Reviews

You're So Dead by Ash Parsons

random_subplot's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I loved the concept but the exectution not so much. Shame. I really wanted to like this book. The story seemed lacking and the heavy handed virtue signalling is a bit annoying (but hey, that's my personal taste). I found the characters flat and same-ish and the dialogues confusing. 
What I liked the most in this book, apart from the concept, were: Henrietta, the chicken; Brittlyn's death by poisoning and the bits of comedy weaved in the story.

abbitha1108's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

sixxinski's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

2.0

shmuley's review against another edition

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the premise ☹️ ya slasher with a bi mc but it was so awkward and not well planned at all. the killer was boring and the characters were annoying except cici

cl9244's review against another edition

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2.0

this was so hard to get through 

mdubd's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

It was…fine? I couldn’t stand any of the characters. The story wasn’t exactly original. And the last chapter was so cheesy I wanted to vomit. But it was fine. 

read_with_steph's review against another edition

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2.0

Great concept, extremely poor execution.

As a huge fan of Agatha Christie's classic And Then There Were None, and a closeted consumer of both the Netflix and Hulu documentaries on the disastrous Fyre Festival, I was prepared to love this YA spin. Unfortunately, this one just missed the mark. I didn't love the writing or really any of the characters, and found myself skimming a majority of this novel. I wanted to know what happened so I didn't DNF, but the ending wasn't clever enough to leave me feeling satisfied at the end. Without Christie's intricate plot-mapping and confounding explanations for everything, I was just left feeling, "Oh, okay, they're the killer." Nothing about the ending was particularly unexpected or exciting, despite having our MC being chased by an actual serial killer.

I will say, I think this has the potential to be a great teen slasher comedy movie. I could see this playing much better on the big screen, where the characters' annoying personalities are more humorous than grating, and some of the scenes have the added benefit of visuals and special effects. So, despite not really enjoying the book at all (and wouldn't recommend it to others), I'd consider seeing a movie based on it.

Edit: Also, it was an incredibly poor idea to give two characters short names starting with "J." In a cast book like this, it was nearly impossible to keep track of who was who, so I gave up trying.

Thanks to Penguin Teen for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

2 stars - 3/10

brittsbookclub's review against another edition

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2.0

The synopsis for this book had me intrigued and even a bit excited to read it, but honestly, it fell flat for me. The whole story was a bit hokey and had so many unrealistic instances that I just couldn’t connect with the book. There seemed to be a lot missing from this book and the way the characters were presented, if I wasn’t told who was saying what, I wouldn’t have been able to distinguish them. Everyone seemed to be presented in an almost identical way without any character development. The whole storyline just seemed lacking and I found myself having a hard time staying interested in this book.

*Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*

bichito_feo's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

literary_leo's review against another edition

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fast-paced

3.75