Reviews

The School for Dangerous Girls by Eliot Schrefer

justlily's review

3.0

I'm as much of a sucker for the old boarding school trope as anyone but I'm not sure this book entirely pulled it off. It wasn't a bad read, for the most part the story carried along at a nice pace and it did get you invested in a couple of the characters. So it's a fast and tolerable read, something good to clean your brain after a tough one.

But... None of it was really believable. And on top of not being believable, I turned the last page and basically thought "So what?" There was no point to any of it. Things got bad but not THAT bad, the story hit the peak which wasn't THAT exciting, and the ending happened and I didn't feel THAT enthusiastic about any of it.

It just...happened.

So while I wouldn't say it warrants all these one star reviews, I don't think anything over a three is close to accurate.

ckausch's review

1.0

I read this two months ago and am still not completely sure how I feel about it. I’m pretty sure I didn’t really like it, but I held off on writing about it to consider it a bit. It is scary – not in a ghost story way but because of how the girls are treated and how they treat each other. There is a bit of back story about the school where students once died (I think in a fire), which gives it a creepy factor. Yet when girls begin to disappear, you know it has something to do with the people who run the school, not due to any supernatural element. The plot gets messy though, and does not always make sense. I had a hard time believing that the school could really get away with how they treated the girls, that not one parent would take issue. None of the characters are developed well or memorable.

One might enjoy reading it for the plot, but I don’t think I’ll recommend it much.

michelleahung's review

4.0

I really loved this book! The style of amazing is great and the plot is definitely full of twists. It's definitely given more to think about than I expected when I first picked up this book.

kellyjcm's review

1.0

This just wasn't for me. I had to work to finish it. I couldn't connect with the characters, and their actions were inconsistent. I can see elements of the plot being appealing to teens, but it was not executed well.

blaarrosir's review

3.0

This book was interesting with a side of weird. It's some kind of strange cross between Girl, Interrupted and Lord of the Flies. I really enjoyed the characters, each with their own unique "disorder" and personality. There were parts that had me riveted and parts that left me thinking, "Uh...ooookay." The plot was interesting, the characters well thought out. While the staff's treatment of the girls was barbaric at the best of times it was fascinating to read, especially Angela's sessions with the school psychiatrist. It didn't take me long to read - not because it was simple, but because I just wanted to know what would happen next and who would win.

liralen's review

4.0

So here's what I love about Schrefer's books*: These characters are black, white, Hispanic, Jewish, fat, thin, average, meek, criminals, complicated. Sometimes they're sympathetic; sometimes they're not; they aren't always meant to be sympathetic. They're mostly straight, and they'd rather have more boys around, but the book doesn't end with the narrator riding off into the sunset with a boy. The girls rely on themselves.

This should not be exceptional. But it is, because the trend in YA fiction is towards straight, white girls with thin or average bodies -- unless sexuality, race, or weight is a major theme of the book -- who ultimately end up with a sweet, smart, save-the-day boy. So I loved this for not only breaking with the trend but for doing it casually -- the characters' races and body types and gender identity and financial status (etc., etc.) influence them, but each of those is just one facet.

Plot-wise, I did want more. I wanted to know what happened when gold-thread students graduated (or purple-thread students, for that matter); I wanted to know what happened to the school in the end; I wanted to know more about the mystery surrounding Heath. I suppose I wanted the breeding group to be more nefarious. I wanted to learn more about the girls who were in the gold thread. It's probably a three-and-a-half-star book for me, if that were possible here. But for what it is, shoot, I'm sold.

*Bearing in mind that I've only read two of them so far.

funsizelibrarian's review

4.0

This was a slow moving book, but that didn't take away from the impact. Girls who's parent's have given up on them are sent to Hidden Oaks. There, the school plays mind games and uses "unorthodox" punishments to break the girls' down. If they become manageable, they're given the semblance of more freedom. If they rebel, they are sent to live like animals, with minimal supervision, hygiene, food and the ever-present danger of attack by other "dangerous girls." Angela's parents have given up. But has Angela?

mfeibel's review

3.0

A fast-paced, quick read. Really interesting idea and the characters are great. Sort of a female Lord of the Flies...except not really. But I would really recommend it.

itratali's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

librarykristin's review

3.0

Kinda link Strassers Bootcamp for girls...but less realitic feeling.