The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die

I absolutely love April Henry's books. In this book the first chapter grabs you and reels you in. A young girl comes to unsure where she is, who she is or what has happened. The only thing she knows for sure is she just overheard two men talking about how she knows nothing and they need to kill her. From here on out the story unfolds in layers. From her escape at the beginning of the story to finally remembering who she is, what happened to her, and finally to its awesome ending, this book will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat. I read it in about three hours. I knew there was no way I could not finish the book. This has been on my shelves at school and many of my students have read it. The only reason I finally got my hands on show more it was it was turned back in and I immediately put it in my own bag to read. I highly recommend this book. The events are so realistic I found myself worried for the main character. The reader finds themselves identifying with the character and wondering what they would do in a situation like that. Go ahead start with this one and see if you don't have to read her other books. show less

This review is going to be uncharacteristically short for me, but the book itself is pretty short, so I suppose that's fitting. Since this is going to be one of those 3 star reviews that sort of reads like I didn't like the book, let me say this up front: I did like The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die. I'm not generally a big fan of thrillers, but I previously quite enjoyed Henry's Girl, Stolen, so I hoped that I would like this one just as much. Still, TGWWSTD was a fun, quick read overall.

In general, I would say that April Henry accomplishes what she set out to do in this book. TGWWSTD entertains. The plot moves along at a fast pace, and it's certainly never boring. The reader can't help but be curious and the pages flip by quickly. show more TGWWWSTD serves as the literary equivalent of a fairly mindless action movie, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

The techniques Henry uses to accomplish this are quite standard thriller fare, which is why my enjoyment of this one boils down purely to the sheer entertainment factor. The main character has amnesia for much of the book, waking up in a cabin as two men prepare to kill her. Sure, amnesia happens, but it's over-employed in such action plots to up the danger level, since the MC doesn't have any idea where to go or who to trust.

Henry's writing consists of simple sentences and fragments. This style does create a sense of rushing headlong through the story. Thriller authors employ this method to create a feeling of urgency. While I do think it does work, I just generally prefer complex, more ornate writing. The combination of the writing, short chapters, and fast pace will likely make this an excellent choice for reluctant readers.

Most every chapter ends on a mini-cliffhanger, immediately resolved on the next page. Yet again, this technique does keep the reader moving through the novel at a fast clip. It's designed to make TGWWSTD a one sitting read, because you have to keep going to answer the lingering question from the last chapter. Effective, but trite.

While not thoroughly fleshed out, Henry's characters are sufficiently realistic for her purposes. Cady and Ty are likable enough that the reader does want them to win out over the bad guys. The skills that Cady possesses seem a bit convenient, though some are explained, like her ability to fight. What really feels unlikely is that Cady met Ty, a boy just this side of destitution, who is willing to miss class, endangering his dream of being an EMT, and work, risking putting him on the streets, to help save her from men with guns. Sure, he's nice, but, really, who's going to do that? I can see helping her when they first meet, but he's with her to the end, and I just don't see that. He also just happens to have the right amount of cash saved up so they can do what they need to do.

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die runs just 213 pages. With short chapters and a fast pace, it's an excellent choice when you want something you can read quickly for sheer entertainment value. Ultimately, though, it's not particularly memorable and I won't be revisiting it. show less

Wanting something a bit different to dive into, I picked up this book knowing it get give me exactly what I’m looking for.
1. Plot. Dude. Seriously, this author really knows how to write a plot. It’s intense with so much fear and adrenaline going on, that you can’t help but be sucked into the book.
2. Characters. Did I mention that not only can this author write a plot but her characters rock as well. Well written and easy to step into, I fell into this book fast. Nothing can pull me out of it.
3. Mystery. This book made me feel like I was on a quest. A quest for answers. Who is she? Why can’t she remember what happen? Is she being setting up? So many questions, it kept me firmly in the book and very entertained.
4. Unexpected love. show more I really loved this part. Through out the story, Cady finds love in the most horrible time of her life. He is awesome and a great friend. And really their friendship turned into a unexpected love that I still can’t get over.
5. Too short. That was my only problem. I wanted more!!!!! WAH!!! Still, in this short book the author is able to pack in so much goodness that I can oversee it and still be happy.
In the end, I LOVED this book. Like, loved it so much I can read it over again. Admirably faithful to a great plot and world building, I have fallen into the story with much satisfaction. Showcasing a well paced story with such visuals it will shock you, The Girl Who Was Supposed To Die is magnetizing. show less

After reading April Henry's "The Night She Disappeared" I was looking forward to her newest release, especially since it had been described as a "Jason Bourne-like thriller for teens." Alas, no. While it was fast-paced and action oriented, the storyline was thin and suffered from too many contrivances and stock characterizations.
Unfortunately, the people in this story did not act in a plausible way. Katie's skillful fighting, for example, honed after a few months of self-defense instruction, felt unrealistic. Her instant bonding with a McDonald's employee who found her hiding in the bathroom was eye-rolling at the very least, and another instance of reader disbelief. Too much of this and the plot began to feel less compelling.

THE GIRL WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE was an engaging, heart-pounding thriller that was filled with mystery and danger.

A sixteen-year-old girl returns to consciousness to hear the two men who have tortured and beaten her decide to kill her. She manages to use skills she didn't know she had to get away from the man left of kill her but her troubles are just beginning.

She has no idea who she is or what it is she is supposed to know. She doesn't know who she can trust. She has quite a few close calls because the unknown villains are hot on her trail. She is befriended by Ty who is a formerly homeless young man finishing his senior year and working at McDonald's. He decides to help her because people had helped him when he needed it. Together show more the two of them manage to unravel the mystery.

I liked Cady and Ty and thought they were very realistic. I liked the writing style which relied and short sentences and first person narration. I think this title would be good for middle graders and reluctant older readers as well. show less

I thought it was ultimately pretty simplistic, even for a YA book. Probably the biggest flaw that I noticed is a tendency toward telling rather than showing. While it's good to close plot holes, it quickly becomes tedious to have it be done in such a fashion. For example, one character who cannot possibly know exact events will recount them to the character that does know purely for the sake of the reader. But, this of course becomes a plot issue all its own. Now outside of this, while I disliked the first-person narration, it did soon grow on me quite a bit, and the central plot at the start of the book is extremely intriguing. Events did seem to soon stretch well beyond the point of reasonable believability, but it was still an show more interesting ride. While I didn't really love it, the book was still a quick and worthwhile read. show less

The Girl Who Was Supposed To Die is a short, suspenseful thriller made for middle grade students. It's a story about a girl who wakes up post-torture not knowing who she is or why she's there and her neck-breaking escape. The book has a breathless and erratic pace, which combined with Cady's first person perspective makes the reader feel tense and on the edge of their seat during the entire ride. A cross content connection for this story would be Science, as a major plot point in this story is about biological warfare. This scholastic book would be a great read aloud or classroom library addition.