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Dark Secrets #3
No Time to Die
Message from a dead girl...It's too late to call back. Jenny will never speak to Liza again. But it seems that even from beyond the grave, Liza is begging her sister for help....They say it's a serial killer. Is it? Jenny can't afford to trust anyone. Now she's here, in Wisteria, anonymously registered at the Chase College theater camp where her sister died. The daughter of a famous theatrical family, Jenny distrusts actors, loathes acting. Yet here in the college's darkened theatre, Liza seems to be speaking to her. Suddenly Jenny is mouthing Liza's last lines, sharing Liza's last days, a drama starring Brian, the stage manager, who seems to follow her everywhere...dangerously attractive Mike...Paul, who was obsessed with Liza...motherly, suffocating assistant director Maggie...and Walker, the director, bristling with hostility and resentment against Liza and Jenny's famous father. Does he suspect Jenny's true identity?How can anyone know the visions that may be driving Jenny straight into the killer's arms?
226 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 30, 2001
16 people are currently reading
1283 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Chandler
71 books2,323 followersElizabeth Chandler is a pseudonym for Mary-Claire Helldorfer. She currently lives in Baltimore, Maryland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
March 5, 2018
This is the third book by Elizabeth Chandler in a series of murder mystery novellas. This one is my favorite of the 3 pulled me in from the very beginning and i couldnt put it down. Being a shorter story than a full length novel it was go, go, go. Some questions were left unanswered and it had a more young adult feel to it than other crime novels. Although i guessed the murderer early on it still kept me questioning everyone and seeing motive in most characters. 4.5 stars because i read it one sitting and couldnt put it down.
May 29, 2014
Rating: 4.5/5
Elizabeth Chandler can seriously set the mood for a creepy mystery. No Time to Die is the third novel taking place in Wisteria. This is the story of Jenny, a girl who is attending the summer acting program in Wisteria, a year after her sister was murdered by a serial killer at the exact same place. Jenny believes that visiting her sister's last school will bring her some closure. But once there strange things begin to happen. Jenny is certain that she can feel Liza with her and during the night blue dreams of her sister's last moments haunt her. As Jenny begins to unravel the mystery behind her sister's murder all things point not to the serial killer but a more close acquaintance.
No Time to Die was creepy, fast-paced and an amazing mystery. From the moment Jenny set foot on Wisteria every one was a suspect. I kept guessing for a while what the hell had happened to her sister and even though I came up with some of the answers a little after the middle of the book, the author still managed to surprise me with a huge twist at the end.
Even though we didn't get to learn a lot about most of the characters in this book, and I didn't really had any sort of attachments to any of them, besides Jenny, this didn't take anything away from the story. Because this is not a character driven book. It's all about the mystery and sometimes that works out perfectly. This is one of those times. So, I am not going to say anything about the charactes, except that Jenny was a very relatable person and I enjoyes being inside her mind.
All in all, this series is just getting better. I love that each book is a standalong but there are all connected by the mysterious town of Wisteria. Looking forward to the next one.
Elizabeth Chandler can seriously set the mood for a creepy mystery. No Time to Die is the third novel taking place in Wisteria. This is the story of Jenny, a girl who is attending the summer acting program in Wisteria, a year after her sister was murdered by a serial killer at the exact same place. Jenny believes that visiting her sister's last school will bring her some closure. But once there strange things begin to happen. Jenny is certain that she can feel Liza with her and during the night blue dreams of her sister's last moments haunt her. As Jenny begins to unravel the mystery behind her sister's murder all things point not to the serial killer but a more close acquaintance.
No Time to Die was creepy, fast-paced and an amazing mystery. From the moment Jenny set foot on Wisteria every one was a suspect. I kept guessing for a while what the hell had happened to her sister and even though I came up with some of the answers a little after the middle of the book, the author still managed to surprise me with a huge twist at the end.
Even though we didn't get to learn a lot about most of the characters in this book, and I didn't really had any sort of attachments to any of them, besides Jenny, this didn't take anything away from the story. Because this is not a character driven book. It's all about the mystery and sometimes that works out perfectly. This is one of those times. So, I am not going to say anything about the charactes, except that Jenny was a very relatable person and I enjoyes being inside her mind.
All in all, this series is just getting better. I love that each book is a standalong but there are all connected by the mysterious town of Wisteria. Looking forward to the next one.
January 21, 2020
This book was good, not my type of book but I am reading for a challenge. I had my doubts but liked how Elizabeth made this book into a page Turner. I finished it in a night as I couldn't stop myself!
Was frustrated at the ending that I threw my book ( this made me want more of the story)
Was frustrated at the ending that I threw my book ( this made me want more of the story)
March 31, 2024
The Dark Secrets series of books keep getting better with each new entry as I read them.
Our main character of this book is Jenny Montgomery.
Jenny is the daughter of an English stage actor and a former child-teen star and until recently she had an older sister named Liza. They were not the same age or looked anything alike but the two of them had a bond since Jenny was little as if they had their own secret language.
Liza loved acting and Jenny has stage fright so bad she channels it into gymnastics.
Liza went away to a summer theater camp at Chase College in Wisteria, Maryland instead of a more prestigious New York one to have a little independence from her parents. Since it was the first time they had ever been separated in not sharing a room, Liza would constantly write e-mails home to Jenny or text her sister to come and visit.
Jenny put it off for too long and that has left her with regret because her sister...was murdered.
It was said to be the work of a serial killer going up the Eastern coast, killing women under bridges and smashing their watches to mark the time of death. To add to such tragedy is that Liza called Jenny's phone and left a voicemail right before she was killed.
If Jenny had answered it earlier, she feels she could have saved her sister's life.
Being the daughter of famous actors, Jenny can't just go and get answers about some of the strange things and people Liza would write to her about. So in order to gain some closure and do what she couldn't do before...Jenny is now going to the summer theater program eleven months later.
Except...under a fake name. With the help of family friends, Jenny has been able to be enrolled at the program as Jenny Baird and is even staying in the same house where Liza was assigned.
Jenny arrives at the theater where the drama students would perform to look around and she can't help but feel as if Liza's spirit were all around her. She says a few lines out loud from Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare unaware to calm her nerves for they were the lines of the lead female character of Viola that Liza was playing last summer before her death.
Jenny has an audience when a young man named Brian Jones appears with a huge carton. He is sandy-haired and handsome and he tells Jenny he is the stage manager for the summer camp this year and that last year they did the play she was just quoting.
Jenny tries to keep in mind that she is here under a different name but Liza is constantly on her mind and she couldn't help saying the play since she always use to help her sister run her lines.
Jenny finds out that they are doing A Midsummer Night's Dream this year by the copies of the book in the carton Brian opens but informs him that she has no intention of trying out but working on the crew because of her stage fright.
Brain says that the camp director, Walker, expects all of his crew to be able to act. They turn away from that to more casual conversation and jenny learns that Brian's mother is to be the R.A. of the place where she will be staying, aptly called Drama House.
Leaving the theater, Jenny notices that someone was up in the high balcony watching her and Brian but doesn't know if the person was there before. Once she is outside to collect her luggage and find her housing, Jenny bumps into another young man.
His hair and clothes are all black like a typical drama student but he has the most startling blue eyes and a brusque voice as he apologizes before giving Jenny a wide berth as he walks away.
There is a look of guilt on his face...could he have been the one watching her?
On her way to her housing, Jenny hears another male voice make a comment and turns to find him admitting he was talking about the house where she will be staying. It is a beautiful Queen Anne design and the young man, a rather portly fellow, seems to be really into architecture and nervous around girls.
Jenny gives him a warm smile and jokes that the frat he is heading toward could use some work and he awkwardly smiles back.
Once on the porch, Jenny girls a group of three girls who are quiet while the other four seem to know each other and talk loudly with one another in earshot of the obvious newbies.
One is Shawna, a girl with her hair in elegant African braids and very high cheekbones. Another girl is named Keri and she has hair that is a contrast job of black and white hair dye in her short hair with black eyeliner around her eyes.
Out of the two, Shawna sounds much nicer but Jenny doesn't learn too much else as Keri makes a comment that a person named Boots is coming. From her conversation with Brian, Jenny knows this is Brian's mother who is the house R.A. - her most common nickname "Army Boots".
She introduces herself as Dr. Margaret Rynne and she is a combination of a theater patron in her clothes, a Physical Education teacher in her stance but with a warm voice as she instructs the girls to call her Maggie.
Maggie gives the girls a floor plan of the house and starts to tell them the rules of curfew but Shawna interrupts asking to switch rooms. Maggie says there is to be no switching but Shawna insists that she can not sleep in the room she has been given because it is haunted.
The girl that lived there for camp last summer was murdered and even though Jenny already knows...her sister's name is given as the poor, unfortunate victim. Jenny silently listens to the grisly details she already knows gossiped among the girls and then tells Maggie she will switch rooms with Shawna.
They all turn to look at her and Maggie simply agrees but it seems that they all thinks she is either crazy or brave to do so. It is actually comforting to Jenny as Liza wrote that she loved the room and it makes her feel closer to her sister.
When all of them are heading to a cookout to meet with the other teens in the summer camp and converge amongst each other, Jenny listens to the talk of all the returning students. She recognizes the name of Mike spoken as Liza wrote about him constantly...her sister clearly in love with the boy she had to call Michael instead.
Jenny also recognizes the name Paul when some of the guys say that he was obsessed with Liza but also had a reputation of possibly starting a fire on the campus to impress her. Jenny isn't fond of that information but also notices that Keri has the hots for Paul by the way she bites her lips at the mere mention of his name though acting cool about it.
The director arrives and Jenny knows a little bit about Walter Burke because her parents knew him many years back in New York but at an age where Jenny was so young she can't remember. He is middle-aged, balding with his red hair in a comb over and his choice of transportation to arrive is a motorcycle.
He also seems to have his own hypocritical ego telling them that he will not stroke their egos or handle them with kid gloves. Jenny sees a little of what Brian told her about Walker once everyone is introduced and she learns the heavyset boy she met earlier is named Tomas Alvarez.
Tomas is set to be the set designer and like Jenny, has no intention of trying out for a part in the play. Walker asks Tomas if he can't hear or if he has any problems with attention. When Tomas says no, Walker asks if he is fat and others laugh as Tomas says yes.
"Obviously but that is no excuse not to audition."
What an ass.
Once the food is getting prepared, Jeny makes her way to the bridge that is close to the pavillion in the park. The bridge where her sister was found bludgeoned to death already has someone there...the young man in black from the theater.
When he sees Jenny, he doesn't answer any of her questions but asks for her name instead. Giving her fake name, he stands up from sitting on the bank and his height makes Jenny back away nervously. He stops and finally gives Jenny an answer to one question she didn't ask...his own name.
Mike Wilcox...Liza's Michael.
Knowing what she does, Jenny finds it odd that Mike talks about Liza as if they were only friends and not madly in love in the few words they share. That night, Jenny starts having the first nightmare she has had in years and the only person who ever knew about them were Liza.
At auditions, Jenny is called by Walker to audition with Mike as Lysander and Helena respectfully.
Brian said he would tell Walker about Jenny's stage fright but the director is such a pompous jerk he doesn't let it slide. It is the part in the play were Lysander falls in love with Helena instead of Hermia thanks to the work of the fairies so hearing Mike saying the lines...Jenny has no problem being confused and angry.
She has heard actors say romantic lines like this all her life but with Mike's blue eyes and the fact that Liza was crazy for him...Jenny is distracted enough not to appear that frightened on stage.
Walker notices along with everyone else that Jenny does have talent. They make it through the first half of auditions but after lunch, Walker now goes after Tomas.
He ask him to play Oberon, the king of the fairies, while Paul does Puck and Mike does Demetrius and a girl named Kimberley plays Hermia. Jenny watches Tomas fumble through the lines nervously to the point where Walker has embarassed to the brink of tears and a few snickers from the others.
Mike, however, is kinder to Tomas at the start of the scene so Jenny can see he isn't a total jerk like Paul with his short temper and ego. It stirs something inside Jenny and she shouts out to Walker that she would like to play Puck with all eyes on her in shock except for those of the director who dismisses Paul.
Paul is not happy that Jenny took the part even though it is only the audition stage.
Jenny decides to use her gymnastic skills and says Puck's line performing to the iambic pentameter of the words and the focus takes away the stage fright. It is obviously done to make Tomas more at ease and it helps him get through the rest of the scene which is met with some applause.
Afterwards, Paul makes it clear to Jenny that he didn't like having a role pulled out from under him like that. He also states that a talented actress from last year tried to play up to Walker and she ended up dead.
Jenny knows he is talking about Liza and she reminds him that the girl was murdered by a serial killer. Even though Jenny knows that Paul was obsessed with her sister, it gives him a very twisted way to act if he is implying that the killer had nothing to do with what happened to Liza...
The next day, Jenny learns that she is playing Puck in the play from Tomas as the two have become close thanks to her save move yesterday. It has also gotten Tomas closer to some of the other girls who aren't completely stuck-up like Keri as Shawna is still a very nice girl.
She affectionately calls Jenny "Reds" thanks to her curly hair and seems happy not being any of the female leads in the play, taking on the role of Peter Quince.
If you know Shakespeare then you know what the heck I'm talking about...
Jenny is stuck in her part and the rehearsals afterward start experiencing the lights flickering out on occasion with the heavy smell of jasmine perfume in the air and Jenny recognizes it as the kind that Liza use to wear...as do a few of the ones who knew her last summer.
ction
Is this Liza reaching out from beyond for Jenny to find her killer...the real one? Or could it be that someone knows who Jenny really is and is just playing a game until it is her time to die?
The reveals and the twists in this are so good and the atmosphere is just so creepy! It also helps that I was a theater kid in high school and find appreciation in every detail put toward the production of the play. Most of the characters are also easy to like and it does make it shocking to find out just which ones really are putting on an act...get it?
No Time To Die is so far the best one out of the bunch but I have two more books to tackle and more dark secrets to discover...
Our main character of this book is Jenny Montgomery.
Jenny is the daughter of an English stage actor and a former child-teen star and until recently she had an older sister named Liza. They were not the same age or looked anything alike but the two of them had a bond since Jenny was little as if they had their own secret language.
Liza loved acting and Jenny has stage fright so bad she channels it into gymnastics.
Liza went away to a summer theater camp at Chase College in Wisteria, Maryland instead of a more prestigious New York one to have a little independence from her parents. Since it was the first time they had ever been separated in not sharing a room, Liza would constantly write e-mails home to Jenny or text her sister to come and visit.
Jenny put it off for too long and that has left her with regret because her sister...was murdered.
It was said to be the work of a serial killer going up the Eastern coast, killing women under bridges and smashing their watches to mark the time of death. To add to such tragedy is that Liza called Jenny's phone and left a voicemail right before she was killed.
If Jenny had answered it earlier, she feels she could have saved her sister's life.
Being the daughter of famous actors, Jenny can't just go and get answers about some of the strange things and people Liza would write to her about. So in order to gain some closure and do what she couldn't do before...Jenny is now going to the summer theater program eleven months later.
Except...under a fake name. With the help of family friends, Jenny has been able to be enrolled at the program as Jenny Baird and is even staying in the same house where Liza was assigned.
Jenny arrives at the theater where the drama students would perform to look around and she can't help but feel as if Liza's spirit were all around her. She says a few lines out loud from Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare unaware to calm her nerves for they were the lines of the lead female character of Viola that Liza was playing last summer before her death.
Jenny has an audience when a young man named Brian Jones appears with a huge carton. He is sandy-haired and handsome and he tells Jenny he is the stage manager for the summer camp this year and that last year they did the play she was just quoting.
Jenny tries to keep in mind that she is here under a different name but Liza is constantly on her mind and she couldn't help saying the play since she always use to help her sister run her lines.
Jenny finds out that they are doing A Midsummer Night's Dream this year by the copies of the book in the carton Brian opens but informs him that she has no intention of trying out but working on the crew because of her stage fright.
Brain says that the camp director, Walker, expects all of his crew to be able to act. They turn away from that to more casual conversation and jenny learns that Brian's mother is to be the R.A. of the place where she will be staying, aptly called Drama House.
Leaving the theater, Jenny notices that someone was up in the high balcony watching her and Brian but doesn't know if the person was there before. Once she is outside to collect her luggage and find her housing, Jenny bumps into another young man.
His hair and clothes are all black like a typical drama student but he has the most startling blue eyes and a brusque voice as he apologizes before giving Jenny a wide berth as he walks away.
There is a look of guilt on his face...could he have been the one watching her?
On her way to her housing, Jenny hears another male voice make a comment and turns to find him admitting he was talking about the house where she will be staying. It is a beautiful Queen Anne design and the young man, a rather portly fellow, seems to be really into architecture and nervous around girls.
Jenny gives him a warm smile and jokes that the frat he is heading toward could use some work and he awkwardly smiles back.
Once on the porch, Jenny girls a group of three girls who are quiet while the other four seem to know each other and talk loudly with one another in earshot of the obvious newbies.
One is Shawna, a girl with her hair in elegant African braids and very high cheekbones. Another girl is named Keri and she has hair that is a contrast job of black and white hair dye in her short hair with black eyeliner around her eyes.
Out of the two, Shawna sounds much nicer but Jenny doesn't learn too much else as Keri makes a comment that a person named Boots is coming. From her conversation with Brian, Jenny knows this is Brian's mother who is the house R.A. - her most common nickname "Army Boots".
She introduces herself as Dr. Margaret Rynne and she is a combination of a theater patron in her clothes, a Physical Education teacher in her stance but with a warm voice as she instructs the girls to call her Maggie.
Maggie gives the girls a floor plan of the house and starts to tell them the rules of curfew but Shawna interrupts asking to switch rooms. Maggie says there is to be no switching but Shawna insists that she can not sleep in the room she has been given because it is haunted.
The girl that lived there for camp last summer was murdered and even though Jenny already knows...her sister's name is given as the poor, unfortunate victim. Jenny silently listens to the grisly details she already knows gossiped among the girls and then tells Maggie she will switch rooms with Shawna.
They all turn to look at her and Maggie simply agrees but it seems that they all thinks she is either crazy or brave to do so. It is actually comforting to Jenny as Liza wrote that she loved the room and it makes her feel closer to her sister.
When all of them are heading to a cookout to meet with the other teens in the summer camp and converge amongst each other, Jenny listens to the talk of all the returning students. She recognizes the name of Mike spoken as Liza wrote about him constantly...her sister clearly in love with the boy she had to call Michael instead.
Jenny also recognizes the name Paul when some of the guys say that he was obsessed with Liza but also had a reputation of possibly starting a fire on the campus to impress her. Jenny isn't fond of that information but also notices that Keri has the hots for Paul by the way she bites her lips at the mere mention of his name though acting cool about it.
The director arrives and Jenny knows a little bit about Walter Burke because her parents knew him many years back in New York but at an age where Jenny was so young she can't remember. He is middle-aged, balding with his red hair in a comb over and his choice of transportation to arrive is a motorcycle.
He also seems to have his own hypocritical ego telling them that he will not stroke their egos or handle them with kid gloves. Jenny sees a little of what Brian told her about Walker once everyone is introduced and she learns the heavyset boy she met earlier is named Tomas Alvarez.
Tomas is set to be the set designer and like Jenny, has no intention of trying out for a part in the play. Walker asks Tomas if he can't hear or if he has any problems with attention. When Tomas says no, Walker asks if he is fat and others laugh as Tomas says yes.
"Obviously but that is no excuse not to audition."
What an ass.
Once the food is getting prepared, Jeny makes her way to the bridge that is close to the pavillion in the park. The bridge where her sister was found bludgeoned to death already has someone there...the young man in black from the theater.
When he sees Jenny, he doesn't answer any of her questions but asks for her name instead. Giving her fake name, he stands up from sitting on the bank and his height makes Jenny back away nervously. He stops and finally gives Jenny an answer to one question she didn't ask...his own name.
Mike Wilcox...Liza's Michael.
Knowing what she does, Jenny finds it odd that Mike talks about Liza as if they were only friends and not madly in love in the few words they share. That night, Jenny starts having the first nightmare she has had in years and the only person who ever knew about them were Liza.
At auditions, Jenny is called by Walker to audition with Mike as Lysander and Helena respectfully.
Brian said he would tell Walker about Jenny's stage fright but the director is such a pompous jerk he doesn't let it slide. It is the part in the play were Lysander falls in love with Helena instead of Hermia thanks to the work of the fairies so hearing Mike saying the lines...Jenny has no problem being confused and angry.
She has heard actors say romantic lines like this all her life but with Mike's blue eyes and the fact that Liza was crazy for him...Jenny is distracted enough not to appear that frightened on stage.
Walker notices along with everyone else that Jenny does have talent. They make it through the first half of auditions but after lunch, Walker now goes after Tomas.
He ask him to play Oberon, the king of the fairies, while Paul does Puck and Mike does Demetrius and a girl named Kimberley plays Hermia. Jenny watches Tomas fumble through the lines nervously to the point where Walker has embarassed to the brink of tears and a few snickers from the others.
Mike, however, is kinder to Tomas at the start of the scene so Jenny can see he isn't a total jerk like Paul with his short temper and ego. It stirs something inside Jenny and she shouts out to Walker that she would like to play Puck with all eyes on her in shock except for those of the director who dismisses Paul.
Paul is not happy that Jenny took the part even though it is only the audition stage.
Jenny decides to use her gymnastic skills and says Puck's line performing to the iambic pentameter of the words and the focus takes away the stage fright. It is obviously done to make Tomas more at ease and it helps him get through the rest of the scene which is met with some applause.
Afterwards, Paul makes it clear to Jenny that he didn't like having a role pulled out from under him like that. He also states that a talented actress from last year tried to play up to Walker and she ended up dead.
Jenny knows he is talking about Liza and she reminds him that the girl was murdered by a serial killer. Even though Jenny knows that Paul was obsessed with her sister, it gives him a very twisted way to act if he is implying that the killer had nothing to do with what happened to Liza...
The next day, Jenny learns that she is playing Puck in the play from Tomas as the two have become close thanks to her save move yesterday. It has also gotten Tomas closer to some of the other girls who aren't completely stuck-up like Keri as Shawna is still a very nice girl.
She affectionately calls Jenny "Reds" thanks to her curly hair and seems happy not being any of the female leads in the play, taking on the role of Peter Quince.
If you know Shakespeare then you know what the heck I'm talking about...
Jenny is stuck in her part and the rehearsals afterward start experiencing the lights flickering out on occasion with the heavy smell of jasmine perfume in the air and Jenny recognizes it as the kind that Liza use to wear...as do a few of the ones who knew her last summer.
ction
Is this Liza reaching out from beyond for Jenny to find her killer...the real one? Or could it be that someone knows who Jenny really is and is just playing a game until it is her time to die?
The reveals and the twists in this are so good and the atmosphere is just so creepy! It also helps that I was a theater kid in high school and find appreciation in every detail put toward the production of the play. Most of the characters are also easy to like and it does make it shocking to find out just which ones really are putting on an act...get it?
No Time To Die is so far the best one out of the bunch but I have two more books to tackle and more dark secrets to discover...
February 24, 2016
This was a re-read. I read the books (the bundled version) almost 2 years ago. I needed Maryland for my US challenge in my group, so I decided to pick this one up again.
Ah, this book was so much fun. There was a big variety of casts with motives and personalities that made it fun to deduce who the murderer was. I knew most of the story line and I knew partially what would happen, still the twist near the end took me by surprise. But then, my mind suddenly switched and I knew why that person had done it before they told the reasons.
Jenny was a good character, however, I did't like her flirting with 2 boys. Come on, girl you can't have both. Don't flirt with them both, kiss them both. That is not a good thing and it is bound to come back to you in a bad way. Well, that is what generally happens in books. :)
But other than this little bad thing, I still liked her. She made Puck into something that was her. By adding her gymnastics into the play she made it something special. Even with her stage fright, she kept going on. Sure, it wouldn't go well all the times, but she was determined to keep going, to make something of the play while also searching for the murderer of her sister.
One thing I didn't like was the whole visions/memories part. It fitted a bit, and I liked it back when it was just once in a while, but I found it a bit too silly and unnatural to be added. I think I would have rated the book higher had those silly visions/memories/whatever been written out.
I also liked that we had a whole revenge/grudge thing going on between Walker and Jenny's/Liza's dad. That made the book quite a bit more interesting, since that gave the possibility that Walker might have something to do with it and it also explains several things. I feel sorry for Walker though. I think it was pretty rude of Jenny's father to just walk out of a play like that.
All in all though, I really enjoyed this book and I am glad I re-read it. I would also recommend this to everyone seeking a good book to read.
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Ah, this book was so much fun. There was a big variety of casts with motives and personalities that made it fun to deduce who the murderer was. I knew most of the story line and I knew partially what would happen, still the twist near the end took me by surprise. But then, my mind suddenly switched and I knew why that person had done it before they told the reasons.
Jenny was a good character, however, I did't like her flirting with 2 boys. Come on, girl you can't have both. Don't flirt with them both, kiss them both. That is not a good thing and it is bound to come back to you in a bad way. Well, that is what generally happens in books. :)
But other than this little bad thing, I still liked her. She made Puck into something that was her. By adding her gymnastics into the play she made it something special. Even with her stage fright, she kept going on. Sure, it wouldn't go well all the times, but she was determined to keep going, to make something of the play while also searching for the murderer of her sister.
One thing I didn't like was the whole visions/memories part. It fitted a bit, and I liked it back when it was just once in a while, but I found it a bit too silly and unnatural to be added. I think I would have rated the book higher had those silly visions/memories/whatever been written out.
I also liked that we had a whole revenge/grudge thing going on between Walker and Jenny's/Liza's dad. That made the book quite a bit more interesting, since that gave the possibility that Walker might have something to do with it and it also explains several things. I feel sorry for Walker though. I think it was pretty rude of Jenny's father to just walk out of a play like that.
All in all though, I really enjoyed this book and I am glad I re-read it. I would also recommend this to everyone seeking a good book to read.
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
June 27, 2012
Wow! I'm really pleasantly surprised by this! This was a truly awesome book!
Unlike some unnameable books *suppresses a shudder*, NTTD didn't take three hundred pages to get a story going. On the first page, you were just swept into the story! And your fingers are stapled to the sides of the book until the last word.
NTTD is frightening, without actually being FRIGHTENING frightening. If you catch my drift. It's haunting, certainly, and you get your fair share of spine-tingles throughout this absolutely engrossing tale.
The characters are interesting. The main character, Jenny, is kind of an absolute moron, but it's not as annoying as you think. She was cool, even if she was an idiot. Chandler successfully managed to flesh out some of the secondary characters, which I really enjoyed.
The writing is very nice too. Since I just finished the first three books in Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments, which is CRAZILY overboard on descriptions, having slightly simpler writing prose was a nice break for me.
AND I SWEAR ELIZABETH CHANDLER IS AN EPIC MASTER AT KEEPING THE SUSPENSE! So many twists and turns in the plot kept your eyeballs glued onto the paper. And honestly, she had me fooled. The whole dang time, I was guessing and guessing….and the guilty one's name never strayed across my mind.
READ THIS NOW! Or I send my Ewok army to kill you with their fuzzy cuteness!!!!
Unlike some unnameable books *suppresses a shudder*, NTTD didn't take three hundred pages to get a story going. On the first page, you were just swept into the story! And your fingers are stapled to the sides of the book until the last word.
NTTD is frightening, without actually being FRIGHTENING frightening. If you catch my drift. It's haunting, certainly, and you get your fair share of spine-tingles throughout this absolutely engrossing tale.
The characters are interesting. The main character, Jenny, is kind of an absolute moron, but it's not as annoying as you think. She was cool, even if she was an idiot. Chandler successfully managed to flesh out some of the secondary characters, which I really enjoyed.
The writing is very nice too. Since I just finished the first three books in Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments, which is CRAZILY overboard on descriptions, having slightly simpler writing prose was a nice break for me.
AND I SWEAR ELIZABETH CHANDLER IS AN EPIC MASTER AT KEEPING THE SUSPENSE! So many twists and turns in the plot kept your eyeballs glued onto the paper. And honestly, she had me fooled. The whole dang time, I was guessing and guessing….and the guilty one's name never strayed across my mind.
READ THIS NOW! Or I send my Ewok army to kill you with their fuzzy cuteness!!!!
December 8, 2009
I loved No Time To Die, it was an epic read with so many twists and turns that I never saw coming. I loved Jenny, and how she managed to overcome her stage fright. I also really loved the plot and I never expected the book to end the way it did! I could not believe who Liza's killer really was.
I really love the way Elizabeth Chandler writes, she has such an amazing talent and she uses it really well too. Her other books flow so well, and this one did too!!
I really love the way Elizabeth Chandler writes, she has such an amazing talent and she uses it really well too. Her other books flow so well, and this one did too!!
March 29, 2013
Die letzen 100 Seiten sind sehr spannend, und nerven aufreibend, sowie verwirrend!!
Punkteabzug gibt es jedoch für die restlichen 200 Seiten, da alles so in die Länge geszogen wird und irgendwie nichts richtig Spannendes passiert. Im Allgemeinen ein nettes Buch, bei dem Theater eine grossse Rolle spielt, wenn nicht sogar eine Hauptrolle, wer dies mag liegt bei diesem Buch genau richtig.
Punkteabzug gibt es jedoch für die restlichen 200 Seiten, da alles so in die Länge geszogen wird und irgendwie nichts richtig Spannendes passiert. Im Allgemeinen ein nettes Buch, bei dem Theater eine grossse Rolle spielt, wenn nicht sogar eine Hauptrolle, wer dies mag liegt bei diesem Buch genau richtig.
June 19, 2011
I love Elizabeth Chandler's work. These short novels are so much fun to read and have just the right amount of the paranormal, mystery and romance to keep you curious and wanting more.
November 16, 2012
My English class is required to read a mystery novel and write a review for a project grade this quarter. Get this: I have until JANUARY 7 to read and write ONE book review. It's November 8th today. I knew academic English would be easy, but this is just cray.
What I will turn in:
We didn't have much time to pick a book, and we had to pick from the school library, so that's probably the only reason I picked this book. Not to say that I wouldn't like it, but it’s just so short! This project is to expand your reading tastes, and since I don’t usually read mystery, or books with death in them, I think this will help.
When I read a book for school, I usually try to write a bit about it before I start reading, so when I finish, I can go back and compare what I thought and what happened. I write what I think of the cover, what I think will happen, and if I think I will like the book.
The Cover:
The cover is supposed to look spooky with its black and white coloring and the random pictures blended together, but it just looks amateur and crowded. The images don't make any sense (although they might after I read it) and put together they look like something a 13 year old could do, not a publishing company! The subtitle, Evil is waiting in the wings, doesn't really fit with the cover. Heck, the cover doesn't fit with the cover. This book is part of a collection, and the cover of the collection itself is much nicer, so I'm thinking that this cover was just a quick remake so the book could sell solo.
What will happen?:
From the back, I can tell it will be a ghost/death mystery. Main character and narrater, Jenny, is going to the camp that her sister died at. It's a murder mystery, and that's about all I can tell from reading the blurb. The blurb is very mysterious, ending with questions.
I think that Jenny will:
*fall in love with the guy her sister was in love with
*almost get killed but be saved by the ghost of her dead sister
I think the book will end really mysteriously or suddenly, making you wonder what happened to the characters after the book leaves off.
Will I like it?:
I honestly can't tell yet if I will like it. I do love ghost stories, but this isn't as much a ghost story as a murder mystery. I have two sisters myself, and I'm not sure if this book will upset me. I can't even think about losing my sisters, and reading about it happening to someone, it's horrible. I found myself almost tearing up reading the blurb! Maybe I'm just over-emotional, but I don't like reading about death. After-death is fine, but when it's someone close to the main character it's just like- no.
And the main character may or may not be killed by the person who killed her own sister!
I hope I like it, I really do! It has such great potential, and I need to get over my inability to read sad books.
--CH1--
I hope the rest of this book isn't as depressing as the first chapter was. Not depressing as in - this author has no talent-, but more like -omg i think i might cry-. I knew what I was getting myself into the second I read the part in the blurb about the sister dying, but I have to read this. Not only because it's a project, but so I can get over my inability to read books with death in them.
The chapter starts off a few months in the past, in a memory of the night Jenny's sister died. Jenny had gotten a few calls from Liza, her sister, who was at a theater camp in Maryland. She called back, with no answer. The next day, she finds out Liza was killed.
The book then returns to the present. Jenny's talking to Sid, her chauffeur, on the way to the same theater camp Liza went to.
Sid doesn't want Jenny to go, but Jenny persists. The most of this chapter is her inner monologue, thinking about her sister. She arrives at the camp and goes straight for the theater.
--Nov 14--
The book's getting a lot better. It's less of Jenny's internal monologue and more action. They introduced a bunch of characters and a bit of the mystery. A bunch of foreshadowing, as well.
--CH2--
In chapter 2, Jenny goes to the stage in the theater and speaks a line that popped into her head. She has no idea where the words wame from. She finds out that they were from Liza's role in the play they performed the year she died. Jenny thinks it was because she had helped Liza study for auditions, but I think otherwise. Jenny keeps hearing voices, Liza's voice.
A guy about Jenny's age catches her speaking Liza's lines. He introduces himself as Brian Jones, and takes her to her cabin. She sees someone in the theater as they're walking out.
--CH3--
In chapter 3, we learn more about Liza's murder. In the cabin, some girls don't want a room because Liza's ghost is supposedly haunting it. Jenny takes the room. The girls tell Liza's story, how she was killed with an ax, and her wrist watch was broken. Jenny's there for the whole story, and all she does is "cringe on the inside". I'd be sobbing and trying to claw my eardrums out, personally.
They go outside and see a guy named Paul, who was obsessed with Liza, and supposedly started a fire to kill her.
I would have read more today, but we only had 10 minutes in class.
--CH4—
From this chapter, I know one thing for sure- Walker is a jerkface. He thinks he’s all that and publicly embarrasses people.
When Walker arrives at camp, everyone gathers around him and his motorcycle. Walker asks them their names in turn, and Jenny’s inner monologue (I love using that phrase) explains how she anonymously registered at the camp. A fat boy named Tomas tells Walker he doesn’t want to audition and Walker embarrasses him, calling him fat. Jenny decides to wait until later to tell him about her stage fright.
Brian catches up to her after the meeting and promises to talk to Walker for her.
Jenny goes to the bridge where Liza was found murdered and sees the boy who was in the theater earlier. She confronts him, and he asks her name. She replies and he introduces himself as Mike. Jenny wonders if he’s the Mike Liza used to talk about being in love with, however, he claims that they were just friends. He tells her he’s thinking about Liza, and asks if Jenny knows her. I think he suspect she does, but Jenny said no.
Jenny then leaves for dinner or a party of some kind.
--CH—
Jenny goes to her room and unpacks, reading the last emails she ever received from Liza, from the night she died. In the emails, Liza talks about accidentally hurting someone.
Aaaand that’s where I stopped writing chapter summaries, for a couple of reasons.
1) My hand got really tired.
2) I COULDN’T PUT THE BOOK DOWN
I finished the book last night.
AFTER READING:
The cover makes a little more sense now, after reading. The bridge in the picture signifies the place where Liza died. The happy/sad faces symbolize the acting in the book. The cover is kind of blue, so I think that is for the ‘blue dreams’ Jenny has about her sister’s death.
So, what happened?
This is probably going to sound like an episode of a drama show, but that’s just my lack of explaining skills.
Brian, the first person Jen meets at camp, fakes interest in her to find out if she really is Liza’s sister, which he suspected from the beginning. His mother, Maggie, who is also the assistant director, is the person who killed Liza. Brian is probably her accomplice. When he finds out that Jen is Liza’s sister, he tells his mom, who then attempts to kill Jen, making it look like suicide. Mike, the boy Liza was in love with, saves her. She finds out he accidentally misled Liza, because he was interested in Jen.
The janitor kills Maggie, and Mike and Jen escape. Jen’s parents come to the camp and her dad reconciles with Walker, after a bad past.
Jen and Mike kiss, and all is good.
Did I like it?
Yes! It was amazing. The book had me dying to see what happened next, I couldn’t put the book down! This book made me realize how much I love mystery books. I love how everything seems to come together. I love the suspense. I love everything about it.
I may have cried a bit while reading it, or I may not have. Either way, I made it through the book, and that’s a huge step for me. I used to not be able to read sad books at all, and though this wasn’t that sad, I think it’s a step in the right direction.
What I will turn in:
We didn't have much time to pick a book, and we had to pick from the school library, so that's probably the only reason I picked this book. Not to say that I wouldn't like it, but it’s just so short! This project is to expand your reading tastes, and since I don’t usually read mystery, or books with death in them, I think this will help.
When I read a book for school, I usually try to write a bit about it before I start reading, so when I finish, I can go back and compare what I thought and what happened. I write what I think of the cover, what I think will happen, and if I think I will like the book.
The Cover:
The cover is supposed to look spooky with its black and white coloring and the random pictures blended together, but it just looks amateur and crowded. The images don't make any sense (although they might after I read it) and put together they look like something a 13 year old could do, not a publishing company! The subtitle, Evil is waiting in the wings, doesn't really fit with the cover. Heck, the cover doesn't fit with the cover. This book is part of a collection, and the cover of the collection itself is much nicer, so I'm thinking that this cover was just a quick remake so the book could sell solo.
What will happen?:
From the back, I can tell it will be a ghost/death mystery. Main character and narrater, Jenny, is going to the camp that her sister died at. It's a murder mystery, and that's about all I can tell from reading the blurb. The blurb is very mysterious, ending with questions.
I think that Jenny will:
*fall in love with the guy her sister was in love with
*almost get killed but be saved by the ghost of her dead sister
I think the book will end really mysteriously or suddenly, making you wonder what happened to the characters after the book leaves off.
Will I like it?:
I honestly can't tell yet if I will like it. I do love ghost stories, but this isn't as much a ghost story as a murder mystery. I have two sisters myself, and I'm not sure if this book will upset me. I can't even think about losing my sisters, and reading about it happening to someone, it's horrible. I found myself almost tearing up reading the blurb! Maybe I'm just over-emotional, but I don't like reading about death. After-death is fine, but when it's someone close to the main character it's just like- no.
And the main character may or may not be killed by the person who killed her own sister!
I hope I like it, I really do! It has such great potential, and I need to get over my inability to read sad books.
--CH1--
I hope the rest of this book isn't as depressing as the first chapter was. Not depressing as in - this author has no talent-, but more like -omg i think i might cry-. I knew what I was getting myself into the second I read the part in the blurb about the sister dying, but I have to read this. Not only because it's a project, but so I can get over my inability to read books with death in them.
The chapter starts off a few months in the past, in a memory of the night Jenny's sister died. Jenny had gotten a few calls from Liza, her sister, who was at a theater camp in Maryland. She called back, with no answer. The next day, she finds out Liza was killed.
The book then returns to the present. Jenny's talking to Sid, her chauffeur, on the way to the same theater camp Liza went to.
Sid doesn't want Jenny to go, but Jenny persists. The most of this chapter is her inner monologue, thinking about her sister. She arrives at the camp and goes straight for the theater.
--Nov 14--
The book's getting a lot better. It's less of Jenny's internal monologue and more action. They introduced a bunch of characters and a bit of the mystery. A bunch of foreshadowing, as well.
--CH2--
In chapter 2, Jenny goes to the stage in the theater and speaks a line that popped into her head. She has no idea where the words wame from. She finds out that they were from Liza's role in the play they performed the year she died. Jenny thinks it was because she had helped Liza study for auditions, but I think otherwise. Jenny keeps hearing voices, Liza's voice.
A guy about Jenny's age catches her speaking Liza's lines. He introduces himself as Brian Jones, and takes her to her cabin. She sees someone in the theater as they're walking out.
--CH3--
In chapter 3, we learn more about Liza's murder. In the cabin, some girls don't want a room because Liza's ghost is supposedly haunting it. Jenny takes the room. The girls tell Liza's story, how she was killed with an ax, and her wrist watch was broken. Jenny's there for the whole story, and all she does is "cringe on the inside". I'd be sobbing and trying to claw my eardrums out, personally.
They go outside and see a guy named Paul, who was obsessed with Liza, and supposedly started a fire to kill her.
I would have read more today, but we only had 10 minutes in class.
--CH4—
From this chapter, I know one thing for sure- Walker is a jerkface. He thinks he’s all that and publicly embarrasses people.
When Walker arrives at camp, everyone gathers around him and his motorcycle. Walker asks them their names in turn, and Jenny’s inner monologue (I love using that phrase) explains how she anonymously registered at the camp. A fat boy named Tomas tells Walker he doesn’t want to audition and Walker embarrasses him, calling him fat. Jenny decides to wait until later to tell him about her stage fright.
Brian catches up to her after the meeting and promises to talk to Walker for her.
Jenny goes to the bridge where Liza was found murdered and sees the boy who was in the theater earlier. She confronts him, and he asks her name. She replies and he introduces himself as Mike. Jenny wonders if he’s the Mike Liza used to talk about being in love with, however, he claims that they were just friends. He tells her he’s thinking about Liza, and asks if Jenny knows her. I think he suspect she does, but Jenny said no.
Jenny then leaves for dinner or a party of some kind.
--CH—
Jenny goes to her room and unpacks, reading the last emails she ever received from Liza, from the night she died. In the emails, Liza talks about accidentally hurting someone.
Aaaand that’s where I stopped writing chapter summaries, for a couple of reasons.
1) My hand got really tired.
2) I COULDN’T PUT THE BOOK DOWN
I finished the book last night.
AFTER READING:
The cover makes a little more sense now, after reading. The bridge in the picture signifies the place where Liza died. The happy/sad faces symbolize the acting in the book. The cover is kind of blue, so I think that is for the ‘blue dreams’ Jenny has about her sister’s death.
So, what happened?
This is probably going to sound like an episode of a drama show, but that’s just my lack of explaining skills.
Brian, the first person Jen meets at camp, fakes interest in her to find out if she really is Liza’s sister, which he suspected from the beginning. His mother, Maggie, who is also the assistant director, is the person who killed Liza. Brian is probably her accomplice. When he finds out that Jen is Liza’s sister, he tells his mom, who then attempts to kill Jen, making it look like suicide. Mike, the boy Liza was in love with, saves her. She finds out he accidentally misled Liza, because he was interested in Jen.
The janitor kills Maggie, and Mike and Jen escape. Jen’s parents come to the camp and her dad reconciles with Walker, after a bad past.
Jen and Mike kiss, and all is good.
Did I like it?
Yes! It was amazing. The book had me dying to see what happened next, I couldn’t put the book down! This book made me realize how much I love mystery books. I love how everything seems to come together. I love the suspense. I love everything about it.
I may have cried a bit while reading it, or I may not have. Either way, I made it through the book, and that’s a huge step for me. I used to not be able to read sad books at all, and though this wasn’t that sad, I think it’s a step in the right direction.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 16, 2021
Liza Montgomery went to Wisteria every summer for theatre camp. But last year, Liza’s stay was cut short when she became the victim of a mass serial killer.
Fast forward a year later, Liza’s sister Jenny is still distraught from Liza’s untimely death. In order to get some closure, Jenny signs herself up to the very same theatre camp (despite having no interest in drama). She settles in easily & is welcomed by Liza’s old campmates. They’re unaware that Jenny is Liza’s sister (as Jenny has signed herself up under an alias).
Liza’s death is still the main source of gossip at camp and over time Jenny realises that not everyone is as they seem. Jenny begins to doubt the police’s theory that Liza was killed by a serial killer. In fact, Jenny starts to suspect that one of her fellow campmates is responsible for Liza’s death & if she’s not careful, she could be next….
Oh, I don’t think I’d ever want to visit Wisteria. Nothing seems to go right in that town lol Joking aside, this is another good book. To me, it felt a wee bit more eerie & darker compared to the first two books. I just can’t get the image of Liza’s death out of my head. That was pretty scary! I can’t wait to see what happens in book #4 now….
Fast forward a year later, Liza’s sister Jenny is still distraught from Liza’s untimely death. In order to get some closure, Jenny signs herself up to the very same theatre camp (despite having no interest in drama). She settles in easily & is welcomed by Liza’s old campmates. They’re unaware that Jenny is Liza’s sister (as Jenny has signed herself up under an alias).
Liza’s death is still the main source of gossip at camp and over time Jenny realises that not everyone is as they seem. Jenny begins to doubt the police’s theory that Liza was killed by a serial killer. In fact, Jenny starts to suspect that one of her fellow campmates is responsible for Liza’s death & if she’s not careful, she could be next….
Oh, I don’t think I’d ever want to visit Wisteria. Nothing seems to go right in that town lol Joking aside, this is another good book. To me, it felt a wee bit more eerie & darker compared to the first two books. I just can’t get the image of Liza’s death out of my head. That was pretty scary! I can’t wait to see what happens in book #4 now….
June 17, 2020
Again, I’m bias but loved the intrigue and hook within this novel! I did need to read it a little slower to understand the layout concepts being described. It keeps you guessing and wondering who the killer is and when revealed it’s a little shocking and hits when you aren’t quite expecting it.
I also studied and worked under Mr. Stoddard at MHS so this brings me back to my high school days :)
4.5 out of 5 stars.
I also studied and worked under Mr. Stoddard at MHS so this brings me back to my high school days :)
4.5 out of 5 stars.
June 8, 2018
Chandler's Dark Secrets No Time to Die was hard to put down. As a theater lover, I could envision the stage and scenes as she described. This mystery kept me guessing until the very end. Every time I thought I had it figured out, Chandler elevated the complexity and gave me another reason to doubt my own suspicions. If you're in need of a mystery to read, this one would make a good one.
December 31, 2019
Sometimes you just need to go back to your first love. This was the first book I ever read of my own volition, and it launched this reader into the world of books. And more than a decade later, I still thoroughly enjoyed it!
June 6, 2023
I think I like this one the best out of the three books in the series I read so far. This one was far more intense with a number of key characters who all seemed to have something to hide from the main female character.
January 28, 2025
This was my least favorite of this series. I’m not really a theater gal, so the entire plot was so disinteresting for myself. The only good part was when everything was happening at the end. I also could tell who did it, which made it harder to get through.
May 10, 2025
I loved this book, this is the type of rare book which has me hooked right from the beginning. Normally if a boo doesn’t have a lot of romance then I find it boring and it’s hard for me to continue but his book did not have that effect.
December 29, 2017
3.5/5: Esta protagonista ha sido un poco mejor que las anteriores
April 17, 2018
Review to come
August 20, 2019
3.75 stars
August 31, 2019
This was by far my favorite of the series. Quite a few mysteries in this one and many suspects. I loved it.
August 17, 2021
The first 70 or so pages were a little slow and dull, but it got better as it went on.
October 3, 2023
This was a reread for me enjoyed it but didn't love it as much as I did in high school that's to be expected though
January 13, 2024
I love this writer and her books happy to read this again the last time I read it was in high school. It just transport you to that small town.
August 15, 2025
3.5 Noatalgic as heck. Last time I read it was probably when was 13? A quick and decent YA thriller.
September 28, 2019
This was just as interesting as its predecessor. Once again, it succeeded at fooling me. I didn’t see the twist coming. I was afraid I would, because it felt like no matter who did it (it was kind of a whodunit sort of mystery), it would be obvious, because everyone seemed to have a motive. But nope—it was the least likely person, at least for me. I was pretty satisfied with the conclusion. My only criticism was the forced romance in it. That always seems to be present in teen/YA, even though that’s my favorite genre.
October 1, 2013
When I was younger, the majority of books I read were Point Horror books (or books like them, like this series), and I forgot how much I loved reading those types of books until I read this one.
I genuinely don't know if I loved the book because it was actually good or if it's more because of nostalgia, but whichever it is, I still I loved it. The first book in the series was one of my favourites when I was younger, and this one had all the same elements that made me love that one.
They're quick reads, entertaining. They have decent characters and subtle romance that is present enough to make me smile but not so present that it overwhelms the plot. It's fun trying to figure out the mystery--even when I've decided that someone is totally just a red herring I end up second guessing myself, and even if I've figured it out, the author still finds little ways to surprise me (there was definitely one twist in this that I didn't see coming).
The book (and the others in the series) had that Scooby Doo moment at the end, when the bad guy stands around revealing their evil plan, but for some reason it doesn't bother me in these books...it's part of their charm.
And this review is pretty crappy, but I guess my point is just that I still love these types of books and I didn't realise I missed reading them until I read this one.
I'm always wary of going back to series' that I used to love and reading them now, because I'm worried they won't be as good as I remember or I won't enjoy them like I did but this one left me wanting more of this series (luckily, I think there actually is one more book that was released quite recently and the others in the series were re-released a few years ago as bind ups, which I sort of want).
Later.
I genuinely don't know if I loved the book because it was actually good or if it's more because of nostalgia, but whichever it is, I still I loved it. The first book in the series was one of my favourites when I was younger, and this one had all the same elements that made me love that one.
They're quick reads, entertaining. They have decent characters and subtle romance that is present enough to make me smile but not so present that it overwhelms the plot. It's fun trying to figure out the mystery--even when I've decided that someone is totally just a red herring I end up second guessing myself, and even if I've figured it out, the author still finds little ways to surprise me (there was definitely one twist in this that I didn't see coming).
The book (and the others in the series) had that Scooby Doo moment at the end, when the bad guy stands around revealing their evil plan, but for some reason it doesn't bother me in these books...it's part of their charm.
And this review is pretty crappy, but I guess my point is just that I still love these types of books and I didn't realise I missed reading them until I read this one.
I'm always wary of going back to series' that I used to love and reading them now, because I'm worried they won't be as good as I remember or I won't enjoy them like I did but this one left me wanting more of this series (luckily, I think there actually is one more book that was released quite recently and the others in the series were re-released a few years ago as bind ups, which I sort of want).
Later.
June 29, 2011
Jenny Montgomery, or known around Chase College's drama camp as Jenny Baird, has lost her sister to the famed serial killer in Wisteria, Maryland. Feeling compelled to visit, Jenny decides to attend the same summer camp as her sister, Liza, in Wisteria, despite her stage freight and hatred of actors. Immeadiately she begins having weird visions and experiences that seemed to be coming from her sister invovling the night she had died. Piecing together the visions and things she learns during her time at the camp, she is able to conclude that her sister had not been, in fact, killed by the serial killer but rather someone who knew her. Someone who attended the camp. Jenny immeadiately begins to suspect everyone who had gone to the camp the year before: Keri, Paul, Walker, and even Liza's lover Mike.
Chandler, once again, provides her story with an amazing twist that leaves me fascinated. I really enjoyed this book and thought it was funny how she connected the first two stories with this one, mentioning the old windmill from Legacy of Lies and Aunt Jules house from Don't Tell. The book had a paranormal feel to it with Jenny having a psychic ability but I didn't feel particulary scared which is probably why I've grown so fond of the Dark Secrets series. I definetely plan on reading the next one: The Deep End of Fear.
Chandler, once again, provides her story with an amazing twist that leaves me fascinated. I really enjoyed this book and thought it was funny how she connected the first two stories with this one, mentioning the old windmill from Legacy of Lies and Aunt Jules house from Don't Tell. The book had a paranormal feel to it with Jenny having a psychic ability but I didn't feel particulary scared which is probably why I've grown so fond of the Dark Secrets series. I definetely plan on reading the next one: The Deep End of Fear.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 7, 2015
two words.....
LOVED
IT
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i normally hate theatre books. going into it i thought i was going to be wasting my life reading it. But i loved it. The twists. It was so unpredictable to me. I thought that mike was the killer or at worst the guy who she first met. Which i guess turned out to be true but yeah... I had no idea that the mom was so responiable or that her motive was so set into the story. the fire thing was so surpising and personally i kinda hatted that the main charater didnt yell back stuff like " eye for an eye mackes the whole would blind" kinda thing. AND UGH i loved mike. He was so awesome. I was conviced he was crazy and finding out that he wanted to quit the theatre and the ending was sooo cute. Plus i really liked that the one guy became her friend and liked art sooo much !@@ :) i am artist so that was awesome!!!
LOVED
IT
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i normally hate theatre books. going into it i thought i was going to be wasting my life reading it. But i loved it. The twists. It was so unpredictable to me. I thought that mike was the killer or at worst the guy who she first met. Which i guess turned out to be true but yeah... I had no idea that the mom was so responiable or that her motive was so set into the story. the fire thing was so surpising and personally i kinda hatted that the main charater didnt yell back stuff like " eye for an eye mackes the whole would blind" kinda thing. AND UGH i loved mike. He was so awesome. I was conviced he was crazy and finding out that he wanted to quit the theatre and the ending was sooo cute. Plus i really liked that the one guy became her friend and liked art sooo much !@@ :) i am artist so that was awesome!!!
April 20, 2013
I read the book when I was younger, but just randomly picked it up again recently.
I tend to figure out endings before they actually happen, but this one, even having read it before, surprised me. You think you know, but you don't. Chandler expertly drops hints and foreshadows throughout the story, and you don't even realize what she's done until the end. It's quite refreshing, to be honest.
I think my biggest thing is that I like for character's names to fit the person, and I really feel like the names selected by the author didn't seem to fit the characters, most notably Jen/Jenny & Tomas. Minor personal complaint though.
The book was simple and straightforward, as well as a quick read. I'd recommend it.
I tend to figure out endings before they actually happen, but this one, even having read it before, surprised me. You think you know, but you don't. Chandler expertly drops hints and foreshadows throughout the story, and you don't even realize what she's done until the end. It's quite refreshing, to be honest.
I think my biggest thing is that I like for character's names to fit the person, and I really feel like the names selected by the author didn't seem to fit the characters, most notably Jen/Jenny & Tomas. Minor personal complaint though.
The book was simple and straightforward, as well as a quick read. I'd recommend it.
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