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gailsage_thomps's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Outing, Suicide, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Mental illness, Bullying, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Grief, Homophobia, Mass/school shootings, Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Gun violence, Sexual content, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Car accident, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Drug use, and Sexism
mllewellyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Drug use, Murder, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Grief, and Homophobia
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Terminal illness, Violence, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Medical content
megan_j's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Bullying, Death, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Suicide, and Outing
Moderate: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Mass/school shootings, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Bullying
Minor: Sexual content
joan_salder's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Is this a book? No its a masterpiece!
First things first: I loved how the book was written in the present tense, though it took some time getting used to it as I have never read any book in the P tense. The story, the outline, the twists. I would never have guessed it all. It didn't even occur to me the person who might be the football of the game. Every book has a mysterious murder, this had a suicide and I was shocked! It all was a mess for the four people, but it went on well and I am glad that Nate and Bronwyn got back together once again, though I know Nate was being a jerk about all this.
Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you'll go to protect them.
So true. Everyone has secrets, but you gotta know that somehow, whenever, the secrets will come out and your life will be ruined so better not keep secrets not worth keeping, right? Nate's and Bronwyn's relationship had me wanting for more every time their P.O.V was shown. I was so happy when Nate finally chose to occur at a place where Bronwyn might now want him to be after all that happened. He actually asked her out on a date and she agreed. OMG I loved it! I hope to see more of Nate and Bronwyn in the next book of the series.
Addy suddenly became the fierce women after Jake dumped her (well, in my opinion, she went and told the secret so she broke up with him) from the little girl like princess she used to be. I love her so much after that! I actually love how she fought Jake and realized it was better to move on from Jake. I think Jake should have just helped Simon not commit suicide rather than helping him do it. Not much of a good friend though.
Simon really worked everything out so perfect or maybe Karen M. McManus did, but it all was a perfect plan and I really think if Simon would have wanted to hide everything he had done, he would have aced it!
Who might have thought it was all a suicide and not a murder. But it was all setup to be. Yet no one thought of it until when Sam Barron confessed.
Cooper Clay. Oh God! I was actually happy when Cooper turned out to be gay because I thought he could not have received more love if he had any other secret such as being on steroids, I actually thought he was though. (Forgive me if you don't understand because I don't actually know how to explain.)
This was basically my whole review on it and I SERIOSULY LOVED THE BOOK, especially Bronwyn and Nate. (Bronwyn might be jealous.)
I loved the book!<spoiler/>
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Violence, Suicide, Sexual content, Grief, Drug use, and Death
Minor: Cursing
tayloremmap's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
The characters weren’t very likeable either, the only one I was rooting for was Cooper. Bronwyn was precocious, Nate was a predictable, and Addy’s character arc felt one-dimensional and fell flat.
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Alcoholism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Outing, Mental illness, Homophobia, and Alcohol
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual content, Mass/school shootings, Infidelity, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Cancer, Car accident, and Chronic illness
shanban0303's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Racism
allyhoo811's review
- 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
3.0
Overall, I found this to an engaging YA mystery. The characters and their secrets/motives were pretty cliche and easily guessed, but the overall character development (especially with Addy) was wonderful and I would definitely recommend this one to most people. It gave me huge Breakfast Club vibes and I think fans of 80s/90s teen movies would especially enjoy the nostalgia factor even though it has a contemporary setting.
I did not love the ending/epilogue,
My 2 Big Issues (contain major spoilers):
1. Simon killing himself was a really interesting (if somewhat predictable) twist, but the portrayal of Simon as someone suffering from depression was unfortunate. Many people (teens included) suffer from depression, but they don't create elaborate, evil revenge plots to take out everyone who ever looked at them funny. Most people with depression have a hard time getting out of bed. And Simon had been destroying people's lives for years, portraying him as someone who was depressed and felt like an outsider when he was actually probably suffering from some severe personality disorders puts a bad light on depression, especially in a YA book.
2. Jake's character arc. This is a thriller trope I hate, and I hate it even more in a YA mystery. Jake the "perfect" boyfriend with some controlling tendances turns into a psycho killer at the end of the novel. This is just so overdone and not logical. Yes, people who attempt to control their partners are more likely to engage in emotional and physical abuse. But Jake had gone months without the slightest indication that he was escalating after he found out about the cheating (and kept it to himself). His mask didn't even slip once. And by the end we have a crazy action sequence where he is trying to kill two people without any hesitation. It felt forced, and I think Addy's character arc would have been better served without the killer boyfriend trope.
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Murder, Outing, Physical abuse, Suicide, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Classism, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Violence, and Sexual content
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Police brutality, Stalking, and Transphobia
cee_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Bullying, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Sexual content, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Homophobia
vanillabookshelf333's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Suicide and Outing
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Mass/school shootings
leahlovesloslibros's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
After Simon Kelleher dies in detention with only Bronwyn, Addy, Cooper, and Nate present, the four students are totally shaken, and all of them insist that they didn't do it - but the police are convinced that it had to be one of them. That is until the killer starts sending cryptic messages via a Tumblr post. Now, the four unlikely comrades must band together to prove their innocence before one of them is pinned with murder.
This multiple POV story was quick-paced and kept me guessing all the way through. The characters were quirky and definitely had flaws, yet they were still likeable. The high school setting was realistic as well. There were lots of twists in this book, and while I did figure out the killer a little bit ahead of time, I still enjoyed reading about their motives through the end of the story. I had a hard time putting this book down, and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good YA mystery/thriller.
Graphic: Death and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Homophobia, Sexism, Cursing, Addiction, Mental illness, and Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness and Sexual content