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Girl on Point
"One of the most dramatic and emotional books I have read this year, Girl On Point is extremely well-written, showing the aftermath of a horrific crime which changes the lives of all involved. Cheryl Guerriero’s story of a girl struggling with the death of her younger sister, and with the overwhelming guilt that her sister had been in the wrong place at the wrong time at her request, is incredibly powerful on so many levels." Readers' FavoriteAlexandra Campbell’s life comes to a crashing halt the night her younger sister is killed during a convenience store robbery. Shattered by guilt, Alex distances herself from her friends and family. Months later, with the police investigation stalled, she fears justice may never be served.Determined to avenge her sister’s murder, Alex disguises herself and joins the gang responsible for the shooting. To identify the one who pulled the trigger, she must put her own life at risk in a world of dangerous criminals. But the longer she plays her new game, the more the lines blur between loyalty and betrayal.
252 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 2, 2017
538 people are currently reading
1396 people want to read
About the author
Cheryl Guerriero
3 books41 followersCheryl Guerriero is the screenwriter behind the AppleTV+ original film Palmer, starring Justin Timberlake, Juno Temple (Ted Lasso) and Ryder Allen (The Penguin) who earned a Critics Choice Award nomination for his performance. Directed by Academy Award winner Fisher Stevens, Palmer premiered in 2021 and quickly became AppleTV+’s most-watched film, breaking global viewership records. It remains one of the platform’s top-performing titles to this day.
Guerriero was recently tapped by Netflix to adapt Barrie, a powerful true story about British soldier and bomb disposal expert Sean Laidlaw, who finds healing and purpose after rescuing a stray puppy in war-torn Syria—and fighting to bring her home.
Her upcoming projects include I Have Something To Tell You, a feature she wrote and is set to direct for Monarch Media; A Finger Lickin’ Good Story with Meridian Pictures, based on the life of Colonel Harland Sanders and his daughter Margaret, and the political thriller PH-1, which she co-wrote with Mark Kassen (Puncture), now in post-production.
In addition to her screenwriting work, Guerriero made her publishing debut with the suspense novel Girl on Point, which reviewers praised as “the most dramatic and emotional book of the year” and “a shocking, unpredictable read.” She also appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show to discuss her documentary My Best Kept Secret.
Originally from New Jersey, Guerriero now lives in Los Angeles. When Guerriero’s not writing, you can find her playing poker, indulging in ice cream, or coaching her dog in the fine art of table-side begging.
Guerriero was recently tapped by Netflix to adapt Barrie, a powerful true story about British soldier and bomb disposal expert Sean Laidlaw, who finds healing and purpose after rescuing a stray puppy in war-torn Syria—and fighting to bring her home.
Her upcoming projects include I Have Something To Tell You, a feature she wrote and is set to direct for Monarch Media; A Finger Lickin’ Good Story with Meridian Pictures, based on the life of Colonel Harland Sanders and his daughter Margaret, and the political thriller PH-1, which she co-wrote with Mark Kassen (Puncture), now in post-production.
In addition to her screenwriting work, Guerriero made her publishing debut with the suspense novel Girl on Point, which reviewers praised as “the most dramatic and emotional book of the year” and “a shocking, unpredictable read.” She also appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show to discuss her documentary My Best Kept Secret.
Originally from New Jersey, Guerriero now lives in Los Angeles. When Guerriero’s not writing, you can find her playing poker, indulging in ice cream, or coaching her dog in the fine art of table-side begging.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 89 reviews
December 4, 2017
Alex Campbell’s life changes after playing a high school basketball game in New Jersey. While celebrating their victory her sister is killed at a neighboring convenience store. The crime appears to be a failed robbery but there are no witnesses and clues are lacking about the perpetrators. As the months advance, Alex becomes angry with the lack of progress by the police. They still don’t have any suspects. Upset with the lack of resolution, Alex decides to take matters into her own hands.
Instead of heading to basketball camp, Alex lies to her parents and spends her summer in the town where her sister died. She meets some local gang members and slowly becomes entrenched in their lives. She finds herself bending her morals and participating in gang activities. Alex continues to hunt for the killer but finds the power and camaraderie to be addictive. Friendships are formed and tensions build as she slowly uncovers the truth.
This novel was a suspenseful read and takes you inside the dynamics of gang life. It is also the story about a family struggling with an emotional tragedy. Don’t miss this debut novel by Cheryl Guerriero.
Instead of heading to basketball camp, Alex lies to her parents and spends her summer in the town where her sister died. She meets some local gang members and slowly becomes entrenched in their lives. She finds herself bending her morals and participating in gang activities. Alex continues to hunt for the killer but finds the power and camaraderie to be addictive. Friendships are formed and tensions build as she slowly uncovers the truth.
This novel was a suspenseful read and takes you inside the dynamics of gang life. It is also the story about a family struggling with an emotional tragedy. Don’t miss this debut novel by Cheryl Guerriero.
June 21, 2017
This is a nice quick read. Very emotional, lots of heartbreak and drama. While the main character is a teenager, it doesn't necessarily come off as a YA novel to me. This book deals with serious stuff... our main character doesn't count school and romance among the most important things to her. What's important is her sister, what happened that night... what's important is getting revenge.
Alex enjoys a pretty decent life. Sure, she doesn't always get along with her mom and she has some annoyances. But she is super close to her little sister, she's a talented basketball player, not unpopular at school, her family is comfortably middle class, and she gets to drive around her very own blue Jeep. She's happy... that is until one fateful night after a basketball game in a different town. Her sister is shot and killed in a convenience store after Alex sends her over to buy her a drink. Her life will never be the same.
The police have their suspicions, but no one has been arrested and it's starting to look like no one ever will be. Top suspects are members of a local all-female gang, but they have no evidence and no one is talking. That's when Alex comes up with an insane idea: she will prove who did it herself. She convinces her dad she's headed to basketball camp, and her mother no longer cares about anything at all so she's not a problem. Now all there is to do is alter her appearance a bit and try to fit into a very different neighborhood and get in with that gang. The question is: can she find evidence without being found out or losing herself to a different kind of life?
I really enjoyed this one, it was a bit of escapism. It's pretty fast-moving and holds your attention. Prepare to feel for characters you never thought you would have and fear for others. A problem I had with it was the slang that was used. I understand not wanting to use the newest terms because they might not hold up over time and you want the book to remain relevant, but a lot of it was dated and sometimes overused. "Yo" is used way too much here. But I do understand that you have to walk a fine line between relevancy and readability with dialogue like that. I'd recommend this one for the addictive storyline and strong characters.
I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Red Adept Publishing, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.
Alex enjoys a pretty decent life. Sure, she doesn't always get along with her mom and she has some annoyances. But she is super close to her little sister, she's a talented basketball player, not unpopular at school, her family is comfortably middle class, and she gets to drive around her very own blue Jeep. She's happy... that is until one fateful night after a basketball game in a different town. Her sister is shot and killed in a convenience store after Alex sends her over to buy her a drink. Her life will never be the same.
The police have their suspicions, but no one has been arrested and it's starting to look like no one ever will be. Top suspects are members of a local all-female gang, but they have no evidence and no one is talking. That's when Alex comes up with an insane idea: she will prove who did it herself. She convinces her dad she's headed to basketball camp, and her mother no longer cares about anything at all so she's not a problem. Now all there is to do is alter her appearance a bit and try to fit into a very different neighborhood and get in with that gang. The question is: can she find evidence without being found out or losing herself to a different kind of life?
I really enjoyed this one, it was a bit of escapism. It's pretty fast-moving and holds your attention. Prepare to feel for characters you never thought you would have and fear for others. A problem I had with it was the slang that was used. I understand not wanting to use the newest terms because they might not hold up over time and you want the book to remain relevant, but a lot of it was dated and sometimes overused. "Yo" is used way too much here. But I do understand that you have to walk a fine line between relevancy and readability with dialogue like that. I'd recommend this one for the addictive storyline and strong characters.
I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Red Adept Publishing, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.
July 3, 2017
Girl on point was a fun read that touched on some very emotive themes. It toys with the idea of Alex ‘going native’ in her hopes to infiltrate the gang who she believes is responsible for her sister’s death. I really liked Alex and hoped she’d find the one responsible, when she submerged herself in the gang life – a sweet girl from a middle-class background in a neglected, poverty-stricken town – I worried for her safety. There were a few tense moments where I thought her cover was blown and these keep me on the edge-of-my-seat. Alex had to think quick to save herself on a few occasions.
As Alex gets closer to the gang, you immediately worry the lines are blurring. As you expect, some of the characters in this book are awful, angry at the situation they find themselves in, from an upbringing so different to Alex, there are plenty of contrasts in this one. However, you do find yourself slightly saddened by one of the characters as she is trying to make a better life for herself but once you’re in the gang life, can you ever really get out? And I say ‘saddened’ not because I don’t hold her responsible for her actions but because I saw so much potential for better.
Guerriero chose to write this book in a chatty tone and it worked really well as it reflected the story being told. Girl on Point isn’t too long, at 250 pages it can be read in one sitting. While this can be classified as YA as the main protagonist is a teenager, it certainly didn’t read as one. The writing was simpler than you’d find in adult fiction but the theme was dangerous and the violence was tenfold. This book exceeded all my expectations and I found myself immersed in the plot and invested in Alex’s plight.
I suspected the outcome but I can’t hand-on-heart say I predicted it. Overall, I just really really enjoyed this novel; it was refreshing, fun and addictive, if a little violent at times (which I liked). I absolutely recommend Girl on Point!
*My thanks to the author for providing me with a digital copy of this book*
As Alex gets closer to the gang, you immediately worry the lines are blurring. As you expect, some of the characters in this book are awful, angry at the situation they find themselves in, from an upbringing so different to Alex, there are plenty of contrasts in this one. However, you do find yourself slightly saddened by one of the characters as she is trying to make a better life for herself but once you’re in the gang life, can you ever really get out? And I say ‘saddened’ not because I don’t hold her responsible for her actions but because I saw so much potential for better.
Guerriero chose to write this book in a chatty tone and it worked really well as it reflected the story being told. Girl on Point isn’t too long, at 250 pages it can be read in one sitting. While this can be classified as YA as the main protagonist is a teenager, it certainly didn’t read as one. The writing was simpler than you’d find in adult fiction but the theme was dangerous and the violence was tenfold. This book exceeded all my expectations and I found myself immersed in the plot and invested in Alex’s plight.
I suspected the outcome but I can’t hand-on-heart say I predicted it. Overall, I just really really enjoyed this novel; it was refreshing, fun and addictive, if a little violent at times (which I liked). I absolutely recommend Girl on Point!
*My thanks to the author for providing me with a digital copy of this book*
July 23, 2017
A huge thank you to the author for giving me a copy in return for my honest review. I read this in one sitting and was riveted from the first chapter all the way to the last page. Alex and her sister, Jenny, play basketball together on the school team. After a fierce match, Alex sends Jenny in to grab her a Dr. Pepper and Jenny is killed during a convenience store robbery. Time passes and although there are suspects, there isn't sufficient evidence to arrest anyone. As Alex's mother spirals into depression, lashing out at everyone, Alex's own guilt eats at her day by day. Her Dad is trying to hold on by a string, attempting to take care of the family that is left. Since the cops can't seem to get anywhere, Alex decides to take matters into her own hands and this is where the true story begins.
This is a very harrowing, emotional and stick-you-in-the-gut kind of novel that touches on all your emotions. The author does an amazing job putting you right inside Alex's head. The lengths she goes to in order to (1) punish herself, (2) make her mother proud for once and (3) seek revenge for her sister, turns her into someone she no longer recognizes. I found myself getting angry when she got angry, tearing up when she lost it and even laughing during certain moments ("Blue Jeep Special!").
Touching on gangs, grief, murder, abuse and forgiveness, this book takes you on a roller coaster of emotions. As the story unfolds you get an idea of where it will probably end and it is worth every word on each page. As emotional as a book as I've read in a while, this one really touched my heart. This is a debut novel done right! I loved absolutely everything about it and I predict a lot more from this author soon - I'm certainly going to be on the look out!
This is a very harrowing, emotional and stick-you-in-the-gut kind of novel that touches on all your emotions. The author does an amazing job putting you right inside Alex's head. The lengths she goes to in order to (1) punish herself, (2) make her mother proud for once and (3) seek revenge for her sister, turns her into someone she no longer recognizes. I found myself getting angry when she got angry, tearing up when she lost it and even laughing during certain moments ("Blue Jeep Special!").
Touching on gangs, grief, murder, abuse and forgiveness, this book takes you on a roller coaster of emotions. As the story unfolds you get an idea of where it will probably end and it is worth every word on each page. As emotional as a book as I've read in a while, this one really touched my heart. This is a debut novel done right! I loved absolutely everything about it and I predict a lot more from this author soon - I'm certainly going to be on the look out!
June 19, 2017
Girl on Point is an incredible, heartbreaking, emotional read. Alexandra Campbell’s life changes after her little sister is killed during a convenience store robbery. With nothing to live for and full of hatred, Alex decides to get close to the gang members who the police believe were the ones involved in the robbery and avenge her sister's death. But joining a gang makes her remember and miss the friendship she had with another person. The high and the rush she gets after doing something illegal makes her want to live again. But the longer she gets immersed in the gang life and hides who she really is, the more the lines blur between loyalty and revenge.
Great plot and all the characters were well developed. The story pulls you in from the beginning and keeps you turning the pages. I highly recommend this book to everyone.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Red Adept Publishing, LLC for supplying a copy of Cheryl Guerriero's "Girl on Point" in exchange for an honest review.
Great plot and all the characters were well developed. The story pulls you in from the beginning and keeps you turning the pages. I highly recommend this book to everyone.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Red Adept Publishing, LLC for supplying a copy of Cheryl Guerriero's "Girl on Point" in exchange for an honest review.
June 12, 2017
Ahhh!! wow, not even sure how to start this review. first I'll say it exceeded. My expectations. Secondly I'll say this book while fierce, it was heart breaking too. it really pulls you in, and makes you question how far you'd go, would you take matters into your own hands? Would it be worth it in the long run? I'm not sure what I'd do if something terrible happened to my sister. the best books are the ones that make your heart race, your pulse pound, and you just keep saying, one more chapter. Thank you Cheryl for sending this to me to review!! read it guys!
August 4, 2017
A great novel about grief, revenge, and discovering that we are all more alike than we realise. I thank the author for providing me with an ARC copy of this novel that I freely chose to review.
This is a Young Adult novel for all ages, as is the case with the best in the genre. It is the story of a girl, Alex, a great basketball player and fairly popular, whose younger sister, Jenny, gets killed during an armed robbery at a convenience store. The girls were playing basketball with school in a bad neighbourhood, and she had sent her sister to get her a drink from the store while she finished getting dressed. Her sister seemed to get caught in the crossfire of the robbers, who also killed the owner of the store, and died in Alex’s arm. She had carried her guilt and her grief with her, and despite therapy and medication, she could not go back to her old life. The police suspected that a gang of young girls were responsible for the robbery and the murders, but were unable to prove it. Feeling depressed, suicidal, and not caring about the consequences, Alex decides to go undercover and to try and infiltrate the gang to discover the truth and to obtain evidence to convict the killers (or perhaps get her own revenge). As you can imagine, things are far from straightforward, and Alex discovers a truth or two more than she had bargained for.
The story is told in the first person from Alex’s point of view. The author is good at reflecting the girl’s emotions, her grief, her rage, her hate, her desperation, and her fear and paranoia. Although I know some readers shy away from first person narrators, Alex is so focused on her plans and on getting justice (or revenge) for her sister’s death that she hardly ever strays too far from her feelings towards her sister and family, the situation at hand, and her plans. She does not spend pages talking about her looks, or about those of others. She is not self-obsessed. She is obsessed with her sister’s death and by the killers. She has fears, regrets, and at times is worried that she will not be able to accomplish what she set to do. She gets sick, she makes the wrong decisions, she hesitates, she lies, pretends, abuses the trust of those who love her, but she is easy to empathise with, due to the rawness of her emotions and the depth of her grief. We might not like what she does, and we might not know enough of her before this to truly get a sense of how the experience has changed her, but there are enough glimpses of her previous life to know that she was never perfect (she confesses to stealing things from shops when she was younger) but she loved her family and adored her sister.
The story show us the contrast between Alex’s normal life (she lives in a nice house, has her own car, can go to basketball camp and college without worrying about money, and she comes from a good upper middle-class family. It is true that her mother has not coped well with her grief and blames her for her sister’s death and is drinking too much, but her father continues to support her, and her seemed to be a happy family before the tragedy struck), and the lives of the girls of the Black Diamond gang. We get to know them individually, especially Natice, the girl she works with at the pizza place, and we discover that even the most violent and aggressive of them are human beings, who have grown up in difficult situations, without access to any of the privileges Alex grew-up with, and some have had to endure terrible abuse. If at first, she is somebody who had no empathy or understanding for the experiences of the people who live on the other side of the tracks, she gets many of her prejudices challenged and she learns to see the person behind the label.
Alex’s task, though, is not a sociological experiment. She ‘goes native’ with all the risks it entails. Like Kurtz in Heart of Darkness, she risks losing herself in the process. To be convincing enough to be let into their secrets, she has to become one of the girls, and that means doing morally questionable things and committing crimes. Although she might not like what she does, and at times is horrified by her behaviour and that of the other girls, she is honest enough to herself to admit that she enjoys some aspects of the process. She becomes really close to some of the girls but the circumstances conspire to remind her of why she is really there.
This is a novel that explores many types of grief and shows us that not everybody reacts the same way to the loss of a loved one. It also shows us that revenge and justice are not always as simple, pure, and blind as we might think. After all, we are not heroes in a comic, and playing vigilante is far from easy or glamorous. Very few things in life are black or white, and it is easier to hate something or somebody unknown than an individual we have come to care about.
I particularly liked the realistic psychological portrayals of the characters and the way all the girls are shown as both good and bad. Yes, Alex manages to get away with many things that seem very difficult at her age, especially when she had led a reasonably sheltered life, but this is a standard trope of the genre and she is shown as a resourceful young woman who takes all difficulties in her stride.
The book is well-written, with enough descriptions to make us feel as if we were there, but without excessive details. There is action, and the pace is quick. As we share the main character’s point of view, we suffer with her, worry for her safety, and are swept by the maelstrom and chaos of the gang life. The ending is realistic and I think most readers will find it satisfying. (And no, I won’t say anything else).
In sum, this is a novel of psychological depth and good emotional insight that looks closely at family relationships, friendships, grief, revenge, and gang culture. It does not shy from the ugliness and violence of that world and it constructs believable characters, some that we like and some that we dislike. It is not an easy book to read (as mentioned, there is violence, drug taking, and criminal behaviour) but it is one that grabs the reader at an emotional level and does not let go. It combines good action with strong characters and I recommend it to lovers of the genre and, in general, to those who enjoy well-written novels, dealing with complex matters and populated by diverse characters.
This is a Young Adult novel for all ages, as is the case with the best in the genre. It is the story of a girl, Alex, a great basketball player and fairly popular, whose younger sister, Jenny, gets killed during an armed robbery at a convenience store. The girls were playing basketball with school in a bad neighbourhood, and she had sent her sister to get her a drink from the store while she finished getting dressed. Her sister seemed to get caught in the crossfire of the robbers, who also killed the owner of the store, and died in Alex’s arm. She had carried her guilt and her grief with her, and despite therapy and medication, she could not go back to her old life. The police suspected that a gang of young girls were responsible for the robbery and the murders, but were unable to prove it. Feeling depressed, suicidal, and not caring about the consequences, Alex decides to go undercover and to try and infiltrate the gang to discover the truth and to obtain evidence to convict the killers (or perhaps get her own revenge). As you can imagine, things are far from straightforward, and Alex discovers a truth or two more than she had bargained for.
The story is told in the first person from Alex’s point of view. The author is good at reflecting the girl’s emotions, her grief, her rage, her hate, her desperation, and her fear and paranoia. Although I know some readers shy away from first person narrators, Alex is so focused on her plans and on getting justice (or revenge) for her sister’s death that she hardly ever strays too far from her feelings towards her sister and family, the situation at hand, and her plans. She does not spend pages talking about her looks, or about those of others. She is not self-obsessed. She is obsessed with her sister’s death and by the killers. She has fears, regrets, and at times is worried that she will not be able to accomplish what she set to do. She gets sick, she makes the wrong decisions, she hesitates, she lies, pretends, abuses the trust of those who love her, but she is easy to empathise with, due to the rawness of her emotions and the depth of her grief. We might not like what she does, and we might not know enough of her before this to truly get a sense of how the experience has changed her, but there are enough glimpses of her previous life to know that she was never perfect (she confesses to stealing things from shops when she was younger) but she loved her family and adored her sister.
The story show us the contrast between Alex’s normal life (she lives in a nice house, has her own car, can go to basketball camp and college without worrying about money, and she comes from a good upper middle-class family. It is true that her mother has not coped well with her grief and blames her for her sister’s death and is drinking too much, but her father continues to support her, and her seemed to be a happy family before the tragedy struck), and the lives of the girls of the Black Diamond gang. We get to know them individually, especially Natice, the girl she works with at the pizza place, and we discover that even the most violent and aggressive of them are human beings, who have grown up in difficult situations, without access to any of the privileges Alex grew-up with, and some have had to endure terrible abuse. If at first, she is somebody who had no empathy or understanding for the experiences of the people who live on the other side of the tracks, she gets many of her prejudices challenged and she learns to see the person behind the label.
Alex’s task, though, is not a sociological experiment. She ‘goes native’ with all the risks it entails. Like Kurtz in Heart of Darkness, she risks losing herself in the process. To be convincing enough to be let into their secrets, she has to become one of the girls, and that means doing morally questionable things and committing crimes. Although she might not like what she does, and at times is horrified by her behaviour and that of the other girls, she is honest enough to herself to admit that she enjoys some aspects of the process. She becomes really close to some of the girls but the circumstances conspire to remind her of why she is really there.
This is a novel that explores many types of grief and shows us that not everybody reacts the same way to the loss of a loved one. It also shows us that revenge and justice are not always as simple, pure, and blind as we might think. After all, we are not heroes in a comic, and playing vigilante is far from easy or glamorous. Very few things in life are black or white, and it is easier to hate something or somebody unknown than an individual we have come to care about.
I particularly liked the realistic psychological portrayals of the characters and the way all the girls are shown as both good and bad. Yes, Alex manages to get away with many things that seem very difficult at her age, especially when she had led a reasonably sheltered life, but this is a standard trope of the genre and she is shown as a resourceful young woman who takes all difficulties in her stride.
The book is well-written, with enough descriptions to make us feel as if we were there, but without excessive details. There is action, and the pace is quick. As we share the main character’s point of view, we suffer with her, worry for her safety, and are swept by the maelstrom and chaos of the gang life. The ending is realistic and I think most readers will find it satisfying. (And no, I won’t say anything else).
In sum, this is a novel of psychological depth and good emotional insight that looks closely at family relationships, friendships, grief, revenge, and gang culture. It does not shy from the ugliness and violence of that world and it constructs believable characters, some that we like and some that we dislike. It is not an easy book to read (as mentioned, there is violence, drug taking, and criminal behaviour) but it is one that grabs the reader at an emotional level and does not let go. It combines good action with strong characters and I recommend it to lovers of the genre and, in general, to those who enjoy well-written novels, dealing with complex matters and populated by diverse characters.
July 13, 2017
It is such a wonderful time to be a reader right now. There is so much talent out there, so many amazing new debut authors and Cheryl Guerriero is no exception. Cheryl was kind enough to reach out to me and send me her book and I am so very glad she did. Girl on Point is an intense, emotional read about grief, vengeance and ultimately, empathy. The story centers on Alex, a high school kid from the Jersey suburbs. She’s 17, having a great year at school ….. her whole life is before her. Things go horribly wrong one afternoon when Alex sends her little sister in to a convenience store after a heated high school basketball game. Her little sister is shot and killed when she gets caught in the crossfire during an attempted robbery. At first Alex is numb to the world, succumbing to depression and total despair over the loss of her sister. When the police turn up empty-handed, even though they suspect the robbery to be committed by a local gang, Alex snaps out of her depression. She becomes so consumed with rage at the thought of her sister’s killers walking around free that she vows to get justice on her own. So begins Alex’s descent in to the brutal and violent world of female gangs. She becomes so committed to infiltrating the gang completely that the lines between friend and enemy soon begin to blur.
This book was a fast read at just 250 pages, and yet I found myself experiencing a vast array of emotions within such a short time period. Cheryl’s work reads as that of a seasoned author, her characters have depth, the plot was well executed and she expertly managed to create an environment that read as authentic. While the subject matter is quite dark and occasionally hard to read due to the violence, I found myself caring for one of the characters that I was supposed to hate by the time the book was over and therein lies the brilliance of Cheryl’s ability. She converted me so completely on something that started out as being very black and white and instead left me struggling as a reader because I ended up FEELING for this one particular character….. I wanted her to make better choices, I wanted her to rise above her circumstance, I wanted her to seize her potential and become something more…… from disgust, shock and disbelief to mercy and forgiveness and all of that happened in 250 pages. This book is excellent and I think it would make a great film.
This book was a fast read at just 250 pages, and yet I found myself experiencing a vast array of emotions within such a short time period. Cheryl’s work reads as that of a seasoned author, her characters have depth, the plot was well executed and she expertly managed to create an environment that read as authentic. While the subject matter is quite dark and occasionally hard to read due to the violence, I found myself caring for one of the characters that I was supposed to hate by the time the book was over and therein lies the brilliance of Cheryl’s ability. She converted me so completely on something that started out as being very black and white and instead left me struggling as a reader because I ended up FEELING for this one particular character….. I wanted her to make better choices, I wanted her to rise above her circumstance, I wanted her to seize her potential and become something more…… from disgust, shock and disbelief to mercy and forgiveness and all of that happened in 250 pages. This book is excellent and I think it would make a great film.
July 4, 2017
Girl on Point is a very powerful and original debut novel set in the suburbs and inner city neighborhoods in New Jersey. It tackles the incredibly difficult topics of teenage gang violence, drugs, and death from a quite unique perspective - that of a teenage girl trying to avenge the death of her sister. Alex's grief is so raw and her attempts to come to terms with Jenny's death and the gang members who killed her are so strikingly written, as are her parents' struggles to cope in the aftermath of the murder. Once Ally begins working her way into the world of the Black Diamonds, the novel reads very quickly and I got sucked into the story. The ending was NOT what I saw coming at all, and Guerriero wrapped things up with skill.
I asked the author about how authentic the gang portrayal is given that I have zero experience with this, and she said that she researched this thoroughly with former gang members and a detective, which definitely lends authenticity to the story.
From a school librarian's perspective, due to graphic violence, drugs, language and sex I would recommend this as a upper HS read, and possibly even as an adult novel appealing to mature teens.
Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy of this book for review - all opinions are my own.
I asked the author about how authentic the gang portrayal is given that I have zero experience with this, and she said that she researched this thoroughly with former gang members and a detective, which definitely lends authenticity to the story.
From a school librarian's perspective, due to graphic violence, drugs, language and sex I would recommend this as a upper HS read, and possibly even as an adult novel appealing to mature teens.
Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy of this book for review - all opinions are my own.
May 31, 2017
Heartbreaking, but hopeful...loved the novel.
June 27, 2017
Sit down and strap yourself down folks, because you're about to take a wild ride through the pages of a kind of thriller that will leave you breathlessly wondering what is going to happen next.
Alex is the girl who appears to have it all and in the blink of an eye loses everything she holds dear. Her younger sister is shot dead in a convenience store robbery gone wrong. The police have their suspicions, but are unable to find the evidence to lay charges and it looks as if the perpetrators are going to get away with it. Alex’s family have all but been destroyed since the death of her sister. Her mother is drinking heavily and holds Alex responsible for her sister’s death and her father is drowning in sorrow despite his attempt to keep going with life and clinging to routines and work. Alex herself is battling depression and survivor guilt.
Through impulsive decision making Alex gets hold of the police file on her sister’s murder. Inside she reads the reports and sees the photographs of the girls whom the police suspect. Despite the serious consequences for her future, Alex sets out to change everything about herself and charm her way into the gang that killed her sister and get the evidence the police need so they can bring justice to the whole situation.
In this journey Alex almost loses sight of who she really is as a person and glides seriously close between the lines of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. There are emotional tussles within her own self as she feels a sort of sympathy for the killers and the lives they have led so far, and yet underneath is a seething hatred and need for revenge. Constantly throughout the book you wonder if Alex has gone a step too far and if she is going to be caught out by this gang. It is truly stomach twisting and there were times when the book had to be closed and a moment taken to calm down and deal with the ramifications apparent in the current situation.
This book looks at themes such as forgiveness, friendship and misguided behaviours to maintain the friendships and love in all its forms. It looks at what the unexpected death of a family member does to the remaining people, looking at the grief that can destroy as effectively as a bullet. There are activities depicted within these pages that are callous, there are actions that are truly jaw dropping and there is a lot of confronting acts. It looks at the power of revenge and wrestles with the rights and wrongs of wanting to take revenge into our own hands.
One negative concern in this book was the use of the term ‘ho’ used as a sisterly teasing word between Alex and Jenny. It seems that feminism is neglected in the decision to use the word ‘ho’, a vulgar and demeaning word used to belittle women in modern society.
Powerful, fast paced, gripping and at times almost painful to read, this short book is a ripping good yarn. It is with eagerness we await Guerriero next book.
Alex is the girl who appears to have it all and in the blink of an eye loses everything she holds dear. Her younger sister is shot dead in a convenience store robbery gone wrong. The police have their suspicions, but are unable to find the evidence to lay charges and it looks as if the perpetrators are going to get away with it. Alex’s family have all but been destroyed since the death of her sister. Her mother is drinking heavily and holds Alex responsible for her sister’s death and her father is drowning in sorrow despite his attempt to keep going with life and clinging to routines and work. Alex herself is battling depression and survivor guilt.
Through impulsive decision making Alex gets hold of the police file on her sister’s murder. Inside she reads the reports and sees the photographs of the girls whom the police suspect. Despite the serious consequences for her future, Alex sets out to change everything about herself and charm her way into the gang that killed her sister and get the evidence the police need so they can bring justice to the whole situation.
In this journey Alex almost loses sight of who she really is as a person and glides seriously close between the lines of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. There are emotional tussles within her own self as she feels a sort of sympathy for the killers and the lives they have led so far, and yet underneath is a seething hatred and need for revenge. Constantly throughout the book you wonder if Alex has gone a step too far and if she is going to be caught out by this gang. It is truly stomach twisting and there were times when the book had to be closed and a moment taken to calm down and deal with the ramifications apparent in the current situation.
This book looks at themes such as forgiveness, friendship and misguided behaviours to maintain the friendships and love in all its forms. It looks at what the unexpected death of a family member does to the remaining people, looking at the grief that can destroy as effectively as a bullet. There are activities depicted within these pages that are callous, there are actions that are truly jaw dropping and there is a lot of confronting acts. It looks at the power of revenge and wrestles with the rights and wrongs of wanting to take revenge into our own hands.
One negative concern in this book was the use of the term ‘ho’ used as a sisterly teasing word between Alex and Jenny. It seems that feminism is neglected in the decision to use the word ‘ho’, a vulgar and demeaning word used to belittle women in modern society.
Powerful, fast paced, gripping and at times almost painful to read, this short book is a ripping good yarn. It is with eagerness we await Guerriero next book.
May 2, 2017
Girl on Point by Cheryl Guerriero is a fantastic and thrilling debut! Not going to lie, I knew nothing going into this book (except that it was a thriller) and was completely drawn in by the cover. I will always be a sucker for a great book cover. So, lets get into it!
Alexandra Campbell’s life is that of an average teenage girl. Straight A's and she and her younger sister, Jenny, play for her high school's basketball team. However, her life comes to a crashing halt the night of an away game at a high school with a sketchy reputation. That night after their game Jenny is killed during a convenience store robbery. Shattered by guilt, Alex distances herself from her friends and family. Alex's mother blames her for Jenny's death and turns to destructive methods to numb her pain of the loss of her daughter (alcohol and prescription pills). Her father doesn't know how to cope with the death or his wife's new destructive behavior. Months later, with the police investigation stalled, although they suspect the involvement of a local girl gang, the Black Diamonds.
Determined to avenge her sister’s murder, Alex disguises herself and joins the gang responsible for the shooting. To identify the one who pulled the trigger, Alex must put her own life at risk in a world of dangerous criminals. But the longer she plays her new game, the more the lines blur between loyalty and betrayal.
The characters were well developed and you really felt for Alex and her loss. The struggle of blaming herself, of having to take the blame from her mother, and then the anger she feels about the investigation halting. Diving into the life of joining the gang was intense - what she needs to do to be accepted and be one step closer to finding out who pulled the trigger that killed Jenny. It was a page turner and I couldn't put it down! I will definitely be looking for more of Cheryl's work in the future!
If you want a good thriller that isn't 100% focused on the investigation portion of the story, then you will love this.
I give this debut 5/5 stars!
A big thanks to Cheryl Guerriero for an advanced copy of her book in exchange for an honest review.
Alexandra Campbell’s life is that of an average teenage girl. Straight A's and she and her younger sister, Jenny, play for her high school's basketball team. However, her life comes to a crashing halt the night of an away game at a high school with a sketchy reputation. That night after their game Jenny is killed during a convenience store robbery. Shattered by guilt, Alex distances herself from her friends and family. Alex's mother blames her for Jenny's death and turns to destructive methods to numb her pain of the loss of her daughter (alcohol and prescription pills). Her father doesn't know how to cope with the death or his wife's new destructive behavior. Months later, with the police investigation stalled, although they suspect the involvement of a local girl gang, the Black Diamonds.
Determined to avenge her sister’s murder, Alex disguises herself and joins the gang responsible for the shooting. To identify the one who pulled the trigger, Alex must put her own life at risk in a world of dangerous criminals. But the longer she plays her new game, the more the lines blur between loyalty and betrayal.
The characters were well developed and you really felt for Alex and her loss. The struggle of blaming herself, of having to take the blame from her mother, and then the anger she feels about the investigation halting. Diving into the life of joining the gang was intense - what she needs to do to be accepted and be one step closer to finding out who pulled the trigger that killed Jenny. It was a page turner and I couldn't put it down! I will definitely be looking for more of Cheryl's work in the future!
If you want a good thriller that isn't 100% focused on the investigation portion of the story, then you will love this.
I give this debut 5/5 stars!
A big thanks to Cheryl Guerriero for an advanced copy of her book in exchange for an honest review.
April 26, 2017
Alex Campbell is your average teenage girl. She is a straight-A, student-athlete bound for college on an athletic scholarship. Both Alex and her younger sister Jenny play for their high school’s basketball team, and their friendship is a special bond that they both value. Alex’s perfect life comes to a screeching halt one evening when their basketball team is playing an away-game at Cantor East High, the sketchy high school with a bad reputation. After the game Jenny is shot and killed near the school, the perpetrators never caught. Alex sinks into a deep depression after Jenny’s death, and finds life at home nearly unbearable. Her mother, deeply depressed and blaming Alex for Jenny’s death, turns to alcohol and prescription pills to numb her pain. Her father, unsure how to counter her mother’s destructive behaviour. Authorities have made no arrest for Jenny’s murder, though they suspect a local all-girl gang, the Black Diamonds, is responsible.
Fueled by her own depression and guilt, Alex heads out on a journey of revenge, eager to find the girls who hurt Jenny and make them pay. Will Alex find out who murdered her sister, and what will she do then?
This book is brilliantly engaging and sucked me in right from page one. I found myself unable to put this book down, and read it in a day. ONE day. The story-telling is strong, and I truly felt as though I were in another world. Guerriero highlights the intricacies of the life of inner city youth well. Themes of depression, guilt, betrayal, revenge, forgiveness, friendship and healing are explored throughout the novel, and as such the reader is taken on a rollercoaster of emotions. This story is fast-paced and had me frantically turning pages to find out what would happen next. A fantastic read!
Fueled by her own depression and guilt, Alex heads out on a journey of revenge, eager to find the girls who hurt Jenny and make them pay. Will Alex find out who murdered her sister, and what will she do then?
This book is brilliantly engaging and sucked me in right from page one. I found myself unable to put this book down, and read it in a day. ONE day. The story-telling is strong, and I truly felt as though I were in another world. Guerriero highlights the intricacies of the life of inner city youth well. Themes of depression, guilt, betrayal, revenge, forgiveness, friendship and healing are explored throughout the novel, and as such the reader is taken on a rollercoaster of emotions. This story is fast-paced and had me frantically turning pages to find out what would happen next. A fantastic read!
May 6, 2017
I'll try to not spoil much with this review...but bottom line...I really enjoyed Girl on Point and think it's a great debut novel by Cherly Guerriero.
How far would you go to get justice for a loved one? That's the question faced by Alex, the main character in Girl on Point. And the answer is pretty close to the razor's edge. A good thriller always catches my attention and Girl on Point grabbed me right away. From the great set up, where a young woman, mourning the loss of her sister, decides to put her life on the line to bring the guilty culprit to justice - to the satisfying conclusion - this book was a thrill ride from beginning to end. The characters were vivid. Alex enters a world of female criminals to unmask her sister's killer. What could have easily been a group of caricature "bad girls," were nuanced characters. So, while it's a nail-biting journey to uncover her sister's killer - you kind of don't want the killer to be one of the people we've come to know and love.
Aside from sharp writing and engaging story, Alex is a great character to follow. To see her go from a young woman full of hope to a hardened character, navigating a dangerous world and building bonds with the very people who may be behind her sister's death is very compelling. It's a tough character to pull off and Cherly nails her internal struggle as well as the thrills of leading a double life in a realistic fashion.
It's a fun, fast read and I definitely recommond this book to anyone who's looking for a thrilling, character-driven story.
How far would you go to get justice for a loved one? That's the question faced by Alex, the main character in Girl on Point. And the answer is pretty close to the razor's edge. A good thriller always catches my attention and Girl on Point grabbed me right away. From the great set up, where a young woman, mourning the loss of her sister, decides to put her life on the line to bring the guilty culprit to justice - to the satisfying conclusion - this book was a thrill ride from beginning to end. The characters were vivid. Alex enters a world of female criminals to unmask her sister's killer. What could have easily been a group of caricature "bad girls," were nuanced characters. So, while it's a nail-biting journey to uncover her sister's killer - you kind of don't want the killer to be one of the people we've come to know and love.
Aside from sharp writing and engaging story, Alex is a great character to follow. To see her go from a young woman full of hope to a hardened character, navigating a dangerous world and building bonds with the very people who may be behind her sister's death is very compelling. It's a tough character to pull off and Cherly nails her internal struggle as well as the thrills of leading a double life in a realistic fashion.
It's a fun, fast read and I definitely recommond this book to anyone who's looking for a thrilling, character-driven story.
July 8, 2017
Wow what a book. Alex and Jenny are sisters at a basketball game. After the game Alex gets Jenny to go and buy her a drink from a nearby store. That small task cost poor Jenny her life. Unfortunately it was robbed as Jenny got there and she was caught up in it and shot dead. Alex's live changed forever that day. The happy family life she once knew is gone. With no help from the police to catch the culprits involved Alex decides to take drastic action. Stealing the case notes on a visit to the police station Alex decides to do the job herself. You'd think Alex wouldn't want to be anywhere near the gang involved, but she actually moves near to where they live and starts to stalk them. As if this is not enough she then goes one step further and befriends them and gets to join their gang. There are lots of ups and downs along the way with some unexpected outcomes. A fantastic read following Alex's extraordinary journey a must read highly recommend
June 23, 2018
Mived emotions
This was a story I had to push through. Easy enough to follow, but I kept trying to change Cheerleaders next move. I ended up being a champion for her, even liked the same characters she did. Brave , head shaking, and well written.
This was a story I had to push through. Easy enough to follow, but I kept trying to change Cheerleaders next move. I ended up being a champion for her, even liked the same characters she did. Brave , head shaking, and well written.
July 14, 2017
“This is a whole new level of hate. This is a Super Bowl stadium full of hate. This is homicidal hate.”
Alex is a High School Senior. She plays basketball for her school and loves sharing the team with her younger sister Jenny. She has a boyfriend, friends, and while her mother is a bit distant with her, her father more than makes up for it. In short, she is very content with her life.
Until everything changes with a single bullet.
At an away game, Alex asks her sister to get her a soda after the game. One trip out of a hundred made before. Jenny goes, and bad luck combined with bad timing results in her getting shot. Alex holds her baby sister in her arms while she dies.
The amount of realism in every level of this book is impressive. Guerriero’s writing is strong, and the story she tells is compelling. Take, for example, the opening scenes. They begin in the midst of a basketball game. I know nearly nothing about basketball. But my lack of knowledge didn’t matter. She didn’t complicate the writing with technical terms that would lose the reader, instead focusing on the actions and thoughts. The feel of the game rather than the play-by-play. I was Alex, so my knowledge didn’t matter. This is difficult to achieve and Guerriero pulled this off flawlessly.
This same sense of realism was done again and again. From capturing the dialogue in a way that made the slang feel real, to describing how depression and grief are all encompassing.
“I push off the bed and get moving, but it does little to help me escape the feelings buried inside me: pain and sadness–two unwanted guests that follow me everywhere I go. To the bathroom. To school. To where I’m crowded by others. Or when I’m alone. They never leave, and I desperately want them to leave. I desperately want Jenny to be alive. But she is gone. And I am here. And here hurts.”
Anyone who has ever faced depression, or crippling grief, can probably relate to this passage. I know I did. It captures the way everything hurts, and nothing helps, and how the total enormity of this is simply overwhelming.
But Girl On Point, doesn’t stop simply with Alex and her quest to heal. Instead, Guerriero takes us down a darker path. Down a path that grief can turn into. Anger. Rage. Hate.
Jenny was taken away and no one can tell them why. The police aren’t making any progress, even though the lead detective has a ‘gut feeling’ about who did it. So when her mother drags them down to the police station to harass the detective over lack of progress, again, Alex decides she needs to take things into her own hands.
Armed with private Facebook profiles on the suspects, she creates her own identity and sets out to infiltrate the group herself.
This was my favorite thing about the novel. Guerriero doesn’t make Alex into an amazing spy. Or a girl who suddenly has all the answers. We know, as the reader, that this is a bad idea. And Guerriero, as the writer, knows we know this. Alex makes mistakes. She plunges into a world she knows nothing about with very little planning or forethought. There are close calls, and flat out missteps, and Alex has to sacrifice who she was to really gain their trust. The result is, Guerriero is able to show us the tragedy in all of their lives.
“It’s strange to be celebrating and dancing with the girls I’m trying to send to prison, but I feel something I haven’t felt in a very long time. I feel alive in the world.”
This quote is one of my favorites, because it shows how confusing life can be. Alex is pretending to be someone else, with people she hates, but she actually starts to come alive being with them. And it isn’t because of getting close enough to send them prison, or solve her sister’s murder. The irony is that even pretending to be a different person, she is more herself with these girls, in this life, than she was before.
The effect of abuse and poverty isn’t overly done, and it isn’t glamorized. It is shown, again, very realistically. You can hear the noisy neighborhoods, the chaos of drinking and drugs, feel the fear of kids as they try to avoid abusive or belligerent adults. The dialogue is spot on, and gives each scene the grit and realism that these characters demand. We start to see that these girls make the only choices that make sense to them. They are simply trying to survive in a world that wouldn’t care if they died.
Alex ends up empathizing with the girls she so desperately wants to hate. And in the stunning final twist, realizes that sometimes the truth is so much more complicated than she could ever have imagined.
The only thing I wasn’t in love with was the ending. I felt that given the complexity of the story and the characters, the ending wrapped up a little too nicely and neatly, for me. That was the one piece of the novel that didn’t feel as gritty and realistic as the rest, and so it stuck out to me. I know, some people enjoy their happy endings, and it did have good messaging written in it, so it wasn’t terrible. But, I really would have liked to have seen more of the consequences, since in life, I highly doubt any of that would have happened as written.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I love books with complicated characters and difficult plot lines. I love it when the line between good and bad is blurred so much it’s hard to see where it is. And Girl On Point nails it.
Girl On Point is available now on Amazon, and is free with Kindle Unlimited. Link is below.
Thank you to the author, Cheryl Guerriero, for sending me a copy of her book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
Alex is a High School Senior. She plays basketball for her school and loves sharing the team with her younger sister Jenny. She has a boyfriend, friends, and while her mother is a bit distant with her, her father more than makes up for it. In short, she is very content with her life.
Until everything changes with a single bullet.
At an away game, Alex asks her sister to get her a soda after the game. One trip out of a hundred made before. Jenny goes, and bad luck combined with bad timing results in her getting shot. Alex holds her baby sister in her arms while she dies.
The amount of realism in every level of this book is impressive. Guerriero’s writing is strong, and the story she tells is compelling. Take, for example, the opening scenes. They begin in the midst of a basketball game. I know nearly nothing about basketball. But my lack of knowledge didn’t matter. She didn’t complicate the writing with technical terms that would lose the reader, instead focusing on the actions and thoughts. The feel of the game rather than the play-by-play. I was Alex, so my knowledge didn’t matter. This is difficult to achieve and Guerriero pulled this off flawlessly.
This same sense of realism was done again and again. From capturing the dialogue in a way that made the slang feel real, to describing how depression and grief are all encompassing.
“I push off the bed and get moving, but it does little to help me escape the feelings buried inside me: pain and sadness–two unwanted guests that follow me everywhere I go. To the bathroom. To school. To where I’m crowded by others. Or when I’m alone. They never leave, and I desperately want them to leave. I desperately want Jenny to be alive. But she is gone. And I am here. And here hurts.”
Anyone who has ever faced depression, or crippling grief, can probably relate to this passage. I know I did. It captures the way everything hurts, and nothing helps, and how the total enormity of this is simply overwhelming.
But Girl On Point, doesn’t stop simply with Alex and her quest to heal. Instead, Guerriero takes us down a darker path. Down a path that grief can turn into. Anger. Rage. Hate.
Jenny was taken away and no one can tell them why. The police aren’t making any progress, even though the lead detective has a ‘gut feeling’ about who did it. So when her mother drags them down to the police station to harass the detective over lack of progress, again, Alex decides she needs to take things into her own hands.
Armed with private Facebook profiles on the suspects, she creates her own identity and sets out to infiltrate the group herself.
This was my favorite thing about the novel. Guerriero doesn’t make Alex into an amazing spy. Or a girl who suddenly has all the answers. We know, as the reader, that this is a bad idea. And Guerriero, as the writer, knows we know this. Alex makes mistakes. She plunges into a world she knows nothing about with very little planning or forethought. There are close calls, and flat out missteps, and Alex has to sacrifice who she was to really gain their trust. The result is, Guerriero is able to show us the tragedy in all of their lives.
“It’s strange to be celebrating and dancing with the girls I’m trying to send to prison, but I feel something I haven’t felt in a very long time. I feel alive in the world.”
This quote is one of my favorites, because it shows how confusing life can be. Alex is pretending to be someone else, with people she hates, but she actually starts to come alive being with them. And it isn’t because of getting close enough to send them prison, or solve her sister’s murder. The irony is that even pretending to be a different person, she is more herself with these girls, in this life, than she was before.
The effect of abuse and poverty isn’t overly done, and it isn’t glamorized. It is shown, again, very realistically. You can hear the noisy neighborhoods, the chaos of drinking and drugs, feel the fear of kids as they try to avoid abusive or belligerent adults. The dialogue is spot on, and gives each scene the grit and realism that these characters demand. We start to see that these girls make the only choices that make sense to them. They are simply trying to survive in a world that wouldn’t care if they died.
Alex ends up empathizing with the girls she so desperately wants to hate. And in the stunning final twist, realizes that sometimes the truth is so much more complicated than she could ever have imagined.
The only thing I wasn’t in love with was the ending. I felt that given the complexity of the story and the characters, the ending wrapped up a little too nicely and neatly, for me. That was the one piece of the novel that didn’t feel as gritty and realistic as the rest, and so it stuck out to me. I know, some people enjoy their happy endings, and it did have good messaging written in it, so it wasn’t terrible. But, I really would have liked to have seen more of the consequences, since in life, I highly doubt any of that would have happened as written.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I love books with complicated characters and difficult plot lines. I love it when the line between good and bad is blurred so much it’s hard to see where it is. And Girl On Point nails it.
Girl On Point is available now on Amazon, and is free with Kindle Unlimited. Link is below.
Thank you to the author, Cheryl Guerriero, for sending me a copy of her book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
April 30, 2020
This book was so engaging and page turning, I read it in two sittings.
This book made my heart stop at moments. It was sad and heartbreaking and action packed. There wasn’t ever a dull or boring point in the story, which I think all stories should be like. This is a tough book to read, but it’s written well and the characters are well developed. The plot is engaging and it keeps you guessing to the end!
Check this book out, it won’t disappoint!!
All in all, amazing job Cheryl Guerriero
This book made my heart stop at moments. It was sad and heartbreaking and action packed. There wasn’t ever a dull or boring point in the story, which I think all stories should be like. This is a tough book to read, but it’s written well and the characters are well developed. The plot is engaging and it keeps you guessing to the end!
Check this book out, it won’t disappoint!!
All in all, amazing job Cheryl Guerriero
May 16, 2017
Original Review Here
Girl on Point had me gripped from the opening chapter. Personal events in my own life may have made me more susceptible to the themes at this time, but it isn’t often a book has nearly reduced me to tears after reading less than 5%.
Alex is your average teenage girl with a passion for basketball. Her hopes, her dreams, her life is over when her little sister is killed getting Alex a drink. But the cops are hitting dead-ends everywhere and Alex can’t take the guilt. She cuts her hair, changes her name, and begins the dangerous task of infiltrating the gang that she (and the police) believe are responsible for the shooting.
For some reason, when reading the synopsis of this book, it never occurred to me that the gang would be a purely female one. There is no reason why not – only my mind didn’t make the connection until Alex starts to stalk the members, looking for a way in.
This review is hard to write because of the themes the book touches upon. Alex is filled with hatred when she first meets the girls, determined to see them brought to justice. But although that conviction never fails, she does start to make a genuine connection to them – some more than others.
As Alex grows closer to the girls, the reader is given insights into their lives. Natice is hard-working and driven, and doesn’t approve of what the gang get up to. Ronnie is genuine fun to be around, with her own little girl that helps the reader connect with her character.
Cracker, however, has a mean streak that gave me the shivers. Alex can’t connect with her, and neither can the reader. But it’s not that black and white when we find out the type of home life that Cracker has. It’s the same with Lori; her past is a horrible place that she is trying to escape in any way she can. But while Cracker is mean, Lori has a sly and subtle side that makes her dangerous.
Alex manages to hold her own though, and it shows the strength of her character what she is prepared to do to avenge her sister. As the book progresses and Alex gets more into gang life, her character begins to change and it is harder to relate to her; she enjoys the illegal activities she participates in.
The plot is quite simple: one girl infiltrates a gang to find out the truth about her sister’s death. It is the characters that kept me hooked; nothing is what it seemed and there is no telling what would happen next. I honestly had no idea if Alex would go home or stay with the girls for good.
It is also a book that gets you thinking: gangs do exist and gun crime happens. Get on the wrong side of the wrong people, and life will be ruined for you.
A powerful tale of love and hate. Definitely a recommendation!
Girl on Point had me gripped from the opening chapter. Personal events in my own life may have made me more susceptible to the themes at this time, but it isn’t often a book has nearly reduced me to tears after reading less than 5%.
Alex is your average teenage girl with a passion for basketball. Her hopes, her dreams, her life is over when her little sister is killed getting Alex a drink. But the cops are hitting dead-ends everywhere and Alex can’t take the guilt. She cuts her hair, changes her name, and begins the dangerous task of infiltrating the gang that she (and the police) believe are responsible for the shooting.
For some reason, when reading the synopsis of this book, it never occurred to me that the gang would be a purely female one. There is no reason why not – only my mind didn’t make the connection until Alex starts to stalk the members, looking for a way in.
This review is hard to write because of the themes the book touches upon. Alex is filled with hatred when she first meets the girls, determined to see them brought to justice. But although that conviction never fails, she does start to make a genuine connection to them – some more than others.
As Alex grows closer to the girls, the reader is given insights into their lives. Natice is hard-working and driven, and doesn’t approve of what the gang get up to. Ronnie is genuine fun to be around, with her own little girl that helps the reader connect with her character.
Cracker, however, has a mean streak that gave me the shivers. Alex can’t connect with her, and neither can the reader. But it’s not that black and white when we find out the type of home life that Cracker has. It’s the same with Lori; her past is a horrible place that she is trying to escape in any way she can. But while Cracker is mean, Lori has a sly and subtle side that makes her dangerous.
Alex manages to hold her own though, and it shows the strength of her character what she is prepared to do to avenge her sister. As the book progresses and Alex gets more into gang life, her character begins to change and it is harder to relate to her; she enjoys the illegal activities she participates in.
The plot is quite simple: one girl infiltrates a gang to find out the truth about her sister’s death. It is the characters that kept me hooked; nothing is what it seemed and there is no telling what would happen next. I honestly had no idea if Alex would go home or stay with the girls for good.
It is also a book that gets you thinking: gangs do exist and gun crime happens. Get on the wrong side of the wrong people, and life will be ruined for you.
A powerful tale of love and hate. Definitely a recommendation!
October 17, 2017
This was a good book! I thought from the description that it sounded like an interesting story, but wow this book was so much more than I was expecting. If you're not familiar with the synopsis. Alexandra Campbell's life is changed forever when her sister is killed in a shooting. With the police investigation going nowhere, Alex steals the file about her sister's murder and is determined to get answers herself. She creates a fake identity in order to infiltrate the all female gang that is believed to be responsible for her sister's murder and find out which one of the girls pulled the trigger. I kind of had my doubts about how a depressed, suburban girl was going to be able to worm her way into the gang, but the author handled it nicely. Alex really planned things about before she committed to her new identity. She got a place to stay in their city, she traded in her vehicle and got a job where she could get to know the girls. The story moved forward dramatically and heartbreakingly . And really overall this was a heartbreaking story. It's so hard for me to imagine my sister being murdered, so I could really understand how a person would be willing to do anything to get answers when the investigation is going nowhere. Alex gets to know the girls from the gang and even bonds with some of them. Then after getting close to these girls, it's heartbreaking all over again once she starts to get answers about their involvement in her sister's murder. I highly recommend this book. Honestly, the ending came too soon and I wanted more.
I was lucky enough to win a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway, so thank you Goodreads and Cheryl Guerriero for sending this my way!
I was lucky enough to win a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway, so thank you Goodreads and Cheryl Guerriero for sending this my way!
June 8, 2017
Alex Campbell’s sister is murdered after a tough basketball game against their rivals. When the police fail to find enough evidence to prosecute the young girls that shot her Alex decides to take matters into her own hands. Girl on Point is Alex’s story of dealing with the death of Jenny, her sister. Alex doesn’t deal with it the way most teenagers would. She takes her life into her own hands and does things that made this momma cringe.
Within the Alex’s story I got a peak into the life of inner city youth. I saw how drugs, poverty, lack of parent participation can affect a teenager in negative and positive ways. There is depression, guilt from being a survivor, friendship in a places that was never expected, and healing. For such a heavy story it moved at a fast pace that had me unable to put the book down. I was turning pages, reading words, and needing to know what would happen. Even when I had to put the book down I was thinking about it, wondering where the story was heading, if Alex would find peace…EVER.
Girl on Point is a marvelous book. It is hard, tough, real, and wonderful. I definitely recommend picking up your own copy.
Thank you Red Adept Publishing for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Within the Alex’s story I got a peak into the life of inner city youth. I saw how drugs, poverty, lack of parent participation can affect a teenager in negative and positive ways. There is depression, guilt from being a survivor, friendship in a places that was never expected, and healing. For such a heavy story it moved at a fast pace that had me unable to put the book down. I was turning pages, reading words, and needing to know what would happen. Even when I had to put the book down I was thinking about it, wondering where the story was heading, if Alex would find peace…EVER.
Girl on Point is a marvelous book. It is hard, tough, real, and wonderful. I definitely recommend picking up your own copy.
Thank you Red Adept Publishing for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
June 17, 2017
Girl on Point drew me in from the first few pages and had me riveted throughout the entire book!
After a tragedy, Alex journeys into an unknown world of grief, pain, frustration and guilt that leads her to leave her life behind and try to join a gang to avenge her sister’s death.
The characters are well developed and believable. Cheryl Guerriero is able to write in a way that despite the violence that they engage in, there is a humanness that is undeniable in each of them.
The story flows naturally and as Alex becomes more immersed in the world of a gang, she takes greater and greater risks in order to win their trust.
I could understand how and why these things were happening despite being inclined to yell at the book to try to knock some sense into her!
But, a quote from Herman Hesse at the beginning of one of the chapters encapsulates why: “If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is a part of yourself. What isn’t a part of ourselves doesn’t disturb us.”
That is the brilliance of this book. What would you do if you were in this much pain? This is a story and characters will stay with me for a long time! Highly recommend this book!
After a tragedy, Alex journeys into an unknown world of grief, pain, frustration and guilt that leads her to leave her life behind and try to join a gang to avenge her sister’s death.
The characters are well developed and believable. Cheryl Guerriero is able to write in a way that despite the violence that they engage in, there is a humanness that is undeniable in each of them.
The story flows naturally and as Alex becomes more immersed in the world of a gang, she takes greater and greater risks in order to win their trust.
I could understand how and why these things were happening despite being inclined to yell at the book to try to knock some sense into her!
But, a quote from Herman Hesse at the beginning of one of the chapters encapsulates why: “If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is a part of yourself. What isn’t a part of ourselves doesn’t disturb us.”
That is the brilliance of this book. What would you do if you were in this much pain? This is a story and characters will stay with me for a long time! Highly recommend this book!
June 28, 2017
Wow, this book was so freaking good! I seriously did not want to put this book down. Who needs to eat when you have a good book, anyway? I was in the need of a good revenge story and I got just that. The author did an amazing job creating characters that felt way too real.
I loved how courageous Alex was. I mean, she joined a gang so she could figure out who killed her sister because the police couldn't figure it out. I would have never done the things that she did, ever. She was brave, that's not much more to say about it than that.
I didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did because I didn't think it would be a good YA novel. At first, I wished Alex was a bit older like college years but I changed my mind in the end. I liked that she had to come up with ways to keep her secrets from her parents and go to school. It made it better in my mind that she had all of this going on.
I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants a quick read that will completely wrap you up in the story. You won't be disappointed.
I loved how courageous Alex was. I mean, she joined a gang so she could figure out who killed her sister because the police couldn't figure it out. I would have never done the things that she did, ever. She was brave, that's not much more to say about it than that.
I didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did because I didn't think it would be a good YA novel. At first, I wished Alex was a bit older like college years but I changed my mind in the end. I liked that she had to come up with ways to keep her secrets from her parents and go to school. It made it better in my mind that she had all of this going on.
I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants a quick read that will completely wrap you up in the story. You won't be disappointed.
July 30, 2017
As the blurb to this book describes, this book deals with the violent loss of a beloved younger sister and the impact it has on her immediate family. Beyond the unmitigated loss, her family feels, there is also an impact on the killer. This author masterfully weaves for us a story that takes us on the journey to discover the ripple effects of a horrific act.
Although I do not normally read these types of books, I was intrigued by the plotline of this book and decided to give it a chance. This book is meant for an adult audience and not for the faint of heart. It uncovers the underbelly of society where drug dealers, misguided and abused youths, and impressionable young adults co-exist and survive the best way they can. Do not judge them until you know their story and motivations. We all are a combination of good and evil, after all. It is how we learn and grow from our experiences that matters in the end.
I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I thank the author for sharing with me a copy of her book.
Although I do not normally read these types of books, I was intrigued by the plotline of this book and decided to give it a chance. This book is meant for an adult audience and not for the faint of heart. It uncovers the underbelly of society where drug dealers, misguided and abused youths, and impressionable young adults co-exist and survive the best way they can. Do not judge them until you know their story and motivations. We all are a combination of good and evil, after all. It is how we learn and grow from our experiences that matters in the end.
I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I thank the author for sharing with me a copy of her book.
June 26, 2017
I have received this as an ARC book from NetGalley, with in return for an honest review. I wanted to read a fast pass book, when I came across this book on NetGalley it caught my eye instantly. From the first page to the last page it had my attention fully, I never put the book down. It is so good, the story line, to the characters it was never a dull moment n the book. I finished the book in a few hours once I started it. When you read a page you never knew what was going to happen on the next. It kept my interest unlike some other books I have read in the past.
This book kept you defiantly on your tippy toes, because you never knew if something was going to happen to the other girls in the family, Alex the main character has one really important thing in her life and that is her sisters, she doesn't care about anything else other then them, so what happened that night it turned her world upside down.
I will defiantly recommend this book to my sister and others to read as well.
This book kept you defiantly on your tippy toes, because you never knew if something was going to happen to the other girls in the family, Alex the main character has one really important thing in her life and that is her sisters, she doesn't care about anything else other then them, so what happened that night it turned her world upside down.
I will defiantly recommend this book to my sister and others to read as well.
May 16, 2017
ARC from Netgalley.
A teenage girl is shot dead in a convenience store robbery. Her sister, frustrated by the apparent inability of the police to make arrests (despite strong suspicions), decides to infiltrate the gang involved in the crime in order to discover which of them pulled the trigger and bring them to justice. She's gutsy and sometimes foolish, and stronger than she thought - and she finds herself more involved with the gang-members than she expected, feeling things she never imagined.
I'd characterise this as a young-adult novel, but without many of the faults that so often put me off YA. A strong story-line, good writing and well-developed, complex characters all come together to make this an excellent debut novel. I look forward to reading more by this author.
A teenage girl is shot dead in a convenience store robbery. Her sister, frustrated by the apparent inability of the police to make arrests (despite strong suspicions), decides to infiltrate the gang involved in the crime in order to discover which of them pulled the trigger and bring them to justice. She's gutsy and sometimes foolish, and stronger than she thought - and she finds herself more involved with the gang-members than she expected, feeling things she never imagined.
I'd characterise this as a young-adult novel, but without many of the faults that so often put me off YA. A strong story-line, good writing and well-developed, complex characters all come together to make this an excellent debut novel. I look forward to reading more by this author.
September 14, 2017
This is an impressive debut novel from a writer at the top of her game. Cheryl Guerreiro has written a page-turner that takes a classic revenge story into unique territory; the reader is emotionally engaged and compelled from the get-go. Alex, the protagonist, is driven in her quest: flawed and a little crazy...but the way the story unfolds makes it *feel* plausible. If you're looking for a great read, check this book out!
June 7, 2017
This book was so good! I picked it up because I liked the story line. This was a page-turner that I couldn't, and didn't want to, put down. I was constantly surprised at myself for wanting the "bad girls" to succeed. The author did a great job making the characters totally real and likeable. I felt the emotions that Alex felt in her grief. I recommend this book!
May 29, 2017
This book was very emotional, after Jenny dies her older sister is determined to get justice and put them in jail. What she wasn't expecting is when she finds out what happened for her feelings to be different.
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