A dark and gritty thriller that is just fantastic
While I thoroughly enjoyed Goodman’s debut They Wish They Were Us, I’ll admit that I enjoyed They’ll Never Catch Us even more because it’s darker, grittier, and really digs into complicated family dynamics.
Told in dual narration, the story follows sisters Stella and Ellie Steckler, who are highly competitive cross-country runners. Being that they’re only one year apart, their biggest competition is each other…that is until cross-country star Mila Keene joins their team.
Now that there’s a new rival in town, the rivalry between Stella and Ellie is even more fierce and secrets that could undo them both are threatening to spill over and keep them from being scouted by colleges.
If you’re looking for a fast paced, action packed thriller then this one will definitely not be for you. Instead, this is a slow burn atmospheric thriller that takes its time laying the foundation in terms of our main characters and their intense passion and competitive nature when it comes to cross-country before we get to the murder mystery aspect.
That being said, Goodman does a fantastic job of examining the double standard that females face when it comes to competitive sports. There were so many times that I just wanted to scream for both Stella and Ella when it came to the unfairness and the blatant sexism and misogyny. On the flip side, the girl power theme was spot on.
I also really enjoyed the overall messiness when it comes to the each of the characters and the decisions that they make. Nothing in this story is black and white but rather a sliding scale of grey, which definitely played on my own emotions when it comes to all of our players.
I know I’ve avoided major plot points, but honestly, I think it’s best to experience them on your own. Don’t get me wrong, there weren’t many jaw dropping revelations, but the final twist was one that I did not see coming.
Honestly, this story was just a really good time.
Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Told in dual narration, the story follows sisters Stella and Ellie Steckler, who are highly competitive cross-country runners. Being that they’re only one year apart, their biggest competition is each other…that is until cross-country star Mila Keene joins their team.
Now that there’s a new rival in town, the rivalry between Stella and Ellie is even more fierce and secrets that could undo them both are threatening to spill over and keep them from being scouted by colleges.
If you’re looking for a fast paced, action packed thriller then this one will definitely not be for you. Instead, this is a slow burn atmospheric thriller that takes its time laying the foundation in terms of our main characters and their intense passion and competitive nature when it comes to cross-country before we get to the murder mystery aspect.
That being said, Goodman does a fantastic job of examining the double standard that females face when it comes to competitive sports. There were so many times that I just wanted to scream for both Stella and Ella when it came to the unfairness and the blatant sexism and misogyny. On the flip side, the girl power theme was spot on.
I also really enjoyed the overall messiness when it comes to the each of the characters and the decisions that they make. Nothing in this story is black and white but rather a sliding scale of grey, which definitely played on my own emotions when it comes to all of our players.
I know I’ve avoided major plot points, but honestly, I think it’s best to experience them on your own. Don’t get me wrong, there weren’t many jaw dropping revelations, but the final twist was one that I did not see coming.
Honestly, this story was just a really good time.
Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.