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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
made me miss camp while being a book about people dying at camp. a great feat!! the thing about jessica goodman is that while her mysteries aren't necessarily the most difficult to unravel (i got half of it solved this time!) she creates great, authentic characters and settings that are always the most fun to read. however if i knew a bitch named heller i'd kill him too. goldie is sexy and deserves better.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but it is a very solid 3*. The summer vibes made me nostalgic for summer camps, even though I've never actually been to one. But I do miss those intense friendships forged through shared experience while growing up, and this book perfectly captured that feeling--including how much growing apart can be a natural thing, and can also be a choice.
My main issues were the book were: that the past chapters added little to my understanding of the story, and just bogged down the pacing; that a lot of the secrets only took so long to come out because characters were being stupid, rather than for any real reasons, and it tried my patience rather than adding any kind of dramatic tension; and that some of the reveals were silly indeed. One in particular relies on nonsense for Goldie not to figure out immediately, and I don't love that.
I liked the final reveal. It's not a shocker, it's actually really well set-up, and I appreciate twists that you can work out for yourself. But it did very much fall into the trap of "villain monologuing for no good reason", when I wish we could have seen Goldie properly work out all the plot threads for herself. There were also characters who really were only there to deliver some exposition, rather than, again, Goldie actually working these things out for herself, which is a bit of a shame.
There's also something that really rubbed me up the wrong way, but is a total spoiler:
Things I did like: the relationship between the girls, especially as Ava grew on me throughout and I really came to love her; the divide between the camp and Roxwood, and, too, the class division between Goldie and the campers, it was very deftly handled; the camp activities; the stuff with Ava's sisters; Goldie's parents were the cutest; how well-established the camp feels, and how old the traditions and in-jokes and everything like that really felt; the laying of clues; any time Goldie interacts with Roxwood residents in the Now, and any time Ava interacted with them to drive up tension.
So, there was a lot to like! And when we weren't in Then chapters, the pacing could be quite snappy. It didn't quite give me the PLL or One of Them is Lying vibes I was hoping for, but it was an enjoyable, quick read and great for those summer vibes.
My main issues were the book were: that the past chapters added little to my understanding of the story, and just bogged down the pacing; that a lot of the secrets only took so long to come out because characters were being stupid, rather than for any real reasons, and it tried my patience rather than adding any kind of dramatic tension; and that some of the reveals were silly indeed. One in particular relies on nonsense for Goldie not to figure out immediately, and I don't love that.
I liked the final reveal. It's not a shocker, it's actually really well set-up, and I appreciate twists that you can work out for yourself. But it did very much fall into the trap of "villain monologuing for no good reason", when I wish we could have seen Goldie properly work out all the plot threads for herself. There were also characters who really were only there to deliver some exposition, rather than, again, Goldie actually working these things out for herself, which is a bit of a shame.
There's also something that really rubbed me up the wrong way, but is a total spoiler:
Spoiler
Heller turning out to love Goldie in the end irked me because...well, he can say he loved her all he wanted, and that he was willing for his secret to come out via a third party, but why didn't he come out with the secret? Why didn't he stand up for her? I have no time for "boo hoo I loved you but also I'm a complete little shit to you despite that."Things I did like: the relationship between the girls, especially as Ava grew on me throughout and I really came to love her; the divide between the camp and Roxwood, and, too, the class division between Goldie and the campers, it was very deftly handled; the camp activities; the stuff with Ava's sisters; Goldie's parents were the cutest; how well-established the camp feels, and how old the traditions and in-jokes and everything like that really felt; the laying of clues; any time Goldie interacts with Roxwood residents in the Now, and any time Ava interacted with them to drive up tension.
So, there was a lot to like! And when we weren't in Then chapters, the pacing could be quite snappy. It didn't quite give me the PLL or One of Them is Lying vibes I was hoping for, but it was an enjoyable, quick read and great for those summer vibes.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A really cute summer thriller! I really liked how the book focused on female friendships, my one issue is that Jessica Goodman at the start wrote Heller like a little cuck who I physically hate but then didn’t make him like able until the end of the book when he is already dead and we found out who killed him. This book really supported my hate for rich people though
Anyway #eattherich
Anyway #eattherich
dark
tense
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Grief
Minor: Classism