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decoolz 's review for:
The Lives of Desperate Girls
by MacKenzie Common
When I read the blurb of this book on NetGalley I was intrigued and requested it. When I was approved, I checked it out on Goodreads, and I was a bit concerned by the some of the reviews and rating, but when I started reading it, I was a little confused about why it has a below-average rating. I found this book was well-written and a thoughtful mystery the entwines two stories of girls in small town and what happens when they disappear.
The best way I can describe this book is a child of John Green’s Paper Towns and Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why. However, this story reads a little older than both of those. The plots of these three stories aren’t exactly similar, but I guess you would have to have read all three of these books to understand what I mean.
There are more adult themes in Desperate Girls than the other two books. Chloe holds many of the same characteristics of Margo and Hannah. Jenny holds many of same characteristics of Q and Clay. If you’ve read both of those books, you know how different they are, but I think that this book is that perfect combination of themes in them.
There is also an early episode of Law and Order Speical Victims Unit where an African Amerian Girl and a rich white girl disappear at the same time. It feels like Ice-T’s character is the only one that is trying to figure out what happened to the African American Girl; while there are so many resources trying to find the missing white girl. This book reminded me a lot of that episode.
I read this book in two sittings, I feel like it could have been a one sitting book if I started it on a weekend. I found Jenny a thoughtful and compassionate narrator. She clearly is worried about Chloe and in trying to figure out what happened to Helen she is trying to heal herself. I think that the book talks about racism and prejudice in a real way.
Jenny has a little bit of a romance with a character named Tom, that seems to come out of nowhere, but the more the story goes on, the more Jenny leaning on Tom makes sense. I think that understanding how Jenny feels dealing with Chloe being missing, makes Tom’s character and his relation to the story make sense.
I connected with Jenny. She is trying to figure out what’s happening in her town. She is grieving but doesn’t know if what she’s grieving. She just wants what happened to make sense, and honestly, things like what happened in this book, rarely make sense. Real life isn’t anything like what happens on TV, and I think this book shows that.
I really enjoyed this book. I am a big fan of murder mystery stories and stories that tend to be a little bit darker. Most of the movies and TV shows I watch are close to that, while the books I read tend not to be as depressing. I recommend this book to people who enjoy a good mystery.
The best way I can describe this book is a child of John Green’s Paper Towns and Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why. However, this story reads a little older than both of those. The plots of these three stories aren’t exactly similar, but I guess you would have to have read all three of these books to understand what I mean.
There are more adult themes in Desperate Girls than the other two books. Chloe holds many of the same characteristics of Margo and Hannah. Jenny holds many of same characteristics of Q and Clay. If you’ve read both of those books, you know how different they are, but I think that this book is that perfect combination of themes in them.
There is also an early episode of Law and Order Speical Victims Unit where an African Amerian Girl and a rich white girl disappear at the same time. It feels like Ice-T’s character is the only one that is trying to figure out what happened to the African American Girl; while there are so many resources trying to find the missing white girl. This book reminded me a lot of that episode.
I read this book in two sittings, I feel like it could have been a one sitting book if I started it on a weekend. I found Jenny a thoughtful and compassionate narrator. She clearly is worried about Chloe and in trying to figure out what happened to Helen she is trying to heal herself. I think that the book talks about racism and prejudice in a real way.
Jenny has a little bit of a romance with a character named Tom, that seems to come out of nowhere, but the more the story goes on, the more Jenny leaning on Tom makes sense. I think that understanding how Jenny feels dealing with Chloe being missing, makes Tom’s character and his relation to the story make sense.
I connected with Jenny. She is trying to figure out what’s happening in her town. She is grieving but doesn’t know if what she’s grieving. She just wants what happened to make sense, and honestly, things like what happened in this book, rarely make sense. Real life isn’t anything like what happens on TV, and I think this book shows that.
I really enjoyed this book. I am a big fan of murder mystery stories and stories that tend to be a little bit darker. Most of the movies and TV shows I watch are close to that, while the books I read tend not to be as depressing. I recommend this book to people who enjoy a good mystery.