Bury the Lead

by Mischa Thrace

Sherlock Holmes may not have been a journalist, but that doesn’t stop high school senior Kennedy Carter from embracing his methods. With her sights set on becoming an investigative reporter, Kennedy lives by the famous detective’s rules: observe the obvious, eliminate the impossible, and avoid romantic entanglements at all costs.

Kennedy has her heart set on winning the $10,000 Excellence in Emerging Journalism award so she can finally escape her small town and see the world with her very own kind-hearted Watson—best friend and school photographer Ravi Burman.

But research into a local urban legend and a murder investigation she can’t resist are threatening to derail her plans. To find the killer preying on her graduating class, she and Ravi team up to investigate the deaths and work to uncover the story of a lifetime—if it doesn’t cost them their lives first.

Genres: Young Adult, Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Contemporary

228 pages, Hardcover

Published June 10, 2021

Reviews

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The wonderful duo composed of Kennedy Carter and Ravi Burman will be your favorite mystery duo after the iconic Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. Their banter and their overall dynamic made the reading experience extremely fun. It will remind you of your favorite mystery partnership. I wasn't honestly expecting a romantic development between the two. But I enjoyed seeing the slight conversations between the two about possible romantic struggles with Kennedy being ace. The way they were both mature about it was really refreshing to see since not many authors do asexual characters justice when explaining their preferences.

Bringing the sights to the actual mystery aspect, I loved how Kennedy would try to use typical Sherlock Holmes techniques to solve the crime. I'm a huge Sherlock Holmes fan so any homage I see definitely makes me smile. The mystery plotline was fun to follow and the conclusion made sense. I will have to say that I did predict who was the murderer before the ending. But the reasoning for the killings was a nice twist. I was not expecting that motive.

Overall, this story has two great protagonists, many Sherlock Holmes references, and a solid mystery plot.

Thank you NetGalley, BHC Press, and Mischa Trace for the arc.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this tremendously!
So growing up my grandfather would share a Sherlock Holmes radio show as well as read me snippets about it so I am now a Sherlock Holmes fan so this was right up my alley!
Now that the main character is obsessed with Sherlock Holmes that was like icing on the cake for me lol. The story follows Kennedy who is an ace detective and she is using the Sherlocks techniques to try and solve a trend of teens that were dead and missing dating back to her high school. Other than some of the characters could have been more brought out like explained more of a background and such I think the author did a spectacular job with this story! It was well written and while I dont think Kennedy is on par with Sherlock she knew how to get the information that she needed. Although Kennedy was the narrator and main character I seriously loved Ravi! Kennedy's inner monologue about Ravi was kinda weird like she was trying to convince herself she didn't like him more lol but overall I think that this book was pretty good. Mysteries can be a hit or a miss and this one was more on the hit side! I enjoyed it a lot! Now if you are a diehard Sherlock fan then this probably isn't for you but if you do love a good mystery then this one should be your next read! I am excited to see what the author will come up with next! 

[Alex Nonymous · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Bury the Lead in exchange for an honest review.

Bury the Lead follows Kennedy, an ace detective and asexual teen who's obsession with all things Sherlock Holmes leads to her trying to solve a trend of dead and missing teens dating back years at her high school. I think the mystery was pretty well led out (until the reveal where the bad guy goes full-blown super villain which I'm not personally a fan of but I get the appeal in this genre) and well Kennedy herself was a bit unlikeable in a lot of realistic, teenage ways, her best friend Ravi was awesome enough to make it easy to root for the mystery solving duo.

I will say I felt a bit let down by the lack of Sherlock style deduction here. Kennedy as a narrator and this book's marketing put a lot of emphasis on how she's solving things the way Sherlock would but to me at least, the strategies she used and the ways she uncovered information were pretty standard YA detective instead of reading like something Conan Doyle might have come up with.

[InD'tale Magazine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5/5.0

Ms. Thrace has crafted a twisting, turning mystery that will keep readers guessing throughout!

Read full review in the 2021 October issue of InD'tale Magazine.

[Caroline David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much. It was so interesting and I really liked Kennedy and Ravi being modern day, high school Sherlock Holmes and Watson respectively. Such a great mystery.

[PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps · Rating 3 out of 5]

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of BURY THE LEAD by Mischa Thrace in exchange for my honest review.***

2.5 STARS

High school journalist Kennedy and her best friend photojournalist Ravi set out to investigate whether their school is cursed with a missing student each year. Kennedy suspects her rival’s suicide is actually a murder and sets out to solve the crime.

I enjoyed Thrace’s debut and had high expectations for BURY THE LEAD, but didn’t warm up to Kennedy’s narration or the plot.

Kennedy turned me off with her privileged attitude about her internship interview. Rather than being hungry for experience, she thought she was above starting at the bottom and grunt work, though she was savvy enough not to tell her interviewer. If Thrace had written Kennedy excited for any opportunity, I would have had an entirely different attitude to the character.

I liked the Making of a Monster chapters most, curious to who wrote them though was disappointed when the culprit was finally revealed. I also enjoyed Kennedy’s relationship with her sister and appreciated the inclusion of Cassidy’s paralysis and wheelchair.

BURY THE LEAD will find an audience. Some will probably love the story, others like me will want more. I’m still a Mischa Thrace fan and will look forward to her next book.

[Medha Upadhyay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting mystery with compelling characters! While I might be a little tired of the hot brown best friend trope, I really really loved Ravi so I'm not complaining. It was a little funky to hear Kennedy explain that Ravi is basically her brother and then listen to hear spend literal paragraphs talking about how nice his ... hands are? But still, it was sweet, and they get along really well.
There weren't too many characters in the story and almost everyone except Ravi, Kennedy, and maybe Kennedy's younger sister felt like shadows of real people. This made it really easy to suspect literally anyone of being the murderer. Kennedy barely has four actual suspects throughout the book, and she struggles to find motives for anyone. When she thinks she's solved the mystery, her solution doesn't even make sense. The mystery itself was hooking, but it moved rather slowly until the very end where everything happened all at once. The pacing was a little problematic, but it still worked out decently well.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

CW: suicide, reference to teen corpses, murder

Thank you to NetGalley and BHC Press for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Kennedy is a budding journalist, and she is determined to tell important stories. Alongside her best friend Ravi, she creates a project for her journalism class to memorialize the entire school, and also do some research on the curse that plagues her school. So, when a popular classmate goes missing, people are left questioning, has the curse struck yet again? But there may be more hiding than an urban legend....

Kennedy and Ravi are a great duo, and I loved the asexual rep. I also found it to be similar to "A Good Girl's Guide to Murder" by Holly Jackson, which was great! The twist was a bit surprising, and I have some feelings about it that I can't share without giving spoilers, so read this book and get back to me! It publishes on June 10th, 2021!

[Ai Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through the Early Reviewers program on LibraryThing, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to read this book.

There was much I enjoyed about this book--I think for teens who are interested in journalism and capital T Truth, there's a lot here to be interested in, and it's fun to see an asexual character's identity taken seriously but also allowing for her to develop a relationship! I think the balance of Kennedy and Ravi--a kind of 'the head and the heart' thing going on--really works here, and also leaves room for both of them to have heart in ways that I enjoyed.

My issue with the book is two-fold: the "making of a monster" part of the book is not a thing I enjoy generally--I know it's intent is to dangle red herrings for you, but the tone was very weird and I don't think this book needs red herrings to work? Especially given that the end reveal is SO WILD and out of left field, so I guess maybe it's built in to make it feel less wild but like there's no backtracking from how wild it is (especially how it wasn't just the main bullies in the book whose children were attacked but just like SO MANY, like EVERY SINGLE DISAPPEARANCE IN THE TOWN WAS MURDERED BY THIS WOMAN.)

So an interesting book, and then the end is a wild left turn that kind of disappointed me. But I think if teens are interested in investigative journalism in the way that Kennedy is, they'll enjoy it more than I did!

[its.me.the.bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

**Thank you to NetGalley, the author, & the publisher for a chance to read to & review an ARC of this book!**

Please find my extended feedback below...along with some spoilers (beware).
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Things I Liked:
-I loved the play on Sherlock & Watson!
-I loved the ace representation.
-Ravi & Kennedy’s banter was fantastic.
-I loved how the mystery kept me hooked (even though I picked out key characters, I didn’t figure everything out until the end).
-I loved the side characters (like Mr. B the donut master & Henry)!

Things That Didn't Sit Quite Right With Me:
-Nothing

Overall, this book was a favorite read this month & I gave it 5 stars!

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! It turned out that my prediction was correct, but I was still kept guessing through most of the book. Lots of red herrings and clues to piece together. Plus I adore the central characters and their relationship! This is the first YA book I’ve read featuring an asexual character, an underrepresented voice for sure. I also appreciated seeing a character with a disability portrayed as confident, strong, and without her disability being the plot line of the book. It was simply an aspect of her identity but not the sole one presented. I did think the language was excessive—but also very true to how many teens talk. And there were some mentions of sexual activity. While the book was reviewed for as young as 7th grade, it seems 8th and up would be more appropriate in my opinion.

[Olivia Samimy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not a big fan of this book.

First of all, the main character is rude and unlikeable. She lacks empathy for anyone else (especially people different from her) and generally comes off as a snob.

Secondly, this book is very clearly a rip off of A Good Girls Guide to Murder, which came out in 2019. Both these books follow a high school senior who wants to be a journalist and decides to solve a murder in her small town as a senior project. It's completed with the male sidekick, (minor spoiler) who becomes a love interest, and (major spoiler) finished with the reveal that one of the teachers did it.

Seriously how much more similar could it get? The main difference is that A Good Girls Guide to Murder is more clever and the main character is actually likeable. Go read that instead.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall story

So overall, I enjoyed the book. I kept thinking something felt familiar about it, the characters, the plot and then I realized that it reminded me a lot of AGGGTM. Like a lot. To the point that even the secondary character’s name is the same and it made this feel like a less good version, a AGGGTM fan fiction of sorts. But I was into that. The characters weren’t as likeable as AGGGTM, but I’ll get into that later. But the mystery itself was engaging, the dialogue was entertaining, it was also short or seemed like a fast read.

Plot
Main character Kennedy decides to use her senior capstone to solve a murder. Has her partner in crime help her, there’s a senior curse where senior high school students go missing every year. And seemingly a suicide epidemic.

Characters

To me, while I mentioned that the mystery was engaging, it was, but I found that I didn’t really care for Kennedy, and I think that had to do with her portrayal as Sherlockian? That in it of itself was a very weak part of the book, every so often it felt like the author would remember that that was the hook that had sold the book and she’ throw that in but otherwise it just felt like Kennedy was cold and lacked empathy and emotion, or tried really hard to? For the sake of journalism? Maybe? I can’t even tell you. But it didn’t make her approachable as the reader, and moreover, it disconnected you from the mystery because if she had no real emotional connection to solve the murder, outside of her deep desire to publish a story, it was just kind of odd. Sometimes you were like is she just a sociopath? And not in an unreliable did she maybe commit the murders but in a oh this girl is dark. And selfish, and sometimes privileged, and stupid.

Ravi, was the key to this, her antithesis which she acknowledges. The romance between them felt forced in an uncomfortable way. Not because Kennedy is asexual, but because it was a does she really want this or is this just the author forcing this on her kind of way. I did really like their dynamic though and their interactions, but didn’t think Ravi or Kennedy was fully fleshed out. Ravi’s actions and the way he spoke (with cursing etc, overly protective then silently angry) were at odds sometimes that didn’t feel genuine.

Cassidy also made the book / Kennedy more palatable. Cassidy was fun and softer and made you forget that Kennedy was stoked there was a murder happening. The odd thing between their dynamic is that they refer to their parents but we only get one scene with their mother, and their dad, while mentioned a few times, is nowhere near introduced. I thought maybe he was a red herring? But otherwise there’s some father issues abound that were never fleshed out or explained.

The Reveal

I thought the reveal was kind of disappointing. But, I’ve read so many thrillers that I don’t think this is any author’s fault. Just, I’ve read many of them so it’s hard not to see them coming. This book made up for it with the reveal sequence which was dark and twisted and haunting. I thought it was really well done. It made up for who it was with the twistedness behind the reveal. Although the backstory of the villain had some holes, but it was creepy and well done overall.

What didn’t work / things that bothered me / things that didn’t get explained

The photo shoot / dress set up with Emma, what was with that?
The villain’s backstory with the monster made, the family never seemed to care about them so it seemed a little weak what happened to them
The whole connection to the main characters, it seemed kind of random for a 11th hour reveal that only paid off because of the execution
They ate so many donuts. So many

[This is not the Hunter you're looking for · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll be honest, going into this and reading the first couple of chapters, I was worried it was going to be a "not like other girls" pseudo-mystery where there wasn't really a murderer all along, it was just some misunderstandings and everyone's fine in the end!

To my genuine delight, I was rather quickly proven wrong. I'm going to do my best to keep spoilers out, but I want to TALK about this one, y'all.

I did not expect to get as invested into the story as I did. It had twists and turns and though I did sorta guess the mystery, I kept doubting myself simply because the main character was so passionate about her thoughts. There's a slew of great issues that were touched on, like white privilege, classism, homophobia, and many others that are Just introduced enough to show that Mischa knows about and takes into account these issues, but she doesn't make the whole book about them. Now bullying, suicide, and the effects of such things on mental health are definite themes of the book and are handled bluntly, but with genuine care, which is appreciated. The story flowed smoothly, making it an easy read, and it ended up being one of those ones I just couldn't put down. The characters are believable, the growth is real, and it was a good time - y'know, in that true crime sort of way.

The only negative that I have is that the romantic subplot - and by virtue of that, the queer representation - felt a bit thrown in as an afterthought in the last quarter of the book. There were small hints throughout, but the scenes still felt out of place. Don't get me wrong, it was good writing, and as an ace person myself, the asexual representation was handled very well and accurately, but it sort of felt like scenes from a different book suddenly popping up in my murder mystery. HOWEVER, we almost never see canonical queer and ace characters - as Main Characters, no less - in stories that aren't romance or realistic fiction, so I'm happy to take it even if it did feel just a bit forced. In any case, 10/10 would recommend if you're into mysteries and true crime (btw, VERY impressed with the references to real cases). If you're wigged out by death and descriptions pertaining to such, I'd recommend skipping this one.

[Fifi’s Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had me at “Sherlock Holmes” and “urban legend” and I raced to request an arc. I love thrillers in general but I think that I’ll always be a sucker for YA murder mysteries with badass female leads in particular! When the author started out the book by dedicating it to “all the Sherlockians who dream of having their own mystery to solve” I knew that I was going to be in for a FUN ride.

No lull or slow start here; this book dives straight in with mention of a town curse within the first ten percent of the book. What I also loved was that this book got into the head of the killer every couple chapters with the “making of a monster” chapters, which are italicized chapters diving into the head of the killer before we even know their identity. I was racing through this book because I just HAD to know how it ended.


“It’s the story about a little boy, one who grew up in a world that ground him down. It’s the origin story of a monster.”


This book gets straight to the point without taking 100 extra unnecessary pages to set up the story (my biggest book pet peeve) which my short attention span and tendency to get easily bored REALLY APPRECIATED! This book jumps right into the action with just enough setup for you to be satisfied, no unnecessary filler pages in the first half like a good majority of books I read seem to be filled with.

I absolutely loved the main character Kennedy; she has a fighting spirit and tongue in cheek attitude that reminds me a lot of Cammie from Ally Carter’s Gallagher Girls series (another favorite of mine). Kennedy reminded me of a mix of Nancy Drew and Cammie Morgan and I’m here for it! This book takes off running and I was never bored once (and this is coming from someone with a short attention span). I recommend this book to anyone who loves thrillers and murder mysteries, especially if you’re looking to be pulled out of a reading slump. Also, this book talks about doughnuts a lot and will make you want a doughnut really bad, so make sure you have some on hand before starting this or else you’ll be laying in bed at 10:30 at night reading this on your kindle app, sad because you don’t have any doughnuts. Pro tip.

Thank you to Netgalley and BHC press for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

[bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book.

I love a good murder mystery. I love a good YA novel. This was both of those things, and I am very happy to have gotten to read it.

While Kennedy is our leading lady, she is flanked almost always by her best friend, Ravi. Together, they are a twenty-first century Holmes and Watson — they benefit by being modern and much more diverse. I think they are more likeable than the originals, as well, especially Ravi. I would love to have a best friend like him.

I really, really liked this book. There was a moment midway through I was worried about the pacing of the book. It felt a little slow, like it was a little bit dragging, and I can’t tell you the moment when, but I kept reading and all my worries were forgotten. The twist and the red herrings! I was thrilled. It was a good mystery and I didn’t see the end coming! (Although, playing the littlest bit of the devil’s advocate, I never see a twist coming unless it’s plainly clear and obvious).

I think this book presents exactly what it offers in the summary: a girl who idolises Sherlock Holmes, and her best friend as Watson beside her. They fall into their mystery and they do their best to solve it. There was nothing extremely profound to find, and I will say I’m not sure there will be anything that sticks with me for too long, but I did enjoy reading this and I would suggest it.

I would definitely read another book by Thrace.

3.25 stars / 5 stars

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review of eBook

High school senior Kennedy Carter is out to nab an internship with BayState News; she sees it as her way to step out of Mayfield into the wider world where she will find the stories she wants to cover. She aims to be the Sherlock Holmes of journalism.

Creator of the “Maplefield Monitor,” the news site she created for Maplefield High School, her partner is her forever-friend, photographer Ravi Burman. Together they set out to solve the mystery of a classmate’s death and the urban legend of a supposed senior class “curse.”

But what they uncover may be far more than they are prepared to handle.

=========

Told from Kennedy’s point of view, this young adult mystery is an interesting quick read. Both Kennedy and Ravi are well-developed characters and their partnership is a strong point in the telling of the tale. The unfolding story offers readers a few surprises along the way, but its focus on bullying, suicide, and mental health is consistent throughout the narrative.

Interspersed throughout the telling of the tale are chapters devoted to “The Making of a Monster” which details the difficulties faced by a bullied young man.

Diverse characters, an intriguing mystery, and a few unexpected plot twists all work together to keep the pages turning as surprising reveals keep readers guessing. Although astute readers may identify the culprit before the big reveal, some readers may find the revelation rather disappointing.

Recommended.

[Joni Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was a quick fun YA mystery. Content warning-mention of suicide and drug use.

I feel there was a good amount of diverse rep in this book also. The main character, Kennedy, is asexual. Her best friend- The Watson to her Sherlock if you will- is mentioned as having brown skin and hints at being nervous to make the police mad when they go to speak to them at one point in the story. Kennedy's younger sister had an accident and is now a paraplegic. The disability rep was awesome. I almost forgot she was paraplegic until it would be mentioned in passing- talking about her wheelchair being removed from the car or something like that.

The actual story was mainly told in Kennedy's point of view but a few chapters were told from the perspective of the killer. That formatting can be annoying sometimes but with this book it really helped me become invested in the mystery. Every time I read a chapter about the killer I would make new guesses about who it was. Let me tell you- I was way off. I was kept guessing until the very end which is always impressive for a thriller.

The reason this is four stars is because the end seemed rushed and a little to convenient. I'm mot disappointed in it persay but I just think it was lacking something.

Overall though I really enjoyed this book. I would recommend to fans of Kara Thomas or just YA thrillers of any kind really.

[Mariana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bury the Lead is thrilling and gripping ride that promises to keep you up all night, with and ending that has you holding your breath for answers! Kennedy is an aspiring journalist and, together with her best friend Ravi, has the mission of uncovering the truth about her small town's senior curse. Through the objectivity of an investigative journalist, Kennedy realizes that, sometimes, the danger is closer than you think.

Mischa Thrace's writing style is easy to read, but compelling at the same time. Kennedy's determination and passion for journalism is clearly demonstrated throughout the book and the book dives into important issues such as suicide, love and journalistic objectivity and sensationalism. Being a Communications student myself, with a few journalism classes, it was interesting to see the journalistic part of it all, particularly the part about objectivity and immortalizing the moment in spite of other people's pain. It is an amazing book, with well developed characters and a rich plot. Even though I did figure out the *whodunnit* a little before the end, I don't think it is predictable and it has you guessing almost until the end. Overall, this was a 5/5 star reading for me and I will definitely check out more of Thrace's books!

*This is an ARC. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of this title. All opinions are honest and my own.

[Amy Pritzl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy reading YA mysteries and while I like Karen McManus' books, I LOVE Holly Jackson's A Good Girl's Guide to Murder trilogy. Bury the Lead is probably the closest you can get to GGGTM's intricate plotting and characterization. While I still prefer GGGTM, I definitely would rate this as a 4.5 or 4.75 out of 5.

So many YA books labeled mysteries do not have a main character investigating a crime, but Kennedy Carter, who wants to be an investigative reporter turns out to be an great crime investigator. I love that she is the first to figure out that an apparent suicide was actually a murder and pursues it even when the police have closed the case.

It was clever how Mischa Thrace interspersed "The Making of a Monster" segments because it gives you the motive for the murders; which the police have labeled as suicides, but also gives you insight into the murderer. I couldn't be happier with the curveball the author threw at the reader in the end. I'm rarely surprised by mystery endings anymore and Mischa Thrace managed to surprise me!

[Jenni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will go over well with fans of the Good Girls Guide to Murder series. In it, we have aspiring investigative reporter Kennedy, a high school student, and her best friend Ravi, who helps with photography. Together, they launched a news website within the last year for their small town, which actually has some traffic and covers news stories of all types. But they want a BIG story. Something exciting. And exciting just doesn't happen in their small town. Or does it? As a long-term project for their journalism class, they decide to cover the urban myth of the curse that follows the senior class in their high school. It seems that over the years, one senior has gone missing each year. Last year there was a suicide. But when Kennedy's rival ends up dead, she isn't willing to write it off as a suicide like the police do. Kennedy is convinced that this was murder. And she sets out to proe it.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book was exactly what I was looking for and I blew through it quickly. I love the interactions between and relationship of Kennedy and Ravi and hope Thrace has plans to write more books staring these two. That being said I guessed very early on who the killer was and guessed most of their motive but, in my opinion, that did not take away from the enjoyability of the book. Another small issue I had was that I thought the book was extremely similar to the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series including the fact that in both one of the main characters is named Ravi but I'm sure this is just a coincidence but on occasion it did pull me away from the story.

I look forward to reading more books by Mischa Thrace and plan on buying her other book soon.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Happy publication week! Kennedy Carter, a high-schooler aspiring to be an investigative reporter, considers herself to be the modern-day Sherlock Holmes. She is determined to win a journalism scholarship to escape her her small town and explore the world. Paired with her best friend, Kennedy sets on a quest to solve a local curse that quickly turns into a murder investigation.

This is the kind of representation that I now expect to see in books. There was a diverse set of characters experiencing a broad arrange of emotion about teenage life. It was realistic and I loved it! YA mysteries can be hit or miss but I really enjoyed this one. I was actually shocked by the ending and did not see it coming. I think this book is definitely for readers of Good Girls Guide to Murder and The Nightswim.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC!

[Jenny Ashby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the Sherlock Holmes selling point is oversold. Sure, the main character likes Holmes but she does not mention him as much as I expected given that he pops up everywhere in all the reviews and descriptions I read. But aside from that nitpicking, I found this to be a solid mystery/thriller. There were a good amount of clues as to the identity of the killer and I didn't even mind the romance. Although like always, I would've been okay without a romance since I was in this book for the mystery. I also love that Ravi is a photographer and definitely could've used more description of his lighting set up for their class project since his photos sound dreamy. I guess that's not the main focus of the book... A quick, fun (for mystery fans) read with some decent Ace representation as well as a secondary character in a wheelchair who is not defined by her wheelchair.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book from the publisher as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program)

This was an enjoyable read and a total page-turner! Although our main characters are all high school students solving a big mystery, they were also still believable as teenagers. School was the main setting of the book and they went to their classes (mostly), had big teenage emotions and complicated relationships with their peers. I really enjoyed Kennedy and Ravi's friendship and loved the depth to their relationship. The mystery aspects were fun and gripping and, as a former teenage Sherlock Holmes fangirl myself, I really enjoyed the subtle and not-so-subtle nods to the Sherlock canon. This was definitely the sort of mystery that kept me racing alongside the main characters to try to unravel it as I read and the ending totally surprised and delighted me.

[Catherine Yezak · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful story of a pair of teens overcoming a murderous attempt on their lives who, they discover is a female serial killer. Th killer is avenging the suicide of her teenage brother who was bullied. She loses her entire family as a result and spends years planning revenge on her brother's attackers by killing their children. There is nice diversity of characters and the strong female narration by Kennedy Carter, an up and coming journalist. Partnering with her best friend and photojournalist, Ravi Burnam, we get a story if courage, strength, and optimism on the good things in life instead of seeing only the tragedy.

[Rinku Geeyo · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very entertaining read. Like Ken, since I'm a fan of Sherlock Holmes and Nancy Drew, I'm biased to this genre. I loved the way Ken's and Ravi's relationship grew, within the span of this book. I loved Ken's relationship with Cassidy.
Even though I guessed the final reveal a while ago, it still kept me hooked to see how it plays out. I look forward to tagging along with Ken and Ravi on many more of their adventures in their hunt for stories.

[Liz104 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting the asexual representation and it was really well written and a great surprise! Usually we don't get ace protagonists in mistery young adult books, I loved it.
The mistery was also well done and it kept me guessing.
I'm going to be reading more books from this author for sure.

[Nicola Stevenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book - I was on the edge of my seat as I got closer & closer to the finish. I loved the interactions between Kennedy & Ravi - I thought they were a good pairing in their friendship & journalistic relationships. I was guessing all the way to the end!

Thanks to BHC Press & NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.

[Dawn Castor · Rating 3 out of 5]

This made me think of Nancy Drew who was trusted by every adult to do adult things even though she was a teenager. Overall I liked the mystery, loved the red herrings and was surprised by the ending. I got weary of Kennedy’s dialogue. She just seemed too mature. But maybe I just don’t know driven kids like her well enough to compare. This book also made me crave donuts!