuing as a series.
I really hope that the minor characters play some role in later books, because I feel like sometimes they were just pointless. Like they existed to take up space and that was it. And for a school, there didn't seem to be a lot of learning going on. I know a lot of books that take place in school gloss over the actual school part, but I don't know. I would've liked to see more of the classroom settings in this one. Especially from the 1930s era. Hopefully there'll be more of that in later installments.
One thing I really loved was that Stevie suffered from anxiety. I know that's a weird thing to focus on, but the way she talks about it and describes what it feels like was so genuine. I loved the scene where she was coaxing Nate through his own attack.
I'm going to have to pick on the romance, because that always ALWAYS bugs me in YA. Once again, I'm not entirely sure why there had to be a romance at all. It annoyed me that Stevie didn't speak up for herself more when David butted himself into her life. She did a little, but I feel like went right back into his arms way too quickly after. I didn't see much romance or connection between either of them. The reveal at the end was super frustrating. I get she was in denial over it but it also felt like the author was just dragging it out so the reveal would be that final punch to end the novel. Personally, I think the book would've been a lot better if it focused on the mystery aspects and left the stupid YA romance out of it.
Loved the mystery, didn't much care for the romance, overall enjoyable and really hoping more questions will be answered in future books.
And yeah, it was a pretty damn good mystery. The clues were trickled in a little at a time. I still feel like I missed something, though, and that may be because I was listening to the audio. But getting all the pieces and seeing how they fit together was really fascinating. The one downside is that the mystery wasn't fully solved at the end. Parts of it were, but so many other parts were still left as a question. I guess that leads into sequels, but other mysteries can give a conclusion while still continuing as a series.
I really hope that the minor characters play some role in later books, because I feel like sometimes they were just pointless. Like they existed to take up space and that was it. And for a school, there didn't seem to be a lot of learning going on. I know a lot of books that take place in school gloss over the actual school part, but I don't know. I would've liked to see more of the classroom settings in this one. Especially from the 1930s era. Hopefully there'll be more of that in later installments.
One thing I really loved was that Stevie suffered from anxiety. I know that's a weird thing to focus on, but the way she talks about it and describes what it feels like was so genuine. I loved the scene where she was coaxing Nate through his own attack.
I'm going to have to pick on the romance, because that always ALWAYS bugs me in YA. Once again, I'm not entirely sure why there had to be a romance at all. It annoyed me that Stevie didn't speak up for herself more when David butted himself into her life. She did a little, but I feel like went right back into his arms way too quickly after. I didn't see much romance or connection between either of them. The reveal at the end was super frustrating. I get she was in denial over it but it also felt like the author was just dragging it out so the reveal would be that final punch to end the novel. Personally, I think the book would've been a lot better if it focused on the mystery aspects and left the stupid YA romance out of it.
Loved the mystery, didn't much care for the romance, overall enjoyable and really hoping more questions will be answered in future books.
I would give this almost 4 stars, but the pacing is uneven. It’s a cute book, one that students will enjoy, but I wasn’t a fan of the ending. I’m not sure if the story line lends itself to a series or if the author just had two separate stories that she mashed together to create a series. The Nancy Drew-like protagonist is interesting, but there were too many details/pieces to the puzzle, especially when those pieces are repeatedly mentioned.
challenging
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No