ashley_9332 's review for:

The Girls by Emma Cline

5.0

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I can completely understand the hype around this book. I flew through it in 2 days, literally not putting it down to rest. The story is dark and interesting: it follows a 14-year-old girl, Evie, during the summer of 1969. She is living in a small town in California, bored and restless with her life. She comes across a group of girls who seem to be, on the surface, carefree and wild, and Evie immediately wants them to like her; wants them to accept her into their group. Eventually, Evie learns that these girls are living on a ranch with a bunch of other girls and guys, all lead by Russell. It is not for a while that you begin to understand this group is a cult and Evie is drifting on the outside, desperate to join and be accepted. The story follows the girls through their summer days, slowly building to the horror that is unleashed within the last few chapters of the book. There is also a contrast with present-day Evie, and how the events of that summer have completely changed who she has become and how she views the world around her.

The story is interesting-the events are slow to build up until you realize that you've read 200 pages and can't seem to stop. The actual sentence structure the author uses is unique too, which kept me engaged as I focused to understand the plot. Overall a fantastic book and highly recommended.