Alexandra Sirowy

I was looking forward to a spooky October read, but what I got was a bad young adult romance novel. Not bad because of the romance, but bad because of how the romance was portrayed. The mystery part of the book was fine, but it was drowned out by sterotypical high schoolers obsessed with popularity. The main character and her best friend are horrible. They treat others badly in the name of preserving their popularity. This has been done in YA novels before, but usually there is something show more redeming about the popular girl that the reader is supposed to care about. There is nothing redeeming about their friendship and how they treat others. They don't even seem to have any remorse, they simply rationalize how they had no choice but to be a bully. Even worse is the main romantic relationship. The main character treats her love interest horribly all the time and he still pines after her and keeps hoping that one day she will realize that he cares for her. She is awful to him and he keeps coming back for more. This is not a healthy relationship or one that teens should aspire for. In short, the relationships in the book were dysfunctional and they dominated the story more than the mystery. If you are looking for a good creepy read, look for something else. show less

"You keep squintin' in Savage's dark corners, you gonna wish yourself blind."

Wow, what a great creepy little story. I love that Stella wasn't perfect. She was angry and could be cruel. She made choices that wouldn't be considered nice and she had popular, wild, mean friends.

But on the night of the annual Bones party - an annual anniversary of a missing girl, Jeanie, that Stella went into the woods with but didn't come out with - a new body shows up.

And suddenly Stella isn't sure what's show more true anymore. Now, remembering what happened to Jeanie the day she disappeared seems more important than ever.

Best of all was the folklore. Stories I hadn't heard before and a history rich with horrors and evils and things that go bump in the night. I definitely plan to read anything [a:Alexandra Sirowy|7222174|Alexandra Sirowy|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1395250529p2/7222174.jpg] would like to spook us with :) show less

"Adults reach a certain age and they forget tasting the salt of make-believe oceans."

This is a wonderfully spooky story about a gory death of a beloved step-brother and the ripple effect this has in one girl's life. But when there is another murder, everyone wants to know what's happening.

The clues were near impossible to decipher. I just had to roll along with the group and try to glean details. Could it be Josh? Duncan? Rusty? Carolynn? So many options. It wasn't until the final few show more chapters that everything is revealed that I realized what I'd missed all along. All the little mini clues left around that I'd never grabbed. Probably because Lana hadn't either.

Wonderful storytelling and a world I was completely enveloped by. I just wish we'd gotten a few more details about Ben's stories. But this wasn't about his story but about heroes vs villains and the very gray line that separates them. show less

I really wanted to like this book. I tried so hard to like this book. And though it was difficult to wade through, I finished it. What was the problem? The plot was predictable and the conclusion anti-climatic...which I may have been able to forgive if I didn't despise the main character so much. I have never encountered a main character I've disliked more than Stella. She is selfish, arrogant, rude, and frankly, not worthy of all the affection people bestow upon her. She shames/insults show more everyone (including but not limited to body type, mental health issues, clothes, finances) - it was absolutely ridiculous! [and no, you can't use the 'but she's just a teen' excuse]
The narrative has her 'change' but she really doesn't. Her crappy behaviour continues. Sigh.
Nothing mattered except what she wanted 'when' she wanted it and everyone else was merely a tool for here to use. And don't even get me started on her love interest - the man is a door mat.
Save yourself the time and don't bother with this one. show less