In reviewing The Other Lola, I have to bring up the fact that I really enjoyed Ripley Jones debut novel Missing Clarissa and that was a major reason I was excited to read this book. I saw that it was going to feature a couple of the other characters from that story, so Lola was going to have great potential in my opinion.

Unlike the pacing of Jones' debut book, The Other Lola was quite slow and did not bring me in until over halfway through. I liked the fact that Blair and Cam were back as two featured characters and they were involved in another case. I would say that since their characters were pretty well fleshed out in Clarissa, that they actually seemed pretty flat and one dimensional here. It would serve you better as a reader to read Clarissa first and then Lola. Otherwise, the story just didn't have that gripping excitement I felt in the debut.

What did work for me was the added character of Mattie and their search for answers. I liked that they became involved with Cam and Blair and they never gave up what they felt was right. That was the main part of the story, after all. But the pacing felt off and when I put the book down, I wasn't always excited to get back to it. That tells me something. Once I got past the first half, I found myself a little more excited, but I felt myself reading faster to see how the story was going to wrap up. And even that was anticlimactic.

With all that said, The Other Lola was an ok story but didn't work as well as Missing Clarissa did. I enjoyed the characters and them growing up and moving on from their first case, but this one didn't seem as hard fought. It was more about them moving on from their pasts, but also helping others if they can. I also liked that the author continues to give us characters from different backgrounds all while living in a small town. This story may work for a younger audience, but it was just alright for me.

To be honest I don’t think I quite liked this book as Missing Clarissa. I feel like this book was more about Cam and Blair finding themselves before heading off to college than it was about really helping to figure out if Mattie’s sister was really Lola. While both girls’ journey of self-discovery was not bad, I think I just enjoyed the intrigue and mystery of Missing Clarissa a bit more. The final twist and turns were well done but over all this book for me was just okay. I do hope that maybe Cam and Blair will get another book as I do still enjoy them, I just want a final mystery to wrap their stories up.
Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

I remember really liking the first book in this series, but this one did not hit for me. Mattie, a younger classmate, asks Cam and Blair to help them prove that the girl who claims to be her sister that ran away, is in fact not her sister. I don’t remember the two main characters being so insufferable the first time around. Instead of just telling her mom and her friend what was going on with her, Blair just agonizes it for the entire book and it is ridiculously too much. I also figured out the ending fairly on in the book. It wasn’t completely horrible, but Missing Clarissa definitely could/should have been a standalone.

I read Missing Clarissa last year, and thoroughly enjoyed it, so I had high expectations for The Other Lola. And I'm happy to report that I was not disappointed. This time Blair and Cam switched it up and instead of Cam dragging Blair into doing podcast about a missing girl who ends up being dead, Blair is writing a book about a girl who went missing and then returned years later, with Cam reluctantly along for the ride. Lola went missing five years ago and has just shown up out of nowhere with a story of kidnapping... only her younger sister Mattie isn't buying it. Convinced this other Lola is an imposter, they recruit Cam and Blair into investigating with her. As the trio dig deeper into the past and the events around the time of Lola's disappearance, nothing is as it seems. Complicating their sleuthing is Cam's PTSD from the aftermath of their investigations into Clarissa's disappearance and death. The suspense is slower to build in this one, as there is much more emphasis on mental health in the wake of the events of the first book, and several characters from the previous book make appearances here, but the climax is still satisfying, all the more so for the deeper character development that is spent rounding out our cast of characters. Looking forward to what Ripley Jones writes next!

4 stars / This review will be posted on goodreads.com today.

I so loved Missing Clarissa. What a great novel about two teens solving a years old murder mystery. So when the follow up appeared, I knew I had to read it.

The Other Lola doesn’t really pick up where Missing Clarissa left off. Mostly the same characters, Cam & Blair. Later because a lot has happened in their lives since then. Irene is dating Brad. Cam & Sophie are still together but Sophie is off at college in the east.

Now there is a teen named Mattie who enlists Cam to help her find her missing sister. But the sister really isn’t missing. She was missing for five years and then suddenly appeared in a police station claiming she was the missing Lola. Mom Ruth believes her. Brother Luke believes her. But Mattie, Mattie is very sure this isn’t her real sister.

Cam is rather reluctant to get involved in another crime solving spree that might endanger their lives again, but she calls Blair to get her take on it. Blair gets sucked right in. It’s not just because Mattie is so sad. And so convincing. Plus, Blair has ulterior motives. Slowly but surely, she sucks Cam into another mystery.

Ripley Jones has a talent for capturing teen angst. And mom angst too! I flew through this novel, enjoying revisiting the characters from the previous book. Trying to figure out if Lola really is Lola, and what the heck are all these people hiding? It was really good. A quite enjoyable teen mystery.

Lola mysteriously disappeared five years ago and now she just as mysteriously has showed up again. Her story for where she's been is unbelievable and almost everyone is excited that she's finally back. Except for her sister Maddie. They are not convinced that this is the sister that left them all those years before. In enters Cam and Blair, the two young podcasters/sleuths who previously, in Missing Clarissa, solved the disappearance and murder of a local missing girl. Maddie desperately needs their help in exposing what they believes is a scam. This isn't their sister, she's sure of it.
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! I could not get enough of this story! I just had to know if this was the real Lola or another Lola and read it all in ONE day!! Full of suspense and mystery, this sequel is just as good as the original (Missing Clarissa). Highly recommend!

I thought this was a good follow up to Missing Clarissa, however was I naive for hoping it would have a happier outcome than Missing Clarissa did? I was a little disappointed with how this book unfolded, as well as how much trauma our poor main characters went through between both of these books! My heart hurt for them.

I did still find myself getting sucked into the story that was laid out and wanted/needed to know what happened to Lola!

The Other Lola is the sequel to Missing Clarissa, a YA thriller about two teens solving the cold case of a missing girl through their podcast. When the sequel opens up, Cam and Blair are dealing with the negative attention they've received from their podcast, with both girls resolving to never get caught up in a case like that again. But when a classmate named Mattie asks them to find their sister, Cam and Blair can't say no.

Like the first book, the POV switches between Cam and Blair. Cam, having been kidnapped in the previous book, is suffering from panic attacks. She's also in a long distance relationship with her girlfriend and worries she is losing her. Blair, meanwhile, was contacted by someone in the publishing world and offered a book deal, something she's wanted for the longest time. She is the one who pushes Cam to help Mattie, but the more the girls dig for the truth, the harder it is for them to step away.

There are many twists and turns, and I raced through the last third of the book to find out what would happen next. I really loved these characters and would love for more stories about Cam and Blair!

Because I really enjoyed Jones' previous novel, Missing Clarissa, I was more than excited for the opportunity to read The Other Lola. With so many references to the mystery in Missing Clarissa, I don't think that The Other Lola can be read as a standalone.

Unlike Missing Clarissa, The Other Lola is a slow read. Lacking plot twists and cliffhangers for a majority of the novel, it took a lot of patiences to get past the 51% point. But by then I figured out the finale. Skimming the rest of the novel till 86%, my suspicions on the perpetrator(s) were validated. It's only because the novel closely mimics an episode of Law and Order SVU that I watched fairly recently. If it weren't for the similarity to the TV episode, I probably would have enjoyed the novel a lot more.

The main characters are a carryover from the previous novel and because of that, they weren't as fully fleshed out. Too bad since new readers will probably find the characters uninteresting and pretty vanilla. Some of the newer characters included a non-binary person and a few lesbians. I just don't get why just about all authors seem to jump on the LGBTQ+ bandwagon and think it's the best thing since sliced bread. Don't get me wrong, it's just that just about every book I've read recently either has a non-binary characters, or a lesbian/gay characters built into the narrative. And it can get a little confusing with the "they/them" pronouns.

In any event, The Other Lola turned out to be a decent read. Not the best, and not the worst. Three stars.

I was invited to read a DRC from St. Martin's Press through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

I loved Missing Clarissa so I was really excited to get to read its sequel, The Other Lola. I wish I liked this one more because the synopsis was so intriguing, but overall, I was disappointed. It was like Cam and Blair completely forgot everything they learned about true crime and investigating it. They made a lot of really ridiculous decisions and choices that I’m not sure how they didn’t see or anticipate the consequences of. They did have a lot of sweet friendship moments that I enjoyed reading. Mattie drove me absolutely nuts. I tried to have some sympathy for her because she was young, but her inability to entertain any other theories about her sister or the fact that she could have misremembered something from five years ago was incredibly frustrating. The big reveal didn’t really do anything for me which was a letdown because my curiosity was what kept me going with this book. Also, a minor annoyance, but one that came up several times: I’m very liberal in my political views, but it felt like every other page, the author had to make sure we knew how liberal they were. It felt VERY out of place most of the time. I will say that the scene with Officer Militia was hilarious though. Again, I wish I had enjoyed it more, but it was very slow paced with very little payoff so I was disappointed overall.

TW: rape threats, online bullying, drug abuse, panic attacks, adult/minor relationship, religious bigotry, murder

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for an advanced digital reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"The Other Lola" by Ripley Jones reunites readers with the dynamic duo of Cam and Blair from "Missing Clarissa,” this time embarking on a new mystery that hits close to home. In this sequel, Jones masterfully weaves together elements of suspense, intrigue, and the enduring bonds of friendship.

Cam and Blair, having gained recognition for their investigative prowess in their small town, are pulled back into the world of mysteries when Mattie Brossilard seeks their help. Mattie's sister, Lola, vanished without a trace five years ago, only to reappear suddenly. However, Mattie is convinced that the returning Lola is an imposter, setting the stage for a gripping investigation.

While the first book ended satisfyingly, I did enjoy going back into the story of Cam and Blair, especially in seeing how their characters have developed after the events from the first book. I did miss the podcast aspect from the first book, which wasn’t present here. Jones seamlessly integrates elements from the previous novel while crafting a fresh and engaging storyline. The alternating perspectives of Cam and Blair (as well as the other characters) provide insight into their characters and deepen the emotional resonance of the narrative. I was definitely drawn into the mystery surrounding Lola's disappearance and her unexpected return.

While I thought the mystery itself was well-developed, its resolution was a bit underwhelming, and some of the choices made by Cam/Blair felt a bit out-of-character. I don’t really think a sequel was necessary after everything was wrapped up so well in the first book, but I did enjoy the story that Jones created. Overall, it was enjoyable though not terribly memorable.

The Other Lola by Ripley Jones is the sequel to Missing Clarissa. I read that last year and gave it 4 stars but I honestly don't remember much about it so maybe if I had, this one would've worked better for me. This was a slow burn for me for the first 1/2 of the book. Lola goes missing and a "Lola" shows up, but is it the right Lola? I'll give this 3 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review. To be published March 2024.

Was very much looking forward to this one after I received the first book free from a Goodreads Giveaway. It did not disappoint!

Although <i>Missing Clarissa</i> wasn't a book crying out for a sequel, I'm glad that there was one. That's not necessarily because I was so attached to Cam and Blair (although I do like them), but more because there was a lot for them to learn and sort through after they solved the previous case. They don't live in a fictional world where pesky kids and their talking dog can just solve cold cases with impunity; they live in a version of our reality, where actions have consequences and endings aren't always the sort of happy you want them to be. <i>The Other Lola</i> does a beautiful job of carrying that theme through, because at the end of the day, what Mattie <i>says</i> they want - to discover the truth about what happened to their older sister Lola the night she disappeared - isn't actually what they <i>do</i> want. What they want is for Lola to come back, and we've all read this story enough times in the news to know how unlikely that is.

Jones does a good job keeping the truth under wraps until the end, and the mystery is genuinely twisting and interesting. When the truth does come out, it's exactly as the hole in the pit of your stomach predicted, but that doesn't make it any easier to take. I liked the follow through of this sequel better than the first novel's, but both have the same point underneath it all: it's far too easy to ignore the missing girls. Some of them never even got the chance to scream.

I had an extremely enjoyable experience reading Missing Clarissa from Ripley Jones so I had to pick up this sequel! THE OTHER LOLA follows all our characters in the physical and emotional aftermath of book one. There is a focus on healing and atonement, as well as a look to one's future. But just when Cam and Blair are starting to get back on track in every aspect they get someone coming to them claiming their sister who disappeared fives years ago just came back --- but she KNOWS it is not really her. DUN DUN DUN! In an effort to not get swept up in the podcast fame like before, Cam and Blair are taking different stances to this case, how they should get involved, and even IF they need to have anything to do with this. The book further explores America's obsession with true crime and it does so in a realistic way as well as a satirical way at times. It dives into the ugly truth of America's heroin problem, specifically how it is targeting the youth of the country. And it does so with scathing jabs at institutions, classism, racism, and even the way we think or have been conditioned to think and react to things. I loved this book!

Intriguing, action-packed, coming of age YA mystery that will keep the reader turning its pages.

“The Other Lola” by Ripley Jones is the sequel to “Missing Clarissa” that reintroduces Blair and Cam.

Mattie Brosillard’s sister, Lola, disappeared mysteriously five years ago with no trace of her ever being found. Now she’s back—but Mattie is convinced the girl who returned is an impostor. Mattie, a freshman at Blair’s and Cam’s high school, begs them for their help to unravel the mystery and to find Lola.

Cam is suffering from PTSD and is hesitant to get involved; Blair is wanting to plow ahead in hopes of clinching a book deal. They do take on the case and the chapters ensue alternating POV between Cam and Blair.

There were a lot of twists and turns that kept me guessing and encouraging me to turn its pages to the end. I enjoyed the coming of age aspect that was tastefully done. Characters were well developed with my favorite being Mattie who is a gender-neutral, no-nonsense, straightforward character with tenacity and spunk.

There were times the storyline became repetitive where I found myself skimming ahead to get to the point. The ending was a little over the top, seemed forced, and became anti-climatic when wrapping up loose ends.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for sending this advanced copy for review in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Content⚠️:
Sexual content: Discussion on getting “boned” and “laid” without description.

Language: Explicit foul language with over a dozen uses of the F-bomb sprinkled throughout.

Violence: Inference and threats of murder. fighting without graphic detail.

Drugs/alcohol use: Heroine. Smoking a joint. Drinking.

"The sequel to Ripley Jones's unforgettable YA thriller Missing Clarissa, The Other Lola is about what happens when the people you love the most are the people you can trust the least.

In the months after Cam and Blair broke their small hometown's legendary missing-girl story and catapulted to accidental fame, they vowed never to do it again. No more mysteries, no more podcasts, and no more sticking their heads where they don't belong.

Until Mattie Brosillard, a freshman at their high school, shows up on their doorstep, begging Cam and Blair for help. Mattie's sister Lola disappeared mysteriously five years ago. No trace of her was ever found. Now, she's back - but Mattie is convinced the girl who returned is an impostor. Nobody believes Mattie's wild story - not Mattie's brother, not Mattie's mother, and not even Cam and Blair. But something is definitely wrong in the Brosillard family. And Blair has her own reasons for wanting to know what really happened to Lola while she was gone.

With Cam and Blair still struggling with the aftermath of their first mystery - and with new secrets swirling between them - the stakes are higher than ever in this can't-miss sequel to Missing Clarissa."

I'm always fascinated by stories where people might not be who they say they are...

The Other Lola
Ripely Jones
4⭐️

In the months after Cam and Blair broke their small hometown’s legendary missing-girl story and catapulted to accidental fame, they vowed never to do it again. No more mysteries, no more podcasts, and no more sticking their heads where they don’t belong.

Until Mattie Brosillard, a freshman at their high school, shows up on their doorstep, begging Cam and Blair for help.

My thoughts;
This was an entertaining follow up to Finding Clarissa. I adore Cam and Blair and fun following along with them as they once again try to solve a mystery. The story was unique, well written, well paced, and I found myself eagerly flipping pages to find out how everything was going to play out. I did not see that ending coming! I do hope there is more to come from these Bestie Detectives.

What I enjoyed;
🔎 YA Mystery
🔎 Domestic Suspense
🔎 Slow-Burn
🔎 Found Family

Pub date: 3/5/24. Thank you St. Martin’s Press & Wednesday Books for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

3.25

Setting: Washington
Rep: queer Mexican-American protagonist; nonbinary side character

I found this one wasn't quite as tense as the first book. I appreciated the diversity and Mattie was a really sweet character. I wanted more from the actual mystery but it was still a decent book!

One year after Cam and Blair solve the mystery of what happened to Clarissa, they are approached by Mattie Brosillard with a new mystery. Mattie is certain their sister Lola who reappeared after five years of being a missing person, is not really Lola. No one believes Mattie’s story that Lola isn’t really Lola, not even Cam and Blair. However, Cam and Blair agree to help Mattie. Is Lola really who she says she is or is she an imposter as Mattie says? Cam and Blair will investigate to find out.

First of all, I absolutely loved Missing Clarissa. When I received a widget for this one, I jumped at it! However, this sequel seemed like a totally different writing style to me. The action was much slower throughout the book for one. Also, Cam and Blair did not spend as much time together in this one, whereas their friendship was a main part of Missing Clarissa. I think my favorite part of the book was the character of Mattie. Mattie is non-binary and I enjoyed reading about their journey and experiences. I also really enjoyed the twists and wrap-up at the end of the story, it all came together well. Overall, this was a decent read. It was a slow burn for sure. Definitely read Missing Clarissa before you dive into this one because it really sets up the characters of Cam and Blair well. I give this one 3/5 stars.