Author: Gemma Halliday
# Of Pages: 320
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: October 11, 2011
Source: Purchased
Level: Young Adult
Rating: 4 Hearts
Synopsis
(From Amazon.com)
First I find out that
my boyfriend is cheating on me. Then he’s pegged as the #1 suspect in a murder.
And now he’s depending on me to clear his name. Seriously?
As much as I wouldn’t
mind watching him squirm, I know that he’s innocent. So I’m brushing off my
previously untapped detective skills and getting down to business. But I keep
tripping over dead bodies and I’m still no closer to figuring out who did it.
And what’s worse: all signs seem to point to me as the killer’s next victim.
I really need to pick
a better boyfriend next time.
My Verdict
I’m finding this review rather hard to write because as much
as I enjoyed this book, I also had some major issues with it. It was a fun,
page turning mystery that I devoured fairly quickly, yet I also felt like it
was very disrespectful and almost mocking about certain subjects.
What I did like:
- The main character, Huntley
- The lightheartedness, for a murder mystery
- You get sucked right into the mystery
- You feel as if you’re trying to solve the mystery right along with Huntley, Sam and Chase.
- It was unpredictable and kept you guessing the whole time as to who the killer was.
What I didn’t like:
- Extreme stereotyping
- Crude sexual references & humor
- Demeaning view of chastity
- Namedropping (watched American Idol, Castle, Biggest Loser; listened to Daughtry) This drives me crazy!
When it came to the characters, aside from main character,
Huntley and her best friend, Sam everyone else was super stereotyped.
- Josh- gorgeous boyfriend who is really a cheating, lying, jerk
- Chase- dresses in all black with chains hanging from his pants, and has black hair which falls over his gray eyes.
- Kevin- tree hugger, life going nowhere older brother of her best friend.
- School Grief Counselor- has no life and is essentially a cat lady.
- Mother- portrayed as a smothering, overprotective, addicted to yoga, tofu eating “parental unit”
- Color Guard Girls- Members of Chastity club, super perky, blonde hair, life is all pink, purple and sparkles.
The whole Chastity club part of the book was a pretty big
deal, which is actually where my biggest quarrel lies. There were times the
author almost seemed to be making fun of those who have made the decision to
stay chaste. She portrays these characters as unrealistic, hypocritical, and a
little nuts. Now you may not agree with a decision but that doesn’t mean you
have to write a whole book that makes fun of it.
I was torn whether or not I should
read the next book for fear it might have the same demeaning quality about it,
but at the same time I really want to see where Huntley’s life goes from here.
I guess I’ll give it a try and see how things go…
First of all liked the bullets.
ReplyDeletelol cat lady. Someone accused me once of eventually becoming a cat lady which I found rude because they ARE stereotypically mopey and/or strict.
Yeesh... so many stereotypes. I especially do not like that all black wearing boy who has chains hanging from his pants.
I also feel bad about the chastity girls after you explained how you felt about them. Honestly I don't think them crazy for believing what they do but making a club and having it all public isn't my thing. It's not something you need to advertise.
Would have never thought based on this cover that this was like this. I thought it was going to be supernatural.
Sometimes with books it has things that you know annoy you but you just really want to know what happens so you give in to the next book(s). It happens.
Uh oh, you seem to have a love-hate relationship with this book, Amanda! I see your points clearly. I think that the whole chastity thing would bug me as well! I think that everyone deserves to have an opinion and it's not okay to make fun of someone just because they are different. I hope that the second book would be better though! The author can make a wonderful main character so I guess the second book would be better (I hope)! x)
ReplyDeleteWonderful review as always, Amanda! :)