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ceh33 's review for:
This Is Our Story
by Ashley Elston
i really wanted to like this book. i picked it up because of the cover design (still fantastic) and finished most of it in one sitting. i wanted to know how it ended, but the finale just... didn’t make a strong impression on me. i was guessing until the end who the killer was, but i didn’t find myself caring either way about who went to jail.
i don’t know if i’ve just come to expect more from the YA genre, but this... sure was something. have you ever seen someone try to write high schoolers, and it becomes apparent they have never set foot in a high school in 25+ years? that’s how it felt every time the author tried to show kids texting, which was a good chunk of the book.
the writing style was clunky, and not in a way that worked. the main character’s only response to meeting a child with cancer (who she’s only supporting so she can save her boyfriend, mind you): “Oh, man. This is so sad.” direct quote. the killer’s final monologue includes, “They were scared. And upset. But I knew better.” such insightful dialogue.
the whole thing seemed far fetched, and you should know i’m usually willing to believe whatever you’re selling me. i don’t read thrillers to have a realistic time. but when the main character found herself out of school for employment at the DA’s office, working her boyfriend’s case, conveniently sitting in on his trial as court reporter (as an intern!), harassing answers out of several inciden innocent people despite getting fired from said job for lying, and then being the only one in town (including a team of skilled investigators) who could find a camera hidden in plain sight, which she THEN HACKED A COURTROOM TELEVISION TO SHOW LIVE...
the ending also wrapped up too neatly for me. no characters got the depth i felt they should. henry had so much potential, with his bad boy facade and hidden weakness for lori! and logan’s completely unexplained relationship with two people who it’s implied are helping him run a betting ring! the whole book led us to a red herring involving nudes leaked as revenge and ruining three girl’s lives, and this just... isn’t addressed! it moves kate’s false suspicions along, acts as convenient drama once or twice, and then gets swept under the rug.
tl;dr— someone looking for a mediocre middle grade mystery might have a better experience here than me.
i don’t know if i’ve just come to expect more from the YA genre, but this... sure was something. have you ever seen someone try to write high schoolers, and it becomes apparent they have never set foot in a high school in 25+ years? that’s how it felt every time the author tried to show kids texting, which was a good chunk of the book.
the writing style was clunky, and not in a way that worked. the main character’s only response to meeting a child with cancer (who she’s only supporting so she can save her boyfriend, mind you): “Oh, man. This is so sad.” direct quote. the killer’s final monologue includes, “They were scared. And upset. But I knew better.” such insightful dialogue.
the whole thing seemed far fetched, and you should know i’m usually willing to believe whatever you’re selling me. i don’t read thrillers to have a realistic time. but when the main character found herself out of school for employment at the DA’s office, working her boyfriend’s case, conveniently sitting in on his trial as court reporter (as an intern!), harassing answers out of several inciden innocent people despite getting fired from said job for lying, and then being the only one in town (including a team of skilled investigators) who could find a camera hidden in plain sight, which she THEN HACKED A COURTROOM TELEVISION TO SHOW LIVE...
the ending also wrapped up too neatly for me. no characters got the depth i felt they should. henry had so much potential, with his bad boy facade and hidden weakness for lori! and logan’s completely unexplained relationship with two people who it’s implied are helping him run a betting ring! the whole book led us to a red herring involving nudes leaked as revenge and ruining three girl’s lives, and this just... isn’t addressed! it moves kate’s false suspicions along, acts as convenient drama once or twice, and then gets swept under the rug.
tl;dr— someone looking for a mediocre middle grade mystery might have a better experience here than me.