No doubt Wendy Walker is a fantastic author. Her books keep you turning the pages and holding your breath all the way through. No different with this one.

This book is about an autistic girl named Charlie who is only seventeen years old. She wants to get away from this town and is working hard saving to do just that. She is going to MIT and has the grades for it. Charlie is a very smart young lady and very loyal to her friends. She was, and really still is, in love with Ian. But her mother told her things about girls who do and Charlie won't. She remembers the night they ran from her grandparents house while they were calling her mother bad names. And Charlie was only five at the time.

This book takes you through a murder. Through several suspects. Seems quite a few people had reason to want Coop dead. Even though the town loved him there were a few who had to deal with his mean cruel ways.

I figured out several things while reading this book. From what happened in the police station to what happens later in Charlie's home. I figured out several things but it did not in any way take away from the story. Some things you just have to read to believe. There were some things that didn't happen that I wanted to happen so bad. For Charlie. She deserved it. But it was not meant to be. I was very happy for Keller and Levi. Also for the other women who worked at the sandwich shop. All of them were family to Charlie. She would have done anything for them.

This book was a great read. It had me on the edge in several parts even though I knew. It made me cringe so bad when the accident in high school happened. I cried in parts also. It took me a bit to understand her mother but she was a mama bear when it came to her children. She loved Charlie so strongly. With the love of a wild animal. Yet she gave in to Dusty(stepdad) at times without talking it over with Charlie. I understand that partly. She was a ferocious woman if you messed with her children though. So she was a good mom. She did what she had to to survive also.

Thank you #NetGalley, #WendyWalker, #BlackstonePublishing for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.

Four stars and I highly recommend you read it. It's very good.

Wendy Walker has done it again. She has written an excellent murder mystery with interesting characters, that pulls you deep into the story like you are witnessing the crime. American Girl is a story about a neurodivergent teenage who gets wrapped up into a murder investigation. Charlie, who has had a hard life, is just trying to save up for college when her boss is murdered. She was at the scene of the crime so the police think she may know more than she is telling and perhaps she does.
Charlie is a wonderful character. She is neurodivergent so she sees the world a little differently. She works hard at trying to solve the case on her own and to protect those she loves, regardless of the danger she is putting herself in.
The story is full of suspects, as everyone had a motive to kill Clay Cooper. The characters are typical middle class Americans who are just trying to do the best they can. The plot is full of twists and turns, which keeps you guessing. It is a quick read and you will feel like your part of the story

Excellent small town story with a perfect title of American girl. Cooper, local business owner has been murdered, and he definitely had some enemies and secrets! Our slightly autistic main character was seen on camera at the scene of the murder, and definitely appears to have overheard the attack. But did she see or hear more? The story unfolds very well, and definitely has shocks and twists that you won’t see coming! I loved some of the quirks that were written in for our main female character. She definitely has a very developed character and much depth. Wendy Walker has done it again, and I would definitely recommend this book!

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone publishing for my electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Charlie Hudson has worked hard her whole life not only to get by, but to live up to her mother’s high-flying aspirations for her. It’s not easy growing up in a small town like Sawyer, Pennsylvania. Sawyer’s particular mix of unyielding social prejudices makes life difficult not only for a teenage mom having a baby out of wedlock – like Charlie’s mom once was – but also for anyone struggling to make a better life for themselves. Charlie knows that the only way to get out of Sawyer is to go to a good college, and she’s been working at the Triple S deli since she was fourteen in order to be able to afford it.

While she views most of her co-workers as close friends, if not outright family, there is one person there that no one likes: the boss, Clay Cooper. Charlie is grateful that he took a chance on her when she was younger, especially now that she’s eighteen and has been squirreling money away in her college fund for years, but she’s not oblivious to the kind of person he is. Coop is one of Sawyer’s biggest employers, and he will not hesitate to lord that power over any of the people who depend on him for a living:

QUOTE
This is another way I think of Clay Cooper. With one hand, he gave you a job. With another, he stole your dignity, your pride, your something or other. No matter the employee, with that second hand, he always took away the one thing that should be more valuable than money. But it can’t be when you need to feed four children, with one [ill] like Ollie, or when you need to pay for college, or support your sick grandmother.
END QUOTE

When Coop is found dead in his driveway one morning, the entire town is shocked. It quickly becomes obvious that he was murdered, and that the list of people who hated him enough to want to kill him is a mile long. Charlie just wants to keep her head down and keep working, in hopes that the investigation into his death will soon blow over, but a security camera Coop had secretly installed in the Triple S shows that Charlie was hiding in the deli on the night that he was killed. Worse, it’s readily apparent that she at least heard, if not outright witnessed, some sort of violent altercation between Coop and a mystery figure.

In an act of either courage or foolhardiness, Charlie refuses to speak with the police about what happened that night. They can’t compel her to talk, especially after she lawyers up, but when federal agents get involved, everything gets way more complicated. Charlie only wants to protect her friends and get the hell out of town. What will she do, however, when it’s both her own life and the lives of those she loves on the firing line?

Charlie is such a compelling heroine, a person with autism who isn’t portrayed as either a robot or hopelessly naive but as a whole individual with conflicting desires and inclinations. Telling the story from her point of view helps readers, especially the neurotypical, better understand the neurodiverse. As Charlie explains about one of her own coping mechanisms:

QUOTE
I began to form rules like math equations. <i>When this happens, people act that way and say those things. When that happens, people act this way and say other things</i>. And those rules stayed in my head, each and every one. I realized I could use them to prepare for whatever was coming. To protect myself.

My mom went on to tell me I was like a lopsided seesaw, and this image gave my feelings a home inside my head. A shelf to sit on. A box to live in. I didn’t know the box had a name and that the name was Autism until I was eleven. It was a relief, but also a burden I would carry forever. Like if she’d told me my nose was too big or my eyes were set too close together. I would never again be able to think that I was the same as everyone else.
END QUOTE

The way Charlie learns to embrace her differences, and use them not only to keep herself out of (too much) trouble but to protect her loved ones as well, makes for a fully realized portrait of a young woman with autism who learns how to stay true to herself even in the most unimaginable circumstances. Some books about people on the autism spectrum have the unfortunate habit of portraying them as less than, whether socially or morally (or, in some particularly annoying cases, both.) American Girl, on the other hand, is a wonderfully nuanced tale with a sympathetic heroine whose honest, clear-eyed assessments of the world can only enrich the lives of this book’s readers.

I love a small town whodunit and if the whydunit is strongly threaded throughout, even better. AMERICAN GIRL does both well! I was fascinated by Charlie, and her involvement in a small town murder that, at first, seems easily explainable, but explodes into something on a much grander scale. If you’re looking for a story that has plenty of twists and turns and a character in the middle of the chaos, who is easy to root for, look no further. Fair warning though - reading this book may cause sandwich cravings.

(Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours, @wendywalkerauthor for the gifted copy)

Today is my stop on the book tour for American Girl by Wendy Walker!

This was an action-packed book from the very beginning. There was a lot going on, so it kept my interest. I really liked the main character, Charlie - she was smart, brave, and no nonsense. She seemed pretty naive at times, but I think that’s part of being a teenager. The author also included autism representation, which is important.

There were a lot of twists and turns, and I didn’t expect all the outcomes, which is always good in a thriller.

I am so glad Wendy Walker's book "American Girl" is now available in print and I was given the option to review this book. This psychological thriller follows, Charlie, an autistic teenager who happens across her dead boss, a prominent business man, in her small town. What follows is Charlie trying to protect herself and her friends.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my e-ARC of American Girl!

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔
🥪 ever worked at a sandwich shop
🎧 enjoy audio books turned print
🙋🏻‍♀️ know someone on the spectrum
👀 would lie for your friends

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

 Charlie Hudson, an autistic seventeen-year-old, is determined to leave Sawyer, PA, as soon as she graduates high school. In the meantime, she works as many hours as she can at a sandwich shop called The Triple S to save money for college. But when shop owner, Clay Cooper--a man both respected and feared in their small economically depressed town--is found dead, each member of his staff becomes a suspect in the perplexing case. Before she can go anywhere, Charlie must protect herself and her friends by uncovering the danger that is still lurking in their tightknit community.

Based on the Audible Original, bestselling author Wendy Walker returns with another riveting thriller, told through the eyes of an unforgettable protagonist.

• 𝐌𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒

This was a fun and creative read that centers around a young girl who, sort of, witnesses the murder of her boss. The only thing is, she didn’t see who exactly did it, but she has a few suspects in mind because he was the most hated man in town. Everyone has a reason for killing gun, but who ultimately did it? Charlie is determined to find out and make sure her friends are kept safe. I liked the way the story unfolded because her POV was very unique and she only wanted to protect the people she loved and cared about. I didn’t listen to this story, but I imagine it could be fun since it was first released as an audiobook!

American Girl is full of drama, guessing, and action and it will leave you asking what in the world did you just read because it was that good!

Wendy Walker is one of my go-to thriller authors, so I was excited to get this one on netgalley, and for me, it didn't disappoint! Charlie is a teenage girl in a small-town in Pennsylvania (honestly..it kind of reminded me of the small-town I grew up in -- also in PA 😂), and she quickly finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation. Her boss has been murdered, and her circle of friends are all suspects. This one took so many twists and turns, you didn't know who to trust. Was the FBI agent really helpful? Was Charlie's best friend who she seemed to be? It was hard to know. But, I loved it and when it all came together at the end, it made so much sense. Once I started this one I couldn't put it down.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the e-ARC to review. This one is out now!

Wendy Walker has gifted me with a very pleasant day of reading American Girl. So loved Charlie, an autistic 17 year old high school student. Having worked with many autistic students I felt she did an excellent job of portraying a very intelligent autistic teenager. Her phrases she teaches herself repeating over and over is a very typical strategy used to exert control over their emotions. I did love her rules and the way she kept analyzing them and deciding if they should remain rules. Charlie has a “family” that she works with and her decision to protect them when she finds herself in the midst of a murder investigation serves as the catalyst for her actions.
The pacing keeps the reader engaged throughout the many twists and turns leading to the ultimate solution. There are dual timelines so things are revealed slowly which worked exceedingly well with this read.
Many many thanks to Wendy Walker for another engaging read, Blackstone Publishing, and NetGalley for affording me the opportunity to read an arc of this recently published book. Keep writing Wendy Walker - you have many fans.

American Girl by Wendy Walker is about a 4 star book. This was probably my least favorite by this author but still deserves a high rating so that says a lot. I did enjoy all the plot twists and did not predict the ending. I do feel the main character had conflicting traits. She is on the spectrum and while some of her behaviors were consistent with this, others were not but then again, everyone is different and there is no hard fast rule on how she should behave. But small things stood out, such as how she reacts to certain situations, or how one time she describes physical touch as difficult for her and other times she embraces it. She is definitely high functioning. I do like that she had ambitious goals and was pretty much a straight arrow. Wellllll....maybe she wasn't?

I enjoyed reading this story and look forward to Walker's other books. She always has some surprise at the end that is unexpected. My favorite by her would by The Night Before so once you're done reading this, I recommended you check that one out too.

I enjoyed this book. It was not my favorite Wendy Walker but Walker is always an auto buy for me no matter what. I think this book will be enjoyed by many!

I really liked that we get this story from the POV of Charlie. She felt SO REAL to me. Her being Autistic gave a unique perspective and I really liked being in her mind. The way she makes and follows rules from experience or from her mom's past that she's given advice from .

Charlie, in her mind, has to find out who killed her boss because of what she knows about the people she works with (and who she loves). I really liked the journey of figuring stuff out. She's a super smart girl that I felt bad for when she felt she wasn't smart because of being duped by some people (I felt bad because it's not because of the Autism that she was duped... Even someone without that diagnosis I felt would have been duped too).

I loved the main character! I found her unique and well portrayed. There were enough twists to hold my attention. It was a good read, but I felt like the first half was too slow. I was more invested in Charlie and found I didn't care much about the mystery which i figured out very early on. The ending was perfect, and bittersweet.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for gifting me a digital ARC. I love the disability representation and I love Charlie. It is hard enough being young and feeling unwanted but our girl also has to solve a mystery.
This was blast.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest book by a favorite, Wendy Walker - 5 stars!

Charlie is 17 years old, autistic, and desperate to leave small town Sawyer PA. Her mom got pregnant with her in high school and has never stopped letting Charlie know that she doesn't want her to repeat that mistake. Her stepfather has never been in her corner and now that they have 2 boys of their own, Charlie always feels left out. So her family is the people that work with her at the sandwich shop in town. When the shop owner, Clay Cooper, a man both feared and revered in town, is found dead, Charlie is going to keep her family safe at all costs.

Charlie is an absolutely amazing character, and I have my fingers crossed that Walker will give us an update into her life at some point! She has developed a set of rules to live by, that keep her focused on her goals. She has fierce loyalty to her friends, even when her own safety is at stake. She takes the investigation of Coop's murder into her own hands, coming up with a new rule - don't trust anyone. I've read fabulous reviews of the audiobook of this one, so I'm going to have to listen to that. But the book is highly recommended!

What was your first job? ⁣
⁣
I worked in a local deli making subs… just like Charlie in American Girl ☺️
⁣
Meet Charlie: autistic teenager eager to escape her small town life, employee at a sandwich shop saving money for college, and … murder suspect?⁣
⁣
When the owner of the sub shop where she works is found murdered, all the employees become suspects and as Charlie tries to protect herself and her friends, she slowly watches her dreams of leaving her depressing town slip away.⁣
⁣
This book was all the things … perplexing murder mystery, emotional family dynamics, captivating plot twists, and a most charming and endearing main character. It’s a thriller at it's core, but also an unforgettable story of friendship and finding your people, and that not even a little bit of murder can stop your dreams for the future.

I’ve been lucky enough to meet Wendy multiple times recently and thanks to her and @blackstonepublishing, I read an early copy of American Girl. Not really a surprise but I LOVED it. I did the audible version along with the netgalley version and they complement each other very well!

Charlie has become one of my favorite characters and I think she’ll stick with me for a long time. Being inside her mind for the entirety of the story was so insightful and Wendy did an amazing job portraying her. I found myself thinking about the book when I wasn’t reading it and wondering WHO KILLED COOP? (I’ll let you read it to find that out)! Every character was a suspect.

I really loved this thriller centering around a girl named Charlie who finds herself unexpectedly intertwined in a small-town murder mystery. Diagnosed early in life with autism, she is often underestimated by those in her town and I loved her perspective in narration. It kept internal dialogue so interesting and I loved the aspect of a super intelligent female young character whose love for her community didn't hold her back from her dreams or her ability to protect those she loves.

While I didn't find the title to be all-encompassing for the vibe of this book, it kept my interest throughout for sure! If you love a good thriller, check out this book for the new perspective and stay for the plot!