Betrayal! Murder! More betrayal!

Plot:
High school girl Neve Lanier just cannot catch a break when it comes to friendship. As a social pariah, she thinks she hits the jackpot when new girl Yasmin Attar befriends her. The two become best friends. Until they aren’t. Just before school lets out, Neve is betrayed by Yasmin. Left alone and broken, her family encourages her to attend an all-girl’s empowerment camp called GLAM (a bit cheesy, but okay.) The girls at the camp seem friendly, her roommate much like her, and she makes friends quickly and easily, catching her off-guard and possibly affecting her decision making skills. Although warned by others, she is especially drawn to beautiful Diane, both as a friend and a potential love interest. One night at camp, the girls attend Confession, a tell-all time in theater class where they are encouraged to let loose of any burdens. It’s here that they learn each other’s secrets. And it’s at this point that Neve’s life changes forever. On the last night of camp, during a sleepover in Diane’s room, they make a joke -- Diane will murder Yasmin if Neve will murder her brother -- only one of them doesn’t consider it a joke.

“I did my part, BFF. Now it’s your turn.”

Soon, Neve learns that everything about Diane is a lie. She has to figure a way out of this mess without becoming a murderer.

Thoughts:
This book is straight-up young adult mystery/suspense. If you like that type and genre, then this book is for you. Neve is a likeable character, and I felt anxious for her whether it was her trying to make friends, trying to convince herself it was okay not to have a best friend, or trying to get out of the whole “Strangers on a Train” murder for murder situation. One thing that drives me nuts about this type of story is when teenagers are trying to “solve” the crime rather than leaving it to the police. And in this case, it wasn’t that she was trying to take care of it herself, the police didn’t believe her when she confessed all she knew, so she really didn’t have a choice but to try to take care of the situation on her own. And it actually worked!

One of Neve’s hobbies, which conveniently gives her a connection with hot guy Javier is her love of noir films...hence the reference to “Strangers on a Train.” Aside from this connection to the “you murder for me, I’ll murder for you” plot line, the other noir film references felt disconnected and forced. They really didn’t add much to the story -- just random tidbits that I felt were trying to make this storyline unique. It didn’t detract from the story, but it didn’t add anything either.

I think the story was a bit predictable but there was one twist at the end that I think caught me off guard. It made total sense when it happened but I didn’t really see it coming.

And the cover is to die for!

Recommendation:
Did I like this book? Yeah -- I think I did. I would recommend this book to avid readers of young adult mysteries.

Rating:
3.5/5

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this title for review.