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3.11 AVERAGE
3.11 AVERAGE
The story idea was intriguing enough to finish the novel and while there are many interesting thoughts and observations about racism/sexism it didn't all come together in the end. there was lots of repetition - especially about physical appearance - and a lot of writing that read very editorially.
Some glaring errors made it difficult for me to get lost in this story. It was also very wordy so for reluctant readers, it's not a good fit.
I liked the concept and I kind of enjoyed the characters. I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if it were told in third person omniscient point of view instead of first person.
I liked the concept and I kind of enjoyed the characters. I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if it were told in third person omniscient point of view instead of first person.
The Lives of Desperate Girls by MacKenzie Common is a great YA read! Part-thriller and part-social commentary, the story revolves around Jenny, a high school student who is heartbroken over the disappearance of her friend, Chloe. Jenny has her own beliefs about Chloe's disappearance that she can't bring herself to share with the police, so she instead throws herself into a sometimes dangerous investigation of the murder of Helen, a different classmate whom Jenny didn't know very well.
The story told by Common is a compelling one that kept me lying awake in bed, reading the phone on the small screen of my phone, even after my eyes and brain were too tired to want to keep going. Jenny finds herself in the awkward position of wanting her friend found, but not wanting to share the bullying that Chloe was experiencing and the resulting out-of-character choices Chloe was making with her life. Because of her continued loyalty to her absent friend, Jenny finds herself pulling away from her classmates and finding a new friend in another outcast, Tom.
At times, The Lives of Desperate Girls lacked cohesiveness and read like two separate stories - one about the death of Helen and the disappearance of Chloe, and the other about the discrimination faced by First Nations people in Canada, but it didn't take much away from the story. Jenny's reaction to her best friend's disappearance felt natural and I found myself connecting to the character and her infatuation with a new friend who reminds her of Chloe. Rather than facing the truth of the secrets she was keeping to protect Chloe, Jenny becomes determined to find out who killed Helen and make sure the police know that she believes they aren't spending enough time on solving Helen's murder because Helen is Native and not a beautiful white girl like Chloe.
When Jenny finally comes clean to Chloe's parents about her knowledge of Chloe's disappearance the relief can be felt in the writing. By giving herself permission to let go of Chloe, Jenny is able to put her own life in perspective and stops pushing away the people whom she has grown to care about during her investigation of Helen's murder.
At one point, Jenny goes along with Tom's plan to get revenge of three of the people who were catalysts for what Jenny saw as Chloe's deterioration, but afterwards she laments her decision and finds herself repentant, not because she believes them to be innocent, but because she discovers that expressing her anger does nothing to make her feel better in the end.
Overall, despite some disjointed moments, this book is a great read. Common is able to share some history about the First Nations people, bring attention to the way minority victims are treated by agents of institutions of system racism, AND provide a thriller for young adults that doesn't shy away from sex, drugs, and violence.
The story told by Common is a compelling one that kept me lying awake in bed, reading the phone on the small screen of my phone, even after my eyes and brain were too tired to want to keep going. Jenny finds herself in the awkward position of wanting her friend found, but not wanting to share the bullying that Chloe was experiencing and the resulting out-of-character choices Chloe was making with her life. Because of her continued loyalty to her absent friend, Jenny finds herself pulling away from her classmates and finding a new friend in another outcast, Tom.
At times, The Lives of Desperate Girls lacked cohesiveness and read like two separate stories - one about the death of Helen and the disappearance of Chloe, and the other about the discrimination faced by First Nations people in Canada, but it didn't take much away from the story. Jenny's reaction to her best friend's disappearance felt natural and I found myself connecting to the character and her infatuation with a new friend who reminds her of Chloe. Rather than facing the truth of the secrets she was keeping to protect Chloe, Jenny becomes determined to find out who killed Helen and make sure the police know that she believes they aren't spending enough time on solving Helen's murder because Helen is Native and not a beautiful white girl like Chloe.
When Jenny finally comes clean to Chloe's parents about her knowledge of Chloe's disappearance the relief can be felt in the writing. By giving herself permission to let go of Chloe, Jenny is able to put her own life in perspective and stops pushing away the people whom she has grown to care about during her investigation of Helen's murder.
At one point, Jenny goes along with Tom's plan to get revenge of three of the people who were catalysts for what Jenny saw as Chloe's deterioration, but afterwards she laments her decision and finds herself repentant, not because she believes them to be innocent, but because she discovers that expressing her anger does nothing to make her feel better in the end.
Overall, despite some disjointed moments, this book is a great read. Common is able to share some history about the First Nations people, bring attention to the way minority victims are treated by agents of institutions of system racism, AND provide a thriller for young adults that doesn't shy away from sex, drugs, and violence.
I want to thank NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for providing me with this copy in exchange for an honest review
2/5 Stars
You can find this one and more of my review on my blog A Book. A Thought.
Well, the thing is, I was reading Ice Like Fire, the second book of the Snow Like Ashes trilogy and I wasn't feeling it, I was really in the mood for a mystery and murder reading and luckily I had this arc on my Kindle for some time already, so I thought it would be a good idea to read it. It wasn't what I expected, at all, but still I want to talk about them in detail, first I want to emphasize the writing style, which is pretty easy to read
I will leave here below the Goodreads synopsis for the book so that you know what it's about
I started enjoying it a lot, especially the mystery vibe that is handled in the book is very good and enthralling, but then Jenny, our main character, begins to have all these completely ridiculous and meaningless attitudes. First her way of dealing with loss is the rarest, I've read that some people believe that is her way of dealing with it, but I don't agree, her behavior as if nothing matters I thought it was absurd.
I understand that she really wanted to find her friend and solve what was going on, but suddenly she started to flee almost from the police as if they were the enemy, then she passes like 60% of the book with her super hot guy, doing basically nothing relevant and the other percentage passes by looking for her friend putting herself in danger without any sense and hiding very important details from the police, because she actually thinks she's protecting her friend, I mean, WHAT ?, they want to find her!.In moments of desperation I understand that you can forget to comment a really important things, but she was hiding that from the police because she wanted to do it, which only made research even more difficult.
This was crazy for me one of the most absurd characters I've read, and I really hate talking this way about a creation that someone did with effort and love, but it hasn't worked for me. Jenny is the typical beautiful and rich girl who thinks she knows everything about life because she get drugged a couple of times and then she think she's smart enough to solve a crime on her own, but she just makes a mess, and that's all she's been for me
On the other hand, I could see how the author wanted to touch important issues like abuse, bullying, indifference, racism, and depression, I appreciate that and I want to highlight it, even so it isn't a book that going to stay with me
Anyway, I would try another book of the author, because I think her writing style is nice and maybe with the development of other types of characters more deep and complex could hook me more and I would end up liking me more her book
Summing up, is a great idea for a mystery plot but the characters are flat and their actions don't make sense most of the time
2/5 Stars
You can find this one and more of my review on my blog A Book. A Thought.
Well, the thing is, I was reading Ice Like Fire, the second book of the Snow Like Ashes trilogy and I wasn't feeling it, I was really in the mood for a mystery and murder reading and luckily I had this arc on my Kindle for some time already, so I thought it would be a good idea to read it. It wasn't what I expected, at all, but still I want to talk about them in detail, first I want to emphasize the writing style, which is pretty easy to read
I will leave here below the Goodreads synopsis for the book so that you know what it's about
“One small, northern community. Two girls gone -- one missing, the other dead. A riveting coming-of-age debut young adult novel for fans of Everything I Never Told You and All the Bright Places.
Sixteen-year-old Helen Commanda is found dead just outside Thunder Creek, Ontario. Her murder goes unremarked, except for the fact that it may shed light on the earlier disappearance of Chloe Shaughnessy. Chloe is beautiful, rich and white. Helen is plain, and from the reservation. They had nothing in common except that they were teenage girls from an unforgiving small town. Only Chloe's best friend Jenny Parker knows exactly how unforgiving, but she's keeping some dangerous secrets of her own.
Jenny begins looking for answers about Helen's life and death, trying to understand larger questions about her town and her best friend. But what can a teenage girl really accomplish where adults have failed? And how much is Jenny actually complicit in a conspiracy of silence?”
I started enjoying it a lot, especially the mystery vibe that is handled in the book is very good and enthralling, but then Jenny, our main character, begins to have all these completely ridiculous and meaningless attitudes. First her way of dealing with loss is the rarest, I've read that some people believe that is her way of dealing with it, but I don't agree, her behavior as if nothing matters I thought it was absurd.
I understand that she really wanted to find her friend and solve what was going on, but suddenly she started to flee almost from the police as if they were the enemy, then she passes like 60% of the book with her super hot guy, doing basically nothing relevant and the other percentage passes by looking for her friend putting herself in danger without any sense and hiding very important details from the police, because she actually thinks she's protecting her friend, I mean, WHAT ?, they want to find her!.In moments of desperation I understand that you can forget to comment a really important things, but she was hiding that from the police because she wanted to do it, which only made research even more difficult.
This was crazy for me one of the most absurd characters I've read, and I really hate talking this way about a creation that someone did with effort and love, but it hasn't worked for me. Jenny is the typical beautiful and rich girl who thinks she knows everything about life because she get drugged a couple of times and then she think she's smart enough to solve a crime on her own, but she just makes a mess, and that's all she's been for me
On the other hand, I could see how the author wanted to touch important issues like abuse, bullying, indifference, racism, and depression, I appreciate that and I want to highlight it, even so it isn't a book that going to stay with me
Anyway, I would try another book of the author, because I think her writing style is nice and maybe with the development of other types of characters more deep and complex could hook me more and I would end up liking me more her book
Summing up, is a great idea for a mystery plot but the characters are flat and their actions don't make sense most of the time
ORIGINAL POST: http://www.nerdprobs.com/books/book-review-the-lives-of-desperate-girls-by-mackenzie-common/
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
MacKenzie Common's novel The Lives of Desperate Girls follows the story of Jenny, living in a small town in Canada where everything is normal and nothing bad happens. Until it does. Jenny's best friend Chloe goes missing and then another girl from the local reservation, Helen, turns up dead on a trail. Trying to cope, Jenny goes on her own little investigative journey with a new friend to try and figure out what happened to Helen, a girl she never knew.
Common's characters are all small town characters. She has them down to the ones that want to escape and go find something bigger and better down to the ones who are convinced small town life is where they will end up. Being from a small town, I understood these characters, their feelings, and the forever feeling of boredom that is instilled at a young age. Mostly I loved the truth about how people from completely different walks of life can be friends, especially when in a small town.
The characters were great, and I enjoyed the storyline, but I felt at times that the story dragged on. Many chapters felt like duplicates of previous chapters as we followed Jenny through her activities. I understand wanting to create a timeline, a feeling of a characters life, but this felt a bit much. I would have enjoyed the book a little more had some of these chapters, or pages, been left out. The book could have easily been 25-30 pages less.
Other than the dull moments and repetitive moments, this story was great. It had a twist at the end I was not expecting, which was nice. I love when an author can take me off guard. I felt satisfied with the ending even though it wasn't technically a happily ever after. This was just a satisfying book to wrap up and see where all the characters ended up. Common wrote an intriguing, suspenseful, and sad story of bullying, desperation, and heartache, with a story of friendship and loyalty twisted in. All in all a great story.
STAR RATING: 4/5
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
MacKenzie Common's novel The Lives of Desperate Girls follows the story of Jenny, living in a small town in Canada where everything is normal and nothing bad happens. Until it does. Jenny's best friend Chloe goes missing and then another girl from the local reservation, Helen, turns up dead on a trail. Trying to cope, Jenny goes on her own little investigative journey with a new friend to try and figure out what happened to Helen, a girl she never knew.
Common's characters are all small town characters. She has them down to the ones that want to escape and go find something bigger and better down to the ones who are convinced small town life is where they will end up. Being from a small town, I understood these characters, their feelings, and the forever feeling of boredom that is instilled at a young age. Mostly I loved the truth about how people from completely different walks of life can be friends, especially when in a small town.
The characters were great, and I enjoyed the storyline, but I felt at times that the story dragged on. Many chapters felt like duplicates of previous chapters as we followed Jenny through her activities. I understand wanting to create a timeline, a feeling of a characters life, but this felt a bit much. I would have enjoyed the book a little more had some of these chapters, or pages, been left out. The book could have easily been 25-30 pages less.
Other than the dull moments and repetitive moments, this story was great. It had a twist at the end I was not expecting, which was nice. I love when an author can take me off guard. I felt satisfied with the ending even though it wasn't technically a happily ever after. This was just a satisfying book to wrap up and see where all the characters ended up. Common wrote an intriguing, suspenseful, and sad story of bullying, desperation, and heartache, with a story of friendship and loyalty twisted in. All in all a great story.
STAR RATING: 4/5
*3.5 stars*
Jenny Parker doesn’t really fit in anywhere in her tiny town in northern Ontario. About as unremarkable as someone can be, Jenny isn’t particularly pretty, smart, or talented in any way. And her one defining feature that everyone knows is that she’s Chloe Shaughnessy’s best friend. Chloe is pretty, vibrant, and outgoing. With her family well off, Chloe knows she is destined for greater things than what is given in Thunder Creek. But after a terrible incident at a party, Chloe’s life starts to spiral out of control and shifts to the worst year she’s ever experienced. When Chloe disappears, Jenny is suddenly the talk of the town after being the last one to see her. But more is going on in the so-called sleepy town of Thunder Creek when a few weeks later a dead Native girl is found in the woods—and the police don’t seem to care. In this coming-of-age story, Jenny is stretched and challenged as she starts to investigate Helen’s murder and discovers how little she knew about her town. And all the while she is pressured by the police about her silence on Chloe’s whereabouts the night she disappeared. It seems Thunder Creek is a dangerous place for a teenage girl.
This book is focused largely on real issues. Although the plot lends an interesting backdrop, I really feel that Jenny’s experiences and growth is the real feature of this book rather than plot progression (though there is that as well!) Being an American, I honestly had no idea what life is like in the parts of Canada this book is set in and I loved becoming more educated while being able to read a fiction book.
Jenny was a really interesting character for me. Though she wasn’t particularly likeable in any way, I really felt like I got to know her through the writing style and through her actions in the book. Although some readers may find her behavior odd and un-relatable, I like that Jenny portrays that grief doesn’t have to look a certain way. She shows the other side of human reaction in that she decides to take action and stay busy with investigating the other girl’s murder rather than sitting around and worrying about the disappearance of her best friend. Jenny’s denial and many coping mechanisms, including her spontaneous relationship with her brooding classmate Tom, were a large part of the book and I found it to be extremely intriguing. Jenny is a very complex character yet she was kept simplistic in her portrayal throughout the book so she never became overwhelming.
The plot was rather slow but like I mentioned before, I don’t think the plot is really the focus of this book. I certainly enjoyed following Jenny on her journey to investigate Helen’s murder and the people that she met along the way. I personally had no idea that there was a race issue in Canada like there is in America and I like that Helen’s family brings more attention to Canada’s First Nations peoples and their struggles. Although I wish that the book had had more of a solid conclusion, I do understand why the author chose to end the book the way she did. The portrayal of how life really is runs rampant in this book to the end and, just like life, it was just a bit frustrating.
In the wake of 13 Reasons Why, this book continues with hitting the hard issues with teenagers. With themes of bullying, depression, rejection, and racism, this book isn’t shy by any means. If you can handle these themes, along with rape (not depicted), suicide mentions, and murder, you’ll want to pick this book up. Take a look at what it’s like to live in the North, and what it means to be human.
*I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
Jenny Parker doesn’t really fit in anywhere in her tiny town in northern Ontario. About as unremarkable as someone can be, Jenny isn’t particularly pretty, smart, or talented in any way. And her one defining feature that everyone knows is that she’s Chloe Shaughnessy’s best friend. Chloe is pretty, vibrant, and outgoing. With her family well off, Chloe knows she is destined for greater things than what is given in Thunder Creek. But after a terrible incident at a party, Chloe’s life starts to spiral out of control and shifts to the worst year she’s ever experienced. When Chloe disappears, Jenny is suddenly the talk of the town after being the last one to see her. But more is going on in the so-called sleepy town of Thunder Creek when a few weeks later a dead Native girl is found in the woods—and the police don’t seem to care. In this coming-of-age story, Jenny is stretched and challenged as she starts to investigate Helen’s murder and discovers how little she knew about her town. And all the while she is pressured by the police about her silence on Chloe’s whereabouts the night she disappeared. It seems Thunder Creek is a dangerous place for a teenage girl.
This book is focused largely on real issues. Although the plot lends an interesting backdrop, I really feel that Jenny’s experiences and growth is the real feature of this book rather than plot progression (though there is that as well!) Being an American, I honestly had no idea what life is like in the parts of Canada this book is set in and I loved becoming more educated while being able to read a fiction book.
Jenny was a really interesting character for me. Though she wasn’t particularly likeable in any way, I really felt like I got to know her through the writing style and through her actions in the book. Although some readers may find her behavior odd and un-relatable, I like that Jenny portrays that grief doesn’t have to look a certain way. She shows the other side of human reaction in that she decides to take action and stay busy with investigating the other girl’s murder rather than sitting around and worrying about the disappearance of her best friend. Jenny’s denial and many coping mechanisms, including her spontaneous relationship with her brooding classmate Tom, were a large part of the book and I found it to be extremely intriguing. Jenny is a very complex character yet she was kept simplistic in her portrayal throughout the book so she never became overwhelming.
The plot was rather slow but like I mentioned before, I don’t think the plot is really the focus of this book. I certainly enjoyed following Jenny on her journey to investigate Helen’s murder and the people that she met along the way. I personally had no idea that there was a race issue in Canada like there is in America and I like that Helen’s family brings more attention to Canada’s First Nations peoples and their struggles. Although I wish that the book had had more of a solid conclusion, I do understand why the author chose to end the book the way she did. The portrayal of how life really is runs rampant in this book to the end and, just like life, it was just a bit frustrating.
In the wake of 13 Reasons Why, this book continues with hitting the hard issues with teenagers. With themes of bullying, depression, rejection, and racism, this book isn’t shy by any means. If you can handle these themes, along with rape (not depicted), suicide mentions, and murder, you’ll want to pick this book up. Take a look at what it’s like to live in the North, and what it means to be human.
*I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
When I read the blurb of this book on NetGalley I was intrigued and requested it. When I was approved, I checked it out on Goodreads, and I was a bit concerned by the some of the reviews and rating, but when I started reading it, I was a little confused about why it has a below-average rating. I found this book was well-written and a thoughtful mystery the entwines two stories of girls in small town and what happens when they disappear.
The best way I can describe this book is a child of John Green’s Paper Towns and Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why. However, this story reads a little older than both of those. The plots of these three stories aren’t exactly similar, but I guess you would have to have read all three of these books to understand what I mean.
There are more adult themes in Desperate Girls than the other two books. Chloe holds many of the same characteristics of Margo and Hannah. Jenny holds many of same characteristics of Q and Clay. If you’ve read both of those books, you know how different they are, but I think that this book is that perfect combination of themes in them.
There is also an early episode of Law and Order Speical Victims Unit where an African Amerian Girl and a rich white girl disappear at the same time. It feels like Ice-T’s character is the only one that is trying to figure out what happened to the African American Girl; while there are so many resources trying to find the missing white girl. This book reminded me a lot of that episode.
I read this book in two sittings, I feel like it could have been a one sitting book if I started it on a weekend. I found Jenny a thoughtful and compassionate narrator. She clearly is worried about Chloe and in trying to figure out what happened to Helen she is trying to heal herself. I think that the book talks about racism and prejudice in a real way.
Jenny has a little bit of a romance with a character named Tom, that seems to come out of nowhere, but the more the story goes on, the more Jenny leaning on Tom makes sense. I think that understanding how Jenny feels dealing with Chloe being missing, makes Tom’s character and his relation to the story make sense.
I connected with Jenny. She is trying to figure out what’s happening in her town. She is grieving but doesn’t know if what she’s grieving. She just wants what happened to make sense, and honestly, things like what happened in this book, rarely make sense. Real life isn’t anything like what happens on TV, and I think this book shows that.
I really enjoyed this book. I am a big fan of murder mystery stories and stories that tend to be a little bit darker. Most of the movies and TV shows I watch are close to that, while the books I read tend not to be as depressing. I recommend this book to people who enjoy a good mystery.
The best way I can describe this book is a child of John Green’s Paper Towns and Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why. However, this story reads a little older than both of those. The plots of these three stories aren’t exactly similar, but I guess you would have to have read all three of these books to understand what I mean.
There are more adult themes in Desperate Girls than the other two books. Chloe holds many of the same characteristics of Margo and Hannah. Jenny holds many of same characteristics of Q and Clay. If you’ve read both of those books, you know how different they are, but I think that this book is that perfect combination of themes in them.
There is also an early episode of Law and Order Speical Victims Unit where an African Amerian Girl and a rich white girl disappear at the same time. It feels like Ice-T’s character is the only one that is trying to figure out what happened to the African American Girl; while there are so many resources trying to find the missing white girl. This book reminded me a lot of that episode.
I read this book in two sittings, I feel like it could have been a one sitting book if I started it on a weekend. I found Jenny a thoughtful and compassionate narrator. She clearly is worried about Chloe and in trying to figure out what happened to Helen she is trying to heal herself. I think that the book talks about racism and prejudice in a real way.
Jenny has a little bit of a romance with a character named Tom, that seems to come out of nowhere, but the more the story goes on, the more Jenny leaning on Tom makes sense. I think that understanding how Jenny feels dealing with Chloe being missing, makes Tom’s character and his relation to the story make sense.
I connected with Jenny. She is trying to figure out what’s happening in her town. She is grieving but doesn’t know if what she’s grieving. She just wants what happened to make sense, and honestly, things like what happened in this book, rarely make sense. Real life isn’t anything like what happens on TV, and I think this book shows that.
I really enjoyed this book. I am a big fan of murder mystery stories and stories that tend to be a little bit darker. Most of the movies and TV shows I watch are close to that, while the books I read tend not to be as depressing. I recommend this book to people who enjoy a good mystery.
Some glaring errors made it difficult for me to get lost in this story. It was also very wordy so for reluctant readers, it's not a good fit.
I liked the concept and I kind of enjoyed the characters. I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if it were told in third person omniscient point of view instead of first person.
I liked the concept and I kind of enjoyed the characters. I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if it were told in third person omniscient point of view instead of first person.
A somewhat mediocre book that is set up like a mystery or thriller but eventually turns into the main character coming of age sort of. Jenny is going through the pain of her best friend going missing and another girl is murdered a few weeks after, compelling her to look into the investigation. This novel made a lot of commentary on the treatment of the Natives or Indigenous people of Canada in Canada. I didn't know how bad it is in Canada for them so this was definitely an eye opener. The novel also deals with the controversy of rape amongst young adults and how there is a double standard. While it is loaded with this information that really did make me think, the characters themselves were kind of boring. I really thought someone close to the main character was gonna be revealed as a big scary serial killer and some moments really felt like that but it never happened. I wouldn't necessarily suggest people go out of their way to read it before other books but it's not the worst book in the world.
Excellent premise addressing timely issues of modern racism in Canada, but is saddled with the world's dullest protagonist, mediocre writing, and an uncomfortable romance.