A review by herelieshenry
Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

dark hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Constantly wobbling between 4.75 and 5 stars for me. Even now I’m unsure if I really want to stick to my guns of being stingy with ratings and “if I have any question of if it’s 5 stars, I shouldn’t rate it 5 stars” because this book is, genuinely, a masterpiece on grief that cuts to the core of the issue in a lot of true crime media and the coverage of murders. I’m surprised I didn’t have many qualms with this being a fictionalization of real murders, as I’m very stingy on those (see my take on In Cold Blood) but I think Knoll did this in the most ethical way it could be done, being inspired by the victims and survivors more than the killer himself and creating something that lives up to the bright spirit of these girls rather than trying to sell us on the one-for-one story. I feel like it’s clear that this book is not meant to educate us on the actual gritty details of the real-life murders, and the lack of naming the murderer and fictionalizing most of the cast lends to that.
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