You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
reflective
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:
No
I think this is the book where I give up on Jessica Goodman thrillers. With her first being my worst book of 2021 and her second only getting a 3.75 from me, I was hoping this book would be the one to convince me she could follow through on her enticing premises. But with a 3.25 rating, I think I can safely say that this author consistently fails to deliver, at least to the level that I want.
My main issue is with the MC. This is a make or break point for any book, but especially one using first-person narration. Unfortunately Goldie is such a non-character. I truly cannot describe her personality, interests (beyond camp), motivations, or desires. She just seemed very… blank. This was truly fatal flaw in the book for me because it made the whole thing seem very two-dimensional, and left me with the question: why was this story written? What did it seek to achieve?
Another thing I didn’t like was that the toxicity of Heller wasn’t properly addressed. At the end of the book you’re left with the impression that he truly loved Goldie and given time they would have gotten back together. In reality, he drove under the influence, paralysed his best friend, lied about his involvement and sacrificed Goldie’s future for his own, then ghosted Goldie and encouraged people to bully her, even participating in the bullying himself . I wouldn’t call that love.
Furthermore, the writing style was contrived at times and made me cringe a little. It was too dramatic when it didn’t need to be and so undermined moments that were supposed to be meaningful.
The mystery was fine for YA, although the motive wasn’t that compelling; I never find financial motives to be so . I think that multiple avenues of suspicion and investigation needed to be built up from the beginning. Also, the book doesn’t deliver on its promise of a thriller.
I can pay this book some compliments, though, seeing as I gave it 3.25 stars! The setting was a shining star. American summer camp settings are one of my all-time favourites so that was already a win; on top of this it was written excellently by Goodman. You could tell she was drawing on her own personal experiences. Nearly everything happens at the camp and I had a vivid picture of what it looked like. Also, the nostalgia Goldie had for her own experiences was potent and only served to deepen the sense of place.
Additionally, I think the friendship aspect was dealt with quite well. I appreciated that it didn’t go down the black-and-white toxicity route but showed the complexity of maintaining childhood friendships when you’re growing and changing so much as a teen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Classism
Minor: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: divorce, drowning, menstruation
2.5/5
cw: parental divorce, alcohol consumption (and a lot of it, mostly by minors), physical injuries, murder and dead body, physical assault, fire, drunk driving, car accident
Okay, this was not exactly thrilling, even for a YA thriller. The synopsis and even the cover made this book seem more exciting than it ended up being. You come for the dead body (especially when the synopsis made it seem like it was a camper that died, not a town kid. Still not great, but a camper would have been a little more interesting) and you leave kind of disappointed with tax evasion and embezzlement.
Our main character, Goldie (love the names in this book not going to lie) doesn't have a backbone to stand on in any situation she's in. Just because she snaps back on the rare occasion does not make her a strong character. She lets her at the time boyfriend, Heller (again, awesome name), take advantage of her spinelessness under the guise of love by making her take the blame for him driving drunk and hitting their friend and crippling him for the rest of his life. He doesn't do anything when the whole town turns on her. Of course, she doesn't do anything to help herself. She signs an NDA, takes the $20k his father bribes her with, and then blames everyone else around her for letting her suffer alone. While, yes, that really sucks, it's not like they could do anything anymore than she could because she signed that NDA without even reading the damn thing.
Goldie allows herself to be ridiculed and hides behind her rich friends, who don't really appreciate her circumstances outside of camp. She hops between two worlds and isn't really a part of either and apparently that's everyone else's fault but hers.
And what's with everyone telling Goldie how much Heller loved her after he told her to take the blame for his crime, then never talking to her again? Nah.
I, as an adult, give absolutely zero shits about the bullshit rich people do that they think they can get away with like hiding money in overseas accounts, embezzlement, and tax evasion. Not sure why Jessica Goodman thought teens would find that any more interesting than I do.
I was promised a mystery thriller set at a summer camp for rich kids in the backwoods of Vermont. I was so ready for something along the lines of Friday the 13th, Fear Street: 1978, or American Horror Story: 1984. Something exciting with twists and turns and a fun summery spooky time. What I got was something lackluster, a little boring, and, pun intended, a bit shallow.
And a whole lot of underage drinking. Let's talk about that for a moment. There were far too many adults (and adults with liquor licenses to be lost if anyone of importance found out) who looked the other way when these fresh out of high school kids were throwing back booze that much. Like, if these kids weren't looking after campers or sneaking around looking for a killer, they were drinking, either in town at the bar, or from water bottles filled with vodka. Do rich kids really drink this severely or was that a stereotype that Gossip Girl started? Because literally every adult in this book looked the other way whenever they saw a teenager drunk or actively drinking and that felt...weird.
What I did like about the story was the nostalgia I got about my own summer camp days both as a camper and then later when I came back as a staff member. I enjoyed watching Ava connect with her half-sisters, who did nothing to her other than exist.
All in all, I wish the story had a little more murder, and a lot less boring rich adult nonsense.
cw: parental divorce, alcohol consumption (and a lot of it, mostly by minors), physical injuries, murder and dead body, physical assault, fire, drunk driving, car accident
Spoiler
that involves hitting a personOkay, this was not exactly thrilling, even for a YA thriller. The synopsis and even the cover made this book seem more exciting than it ended up being. You come for the dead body (especially when the synopsis made it seem like it was a camper that died, not a town kid. Still not great, but a camper would have been a little more interesting) and you leave kind of disappointed with tax evasion and embezzlement.
Our main character, Goldie (love the names in this book not going to lie) doesn't have a backbone to stand on in any situation she's in. Just because she snaps back on the rare occasion does not make her a strong character. She lets her at the time boyfriend, Heller (again, awesome name), take advantage of her spinelessness under the guise of love by making her take the blame for him driving drunk and hitting their friend and crippling him for the rest of his life. He doesn't do anything when the whole town turns on her. Of course, she doesn't do anything to help herself. She signs an NDA, takes the $20k his father bribes her with, and then blames everyone else around her for letting her suffer alone. While, yes, that really sucks, it's not like they could do anything anymore than she could because she signed that NDA without even reading the damn thing.
Goldie allows herself to be ridiculed and hides behind her rich friends, who don't really appreciate her circumstances outside of camp. She hops between two worlds and isn't really a part of either and apparently that's everyone else's fault but hers.
And what's with everyone telling Goldie how much Heller loved her after he told her to take the blame for his crime, then never talking to her again? Nah.
I, as an adult, give absolutely zero shits about the bullshit rich people do that they think they can get away with like hiding money in overseas accounts, embezzlement, and tax evasion. Not sure why Jessica Goodman thought teens would find that any more interesting than I do.
I was promised a mystery thriller set at a summer camp for rich kids in the backwoods of Vermont. I was so ready for something along the lines of Friday the 13th, Fear Street: 1978, or American Horror Story: 1984. Something exciting with twists and turns and a fun summery spooky time. What I got was something lackluster, a little boring, and, pun intended, a bit shallow.
And a whole lot of underage drinking. Let's talk about that for a moment. There were far too many adults (and adults with liquor licenses to be lost if anyone of importance found out) who looked the other way when these fresh out of high school kids were throwing back booze that much. Like, if these kids weren't looking after campers or sneaking around looking for a killer, they were drinking, either in town at the bar, or from water bottles filled with vodka. Do rich kids really drink this severely or was that a stereotype that Gossip Girl started? Because literally every adult in this book looked the other way whenever they saw a teenager drunk or actively drinking and that felt...weird.
What I did like about the story was the nostalgia I got about my own summer camp days both as a camper and then later when I came back as a staff member. I enjoyed watching Ava connect with her half-sisters, who did nothing to her other than exist.
All in all, I wish the story had a little more murder, and a lot less boring rich adult nonsense.
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have never been to sleep away camp. It never seemed like something I would enjoy, but somehow Goodman has made me nostalgic for a place that I never got to experience. Granted, the main focus of this book is supposed to be on the murder and the secrets that everyone was hiding, but I was more intrigued with how much love and affection Goodman instilled in Goldie and therefore in me. I don’t think I’ve ever had a place that meant so much to me; a place that had the chance to alter the events of my own life.
As for this book being a mystery thriller, I wish there had been more urgency to the storyline. It wasn’t that this book dragged on, it just never really made me desperate to turn the page to find out what was going to happen next. It seemed like the stakes were too low, and Goldie just kind of stumbled across the clues instead of actively investigating.
All in all, this was a great book that showcased how important relationships are, but it was not the best thriller I have ever read.
3.5 stars
As for this book being a mystery thriller, I wish there had been more urgency to the storyline. It wasn’t that this book dragged on, it just never really made me desperate to turn the page to find out what was going to happen next. It seemed like the stakes were too low, and Goldie just kind of stumbled across the clues instead of actively investigating.
All in all, this was a great book that showcased how important relationships are, but it was not the best thriller I have ever read.
3.5 stars
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes