Books, Read + Review

Dead End Girls by Wendy Heard

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For two years, Maude has been planning to fake her death. Sure, she might seem selfish for doing so, but her parents deserve it; they’ve never loved her, after all. Pair that with the fact that she’s always wanted to live in London, and there’s really no reason to ever turn back. She’s got everything under control, right until the last minute. Except she didn’t account for one thing: her stepcousin, Frankie, discovering her passports, her fake IDs, the whole shebang. Maude thinks that all her work has gone down the drain- at least, until Frankie reveals she wants in. Now on the run, Frankie and Maude will do everything they need to survive- even going as far as murder.

“Dead End Girls” is a riveting thriller full of murder, queer love, and finding out who you really are.
Maude was truly a compelling character to read about, exploring why she wanted to fake her own death in the first place, why she was willing to give her entire life up for a fresh start. It surprised me to see that I could relate to her in so many ways, seeing as how we’re both very different people, but Heard did a wonderful job of making her entire personality feel like one I could easily meet in the real world. Of course, there was also Frankie, who I felt spoke so much for the entire LGBTQIA+ community. As a closeted lesbian teen, her resilience was admirable, and felt like a constant reminder to all queer teens that they’re not alone.
Not to mention, the moments of intimacy between Maude and Frankie were one of my favorite parts of the book, and that surprised me. I’m not usually one for romance, but it was so expertly woven into the main storyline that I couldn’t help but enjoy every last bit of it, and even found myself wanting more.
The ending of the book felt so, so satisfying, watching everything wrap up neatly. While Maude and Frankie may not have achieved the happily ever after that you would find in a fairytale, they were happy with their lives, and so was I.
In conclusion, I loved this book to the very end, and I’ll be sure to reread it over and over again.

Maude and Frankie being the ones committing crimes and living on the streets felt unique to the story. It was sort of like a reverse murder mystery, with the duo having to constantly evade the law and trying not to get caught. Maude had to be resourceful with finding ways to earn money, as well as trying to keep her true identity a secret. Down to the passports, the IDs, and illegal activity, the book was truly well-researched.

Reviewed by Mu Zhen Y. at Twin Hickory

Books, Read + Review, Teen Reviews

We’ll Never Tell by Wendy Heard

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Quirky friend group consisting of Casey, Zoe, Jacob, and Eddie, (the latter two who are secretly dating) are anonymously behind “We’ll Never Tell”, a YouTube channel that may or may not break into private property for content. As they’re nearing the end of their senior year, they decide to create a finale covering the Silver Lake Murder House, home to the infamous murder-suicide of Andrew and Rosalinda Valentini. However, when the alarm is mysteriously tripped, everyone is rushing to get out except for one. They left Jacob behind, impaled with a knife and slowly dying on the floor. Could one of their own have tried to kill him? Or does it have something to do with the secrets of the mansion? Casey has never been one to solve mysteries, but she might have to with this one, or else her tightly-knit friendship may not last.

We’ll Never Tell was exciting, high-stakes, and kept me guessing until the big reveal; a great read overall. An interesting thing I noticed was how there were two plot twists, and if you figured out the attacker’s motive, you could figure out who they were. Not only that, but the foreshadowing in the story was one of the best I’ve ever read since the plot twist was surprising but made more sense when you looked back. If you pay close enough attention, there are plenty of clues scattered throughout the book that point straight to the attacker, and you’ll be able to piece them together and solve the mystery. However, an issue I had with the story was how it felt like the author was trying to build up tension between Casey, Eddie, and Zoe, but it didn’t amount to anything. Casey finding a bunch of clues that pointed to her friends were just obvious red herrings, and if I didn’t know that there was supposed to be tension between the friend group, I would’ve thought that she was just being paranoid. A final thing I want to add is how there were multiple different perspectives throughout and in between chapters. There’s the main plot of Casey trying to solve the mystery, the side storyline of Jacob before the attack, newspaper articles dated shortly after the Valentini murder-suicide, and letters addressed to Rosalinda. While the letters did provide important clues as foreshadowing, Jacob and the newspaper articles weren’t needed, and just made the story more confusing. The different storylines just ended up making the entire book hard to keep track of. Overall, while it is a bit of a hefty novel, I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a mystery, especially in one sitting.

The newspaper articles in the book were quite interesting, as they added an extra layer of secrets on top of the ongoing murder mystery. They felt like a look into the past, and while they weren’t necessary, it helped make the book feel unforgettable. It really made me wonder if the ghosts of Andrew and Rosalinda were coming back to haunt the mansion.

Reviewed by Mu Zhen Y., Twin Hickory Area Library

Books, Read + Review

One of Us Is Back by Karen M. McManus

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After Simon Kelleher died and Jared Jackson was arrested, the Bayview Crew are pretty ready to move and never have to deal with murder again. Unfortunately for them, the new billboard proves otherwise: “Time for a new game, Bayview.” When it first pops up, everyone dismisses it as awful advertising; at least, until one of the Bayview Crew goes missing. The “game” that this person is playing? It’s serious, and it could turn deadly, especially with the return of someone the Bayview Crew thought that they would never see again.

As the finale to the “One of Us Is Lying” trilogy, I think that this book concludes everything well, with the ending being a satisfying close to the series. McManus managed to wrap up the events from all three books and even leave some parts up to reader interpretation, which I prefer over books that end things with a solid and final finish.
The characters felt more fleshed out and developed as well. All nine of the Bayview Crew felt like a normal, tight-knit friend group (excusing the fact that they all bonded over murder). Banter between characters with sibling dynamics such as Addy and Nate felt natural, and could easily be the type of conversations I have in real life. Not to mention, the humor in some parts of the story was on point, lightening the mood whenever things got dark.
Foreshadowing the murderer and big reveal at the end is a major part of murder mysteries, as it challenges the reader to try and solve the mystery before the characters do. The author had excellent foreshadowing, spreading clues throughout the story as the characters discovered them, as well as in the flashback chapters. Although the plot twist was unexpected, the buildup to it was good, and when looking back on it I could see how it all made sense.
However, it did end up referencing the events of both prequels multiple times, as well as recurring chapters from Simon’s point of view. As someone who’s read the entire trilogy, it was a bit repetitive and annoying to say the least, especially at the beginning. I wouldn’t recommend this book to someone who hadn’t read the prequels beforehand, unless they don’t mind having several spoilers shown to them. In conclusion, the book was a bit of a heavy read, so if you’re looking for something to make you think deeply, this novel is for you.

The most memorable part about the book to me was the flashback chapters. I’m aware that these are a common thing in murder mysteries, but the fact that they were retelling the story of Simon before the events of “One of Us Is Lying” along with providing clues towards the big reveal at the end made it feel so much more unique. I genuinely had fun trying to piece together the hints from the main storyline along with the flashbacks from six years ago, and made the murder mystery experience feel a lot more immersive and realistic. Reading the story through the infamous Simon’s point of view really changed how the book felt, as the victim of the original book had a deeper story of his own to tell.

Reviewed by Mu Zhen Y. at Twin Hickory

Books, Read + Review, Teen Reviews

Girl Forgotten by April Henry

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In the town of Firview, high school senior Layla Trello goes missing during a Halloween party, and is found dead nearly two weeks afterward. Seventeen years later, Piper Gray, a fan of the true-crime podcast “Dead, Deader, Deadest” decides to host a podcast of her own covering said murder for her senior passion project. Helped by fellow senior Jonas Shortridge, Piper starts digging for information on exactly what happened seventeen years ago. Unfortunately for her, all of the people she interview each have their version of the incident to tell, and she doesn’t have much time to piece the full story together. Somebody is threatening her, meaning that the killer is still on the loose, and it looks like they have a new victim to go after. Everybody in the town has secrets, including Piper herself, and revealing them might end up with her dead.

The concept for the story and the synopsis sounded original and I was intrigued, but the actual book was quite lackluster and empty. It felt like the author was trying too hard to make the main character, Piper, come off as quirky and different, and it just seemed like another one of those “I’m not like other girls” scenarios. Not only this, but many scenes had too many unnecessary details in them that made it cluttered and hard to keep track of what was going on; a common example of this was that one or more characters would be doing something unrelated to the plot between conversations. The plot twists, while unexpected, didn’t seem to have anything leading up to them. Most of the evidence that supposedly revealed the murderer felt lazy and unoriginal, and the murderer’s reason for killing Layla Trello was even worse. Piper’s secret was a bit better, but the plot twist seemed to be there just so there would be drama in the story, and it wasn’t needed at all. I don’t think it would be too much of a spoiler to say that there is a romance between Piper and Jonas; however, it barely seemed like anything happened between them. Sure, there was the occasional mention of how Piper wanted to spend more time with Jonas, but there wasn’t too much about it until they suddenly kissed. While I do know that love isn’t the main focus of the book since it’s a murder mystery, I think that there could’ve been more thought and planning put into it, rather than just having two characters kiss for no reason. Most of these are just my personal opinions, and while I do think it has a lot of flaws, if someone who was younger and/or was new to the murder mystery genre read this, they would probably enjoy it better than I did.

One thing that felt memorable about the book was how it included information about podcasting. I could see that Henry had researched how they worked, and I felt like I learned something when reading about them. Parts of the story were even written as if they were podcast transcripts, which provided a unique experience. All the parts of the book that had some sort of podcasting in them were something that you don’t encounter in your average murder mystery and helped make this book feel one-of-a-kind.

Reviewed by Mu Zhen Y., Twin Hickory Area Library

Books, Read + Review, Teen Reviews

Percy Jackson and the Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan

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Percy Jackson is finally ready to finish his senior year of high school and start applying to college when he learns he’ll need three recommendation letters from different gods. However, this means he’ll need to complete three new quests. The original trio; Percy, Grover, and Annabeth, must set out on what will hopefully be one of their last assignments. On the way, they’ll deal with teenage gods, killer chickens, and a surprising thief to find the chalice of the gods.

I enjoyed the return of the world of Greek mythology in Percy Jackson and the Chalice of the Gods. It was written in the same style of the original series, which was very entertaining. However, I found it was an interesting jump in comparison to The Heroes of Olympus, some of the wording and timelines differed. Overall, this book was memorable, entertaining, and had some hidden, deeper messages.

The most memorable part of the book for me was when Percy had to start thinking about the choice between his family and future, a relatable train of thought for many high schoolers as college approaches. I think Riordan accurately captured the emotions of the moment while not letting it overshadow the entire storyline.

Reviewed by Ella H., Twin Hickory Area Library