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A review by artemisf
Blood on the Boardwalk by Donna Taylor
adventurous
dark
funny
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? No
3.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
Blood on the Boardwalk follows Jenna, a 17-year-old outcast who roams the streets of the beachy San Nico with her best friend, Connor. Ever since seeing someone with fangs, she's been the laughing stock of her high school, and her best friend, Georgie, has abandoned her, leaving her jaded. One morning, she discovers corpses dotting the boardwalk's carousel, and her life completely unravels. A series of bizarre events happen, and Georgie's new mysterious boyfriend seems to be at the center of them all.
I adored the location of San Nico; I could practically smell the saltwater and fried foods of the boardwalk. Taylor's writing had moments of beautiful description, and I feel she deftly used humor to break up darker moments with great levity. Jenna as a main character was dripping with personality, and I really enjoyed Connor's characterization.
While the plot overall went in a fun direction, the pacing dragged quite a bit. Jenna has a habit of restating facts multiple times per chapter, which started to grate on me during my reading experience. I wish that the author trusted us as readers to follow the plot and not need reminders. I additionally stumbled across many typos (including "Holt shit" instead of "Holy shit"), indicating that perhaps another round of line edits was needed.
One final thing that nagged at me was the somewhat callous descriptions of San Nico's homeless population. Jenna refers to homeless people in offhanded ways throughout, and even calls people who use drugs a slew of names, like "meth heads," "crackheads," and "doped up." I understand the dichotomy of a tourist town and it's darker underbelly, and California especially has a difficult history with its homeless population, but I'm not sure this YA novel tackled this subject with enough nuance or grace.
Blood on the Boardwalk follows Jenna, a 17-year-old outcast who roams the streets of the beachy San Nico with her best friend, Connor. Ever since seeing someone with fangs, she's been the laughing stock of her high school, and her best friend, Georgie, has abandoned her, leaving her jaded. One morning, she discovers corpses dotting the boardwalk's carousel, and her life completely unravels. A series of bizarre events happen, and Georgie's new mysterious boyfriend seems to be at the center of them all.
I adored the location of San Nico; I could practically smell the saltwater and fried foods of the boardwalk. Taylor's writing had moments of beautiful description, and I feel she deftly used humor to break up darker moments with great levity. Jenna as a main character was dripping with personality, and I really enjoyed Connor's characterization.
While the plot overall went in a fun direction, the pacing dragged quite a bit. Jenna has a habit of restating facts multiple times per chapter, which started to grate on me during my reading experience. I wish that the author trusted us as readers to follow the plot and not need reminders. I additionally stumbled across many typos (including "Holt shit" instead of "Holy shit"), indicating that perhaps another round of line edits was needed.
One final thing that nagged at me was the somewhat callous descriptions of San Nico's homeless population. Jenna refers to homeless people in offhanded ways throughout, and even calls people who use drugs a slew of names, like "meth heads," "crackheads," and "doped up." I understand the dichotomy of a tourist town and it's darker underbelly, and California especially has a difficult history with its homeless population, but I'm not sure this YA novel tackled this subject with enough nuance or grace.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Vomit, Fire/Fire injury