A thrilling boarding school story with a satirical edge.
The Plastics meet the Heathers in this murder mystery about ruthless Ivy League ambition.
After scholarship student Olivia transferred to an elite boarding school in 10th grade, she knew intelligence and drive wouldn’t be enough to get her a full ride to an Ivy League school. So she jumped at the chance to become one of the Ivies, a supercompetitive clique of girls who use their cunning, social standing, family power, and skills to ensure they snag coveted spots at America’s top universities. They systematically target their classmates using the List, where they track competitors to sabotage. But when one of the Ivies turns up dead, Olivia finds herself questioning everything she thought she knew about her friends, classmates, and even her crush, biracial (Black and implied White) Canadian Ethan. Equal parts murder mystery and competitive college admissions satire, this dark story of an outsider struggling to survive in a cutthroat environment is a descendant of movies like Heathers and Mean Girls. The well-developed tension between Olivia’s shrewd detective work, her former trust in the corrupt Ivies, and her undeniable culpability creates a compelling page-turning pace. Although experienced readers of the genre may anticipate some plot twists, there are enough red herrings to make the final reveal and satirical ending satisfying. Olivia reads as White, like the majority of her classmates; the other Ivies include one Black girl and one Korean American girl.
A thrilling boarding school story with a satirical edge. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: May 25, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-30370-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
Perhaps a more genuinely enlightened protagonist would have made this debut more engaging
Audrey Rose Wadsworth, 17, would rather perform autopsies in her uncle’s dark laboratory than find a suitable husband, as is the socially acceptable rite of passage for a young, white British lady in the late 1800s.
The story immediately brings Audrey into a fractious pairing with her uncle’s young assistant, Thomas Cresswell. The two engage in predictable rounds of “I’m smarter than you are” banter, while Audrey’s older brother, Nathaniel, taunts her for being a girl out of her place. Horrific murders of prostitutes whose identities point to associations with the Wadsworth estate prompt Audrey to start her own investigation, with Thomas as her sidekick. Audrey’s narration is both ponderous and polemical, as she sees her pursuit of her goals and this investigation as part of a crusade for women. She declares that the slain aren’t merely prostitutes but “daughters and wives and mothers,” but she’s also made it a point to deny any alignment with the profiled victims: “I am not going as a prostitute. I am simply blending in.” Audrey also expresses a narrow view of her desired gender role, asserting that “I was determined to be both pretty and fierce,” as if to say that physical beauty and liking “girly” things are integral to feminism. The graphic descriptions of mutilated women don’t do much to speed the pace.
Perhaps a more genuinely enlightened protagonist would have made this debut more engaging . (Historical thriller. 15-18)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-316-27349-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Jimmy Patterson/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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