What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Jess has a crush on her best friend, Angie. When Angie meets Margot, a girl from an exclusive private boarding school, she falls in love, which makes Jess jealous and also suspicious of Margot's motives. Jess and Angie are swept up in the drama of the girls from the private school, and things are about to turn deadly.
What I think (in 250 words or fewer--yeah right. Once again, I couldn't stay within my word limit. Also, some spoilers.):
Holy cow. I made the mistake of starting this book while sitting in a nice bubble bath--only to get trapped in the bathtub (TIBT) because I couldn't put it down. This book is a wild ride from start to finish; and I, who pride myself on being able to figure out mysteries before the end of books (and metaphorically pat myself on the back when I find out that I'm right), was surprised several times.
Surprise #1: No "closeted lesbian keeps love for straight best friend a secret" as main plot. Even with the prologue involving a gun, I thought, from reading the description of the book, it was going to be one of those I'm in love with my best friend but it can never be because she's straight and doesn't know I'm gay!! and I've totally read that before. I expected that and was ready to read some angst from Jess, the narrator. How will she tell Angie? What will her parents think? How will she handle the inevitable ignorance from people?
NOPE. Jess is . . . well, creepy. Angie works at the ice cream parlor, and Jess sits at a table all day, watching her. Jess and Angie both identify as lesbians, so there's no awkward coming-out-to-friend moment. When Angie meets Margot and they begin flirting with each other, I begin to get very uncomfortable with the way Jess is acting. I think of stories of stalkers and serial killers who become obsessed with their victims before they kill them. Yikes.
Surprise #2: Jess's parents do not kick her out. Jess's parents are Chinese and very traditional. For example, instead of praising Jess for her art talents, they chastise her for drawing instead of studying; after all, Jess's brother is the golden child who is studying engineering at MIT. Even though Jess has received a scholarship to take art lessons and is extremely gifted, her parents are still not satisfied.
I knew the book would be the story of how I came out of the closet to my parents, they called me a disgrace and kicked me out, and now I'm suicidal!!, but as you may have figured out by now, I was wrong. Again.
Jess's parents don't support her art; true, but they do not think she's a disgrace to the family or anything. Instead, they are concerned that she's so obsessed with Angie that she is putting herself in danger by lying to the police about a murder.
Jess's mom says, "You are my daughter. I want you to be happy. If you are lesbian, it's okay. But you don't lie to your parents. You don't let your friend control you like that. You have to tell the truth" (pg. 156, hardback edition).
Surprise #3: Circumstantial evidence does not lead to Jess being a suspect. Halfway through the book, the point-of-view changes from first-person to third-person, which is usually a huge pet peeve of mine (either pick one POV or consistently switch throughout the whole book, but switch just because!!) and then it got, well, even weirder.
Jess seems even creepier when not telling the story, and the plot of the graphic novel she's writing begins to mirror the murderous events happening in her life, and since we no longer know what she was thinking, I knew she was going to be framed and even found guilty.
NOPE. The police and witnesses were much smarter than I gave them credit for.
Surprise #4: The inappropriate teacher and the student with the vendetta were not even involved. When the teacher was introduced and the student began acting creepy, I rolled my eyes and thought Yep, it's gonna be the convenient teacher and loner scapegoat. I knew it!! Oh, but no: the teacher and the loners were just red herrings--like communism! (if you knew what the quote would be before you clicked on the link, then you are awesome).
Surprise #5: Whodunit!: I finally figured it out, and there was a confession, and I felt all fantastic about my mad detective skillz--but then . . . HOLY EPILOGUE BATMAN.
TL, DR: I have bad prediction and detective skills.
My overall takeaway: This book is amazing. Read it today. But not in the bathtub. 5 out of 5 stars, and the coveted TIBT distinction.
My favorite quotes:
- "All I want to do is make sure she's okay, and it doesn't even matter that she probably doesn't understand how much she means to me. It's purer this way. She can take whatever she wants from me, whenever she wants it, because I'm her best friend" (pg. 10 and 118).
- "My face floods with heat while the ice cream melts in my mouth and it's chocolate, rich and sweet, with a grainy chunk of peanut butter embedded inside, and finally, a swirl of caramel with an unexpected salty bite" (pg. 7).
- "I picture the girl on the ground, her body weighting down layers of damp, dead leaves as the snow falls in soft heavy flakes over her, covering her mouth, her eyes, drifting into her nostrils. If that jogger hadn't found her today, she might have lain there beneath the drifts until spring came, undiscovered, frost spreading across her skin in blue veins, her lips turning purple" (pg. 147).
- "You can't draw conclusions on somebody's personality based on the art they make. It's subjective" (pg. 209).
Other reviews: School Library Journal and NPR.
This book is available in the Greensboro Public Library.
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