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The Good Sister
In New York Times bestselling authorWendy Corsi Staub's electrifying new thriller,a mother races to save her daughter beforeher darkest nightmare comes true.
Sacred Sisters Catholic girls' school has hardly changed since Jen Archer was a student. Jen hoped her older daughter would thrive here. Instead, shy, studious Carley becomes the target of vicious bullies. But the real danger at Sacred Sisters goes much deeper.
The only person Carley can talk to is "Angel," a kindred spirit she met online. Carley tells Angel everything—about her younger sister, about school, about the sudden death of her former best friend. Angel is her lifeline. And Angel is closer than she knows.
When another schoolgirl is found dead, Jen's unease grows. There are too many coincidences, too many links to her past. Every instinct tells her that Carley is the next target. For someone is intent on punishing the guilty, teaching the ultimate lesson in how to fear . . . and how to die.
Sacred Sisters Catholic girls' school has hardly changed since Jen Archer was a student. Jen hoped her older daughter would thrive here. Instead, shy, studious Carley becomes the target of vicious bullies. But the real danger at Sacred Sisters goes much deeper.
The only person Carley can talk to is "Angel," a kindred spirit she met online. Carley tells Angel everything—about her younger sister, about school, about the sudden death of her former best friend. Angel is her lifeline. And Angel is closer than she knows.
When another schoolgirl is found dead, Jen's unease grows. There are too many coincidences, too many links to her past. Every instinct tells her that Carley is the next target. For someone is intent on punishing the guilty, teaching the ultimate lesson in how to fear . . . and how to die.
437 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 24, 2013
153 people are currently reading
2398 people want to read
About the author
Wendy Corsi Staub
81 books1,891 followersNew York Times bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than ninety novels, best known for the single title psychological suspense novels she writes under her own name. Those books and the women’s fiction written under the pseudonym Wendy Markham have also appeared on the USA Today, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookscan bestseller lists.
Her current standalone suspense novel, THE OTHER FAMILY, is about a picture-perfect family that that moves into a picture-perfect house. But not everything is as it seems, and the page-turner concludes “with a wallop of a twist,” according to #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben.
Her critically acclaimed Lily Dale traditional mystery series centers around a widowed single mom—and skeptic—who moves to a town populated by spiritualists who talk to the dead. Titles include NINE LIVES; SOMETHING BURIED, SOMETHING BLUE; DEAD OF WINTER; and PROSE AND CONS, with a fifth book under contract.
Wendy has written five suspense trilogies for HarperCollins/William Morrow. The most recent, The Foundlings (LITTLE GIRL LOST, DEAD SILENCE, and THE BUTCHER’S DAUGHTER), spans fifty years in the life of a woman left as a newborn in a Harlem church, now an investigative genealogist helping others uncover their biological roots while still searching for her own.
Written as Wendy Markham, Wendy’s novel HELLO, IT’S ME was a recent Hallmark television movie starring Kellie Martin. Her short story “Cat Got Your Tongue” appeared in R.L. Stine’s MWA middle grade anthology SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN and her short story “The Elephant in the Room” is included in the Anthony Award-nominated inaugural anthology SHATTERING GLASS.
A three-time finalist for the Simon and Schuster Mary Higgins Clark Award, she’s won an RWA Rita Award, an RT Award for Career Achievement in Suspense, the 2007 RWA-NYC Golden Apple Award for Lifetime Achievement, and five WLA Washington Irving Prizes for Fiction.
She previously published a dozen adult suspense novels with Kensington Books and the critically-acclaimed young adult paranormal series “Lily Dale” (Walker/Bloomsbury). Earlier in her career, she published a broad range of genres under her own name and pseudonyms, and was a co-author/ghostwriter for several celebrities.
Raised in Dunkirk, NY, Wendy graduated from SUNY Fredonia and launched a publishing career in New York City. She was Associate Editor at Silhouette Books before selling her first novel in 1992. Married with two sons, she lives in the NYC suburbs. An active supporter of the American Cancer Society, she was a featured speaker at Northern Westchester’s 2015 Relay for Life and 2012 National Spokesperson for the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. She has fostered for various animal rescue organizations.
Her current standalone suspense novel, THE OTHER FAMILY, is about a picture-perfect family that that moves into a picture-perfect house. But not everything is as it seems, and the page-turner concludes “with a wallop of a twist,” according to #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben.
Her critically acclaimed Lily Dale traditional mystery series centers around a widowed single mom—and skeptic—who moves to a town populated by spiritualists who talk to the dead. Titles include NINE LIVES; SOMETHING BURIED, SOMETHING BLUE; DEAD OF WINTER; and PROSE AND CONS, with a fifth book under contract.
Wendy has written five suspense trilogies for HarperCollins/William Morrow. The most recent, The Foundlings (LITTLE GIRL LOST, DEAD SILENCE, and THE BUTCHER’S DAUGHTER), spans fifty years in the life of a woman left as a newborn in a Harlem church, now an investigative genealogist helping others uncover their biological roots while still searching for her own.
Written as Wendy Markham, Wendy’s novel HELLO, IT’S ME was a recent Hallmark television movie starring Kellie Martin. Her short story “Cat Got Your Tongue” appeared in R.L. Stine’s MWA middle grade anthology SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN and her short story “The Elephant in the Room” is included in the Anthony Award-nominated inaugural anthology SHATTERING GLASS.
A three-time finalist for the Simon and Schuster Mary Higgins Clark Award, she’s won an RWA Rita Award, an RT Award for Career Achievement in Suspense, the 2007 RWA-NYC Golden Apple Award for Lifetime Achievement, and five WLA Washington Irving Prizes for Fiction.
She previously published a dozen adult suspense novels with Kensington Books and the critically-acclaimed young adult paranormal series “Lily Dale” (Walker/Bloomsbury). Earlier in her career, she published a broad range of genres under her own name and pseudonyms, and was a co-author/ghostwriter for several celebrities.
Raised in Dunkirk, NY, Wendy graduated from SUNY Fredonia and launched a publishing career in New York City. She was Associate Editor at Silhouette Books before selling her first novel in 1992. Married with two sons, she lives in the NYC suburbs. An active supporter of the American Cancer Society, she was a featured speaker at Northern Westchester’s 2015 Relay for Life and 2012 National Spokesperson for the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. She has fostered for various animal rescue organizations.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 191 reviews
July 18, 2013
The Good Sister
By
Wendi Corsica Staub
My " in a nutshell" summary...
Carley is being bullied at school...manipulated online...and an old vendetta is leaving bodies everywhere!
My thoughts after reading this book...
This book was just what I was in the mood for on a hot muggy steamy summer day. The book alternates between allowing us to read pages in a diary from quite a few years ago...to Carley's life in a new school...to Angel...who is mysterious, shrouded, hidden and apparently has a vendetta towards tons of people in this town.
This book is a true chiller...creepy...a tad predictable...but oh so much fun to read! Once I started reading...I truly could not stop.
What I loved about this book...
There is evil...tons of it...in this book. There is a weird evil mom and bullies and one of the nuns at Carley's school isn't so nice either...wait until you read about her! It's just filled with yummy terror. You never know who is going to get "knocked off" next! Or why...
At first there isn't really any rhyme or reason to the deaths...and it's a mystery so you really wouldn't want me to tell you anything juicy about it anyway! My reviewer's lips are sealed!
The best part of this book was the anticipation of what was going to happen next....there were hints and characters that I knew must have a connection...so...that part of the book...trying to figure out the why of everything...was awesome!
What I didn't love...
My heart went out to Carley...she was sad and lost and the constant target of the mean girls.
Final thoughts...
I found this book to be scary, provocative and unputdownable. It is the perfect book for beach or plane. Time will fly by as you try to figure out who did it and why! Again...a little bit predictable...but still fun to read...when you are not scared out of your mind!
By
Wendi Corsica Staub
My " in a nutshell" summary...
Carley is being bullied at school...manipulated online...and an old vendetta is leaving bodies everywhere!
My thoughts after reading this book...
This book was just what I was in the mood for on a hot muggy steamy summer day. The book alternates between allowing us to read pages in a diary from quite a few years ago...to Carley's life in a new school...to Angel...who is mysterious, shrouded, hidden and apparently has a vendetta towards tons of people in this town.
This book is a true chiller...creepy...a tad predictable...but oh so much fun to read! Once I started reading...I truly could not stop.
What I loved about this book...
There is evil...tons of it...in this book. There is a weird evil mom and bullies and one of the nuns at Carley's school isn't so nice either...wait until you read about her! It's just filled with yummy terror. You never know who is going to get "knocked off" next! Or why...
At first there isn't really any rhyme or reason to the deaths...and it's a mystery so you really wouldn't want me to tell you anything juicy about it anyway! My reviewer's lips are sealed!
The best part of this book was the anticipation of what was going to happen next....there were hints and characters that I knew must have a connection...so...that part of the book...trying to figure out the why of everything...was awesome!
What I didn't love...
My heart went out to Carley...she was sad and lost and the constant target of the mean girls.
Final thoughts...
I found this book to be scary, provocative and unputdownable. It is the perfect book for beach or plane. Time will fly by as you try to figure out who did it and why! Again...a little bit predictable...but still fun to read...when you are not scared out of your mind!
July 11, 2014
Carly is being. bullied at Sacred Sisters Catholic girls school and also her friendship with Nicki had ended then later finds out that Nick has. committed suicide.
Carly then finds a new friend named Angel and meets her on a website that's against bullying but Angel isn't the person she thinks she is and thats where the real danger at Sacred Sisters gets much deeper. The horror has begun.
The secrets in this book slowly unfold. This book just blew me away! I kept thinking of different. situations that were going to happen on who did it and why? When I found out the real. situation I was shocked and surprised! No one will be able to solve it! THE ENDING IS SO SURPRISING, FRIGHTENING AND CREEPY! It was so addicting, suspenseful, and definitely twisted.
I would not reccommend this book to those who do not like horror stories but of you like horror this is for you"
Carly then finds a new friend named Angel and meets her on a website that's against bullying but Angel isn't the person she thinks she is and thats where the real danger at Sacred Sisters gets much deeper. The horror has begun.
The secrets in this book slowly unfold. This book just blew me away! I kept thinking of different. situations that were going to happen on who did it and why? When I found out the real. situation I was shocked and surprised! No one will be able to solve it! THE ENDING IS SO SURPRISING, FRIGHTENING AND CREEPY! It was so addicting, suspenseful, and definitely twisted.
I would not reccommend this book to those who do not like horror stories but of you like horror this is for you"
June 29, 2013
Similar in plot and style to a Mary Higgins Clark novel of mad men, and missing and murdered girls and women, this felt like a throwback to the thrillers and mysteries I read in my youth. Likewise I think this probably would have been more satisfying to me when I was younger. This was pretty heavy-handed with its message of getting off the internet and talking, which could be (is probably) true, but also a bit antiquated in the face of the ways we communicate these days. The execution of the crimes and the motives and rational were pretty thin, but I did like the interactions between parents and tens. That’s probably a knee jerk reaction to all the absentee parents in fiction whenever teenagers are involved, so, yay parenting!
October 7, 2013
Another winner from this lady. The cover always compares her to Mary Higgins Clark but I think she writes more like Lisa Jackson. Either way, she has enough best sellers under her belt now to not need comparing to anyone else. She's always cranking out the intriguing page turners. Looking forward to her next one!
October 19, 2013
This big is terrible. Cheesy, depressing, predictable.
October 7, 2015
Carley is a teen struggling with being bullied in school. Things become even worse when her (former) best friend seemingly commits suicide. Her mother, Jen struggles to help her and protect her while past events spur on more death.
First, I want to say normally I really enjoy Staub's books but this one just did not resonate with me. The killer was clearly insane though I had no idea who it was. That said, when the reveal came I was like - Oh. Ok, and didn't really care one way or the other.
I did like the characters, Carley, her sister Emma, Aunt Frankie especially. There was certainly a message about the dangers of predators using social media as well. It just didn't engross me like the others I have read by her.
First, I want to say normally I really enjoy Staub's books but this one just did not resonate with me. The killer was clearly insane though I had no idea who it was. That said, when the reveal came I was like - Oh. Ok, and didn't really care one way or the other.
I did like the characters, Carley, her sister Emma, Aunt Frankie especially. There was certainly a message about the dangers of predators using social media as well. It just didn't engross me like the others I have read by her.
November 29, 2013
I kept wanting to say "really?".
July 23, 2022
series about the "dangers of social media" lmaoo
I originally wanted to read the book of the same name by Sally Hepworth but accidentally borrowed this instead. Then midway it looked sus so I checked the author and lol. But I was alr invested so I continued.
idk this book is such a blast from the past (tm)!! The text speak from the teens was so 2012 (which is accurate bc this book was written in around 2013). Felt like I was impersonating a typical uncle/auntie who reads books to learn what "the kids nowadays" are up to, help.
The fact that there were so many murders without being caught was sus tbh. The characters were rather flat and the girls were unnecessarily bitchy and hated their bodies?? Also the reveal at the end was ????? and lowkey transphobic (don't usually use this word but it's true in this case) because so many books feature such genderfluid villains etc. It was all rather tired and unoriginal but it did give me a break from the recent deep books I've read.
I originally wanted to read the book of the same name by Sally Hepworth but accidentally borrowed this instead. Then midway it looked sus so I checked the author and lol. But I was alr invested so I continued.
idk this book is such a blast from the past (tm)!! The text speak from the teens was so 2012 (which is accurate bc this book was written in around 2013). Felt like I was impersonating a typical uncle/auntie who reads books to learn what "the kids nowadays" are up to, help.
The fact that there were so many murders without being caught was sus tbh. The characters were rather flat and the girls were unnecessarily bitchy and hated their bodies?? Also the reveal at the end was ????? and lowkey transphobic (don't usually use this word but it's true in this case) because so many books feature such genderfluid villains etc. It was all rather tired and unoriginal but it did give me a break from the recent deep books I've read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 3, 2021
This book was only okay. It had so many different POVs. In the beginning it was hard for me to keep up with who was talking, but I eventually got the hang of it. Once I kept going, I started enjoying the plot. The twist at the end was good and I didn't know what was going to happen. I'm ultimately glad that I kept reading to find out what was going to happen.
March 17, 2022
Excellent! Psychological suspense at its best! Betrayal, tears of joy, tears of sadness, you have everything in this book! Teenage best friends torn apart. He said, she said! What’s real? What’s true? Revenge lies at the heart of everything! This is extremely addictive.
July 19, 2021
Adult
Kindle - Owned
That it had all been a lie shouldn't come as any surprise, really.
A killer bent on getting revenge for his sister's death years ago tries to get revenge on the women who bullied her in high school by going after their teenage daughters. This is a fast-paced story with a twist at the end. I don't understand how Carley's mom let the school off the hook for not protecting her daughter against the girls who bullied her. And the book was kind of heavy-handed on how social media and texting are bad and how teenagers don't interact in person. But that does have a touch of truth.
Not a bad read overall despite the text-speak and annoying characters.
Kindle - Owned
That it had all been a lie shouldn't come as any surprise, really.
A killer bent on getting revenge for his sister's death years ago tries to get revenge on the women who bullied her in high school by going after their teenage daughters. This is a fast-paced story with a twist at the end. I don't understand how Carley's mom let the school off the hook for not protecting her daughter against the girls who bullied her. And the book was kind of heavy-handed on how social media and texting are bad and how teenagers don't interact in person. But that does have a touch of truth.
Not a bad read overall despite the text-speak and annoying characters.
March 31, 2023
3.75 ⭐s
October 14, 2013
More like 3.5 stars but I really enjoyed The Good Sister so I adjusted up. Many reviewers have compared The Good Sister to Carrie and The Virgin Suicide (which was referenced in the book). It's
been a long time since I last saw Carrie (and can only remember the school scene vividly) and I've never read The Virgin Suicide so I was able to read The Good Sister with a very open mind. In comparison to Carrie, it's probably a modern day version of bullying gone wild via cell phones/text messages and Internet/social media. But is it really bullying by peers or is something more menacing lurking? One thing is for sure lots of folks can assume someone else's identity and hide behind the social curtains of the Internet.
The Good Sister was a very plot-driven novel with some holes but had lots of action which was suspensful and thrilling. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to see what was going to happen next or find out why so many bad things were happening to Carly and some of the girls around her. While I quickly figured out who the culprit was and the motive, the backstory was mindblowing. On a side note, I didn't understand Angel's parents at all and wish the author would have delved a little deeper into the psyche of Angle's parents as these were some really creepy people and the mom was really stranger and worse than the dad...who was far from being an angel. The ending was neatly wrapped up and predicatable but the ride along the way was filled with roller coaster ups and downs and made for an exciting ride. I say if you like suspense/thrillers, give this one a chance.
been a long time since I last saw Carrie (and can only remember the school scene vividly) and I've never read The Virgin Suicide so I was able to read The Good Sister with a very open mind. In comparison to Carrie, it's probably a modern day version of bullying gone wild via cell phones/text messages and Internet/social media. But is it really bullying by peers or is something more menacing lurking? One thing is for sure lots of folks can assume someone else's identity and hide behind the social curtains of the Internet.
The Good Sister was a very plot-driven novel with some holes but had lots of action which was suspensful and thrilling. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to see what was going to happen next or find out why so many bad things were happening to Carly and some of the girls around her. While I quickly figured out who the culprit was and the motive, the backstory was mindblowing. On a side note, I didn't understand Angel's parents at all and wish the author would have delved a little deeper into the psyche of Angle's parents as these were some really creepy people and the mom was really stranger and worse than the dad...who was far from being an angel. The ending was neatly wrapped up and predicatable but the ride along the way was filled with roller coaster ups and downs and made for an exciting ride. I say if you like suspense/thrillers, give this one a chance.
May 21, 2014
Writing: 4 Stars
Story: 1 Stars
_______________
Total: 2.5 Stars
The ending threw me, I actually felt a bit bad for the villain. I never saw that twist coming. Wendy Corsi Staub writes well, but the story line scared me to death, especially when many children are glued to their iphones and laptops. Cyber-bullying, hacking, and teen suicides aren't really my thing when I want to curl up with a good thriller.
We know who the villain is (or think we do) from the start. He has come back to town to sell his family home after Mother died - albeit with a little help from Adrian. "Accidental" deaths start after he discovers the contents of the Marble Notebook with Ruthie's Rosary that the Realtor found. Adrian is going to punish the mothers that took Ruthie away from him. Sure enough one teenager commits Suicide, and so does another teen a week later. Both were found with a copy of author:Jeffrey Eugenides|1467]'s The Virgin Suicides close by book marked to the sister who died the exact way. Now Adrian is after the good sister - Carley. She is a freshman at Sisters, plump, bad acne, and is being bullied both at school and in Cyberspace. Only Angel understands her and is closer to Carley than she suspects.
Story: 1 Stars
_______________
Total: 2.5 Stars
The ending threw me, I actually felt a bit bad for the villain. I never saw that twist coming. Wendy Corsi Staub writes well, but the story line scared me to death, especially when many children are glued to their iphones and laptops. Cyber-bullying, hacking, and teen suicides aren't really my thing when I want to curl up with a good thriller.
We know who the villain is (or think we do) from the start. He has come back to town to sell his family home after Mother died - albeit with a little help from Adrian. "Accidental" deaths start after he discovers the contents of the Marble Notebook with Ruthie's Rosary that the Realtor found. Adrian is going to punish the mothers that took Ruthie away from him. Sure enough one teenager commits Suicide, and so does another teen a week later. Both were found with a copy of author:Jeffrey Eugenides|1467]'s The Virgin Suicides close by book marked to the sister who died the exact way. Now Adrian is after the good sister - Carley. She is a freshman at Sisters, plump, bad acne, and is being bullied both at school and in Cyberspace. Only Angel understands her and is closer to Carley than she suspects.
November 14, 2013
This book was compared to Lisa Jackson and to Mary Higgins Clark, but it reminded me more of old school Lisa Gardner. Another comparison would be to Gone Girl and The Burning Air, just in terms of the fact that a major theme is "Crazy people go to extreme lengths to get revenge for real or imagined slights."
And that is what makes this book chilling.
"Angel" is completely crazy and searching for vengeance and just will not be stopped. (Angel is kind of like the Terminator.)
This book took a bit to draw me in but once we reached chapter three and I met Carley, I was hooked. (We spend the first couple chapters with Angel and then with a brief diary entry, so it took a few pages for the plot to really get going.)
This book is probably not one to start late at night and chances are it will have you jumping at any random noise. Be aware of that going in. But it's also an incredibly tense and suspenseful book, one that's perfect to read curled up under a blanket, preferably by the light of one lamp. (Did that shadow move? I think it did...)
Recommended.
And that is what makes this book chilling.
"Angel" is completely crazy and searching for vengeance and just will not be stopped. (Angel is kind of like the Terminator.)
This book took a bit to draw me in but once we reached chapter three and I met Carley, I was hooked. (We spend the first couple chapters with Angel and then with a brief diary entry, so it took a few pages for the plot to really get going.)
This book is probably not one to start late at night and chances are it will have you jumping at any random noise. Be aware of that going in. But it's also an incredibly tense and suspenseful book, one that's perfect to read curled up under a blanket, preferably by the light of one lamp. (Did that shadow move? I think it did...)
Recommended.
December 6, 2015
"Spoilers" This one took me a while. Not that it was overly complicated or even slow, I just couldn't get into it. Only finished it because i noticed i was way behind on this year's reading challenge. Not trying to be too harsh, but can't help but to think that Stephen King should be getting atleast some of the royalties for this one. The title should be, "Carrie II". Instead of the prom, we have spring fling. Instead of telekinesis, "Ruthie" after being tricked into believing the highschool heart throb wants her to be his date, she runs out of the gym and commits suicide. Fast forward a generation and Ruthie's little brother is out for revenge. Going to leave it at that. But as you can see there are plenty of similarities between the stories with just enough differences. When you read it you will definately see more.
July 3, 2013
I received an advance copy. I haven't read anything by Wendy Corsi Staub before. All in all, it was an enjoyable read. But there were a few places where it dragged and a few things that I felt were not completely explained, at least not to my liking. Also, there were a few places where the teenage character annoyed me, simply by being stupid teenagers. Please tell me that I wasn't as silly as they were when I was that age.
April 16, 2016
A combination of a Criminal Minds episode with a dash of Carrie and Norman Bates thrown in, I did not enjoy this story. It could have been a thoughtful tale of the relationships between sisters, but it was written in the most basic style. There were trails that might have been intriguing if there was a bit more character development, or even descriptive writing. A big twist in the end was not enough to save it...I will continue to watch TV for my cheap, thoughtless thrills.
October 9, 2013
Amazing! It was so good that I couldn't put it down and read non-stop until I finished it. The story was so well done, the characters were well thought out, and the ending about blew my mind. Another fantastic book by Wendi Corsi Staub, who has quickly become my can-count-on author.
October 2, 2013
Excellent as all of her books are.
December 7, 2013
This thriller was so good! I could not put this book down!
September 22, 2013
My first novel by Staub. A good thriller that kept me guessing.
October 1, 2013
Very much enjoyed this fast-paced thriller. Staub really got my adrenaline going with some of the scenes! And I feel the subject matter is very timely in today's world.
October 8, 2013
Pretty damn' good, even if she is a friend...
October 18, 2013
AWESOME, awesome book!!!
Could not put it down until I finished it.
Could not put it down until I finished it.
November 24, 2013
Wendy did not disappoint again. She is one of my favorite authors.
September 11, 2015
i liked it alot. but this book had some crazy family!
March 8, 2022
This would be fine were it not for the inherrant transphobia in yet another "gender confused murderer" plot
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2020
I have enjoyed some of Straub's other books, but this one is too derivative and too 'cluttered' to be a good mystery. The book started off interesting with a big, old house with hidden rooms and a mysterious journal wrapped in rosary beads. Then it turned out to be a copy of Stephen King's Carrie, mixed with some modern dangers to teenagers. I finished the book and was surprised at who the killer was, but I was mostly surprised because it didn't make a lot of sense.
The book is mostly about a teenager named Carly, who goes to a Catholic Girl's school where she has no friends and is being bullied. Her only friend is a girl named Angel who she meets online and they lots of conversations that are supposed to sound like a teenager but don't really (let's go 2 da mallll!).
When a former friend of Carly's commits suicide, a mystery begins to form and Carly's parents are worried about their daughter's life.
This book has way too many characters. In addition to Carly and her sister we have her parents, grandparents, her mother Jen's four Italian sisters and their partners and occupations, various neighbors, a bad boy named Gabriel, teachers, counselors and the janitor at Carly's school, former classmates of the mother Jen, various townspeople including a locksmith, a funeral director and other random people. The book goes on weird tangents involving people that have zero connection to anything going on including the fact that a guy lives above a dry cleaners and is trying to lose weight, a couple is having an affair, one of Jen's sisters is thinking about moving home, and the daughter of Jen's classmate who thinks she is meeting a NFL player. I'm guessing the author wanted to have tons of people so we wouldn't guess who the killer was, but it was too much.
I did like Jen and Thad and I think they were good parents who did their best at dealing with their teenage daughters. The original mystery (mostly talked about in the journal entries) has been written before in many books. I also found some things kind of implausible such as the idea that school employees wouldn't have to have appropriate licenses and schools would just hire anyone and some of the technology. I also think most kids would not be terribly interested in a friendship with another girl who lives across the country and has nothing in common with her and seems to talk exclusively about negative subjects. Some of the storylines went nowhere (Emma and her boyfriend, the one employee of the school who is mentioned several times, the piano teacher). I don't think I would recommend this book but she has written others I have liked.
The book is mostly about a teenager named Carly, who goes to a Catholic Girl's school where she has no friends and is being bullied. Her only friend is a girl named Angel who she meets online and they lots of conversations that are supposed to sound like a teenager but don't really (let's go 2 da mallll!).
When a former friend of Carly's commits suicide, a mystery begins to form and Carly's parents are worried about their daughter's life.
This book has way too many characters. In addition to Carly and her sister we have her parents, grandparents, her mother Jen's four Italian sisters and their partners and occupations, various neighbors, a bad boy named Gabriel, teachers, counselors and the janitor at Carly's school, former classmates of the mother Jen, various townspeople including a locksmith, a funeral director and other random people. The book goes on weird tangents involving people that have zero connection to anything going on including the fact that a guy lives above a dry cleaners and is trying to lose weight, a couple is having an affair, one of Jen's sisters is thinking about moving home, and the daughter of Jen's classmate who thinks she is meeting a NFL player. I'm guessing the author wanted to have tons of people so we wouldn't guess who the killer was, but it was too much.
I did like Jen and Thad and I think they were good parents who did their best at dealing with their teenage daughters. The original mystery (mostly talked about in the journal entries) has been written before in many books. I also found some things kind of implausible such as the idea that school employees wouldn't have to have appropriate licenses and schools would just hire anyone and some of the technology. I also think most kids would not be terribly interested in a friendship with another girl who lives across the country and has nothing in common with her and seems to talk exclusively about negative subjects. Some of the storylines went nowhere (Emma and her boyfriend, the one employee of the school who is mentioned several times, the piano teacher). I don't think I would recommend this book but she has written others I have liked.
November 21, 2020
Had mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, it felt like the story was about a naïve mom who sends her shy, equally naïve daughter to her old private school hoping to relive her own days of popularity. She meets a "friend" online. Younger sister isn't much better and was really annoying in how bratty she was and the awful choices she made. The story seemed a little dated with the irritating way that the teenagers "talk" and it was disappointing to see the author make the same grammatical errors several times through the book. I did feel bad for the villian in a way as the main characters were awful and there was no acknowledgement that they did anything wrong. The end was a little of a let down because it didn't quite address all the loose ends.. like what was the point of having the janitor character at the beginning only to have him disappear after the first chapter? was it just to throw in a red herring? Also, what the was the story behind the creepy neighbour. What did 8th grade Emma do in the woods with him?
On the other hand, while the chapters were quite long, the story itself was fast paced and suspenseful, you find yourself racing to the end to find out what was going on, and I don't think that anyone can say they could foresaw the twist which I thought was unique. Wasn't a book I was totally pleased with, but would be interested in trying out something else from this author.
On the other hand, while the chapters were quite long, the story itself was fast paced and suspenseful, you find yourself racing to the end to find out what was going on, and I don't think that anyone can say they could foresaw the twist which I thought was unique. Wasn't a book I was totally pleased with, but would be interested in trying out something else from this author.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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