Book Review | Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas: Absolutely Mind-Blowing

Title: Dangerous Girls
Author: Abigail Haas
Genre: Young Adult – Mystery/Thriller/Suspense
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: May 16, 2014
Pages: 400

Synopsis:

It’s Spring Break of senior year. Anna, her boyfriend Tate, her best friend Elise, and a few other close friends are off to a debaucherous trip to Aruba that promises to be the time of their lives. But when Elise is found brutally murdered, Anna finds herself trapped in a country not her own, fighting against vile and contemptuous accusations.

As Anna sets out to find her friend’s killer; she discovers hard truths about her friendships, the slippery nature of truth, and the ache of young love.

As she awaits the judge’s decree, it becomes clear that everyone around her thinks she is not just guilty, but dangerous. When the truth comes out, it is more shocking than one could ever imagine…

Review:

Is my blog turning into thriller central? I think it’s the winter season influencing me. But no worries, my next review will be for a different genre of book. For now, let’s talk about what is likely the best YA thriller you could possibly read.

Dangerous Girls is officially categorized as YA, but it’s got some adult themes: violence/murder, sex, drugs, alcohol, etc. If you have kids or there is some younger person that would be reading this, definitely think about that. The writing style definitely reads like YA, but some of the content is more mature.

I read this book in a couple of sittings. At one point I was reading for about 30 minutes and I’d gotten through 140 pages. WOAH. Once you start you won’t want to stop. Her writing is really easy to read, but also very gripping. I desperately needed to know who the killer was. When we finally did find out who the killer was, my mind was blown. Even if you figure it out, I feel like you will still be mindfucked. It was the most satisfying ending I’ve read for a thriller in a while.

“Wouldn’t we all look guilty, if someone searched hard enough?”

I had a lot of thoughts while reading Dangerous Girls. I thought a lot about how certain evidence is presented in trials or how people are portrayed in the media. It’s so hard to know what’s real and what’s been manipulated. Honestly, the quote above is completely right. If you look at anything in just the right way, it can look bad to others. It can make someone who is innocent look guilty. It’s such a simple thought, but it stirred me a lot.

I think you can tell that I totally recommend this book. Read it then come back to this review and tell me what you thought! I could not think of anything I would change or anything Haas could have done better, so Dangerous Girls gets…

5 Stars!