The Skinny
(aka Back of the Book Summary in a Sentence)
Five high school students walk into detention, but only four come out alive when the Gossip Girl of the group ends up dead.
Nutritional Value
(aka What’s Good)
This was way better than a murder mystery dinner. And cheaper too! I absolutely love how the story progresses in a way where each section is from a different character’s perspective.
Each narrator has their own unique quirks, thoughts, wants, and secrets. And every time the narrator changes, it offers a fresh point of view on the actions of the other characters. It’s also an amusing twist on the whodunit genre that one of the narrators might be the murderer!
I’m going to be rooting for each character during their turn as the storyteller. Best part of doing this is it’ll make the reveal of who the murderer is that much more gut-wrenching if it ends up being someone I formed an unhealthy attachment to. Because who doesn’t love getting emotionally wrecked by a fictional character?
Freezer Burn
(aka What’s Bad)
The first character to be the narrator is Bronwyn. I had no idea that was a girl. The name sounded pretty masculine to me, like a brawny Irish boxer who wins most of his matches. And as narrator, the only pronoun she used to reference herself was “I.” She also didn’t describe her physical appearance, so that didn’t help matters.
I was picturing Bronwyn as a guy until about a third through the chapter when a teacher called her “Miss Rojas.” I was so confused. I had to Google the name Bronwyn up and yep, it’s a female name. This isn’t anything bad about the book or the writing. It’s totally on me not being familiar with the name. I’m my own freezer burn.
Lingering Aftertaste
(aka My Prediction)
I have two guesses for who the murderer is. The first is the teacher who put all five students in detention. Because how else would the five of them be in the same room together if he hadn’t put them there?
My second suspect is Simon himself. Yep, that’s right. The murderer is the guy who was murdered. I guess that makes it a suicide? The first chapter sets Simon up as a conscienceless sneak who enjoys ruining people’s lives. So like Loki, except not as charming or lovable. What better way to ruin his classmates’ lives than to implicate them in his murder?
Taste Test Verdict
(aka Would I Read More?)
Real talk, a big part of me wanted to keep this review short so I could go back to reading the book as quickly as possible. The last couple of pages of the chapter literally made my heart beat faster, it was that exciting. It felt like I had just run up a flight and a half of stairs. Not two flights though, because that’s elevator territory.
Memorable Morsel
(aka Quotable Quote)
No lie, I had the exact same train of thought as Cooper here.
“A pen,” he says, his eyes scanning Simon’s brick-red face. “You have a pen?” Simon nods wildly, his hand clawing at his throat. I grab the pen off my desk and try to hand it to Nate, thinking he’s about to do an emergency tracheotomy or something. Nate just stares at me like I have two heads. “An epinephrine pen,” he says, searching for Simon’s backpack. “He’s having an allergic reaction.”
How would you be in this life-and-death situation? Sound off in the comment section below!
Get One of Us Is Lying
Gwen thinks that it’s as close to magic as humans can get when a blank Word document is filled with groups of letters, and those groups of letters turn into lines, and those lines turn into a whole new world.
When Gwen isn’t reading or writing, she’s drinking boba milk tea and singing along to Steven Universe. You should sing along with her.