Scan barcode
pilesoflaundry113's review
3.0
It was twisted at the end, not who I expected. At times it was slow but I kept going because I had to know what happened.
alliehwilliams's review
3.0
Jane Freeman is one of the most popular girls in school…so why did someone hate her badly enough to run over her and leave her for dead in a rosebush?
When Jane awakens, paralyzed, in a hospital bed, she has no memory of the accident or the hours before. As time passes with nothing to do but think, she begins to piece together her memories of the night she was nearly murdered—and realizes that just about any of the visitors filing into her room could be the killer. Soon she is receiving thinly-veiled threats that her mother and doctors believe are simply hallucinations caused by her injuries. But Jane knows the killer is out there, waiting for a chance to finish the job. Can she stop him/her in time? And how? Agh!! The suspense!!
Rosebush is un-put-downable. From the moment I opened it until I finished it a couple of hours later, I was completely hooked. Michele Jaffe skillfully switches from present day to flashbacks at just the right moments in the story to reveal necessary information without dampening the suspense.
The premise alone is compelling—Jane is trapped inside a non-fuctioning body, unable to differentiate between what is real and what is a result of her injuries or the medication they’re using to treat her. Worse, once she finally feels like she knows what’s going on, she can’t convince anyone to believe her. Readers will find themselves flipping through pages filled with red herrings to discover who the would-be murderer is.
The characters in Rosebush are all interesting and unique. Jane is particularly sympathetic, not just for the plight she’s in at the opening, but because of the vulnerabilities that are revealed through the flashbacks. She is not always the nicest character, but she is always a believable character, and one I truly cared about. At times I just wanted to shake her for her tendency to always give her dirtbag boyfriend the benefit of the doubt when he was clearly being…well, a dirtbag, but that, too, felt real for a young girl in love.
Michele Jaffe is one of the most-skilled YA authors today in writing natural dialogue that feels real. This is huge for me because stilted, awkward language pulls me right out of a book. I can’t believe this is the first book of hers I’ve read, but it won’t be the last.
When Jane awakens, paralyzed, in a hospital bed, she has no memory of the accident or the hours before. As time passes with nothing to do but think, she begins to piece together her memories of the night she was nearly murdered—and realizes that just about any of the visitors filing into her room could be the killer. Soon she is receiving thinly-veiled threats that her mother and doctors believe are simply hallucinations caused by her injuries. But Jane knows the killer is out there, waiting for a chance to finish the job. Can she stop him/her in time? And how? Agh!! The suspense!!
Rosebush is un-put-downable. From the moment I opened it until I finished it a couple of hours later, I was completely hooked. Michele Jaffe skillfully switches from present day to flashbacks at just the right moments in the story to reveal necessary information without dampening the suspense.
The premise alone is compelling—Jane is trapped inside a non-fuctioning body, unable to differentiate between what is real and what is a result of her injuries or the medication they’re using to treat her. Worse, once she finally feels like she knows what’s going on, she can’t convince anyone to believe her. Readers will find themselves flipping through pages filled with red herrings to discover who the would-be murderer is.
The characters in Rosebush are all interesting and unique. Jane is particularly sympathetic, not just for the plight she’s in at the opening, but because of the vulnerabilities that are revealed through the flashbacks. She is not always the nicest character, but she is always a believable character, and one I truly cared about. At times I just wanted to shake her for her tendency to always give her dirtbag boyfriend the benefit of the doubt when he was clearly being…well, a dirtbag, but that, too, felt real for a young girl in love.
Michele Jaffe is one of the most-skilled YA authors today in writing natural dialogue that feels real. This is huge for me because stilted, awkward language pulls me right out of a book. I can’t believe this is the first book of hers I’ve read, but it won’t be the last.
heyjudy's review
4.0
~3.5/5
[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]
I rather enjoyed this book. I wasn’t sure if I would or not, but I did.
I liked being in Jane’s head, for the most part. I liked the development for her and the mystery, how that worked out, how it could very easily be taken as her hallucinating. I liked the psychological part of that. I liked how her relationships with her family developed, as well; that was nice.
I’m not sure how I feel about the boys. There were a few, and I wasn’t sure who she was going to be with. I also thought there was going to be more focus on the romantic parts, but there wasn’t very much. Given that Jane tended to like whoever liked her, I didn’t think that she really grew out of that by the end of the book. But I can be happy with whom she ended up with; I liked him.
I didn’t really guess who the murderer was by the end, but I wasn’t terribly surprised. I was suspicious, though. I quite like how it wrapped up, too. There were several other surprising plot points, though; like Ollie, and Scott, and Kate in general.
On the other hand, there were still a few loose strings that didn’t quite wrap up as much as I would have liked. For instance, what happened at her old school. I would have liked more of that, but oh well.
Overall, I did rather enjoy this book. It was a bit exciting, I liked getting to know the characters, and how it all worked out.
[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]
I rather enjoyed this book. I wasn’t sure if I would or not, but I did.
I liked being in Jane’s head, for the most part. I liked the development for her and the mystery, how that worked out, how it could very easily be taken as her hallucinating. I liked the psychological part of that. I liked how her relationships with her family developed, as well; that was nice.
I’m not sure how I feel about the boys. There were a few, and I wasn’t sure who she was going to be with. I also thought there was going to be more focus on the romantic parts, but there wasn’t very much. Given that Jane tended to like whoever liked her, I didn’t think that she really grew out of that by the end of the book. But I can be happy with whom she ended up with; I liked him.
I didn’t really guess who the murderer was by the end, but I wasn’t terribly surprised. I was suspicious, though. I quite like how it wrapped up, too. There were several other surprising plot points, though; like Ollie, and Scott, and Kate in general.
On the other hand, there were still a few loose strings that didn’t quite wrap up as much as I would have liked. For instance, what happened at her old school. I would have liked more of that, but oh well.
Overall, I did rather enjoy this book. It was a bit exciting, I liked getting to know the characters, and how it all worked out.
hitbooksnotgirlz's review
5.0
I loved the way it was written, the language so fluid and descriptive. The main character’s late father was a poet, and it shows in the eloquence of her words and thoughts. But really, I liked all of the characters. They all seemed a little calculated and conniving, and it made for a riveting story.
The whole ‘I almost died and I don’t think it was an accident - In fact I think a friend tried to kill me’ trope has always been one of my favourites.
While I was able to predict two of the smaller twists, absolutely nothing could have prepared me for what was to come. The ending was phenomenal! The whole book was. A+
The whole ‘I almost died and I don’t think it was an accident - In fact I think a friend tried to kill me’ trope has always been one of my favourites.
While I was able to predict two of the smaller twists, absolutely nothing could have prepared me for what was to come. The ending was phenomenal! The whole book was. A+
kaitrosereads's review
5.0
Rosebush was a totally twisted story. Michelle Jaffe wrote an amazing thriller with this one and I wouldn't mind reading more books like this one.
Jane Freeman can't remember anything about the night before. All she knows is that someone tried to kill her and nobody believes her. Threatening messages and phone calls don't mean anything because nobody believes that she is actually getting them. Will Jane figure out the mystery of who is trying to kill her before it's too late?
Jane was an interesting character. I liked her because she had more than one side and I liked finding out more about her and her past. Her friends were the really odd ones, though. Kate, Langley, Ollie, David, and Scott all had secrets and I couldn't guess any of them. I loved the mystery.
The plot was okay but there didn't seem to be a ton going on with the killer for most of the book. The memories from the night before kept it interesting though. Jane kept remembering things and it seemed like every new memory changed who the killer might be. It was awesome!
Overall, Rosebush is a unique book for the young adult market. It's full of suspense, romance, and lots of secrets. Oh and really hot guys! =]
Jane Freeman can't remember anything about the night before. All she knows is that someone tried to kill her and nobody believes her. Threatening messages and phone calls don't mean anything because nobody believes that she is actually getting them. Will Jane figure out the mystery of who is trying to kill her before it's too late?
Jane was an interesting character. I liked her because she had more than one side and I liked finding out more about her and her past. Her friends were the really odd ones, though. Kate, Langley, Ollie, David, and Scott all had secrets and I couldn't guess any of them. I loved the mystery.
The plot was okay but there didn't seem to be a ton going on with the killer for most of the book. The memories from the night before kept it interesting though. Jane kept remembering things and it seemed like every new memory changed who the killer might be. It was awesome!
Overall, Rosebush is a unique book for the young adult market. It's full of suspense, romance, and lots of secrets. Oh and really hot guys! =]
mayuscv's review against another edition
My 13-year-old me would have devoured this book, but I don't enjoy highschool drama any ore :( and I'm so sad because I've been wanting to read this book for over 10 years and I couldn't even make it past 10%
army_potterhead_multistankpop's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Lesbophobia
immortalgirl92's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, this book kept surprising me. I had no idea who was the one, who ran Jane over and who was out to kill her. The story kept me guessing until the very end. I don't usually read mystery books but I really enjoyed this one.Plus, I really like the black cover with the red roses.