Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
4.5✨ rounded up
Maybe it was just because I myself have a camp I call home, and I happened to read this while volunteering at it for a week, but I LOVED this book. I loved the camp nostalgia, I loved the friendships and the growth in them, loved the flashbacks to Heller, loved it all. The ending was just a tiny bit weak (why on earth did it take her so long to see who was actually the menace???), and I feel like a few simple changes could have made it a lot stronger. I also would have loved to see the author go into the MC's grief a bit more. But this kept me so hooked, and the setting and characters were all a ~chef's kiss~
Maybe it was just because I myself have a camp I call home, and I happened to read this while volunteering at it for a week, but I LOVED this book. I loved the camp nostalgia, I loved the friendships and the growth in them, loved the flashbacks to Heller, loved it all. The ending was just a tiny bit weak (why on earth did it take her so long to see who was actually the menace???), and I feel like a few simple changes could have made it a lot stronger. I also would have loved to see the author go into the MC's grief a bit more. But this kept me so hooked, and the setting and characters were all a ~chef's kiss~
3.5 ⭐️ this was all around a really good read but i actually wasn’t that interested in the mystery itself. i thought this was just a really good book about friendship and growing up and the mystery was kind of an afterthought. but still good!
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
You can find this review and all my others over at www.readbook.repeat.wordpress.com
Camp Alpine Lake is like a world all of it's own and it's Goldie's most favourite place in the world. From growing up and making life long friends with Imogen and Ava, to becoming a camp counselor herself, it's all she's ever dreamed of, she can never wait to go back, and the time always goes too quickly. This year is no different, except this year, Goldie has a dark secret that has her craving the comfort of her best friends. Once the summer starts, Goldie begins to fall back into the familiar comfort and routine that Camp Alpine Lake has always offered, until the boy that broke her heart turns up dead in the lake. What follows is a rabbit warren of secrets and lies that completely upends Goldie's summer and what she loves about Camp. Desperate for answers and truths, Goldie follows the trail down until she ends up so deep in betrayal and danger, she doesn't know if she'll make it out alive.
I was super keen to get this book. I preordered it and it took roughly three odd months for it to finally land in my hands due to supply chain and stock issues. I don't really know what I was expecting, but I can definitely say that it wasn't what I got. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, I think I just hyped this book up so much in my head that it was going to be hard to it to actually meet my expectations. I do know that I was hoping for a teen slasher vibe, and that's not what this was at all. So that's my own fault for assuming, this was more of a mystery that turned into something I was not expecting, which I'm not going to talk about because I don't like to ruin anything if I can help it. All I can say is that I was pretty let down when I realised where the story was heading. I'm not saying that it wasn't clever, it's just not what I was after.
The story itself was well written and the mystery kept me guessing for the entire book. I didn't have the killer picked at all, which is fantastic because it can be hard to find a book that can still deliver this surprise. The other part of the story that comes out a bit later, I also didn't have some of the other people who were involved picked either. I wasn't expecting it, so in this regard, the book did a great job of keeping me on my toes and wondering who the culprit for the mysteries were. It's an engaging enough storyline but I did find that the pacing dropped a little bit when things turned more towards the plot the story ACTUALLY was, instead of the creepy vibe I was hoping for. I powered through because I was determined to finish the damn thing because it was a highly anticipated read for me, but it did leave me wanting. I was satisfied enough with the ending; it just wasn't the story I was looking for.
The characters were written well enough, Goldie was likeable enough and I could empathise with her choices and decisions in regard to the secret that she's keeping. But I don't quite get why she wouldn't be straight up open to her two best friends about it. I loved the juxtaposition between Goldie and Imogen and Ava. Goldie is a townie, she grew up in the small town that is a dead end, and Ava and Imogen come from wealthy families who have never had to want for anything. I just loved that this story did put some emphasis on the fact that these were two different classes of people, but that didn't matter to either of them in the slightest. They still saw each other for who they really were and loved them for it regardless of whether or not they could afford to have a Grammy style dress up session off the cuff, or not. It just put some good emphasis on the fact that you can be friends with whoever you want to, there's nothing stopping that. The boyfriend of Goldie's that we meet in her flashback scenes, that has something to do with the secret that she's keeping, he annoyed me. I don't understand why he would let things happen how they did and how he could have been okay with how things turned out. Even though we really only get to meet him in flashback scenes, I feel like even though he really annoyed me and I questioned everything he was doing, I also feel as though it put some emphasis on how people make mistakes. They don't always choose the best option or what others thing they should or would choose, and that everyone makes mistakes in their lives, what matters is how they try and rectify or learn from them.
All in all, this story wasn't as gripping or even really remotely what I thought it would be, it was entertaining enough, but I still felt like I wanted more. I was expecting teenage slasher vibes and got something else entirely. That's okay, it was my fault for putting expectations on something where I'd only read the blurb. I felt like it touched on a couple of things, but wasn't overly deep. The mystery kept me guessing and I didn't have the culprit picked until virtually reveal time. I'd say to go into this one without putting expectations on it and you'll probably really enjoy it. I'll definitely check out more from this author in the future.
Camp Alpine Lake is like a world all of it's own and it's Goldie's most favourite place in the world. From growing up and making life long friends with Imogen and Ava, to becoming a camp counselor herself, it's all she's ever dreamed of, she can never wait to go back, and the time always goes too quickly. This year is no different, except this year, Goldie has a dark secret that has her craving the comfort of her best friends. Once the summer starts, Goldie begins to fall back into the familiar comfort and routine that Camp Alpine Lake has always offered, until the boy that broke her heart turns up dead in the lake. What follows is a rabbit warren of secrets and lies that completely upends Goldie's summer and what she loves about Camp. Desperate for answers and truths, Goldie follows the trail down until she ends up so deep in betrayal and danger, she doesn't know if she'll make it out alive.
I was super keen to get this book. I preordered it and it took roughly three odd months for it to finally land in my hands due to supply chain and stock issues. I don't really know what I was expecting, but I can definitely say that it wasn't what I got. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, I think I just hyped this book up so much in my head that it was going to be hard to it to actually meet my expectations. I do know that I was hoping for a teen slasher vibe, and that's not what this was at all. So that's my own fault for assuming, this was more of a mystery that turned into something I was not expecting, which I'm not going to talk about because I don't like to ruin anything if I can help it. All I can say is that I was pretty let down when I realised where the story was heading. I'm not saying that it wasn't clever, it's just not what I was after.
The story itself was well written and the mystery kept me guessing for the entire book. I didn't have the killer picked at all, which is fantastic because it can be hard to find a book that can still deliver this surprise. The other part of the story that comes out a bit later, I also didn't have some of the other people who were involved picked either. I wasn't expecting it, so in this regard, the book did a great job of keeping me on my toes and wondering who the culprit for the mysteries were. It's an engaging enough storyline but I did find that the pacing dropped a little bit when things turned more towards the plot the story ACTUALLY was, instead of the creepy vibe I was hoping for. I powered through because I was determined to finish the damn thing because it was a highly anticipated read for me, but it did leave me wanting. I was satisfied enough with the ending; it just wasn't the story I was looking for.
The characters were written well enough, Goldie was likeable enough and I could empathise with her choices and decisions in regard to the secret that she's keeping. But I don't quite get why she wouldn't be straight up open to her two best friends about it. I loved the juxtaposition between Goldie and Imogen and Ava. Goldie is a townie, she grew up in the small town that is a dead end, and Ava and Imogen come from wealthy families who have never had to want for anything. I just loved that this story did put some emphasis on the fact that these were two different classes of people, but that didn't matter to either of them in the slightest. They still saw each other for who they really were and loved them for it regardless of whether or not they could afford to have a Grammy style dress up session off the cuff, or not. It just put some good emphasis on the fact that you can be friends with whoever you want to, there's nothing stopping that. The boyfriend of Goldie's that we meet in her flashback scenes, that has something to do with the secret that she's keeping, he annoyed me. I don't understand why he would let things happen how they did and how he could have been okay with how things turned out. Even though we really only get to meet him in flashback scenes, I feel like even though he really annoyed me and I questioned everything he was doing, I also feel as though it put some emphasis on how people make mistakes. They don't always choose the best option or what others thing they should or would choose, and that everyone makes mistakes in their lives, what matters is how they try and rectify or learn from them.
All in all, this story wasn't as gripping or even really remotely what I thought it would be, it was entertaining enough, but I still felt like I wanted more. I was expecting teenage slasher vibes and got something else entirely. That's okay, it was my fault for putting expectations on something where I'd only read the blurb. I felt like it touched on a couple of things, but wasn't overly deep. The mystery kept me guessing and I didn't have the culprit picked until virtually reveal time. I'd say to go into this one without putting expectations on it and you'll probably really enjoy it. I'll definitely check out more from this author in the future.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
I think I enjoyed this much more than the other reviewers simply because I was reading this both at camp and upon my return home after working as a counselor over summer. The book reminded me so much about my experiences there that it made me feel really nostalgic.
The book wasn’t super fast paced but did keep me hooked from the start due to the dual storyline. I don’t think the writing was anything special and the plot twists were predictable but I still enjoyed the book as something to read over the summer.
It hasn’t made me want to read other books by the author but it has made me want to read more books based at a summer camp. I wouldn’t read this again but it was enjoyable as some light reading and I would recommend it to other counselors who have just returned home from camp and want to reminisce about their time there.
I think I enjoyed this much more than the other reviewers simply because I was reading this both at camp and upon my return home after working as a counselor over summer. The book reminded me so much about my experiences there that it made me feel really nostalgic.
The book wasn’t super fast paced but did keep me hooked from the start due to the dual storyline. I don’t think the writing was anything special and the plot twists were predictable but I still enjoyed the book as something to read over the summer.
It hasn’t made me want to read other books by the author but it has made me want to read more books based at a summer camp. I wouldn’t read this again but it was enjoyable as some light reading and I would recommend it to other counselors who have just returned home from camp and want to reminisce about their time there.
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
4.5 perfect summer mystery. I loved the camp setting, it was so fun to read
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
i don’t know why but i went into this thinking it’d be friday the 13th vibes. instead i just got embezzlement and an annoying main character…
mysterious