A review by kayaj
The Agathas by Liz Lawson, Kathleen Glasgow

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

The Agathas is the best of both worlds: a charmingly classic mystery with a modern twist. I seriously had so much fun with this book, it reminded me of the first book in the A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder series. It’s the perfect summer beach read.

This mystery follows a girl named Alice Ogilvie, a rich girl who disappeared for five days after her boyfriend Steve dumped her, and she won’t tell anyone what happened. After Steve’s new girlfriend (and Alice’s former best friend) Brooke Donovan goes missing and Steve is arrested, Alice takes it upon herself to prove his innocence. With the help of Iris Adams, Alice’s fellow classmate and tutor, the two girls try to figure out the mystery of Brooke Donovan with the knowledge of Agatha Christie’s works.

SEE. It’s books like these that make me wish I’ve read all of Agatha Christie’s books! I mean, sure, there’s like 76 of them but still. Every chapter of this book began with a relevant Agatha Christie quote! It adds to the charm of the entire story, especially if you know Agatha Christie’s books.

Alice and Iris are very much modern teenagers worrying about modern things. I actually liked that aspect, because it kept the story from being too “cozy-mystery-esque”. The entire story takes place in a little beach-side town, so you’d think it would be very calm right? NOPE! I love how both of our main characters kept secrets, and while they took inspiration from Agatha Christie’s works, they always did their own thing.

The PLOT. YES. I have several major complaints with the majority of YA mystery-thrillers but one of the biggest ones is the lack of complexity which leads to predictability. Luckily, The Agathas doesn’t have that problem. Even if I predicted something, it would be close to when it was revealed. The entire story is well-plotted, with plenty of twists and turns that keep it constantly exciting. It also rarely feels contrived. And most of the characters aren’t obnoxious and surrounded by useless drama that’s supposed to make it feel like a “thriller”.

I seriously wish that this were a series because Alice and Iris have great friendship chemistry. They’re willing to do a lot of things to get the truth, and they have solid deduction skills! Plus, the side characters (particularly Iris’s friend group) are a ton of fun. I just genuinely had a great time reading this for countless reasons.

So that’s it! Tell me: do you enjoy YA mysteries? This is by far one of my favorites that I’ve ever read. This comes out May 3rd! A huge thank you to the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!