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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
Interesting characters and a fast-paced story made this slightly predictable mystery a perfect book to read this summer in the woods.
This one missed the mark for me. I've read Jessica Goodman before and enjoyed other books by her, but this one not so much. I think I was expecting or thinking I was going to get something different with a more amateur detective-type story and more mystery.
It was about these 3 girls that are like 3 sisters who have always been or gone to summer camp together and having Goldie's ex-boyfriend show up dead that summer by the lake. Goldie reflects on the past with her ex and at the summer camp. She also reflects on her relationships with her two best friends and how things have or are changing. After her ex-boyfriend shows up dead, she starts to do some searching and snooping around a bit to find out what happened, who killed her ex-bf, and why. The sister friendship with Goldie and her friends is a strong one that plays into the story as well, but like I said I was expecting and looking for more than I got out of this story. If you like Jessica Goodman, summer camp stories, light, and easy not too much mystery or anything then this could be something you'd enjoy reading. It just wasn't for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group, and Razorbill for letting me read and review this story. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
It was about these 3 girls that are like 3 sisters who have always been or gone to summer camp together and having Goldie's ex-boyfriend show up dead that summer by the lake. Goldie reflects on the past with her ex and at the summer camp. She also reflects on her relationships with her two best friends and how things have or are changing. After her ex-boyfriend shows up dead, she starts to do some searching and snooping around a bit to find out what happened, who killed her ex-bf, and why. The sister friendship with Goldie and her friends is a strong one that plays into the story as well, but like I said I was expecting and looking for more than I got out of this story. If you like Jessica Goodman, summer camp stories, light, and easy not too much mystery or anything then this could be something you'd enjoy reading. It just wasn't for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group, and Razorbill for letting me read and review this story. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
It took me a solid year to actually read and finish it but it was really good. Plus a bonus I got it for 5$
One star for the nostalgic slasher summer camp vibes cover. Zero stars for everything else.
Thinly sketched characters take away from a potentially interesting plot pitting the haves against the have nots. Goodman did too much telling, not showing, about the various relationships and motivations, which took away dramatic tension from the central mystery. I did like that the focus was on financial embezzlement schemes rather than a stereotypical sex scandal, but I wish I could've gotten invested enough in the characters to care when they died, e.g. with Heller.
emotional
mysterious
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I liked the writing! There’s not much plot, nothing really happened in this book, but it’s a quick read and paced pretty well so it never really dragged too much. It took me four days to read but just two sittings and I could’ve read it in one day if I hadn’t gotten so distracted and forgot it existed lol
It was very difficult to feel invested in finding out who killed Heller when I hated him so much, though. I just never understood why Goldie cared so much about him??? He betrayed her in EVERY sense of the word, and until the very end she even thought he cheated on her! Why does it matter who killed him? I’d understand if she was scared for her own life but there’s never any mention of that, and she mourns him like they were still together and he wasn’t the worst boyfriend ever.
The book keeps trying to convince us that Heller loved Goldie despite literally all evidence to the contrary. When Mellie said he told her “he was sick of keeping that secret” I about lost my mind. Are you really, Heller???? Because it’s been like 6 months and you’ve watched an innocent girl’s life be DESTROYED and haven’t said a damn word, so how sick of it can you really be???
Also Cal SUCKED and I don’t care if Goldie forgave him, I don’t. She was way too forgiving in general, tbh. She should’ve flipped that town the bird and disappeared into the horizon at the end imo
It was very difficult to feel invested in finding out who killed Heller when I hated him so much, though. I just never understood why Goldie cared so much about him??? He betrayed her in EVERY sense of the word, and until the very end she even thought he cheated on her! Why does it matter who killed him? I’d understand if she was scared for her own life but there’s never any mention of that, and she mourns him like they were still together and he wasn’t the worst boyfriend ever.
The book keeps trying to convince us that Heller loved Goldie despite literally all evidence to the contrary. When Mellie said he told her “he was sick of keeping that secret” I about lost my mind. Are you really, Heller???? Because it’s been like 6 months and you’ve watched an innocent girl’s life be DESTROYED and haven’t said a damn word, so how sick of it can you really be???
Also Cal SUCKED and I don’t care if Goldie forgave him, I don’t. She was way too forgiving in general, tbh. She should’ve flipped that town the bird and disappeared into the horizon at the end imo
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No