Stylish, sassy prose spins a whodunit that doesn’t quite satisfy. Sixteen-year-old Scarlett Wakefield suffers from the usual teenage-girl angst: to be part of the popular crowd and to kiss Dan, one of the most popular boys in her class. When these wishes are granted with an invitation to a posh party, Scarlett finds herself among the glitzy girls and their upscale lifestyle and in the arms of her adored Dan. When she and Dan kiss, he suddenly, horribly dies of anaphylactic shock. Nicknamed “the Kiss of Death Girl,” Scarlett is sent to live with her grandmother at Wakefield Hall. Finding an anonymous note in her desk, she discovers that she may not be to blame for Dan’s death and finds herself embroiled in mystery. Reminiscent of a young Stephanie Plum, Scarlett’s sharp sense of self-deprecating humor shines. While a breezy blend of mystery and mean-girl fun, Henderson’s offering doesn’t provide its reader enough of a resolution to be fulfilling; they may be disappointed to work their way through to find that too many threads have been left dangling in order to carry over to a sequel. (Fiction. YA)
