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Teen Book Review- I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick

Written by Inshal
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I Killed Zoe Spanos

It almost took me longer to write this review than it did to read I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick. Which is less a complaint about my writing speed and more a testament to how awesome this book was–I truly could not put it down. Contemporary YA murder mysteries are an untapped gold mine, and this book proves it.

It’s told in two timelines: Now and Then. In the “Then” timeline, teenager Anna Cicconi travels down from Brooklyn to the rich Long Island neighbourhood called Herron Mills where she has been hired as an ‘au pair’ for the summer. Anna is ready to leave her old life of partying and drinking behind. She can and she will be responsible, even with the expensive booze around her, the mysterious boy living next door, and an increasingly failing memory. But then Anna learns of her resemblance to Zoe Spanos, a local girl that disappeared months ago. The longer she lives in Herron Mills, and the deeper she delves into Zoe’s life, the more Anna is convinced that she is somehow connected to the case.

“Now”: Anna Cicconi is under arrest after confessing to killing Zoe Spanos. But considering Anna was never even supposed to have met Zoe, and that her confession doesn’t completely add up, teenager ‘investigative journalist’ Martina Jenkins/Green decides to get to the bottom of this complicated mystery.

Okay, so. As you can probably tell from the blurb, this book is going to be twisty, and that’s not just an expectation–“I Killed Zoe Spanos” completely delivered. The setting, pace, and writing are all very well-done. I loved how most of the book was status quo prose, with an occasional “podcast” or different perspective chapter . I also appreciated that that even though the timeline could have butchered the suspense aspect completely, it didn’t! We learned little by little about what had actually happened, which is how a mystery should be. The only aspect of the book I would’ve improved on was the romance (ugh, I know). And maybe the resolution could have gone a bit longer… I wanted to see Paisley (the 8-year old Anna was looking after) again!!

All in all, I Killed Zoe Spanos is a welcome relief from my slew of not-quite-for-me book reviews. 10/10

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Teen Book Review- Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson

Written by Inshal
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Allegedly - Jackson, Tiffany

TL; DR: This is the first book I am at a loss on how to review. 4 or 9 /10.

So. I don’t know how to start the review for Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson and that’s a first. I usually have a million of things to say (notice the average length of my reviews, hahaha) but for this one, I am still grappling.

Before I go into that, the premise.

Mary B. Addison killed a baby. Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: A white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official. But did she do it? She wouldn’t say. Mary survived six years in baby jail before being dumped in a group home. The house isn’t really “home”—no place where you fear for your life can be considered a home. Home is Ted, who she meets on assignment at a nursing home. There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted—and their unborn child—to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary must find the voice to fight her past. And her fate lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her Momma. No one knows the real Momma. But who really knows the real Mary?

Just from that you know that this thriller is going to be intense. And it really was.

First of all, why is this a YA novel? The protag is 16 years old but the topics in here are HEAVY and well… don’t open it expecting your typical YA stuff. Although that isn’t exactly fair either, because it does have a bunch of your typical YA stuff.

To give (some) structure to the review, I’ll break it down like this. Characters: 9/10. The arcs are strong, and the main characters are EXTREMELY complex and well-written. The side characters on the other hand are lacking, and stereotypically so. Writing: 7/10 Some lines catch you off-guard with their beauty but the overall style was just average. Romance: 8/10. I am still iffy about the romance, but oh well, it’s YA! Importance/Issues Discussed: 10/10. Now that’s one thing I can’t criticize Allegedly for. It takes the most uncomfortable, least-discussed, nitty gritty of the world and forces you to grapple with it. Just… astounding.

Notice how I didn’t rate the plot. Because the plot is *continuous screaming*. Without any spoilers, this is my plea to authors everywhere: DO NOT INCLUDE A PLOT TWIST IF THE ONLY THING IT’S ADDING TO THE BOOK IS SHOCK VALUE.

The ending felt incomplete and it was a long way for me to go to end up unsatisfied. I can’t give the book an overall rating because it’s either a 4/10 or a 9/10. Take from this review (which ended up being long despite what I said at the beginning, super sorry!) what you will and go forth with indecisiveness on whether to read Allegedly or not. 🙂 You’re welcome.

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Teen Book Review – Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

Written by Aranan Thayaparan Thayaparan
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Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane is a great novel about Teddy Daniels and Chuck Aule’s search for Rachel Solando who went missing from Ashecliffe island’s hospital for the criminally insane . It seems that Solando managed to escape from a locked cell completely undetected by some orderlies playing cards and slipped past two guarded checkpoints. Swimming back to land would be out of the question for anyone other than the best swimmers, which makes her disappearance even more intriguing. While Daniels jumps at the chance to solve this case it seems like there might be an ulterior motive behind his enthusiasm. The island is a very interesting setting, as it contains 3 wards in separate buildings and the ever mysterious lighthouse that is quarantined off by heavily armored guards and an electric fence. Daniel begins to doubt the reality of his choice to come to the island as events occur that suggest his life is in danger. Shutter Island is a great novel that will surely take you on a roller coaster of emotions. With great mystery, and an intense horror movie vibe it is sure to get your adrenaline pumping. I would recommend the novel and rate it 10/10

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Teen SRC 2020 – The Lost by Natasha Preston

Written by Alina C.
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The Lost - Preston, Natasha

In The Lost by Natasha Preston, a group of teens had recently been missing for the over a year, and more are disappearing one by one. No one even gave a second look to it as all the teens have been portrayed as runaways.
Piper and Hazel noticed a couple of their classmates have disappeared and on the way to uncover their tracks, the towns’ richest students offer the girls to hang out with them. These guys take them to their privately owned forest in the outskirts of town. Where they have an old, abandoned warehouse that they have renovated into a game room. They have the girls to leave their cell phones on the table as it was a social media free zone. The college students gave the girls a tour of the building, before revealing their true motive. Piper and Hazel are forced to enter a room only to find all the missing teens. Except now, unless they survive the mind games and torture, somehow get past all the security, escape without dying, and manage to stay sane, they will become part of The Lost.

I would rate it 9/10 and highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good story filled with psychotic characters, mind games, and twists. The only thing I disliked about the book was the humongous cliff hanger at the end. It just irritated me so much that there wasn’t going to be a sequel.

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Teen SRC 2020 – The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

Written by Angela Y
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The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson is a captivating narrative regarding the moral ambiguities of science and the duplicity of human nature. Dr Jekyll is a benevolent, well-respected and brilliant scientist who meddles with the malevolent aspects of science, as he aims to discover and breed his depraved alter ego. He does this through transforming himself into Mr Hyde, a monstrous being who is unable to repent or accept responsibility for any of his heinous actions.

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Teen SRC 2020 – The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

Written by Angela Y
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The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells demonstrates the power to transform the human body using advances in scientific achievement. The novel itself is an enthralling and entertaining tale of terror and suspense, and it is a significant Faustian allegory of the dangerous capabilities of unregulated and unbridled scientific endeavours many decide to embark on. The Invisible Man is able to endure as one of the most notable stories in science fiction, in which Griffin, a brilliant and progidouous scientist uncovers the secret to achieving invisibility, but his grandiose ambitions and the power he unleashes causes him to spiral into intrigue, madness, and murder.

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Teen SRC 2019 – A Taste for Monsters by Matthew J. Kirby

Written by Inshal
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A Taste for Monsters - Kirby, Matthew J.

A heartfelt thriller. Two words I never would’ve put together, but they describes A Taste for Monsters by Mathew J. Kirby accurately.

Evelyn is a young girl in 1888 London, trying to find a job in order to stay off the streets. But because of a disfigurement caused by her dangerous work in a matchstick factory, no one wants to hire her. In desperation, she goes to the hospital. If they can’t fix her face, then maybe they can give her job. At the hospital, the matron tells her that she would scare the patients away, but that she might have another job that would fit her needs. Evelyn is to be the maid of a permanent resident at the London Hospital: the Elephant Man. Evelyn has heard stories about him, and is terrified, but knowing that this job is the only thing that would keep her off the streets, she agrees.

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Teen SRC 2019- Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick

Written by Inshal
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Dangerous Lies

Thrilling, brilliant, fast-paced. Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick is one of the best thrillers I’ve read in a while.

Estalla Goodwin is no more. After she witnessed a brutal murder at her house in Philadelphia, Estella is placed into the witness protection program. Now she is Stella Gordon, an orphan who has moved from foster home to foster home for years. Stella Gordon is being fostered by a retired police officer named Carmina in a small town in Nebraska.

At first, Stella hates Thunder Basin, and everything to do with it; Carmina is too strict, the townspeople all hate jer, there is no nightlife… but worst of all? She can’t talk to her boyfriend, Reed Winslow ever again, because it might send the henchmen of the drug lord she’s testifying against right to her doorstep.

But then, Stella meets a boy named Chet, and as their friendship grows, Stella starts to feel at home in the one place she never thought she would belong. Despite feeling feeling like an impostor in her own skin, Chet is the only one who can make her feel like Stella Gordon — or Estella Goodwin, or whoever the heck she is — is worth fighting for.

It only takes one little mistake, though, to send the new life Stella has worked so hard to build crashing down, and lead the bloodthirsty criminals chasing after her.

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Teen SRC 2019- This Story Is A Lie by Tom Pollock

Written by Inshal
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This Story Is A Lie - Pollock, Tom

This Story Is A Lie by Tom Pollock

Fast-paced, captivating, and complex. This Story Is A Lie by Tom Pollock is a unique and compelling take on your average mystery novel.

Seventeen-year-old math prodigy Peter Blankman has suffered from panic attacks ever since he could remember. He’s always afraid and nervous, but when his mother wins a prestigious award for her work, Peter is determined to be there beside her like a normal kid would be. And that is when, for the first time in Peter’s life, his worst fears are realized. His mother is stabbed and nearly killed, while Bel, his twin sister and the only person who ever understood him disappears, presumably kidnapped by his mother’s attacker.

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Teen SRC 2019- Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Written by Lucian C.
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Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Jake is a boy whose grandfather went missing. He eventually finds a magical world where peculiar children live and only peculiar children and hollows can enter. Hollows are monsters that can become more human-like the more peculiar eyeballs they eat. Jake finds out that his power is being able to see the hollows. I liked the book a lot because it was very descriptive and kept me hooked.

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