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becky1_1313's review against another edition
2.0
I don’t think this book is bad, the plot is interesting, it’s decently written, the twist at the end isn’t super predictable, and the children aren’t awful. However, every adult in this book is annoying, especially Heather. The near immediate downhill track her mental health takes is alarming considering her career, and her unsneaky sneaking is...unnecessary. the gus altercation? who’d care?
I think that might be my biggest issue with the book is the amount of side stories that truly didn’t need to be in here (is Ryan cheating, the possible divorce, gia and the other friend who really serves no purpose, the break up, the secretary’s issues, the patients stories). like just give us what we came here for—the story of what happened to the dead girls club.
so i’m giving it 2 stars. no halves or quarters. i just feel like there could’ve been more to the actual plot of the book.
arthuravalos's review against another edition
2.0
The twist was interesting but something felt off the entire time I was reading this. I didn’t like the pace.
The story was written from the then and now perspective. The now perspective was boring while the then was better. There was some stuff that I felt was fluff and the amount of fluff in each chapter made it drag out.
I kept reading to figure out what happened to Becca and then around the halfway mark skimmed them rest and looked for spoilers.
I gave it 1 star for the “then” perspective and another for the twist. But that’s being very generous here.
It was just not for me.
The story was written from the then and now perspective. The now perspective was boring while the then was better. There was some stuff that I felt was fluff and the amount of fluff in each chapter made it drag out.
I kept reading to figure out what happened to Becca and then around the halfway mark skimmed them rest and looked for spoilers.
I gave it 1 star for the “then” perspective and another for the twist. But that’s being very generous here.
It was just not for me.
aznickster's review against another edition
4.0
This book was a definite page turner. I loved the story about four friends and their "Dead Girls Club" where they would discuss serial killers and the red lady. The red lady reminded me a lot of bloody Mary. Just reading about the red lady reminded me of all the spooky stories I use to talk about with my childhood friends.
The end of the book had some twists I did not see coming.
I would definitely recommend this book! I can't wait to get my preordered copy!
The end of the book had some twists I did not see coming.
I would definitely recommend this book! I can't wait to get my preordered copy!
crp51095's review against another edition
2.0
This book is slow as hell. Almost didn’t finish it. Ending plot twist seemed dumb.
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
3.0
"We had to bleed.
My arms are awash in goose bumps.
When we did the ritual, she said we had to bleed."
An interesting look at childhood friendships. About the power you can wield over each other just through words and emotions but also the lasting impact of those stories into your adult life. Remember 'light as a feather, stiff as a board'? Or the nights you told scary stories with your friends? Maybe that was a 90's kid thing but it was definitely a thing. Those stories and those emotions were strong and encompassing.
Heather is a thriving adult, a child psychologist that looks to help kids. She feels driven because a long time ago, her best friend went missing. She wished she'd helped more, said more things - but she'd promised. She knows a lot more about Becca's disappearance than she's ever told anyone. But now someone seems to know and Heather needs to figure out who it is and just what game they are playing.
I liked the cat and mouse of the clues. You spend a lot of the book wondering who is holding all the answers. Clearly someone knows something and there are an awful lot of people in Becca's life for it to be anyone. It was a short, quick, interesting read.
My arms are awash in goose bumps.
When we did the ritual, she said we had to bleed."
An interesting look at childhood friendships. About the power you can wield over each other just through words and emotions but also the lasting impact of those stories into your adult life. Remember 'light as a feather, stiff as a board'? Or the nights you told scary stories with your friends? Maybe that was a 90's kid thing but it was definitely a thing. Those stories and those emotions were strong and encompassing.
Heather is a thriving adult, a child psychologist that looks to help kids. She feels driven because a long time ago, her best friend went missing. She wished she'd helped more, said more things - but she'd promised. She knows a lot more about Becca's disappearance than she's ever told anyone. But now someone seems to know and Heather needs to figure out who it is and just what game they are playing.
I liked the cat and mouse of the clues. You spend a lot of the book wondering who is holding all the answers. Clearly someone knows something and there are an awful lot of people in Becca's life for it to be anyone. It was a short, quick, interesting read.
minimicropup's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
🇺🇸 Set in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay area, USA
POV: The narrative intertwines the past and present of a child counselor haunted by the disappearance of her best friend in the 1990s.
Mood Reading Match Up:
-Secretive dark past with unraveling and mysterious occurrences
-Coming of age friendship with tragic “what would you do”, “how far would you go” tropes
-Themes of peer pressure, childhood trauma, fate, ideology, sacrifice, friendship, neglect, loyalty, madness, and personal development.
—
🐺 Growls, Howls, and Tail Wags 🐕
✏️ Writing: The narrative style was immersive and sensory, effectively transitioning between the two timelines. The use of first-person present tense for the adult perspective and past tense for childhood memories created distinct atmospheres for each period, adding depth to the story over time.
🫥 Characters: For me the protagonist, Heather, came across as frustratingly impulsive and self-sabotaging as an adult, but her character was more sympathetic and relatable in her tween years. I guess the contrast portrayed the lasting impact of childhood trauma. Her best friend, Becca, was also a character with depth who I sometimes disliked and other times felt for.
🗺️ Worldbuilding: The descriptions were perfect if you love to visualize settings, offering just enough detail without being overwhelming. The atmospheric buildup was gradual, kind of like a scene taking shape over time.
🔥 Fuel: Central to the novel was the mystery surrounding Heather and her best friend, Becca. There is also suspense building from exploring the complexities of their relationship and the impact of external influences. We necessarily need the characters to hold back from the reader for this story to take shape, but I thought it was done well without resorting to cheap narrative tricks. There is also considerable suspense around who to trust in the present day.
🐢🐇 Pacing: The pacing balanced well between reflection and progression. However, Heather’s development felt rushed towards the end, with a sudden shift in her understanding of herself and her past that didn’t quite align with her earlier characterization.
🎬 Scenes: The portrayal of the girls’ tween years was particularly vivid, capturing the essence of childhood innocence, peer pressure, and the yearning for acceptance. I thought the narrative did a good job with showing the complexities in navigating the emotional landscape of young friendships and their darker undertones. I felt the present-day narrative lagging sometimes when our main character was going off the rails, risking her career and relationships just to get a ‘sense’ of something, but it was still interesting.
🤷♀️ Nerdy Nit-picking: Heather’s profession in child psychology contrasted sharply with her apparent inability to apply her knowledge to her own life and somehow a lack of mandatory therapy for herself, a point that remained unaddressed until the very end.
🤔 Random Thoughts: Overall I thought this story was a haunting look into the shadows of the past, revealing how secrets and childhood experiences shape our present. It’s likely to be a compelling read for those who appreciate psychological depth and the blurred lines between memory and reality.
—
Content Heads-Up: Peer pressure, ostracizing. Domestic violence (parent on child). Parental abandonment and neglect. Substance abuse, alcoholism, self-medicating. Murder. Manipulation. Stalking. Fire (building). Blood.
Rep: Includes White, mixed race (Asian American), and racially ambiguous Americans.
Format: Library via Overdrive
“Reviews are my musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶 refined by my AI bookworm bestie ✨”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Death and Alcoholism
bawright1987's review against another edition
1.0
DNF. Unraveled the plot 3 pages in, flipped to the back and confirmed my guess. Didn't care enough about the characters to continue reading.
gigitru's review against another edition
5.0
A fantastic, suspenseful, even scary ride. I was right there with the main character unable to tell reality from imagination and I loved it! This book was captivating and even tugged at my emotions.
nawanda19's review against another edition
3.0
An ending worth getting to
This story definitely has its suspense and intrigue. Narrated half by a pre-teen half by an adult, the curiosity and frustration builds until finally the two narrators catch their stories up to each other and all the puzzle pieces fall into place.
This story definitely has its suspense and intrigue. Narrated half by a pre-teen half by an adult, the curiosity and frustration builds until finally the two narrators catch their stories up to each other and all the puzzle pieces fall into place.
rsnuggs21's review against another edition
1.0
Wow. Never before have I read a book that I thought sounded so good, but turned out to be so disappointing.