I think I went into this book with different expectations than other readers and ended up liking it more because of that. This book was fun and gossipy which is exactly what I was wanting when I went into it so for me it totally hit the mark. I enjoyed this book so much that I already marked Jessica Goodman's next unwritten work as "want to read" so that's saying something.
That being said, I understand why people were let down and I think that had more to do with marketing than the actual book. This book was marketed with a focus on the murder mystery/thriller component as the focus and I think that really it is much more about the world of the elite which just so happens to include murder. I liked this book a lot as I was expecting to get more of a Breakfast Club vibe from it and didn't care so much about the murder (which was, like others have said, highly predictable). The writing style was also not totally amazing but that of what I would expect from a debut author of a YA novel.
Despite it's flaws this novel still came away leaving me with a four star feeling in my gut because it was really fun and something I devoured in a short time. I was always excited to pick up this book and in the end couldn't put it down. In the end, this book ended up feeling like a fun CW show that I put on for the very specific reason of wanting to tune out with fun and flashy characters but not have to think too much.
That being said, I understand why people were let down and I think that had more to do with marketing than the actual book. This book was marketed with a focus on the murder mystery/thriller component as the focus and I think that really it is much more about the world of the elite which just so happens to include murder. I liked this book a lot as I was expecting to get more of a Breakfast Club vibe from it and didn't care so much about the murder (which was, like others have said, highly predictable). The writing style was also not totally amazing but that of what I would expect from a debut author of a YA novel.
Despite it's flaws this novel still came away leaving me with a four star feeling in my gut because it was really fun and something I devoured in a short time. I was always excited to pick up this book and in the end couldn't put it down. In the end, this book ended up feeling like a fun CW show that I put on for the very specific reason of wanting to tune out with fun and flashy characters but not have to think too much.