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Take the Fall by Emily Hainsworth
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Take the Fall (edition 2016)

by Emily Hainsworth (Author)

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585446,451 (3.93)2
"When Sonia's best friend is found murdered everything she thought she was sure of is turned on its head as the biggest suspect comes to Sonia for help proving his innocence"--
Member:seasonsoflove
Title:Take the Fall
Authors:Emily Hainsworth (Author)
Info:Balzer Bray (2016), 368 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:***1/2
Tags:young adult, mystery, psychological, thriller, suspense

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Take the Fall by Emily Hainsworth

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Showing 5 of 5
You're set up right from the start in this slightly creepy mystery. Sonia barely escapes an attacker on the bridge in a park stretching between the family diner she calls home and the street full of posh houses where her best friend Gretchen lives. Gretchen's not as lucky that night. Her body is found floating in a pool below the falls the following morning. Brooding, artistic Marcus Perez, Gretchen's ex and the guy Sonia's secretly crushed on for a long time, is the number one suspect, but as the story unfolds, the list of possible killers grows until it includes pretty much everyone who knew Gretchen, including her younger sister, Kristen. Readers are strapped into roller coaster seats for a wild ride until the big reveal at the end, one I didn't see coming. Altogether a dandy YA whodunit. ( )
  sennebec | Jan 28, 2020 |
I zipped through this one in less than a day so I can attest to it being a bit of a page turner. That's not to say that there weren't lulls that seemed a bit interminable as I was really in this for the mystery and not about the could-be-maybe-not-but-then-again-romance storyline that involved Sonia and dead BFF's ex-boyfriend, Marcus. From the start, I thought Sonia, who had poor recall of the incident with her attacker, may be an unreliable narrator and given the very things that were excluded from the police investigation, my suspicion of the murderer turned out to be correct. I read a lot of mysteries so this may be why but as this is a YA book, this is likely a good introduction to such a character and story for teens.

The real Gretchen postumously emerges in such a cascade of secrets and double crossing of nearly everyone, that she's more spectre than ever feeling like a real person. I felt that there was piling on to such an extent that it felt as if the author were trying to coerce sympathy for whomever killed Gretchen because they liberated everyone from this teen tyrant. Still, I raced through to the end with a quirked eyebrow daring the end to let the murderer off the hook. While the end leaves their fate unwritten, it's mostly understood that the price will be meted out by the justice system.

One criticism I'll highlight here is that while I'm a total fan of making an effort to include POC characters, this one read as though it were a diversity checklist for an ABC Family show all ticked off down the line and for me, rang hollow. Given the setting, this cloistered off woodland, micro town with no discernible industry to support it, seemed to have all the racial diversity of a major North American city. It fought against the story setting's credibility. It felt like the names of characters were plugged in after the fact to make that diversity thing work or not just for the sake of having it done. I literally read and said to myself, "Well, everyone's been accounted for except our Korean Filipino or Japanese friend" and sure enough, a page later, he arrived. I wish I were exaggerating. Again, points for trying but this one misses the mark for finesse.

I would definitely recommend this to fans of Robin Wasserman's Seven Deadly Sins series as this reminded me of that as I finished. ( )
  anissaannalise | Feb 28, 2018 |
I'm always on the lookout for good young adult mysteries and thrillers, and Take the Fall is an excellent addition to that genre.

It's the story of Sonia, who escaped an attack in the woods that left her best friend, Gretchen, dead. As Sonia attempts to come to grips with the events of that fateful night, she tries to understand what truly happened. But as Gretchen's secrets come to light, and Gretchen's ex-boyfriend Marcus emerges as the prime suspect, Sonia is forced to wrestle with her feelings in her fight towards the truth.

What really sets Take the Fall above many other books in this genre is the ending. It's an ending that had me gasping out loud, and frantically flipping back through the previous pages to see if it all made sense in retrospect--and it did. Hainsworth pulls off a end reveal that is shocking and brilliant. ( )
  seasonsoflove | Feb 14, 2017 |
Two girls, best friends, are in the woods that night after a party. One comes out alive after being attacked, the other ends up at the bottom of a waterfall. Who killed her? At the beginning of the book, we see the beautiful, popular Gretchen as someone everyone likes. As the pages turn though, we get a different view as more and more people have reason to want her dead. There were twists and turns and I definitely didn't suspect how it all turned out. Very enjoyable page turning thriller. ( )
  maggie1961 | Mar 15, 2016 |
Pleasantly surprised and completely caught off guard. Take the Fall isn’t what I was expecting.

True friends stab you in the front, right?

I started this book hoping for an easy, quick mystery. I’ve been reading a ton of action books and just wanted a simple read to pass the time.

I got more than I bargained for. In the best way.

I finished Take the Fall in record time. In between basketball games and Frozen themed birthday parties, this book has consumed my three day MLK weekend.

Reminiscent of Pretty Little Liars, Sonia and her friend Gretchen aren’t exactly all they pretend to be. Conniving and hateful, I hated Gretchen and wasn’t at all sad to see her go. Sonia was better off without her.

I don’t want to delve too much into the plot, because I feel like it’s something you need to experience firsthand. You need to be there for the twists and revelations and that big shocker at the end.

I loved the diner family. I would’ve liked to know more about who Sonia’s father is (the Sheriff perhaps??!!)

I liked Marcus and just about every other secondary character. There wasn’t any dialogue or sentence I rushed through. I took it all in. I was caught up in all the scandal and the high school drama. SO GOOD. (Doesn’t make me miss high school thought, because there’s always that one bitch that would actually do something evil like Gretchen).

Take the Fall is a thrilling mystery, but also a lesson in choosing your friends wisely. Not everyone is there for you in a positive way

REVIEW AT YABOOKSCENTRAL.COM ( )
  emily.s | Feb 4, 2016 |
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