A review by musingswithmiranda
The Dead Girls Club by Damien Angelica Walters

2.0

The Dead Girls Club by Damien Angelica Walters sounded promising, so I first recommended it to my sister. She really enjoyed it, so when I could not decide on my next read, she wanted me to read this book so we could talk about it. The premise of the novel seems really cool, but it unfortunately fell a little flat for me.

The story moves between past and present, following the main character Heather Cole. As a young girl, she forms the Dead Girls Club with her friends. They talk about serial killers and monsters, but it eventually goes too far. Heather’s best friend, Becca, tells the story of the Red Lady, the spirit of a witch who was killed centuries ago. Becca becomes obsessed with this tale, and she insists that the Red Lady is real. Then, Becca is killed. In the present, thirty years have passed when Heather starts receiving anonymous mail starting with a necklace that Becca was wearing the night she died. This makes Heather spiral and lose control of her life. She must find out who knows what happened that night thirty years ago when she killed Becca. (This is not a spoiler; it is in the description for the book.)

I really liked the idea of a supernatural thriller. I did not have many expectations for this book because I did know too much about it beforehand. However, I did not really love it. While it was interesting in some parts, the story was underwhelming for me. The supernatural aspect was not what I was expecting either. The “then” parts of the story were more interesting. I enjoyed seeing what new tales Becca would come up with. However, most of the “now” parts did not hold my attention. This is partly because I did not care about the characters. I was mostly annoyed at Heather for her actions and how she treated others. The writing style was okay, but it felt a bit rushed or off to me sometimes.

I understand why some people enjoy this book, but it was somewhat disappointing for me. I respect that my sister and others have enjoyed it though. I wanted a bit more from it, but the author does craft an entertaining story. I think The Dead Girls Club has some strong or interesting qualities, so if it sounds like something you would enjoy then I would still recommend checking it out for yourself.