TW: sexual assault, drug abuse, addiction, suicide, gun violence
I was intimidated to read this book for a while because of the size. I didn’t think a ~500 page mystery/thriller could work, but my god did it ever.
In the summer of 2004, Daunis is trying to live her New Normal, when tragedy strikes her town and the new kid is revealed to be an undercover cop, who wants Daunis to help him.
There is so much more going on in this book than just the drug investigation. Daunis is dealing with a sudden loss, grief, attending her freshman year of college, a new guy on her brother’s hockey team, and being both an insider and an outsider to her community. All of this combines to make a compelling, in-depth character. Not only did her external circumstances make for a great character, but her internal conflict really makes her great. She has a strict set of morals she enters the investigation with and a sense of community she’s trying to wrap her head around.
I’m going to avoid talking about the plot itself too much because of the thriller nature of the book. I will say even for the rare moment when I wasn’t on the edge of my seat, I was intrigued as to who was behind the drug distribution. I also appreciate this being a book where the adults care when the main teenager character seems to be acting out of character.
I rated this book 4.5 stars! I highly recommend it for anyone, not just fans of mystery/thrillers! It’s a story about community and what you will do to protect it.
I was intimidated to read this book for a while because of the size. I didn’t think a ~500 page mystery/thriller could work, but my god did it ever.
In the summer of 2004, Daunis is trying to live her New Normal, when tragedy strikes her town and the new kid is revealed to be an undercover cop, who wants Daunis to help him.
There is so much more going on in this book than just the drug investigation. Daunis is dealing with a sudden loss, grief, attending her freshman year of college, a new guy on her brother’s hockey team, and being both an insider and an outsider to her community. All of this combines to make a compelling, in-depth character. Not only did her external circumstances make for a great character, but her internal conflict really makes her great. She has a strict set of morals she enters the investigation with and a sense of community she’s trying to wrap her head around.
I’m going to avoid talking about the plot itself too much because of the thriller nature of the book. I will say even for the rare moment when I wasn’t on the edge of my seat, I was intrigued as to who was behind the drug distribution. I also appreciate this being a book where the adults care when the main teenager character seems to be acting out of character.
I rated this book 4.5 stars! I highly recommend it for anyone, not just fans of mystery/thrillers! It’s a story about community and what you will do to protect it.