Review: The Amateurs - Sara Shepard

The Amateurs: Follow Me by Sara Shepard, published by Hot Key Books on 5th October 2017

Goodreads synopsis:
Everyone knows Chelsea Dawson. Day and night, her tens of thousands of followers on Instagram watch her every move. So when she goes missing from the sunny beachside town of Lafayette, it makes headlines.  The police are searching everywhere for her kidnapper, but when eighteen-year-old Seneca Frazier sees Chelsea's picture, she knows instantly who took her. Chelsea looks exactly like her friend Aerin Kelly's murdered sister - and Seneca's own mother, who was killed five years ago.

Seneca's suspicions are confirmed when the killer contacts her, threatening to hurt Chelsea if Seneca goes to the police with what she knows. Seneca makes the only move she can, reaching out to Aerin and Maddox and Madison Wright, her friends from Case Not Closed, an amateur crime-solving community. Together they go to Lafayette to work the case, to save Chelsea, and to bring the killer to justice.

But the killer has a plan of his own. He wants Seneca and her friends in Lafayette, but he wants them to play by his rules. One wrong step could mean the end for Chelsea - or the Amateurs.  

Review:
This is the follow-up to the sensational 'The Amateurs' by Sara Shepard which I thoroughly enjoyed.  The second book in the series was an absolutely brilliant read - a cunning whodunit with a cat and mouse game played out between the mysterious Brett and Seneca and her friends. I love detective stories and this one kept me well and truly on my toes. 

When a local girl goes missing in a small beachside town, the Amateurs believe that the game is on again. Their suspicions are confirmed when Maddox receives a taunting letter in the post and so they head to Lafayette to begin the chase.

I love Seneca's determination not to be beaten by Brett and her desperation to make him face justice for her mother's murder.  She and Brett are well matched opponents, although he always seems to be two steps ahead of them.  Some chapters were told from his point of view and it was creepy being in his head.  I suspect there is still a lot to be revealed about him, his past and his motives. 

I was hooked on this book and read it in practically one sitting.  Sara Shepard has such an ingenious mind and plots incredibly well crafted stories that always leave you puzzling over the series of events.  There are so many twists and turns and well planted red herrings that it makes for fantastic reading.  I was totally engrossed from start to finish.

The ending of the book was a real jaw-dropper.  I can't believe that Sara Shepard left things hanging where she did. I'm so impatient to get my hands on the next in the trilogy - this is a series not to be missed. 

Review: The Amateurs - Sara Shepard

The Amateurs by Sara Shepard, published by Hot Key Books on 6th October 2016

Goodreads synopsis:
When Aerin Kelly was eleven, she idolised her seventeen-year-old sister, Helena, and they did everything together. But when Helena went into senior year things started to change. Rather than being Aerin's inseparable sister, she started to push her away. Then, on a snowy winter's day, Helena vanished.

Four years later, Helena's body is found. Wracked with grief and refusing to give up on her sister, Aerin spends months trying to figure out what exactly happened to Helena and who killed her. But the police have no leads. A young, familiar officer named Thomas wants to help and suggests she checks out a website called Case Not Closed. Hesitantly, she posts, and when teenagers Seneca and Maddox show up on her doorstep offering to help investigate she accepts in desperation. Both have suffered their own losses and also posted to the site with no luck, so they are hoping this case might be the one they crack. But as their investigation begins, it seems that maybe it's no accident that they are all together, and that maybe the crimes have something - or someone - in common.

Review:
This is a gloriously twisty who-dunnit.  One of my favourite kind of books to read, as I have so much fun attempting to unravel the mystery.  In this case, the puzzle of who killed Helena, Aerin Kelly's big sister and why.

Sara Shepard has followed in the footsteps of her hugely successful Pretty Little Liars series and written a story with the same sense of mystery and intrigue.  There are plenty of twists and turns to keep readers on their toes and there are lots of tiny clues thrown in which you need to watch out for.  I love stories like this which keep me glued to the pages. 

Initially, I'll admit that I wasn't entirely sold on some of the characters.  There's Aerin herself, who desperately wants to find her sister's killer, Seneca who thrives on solving cold cases, plus Maddy, Brett and co.  They all grew on me however and I liked the way that they bounced ideas off each other and everyone helped to piece all the clues together.  They each had different motivations for wanting to investigate the case and it was interesting learning more about them as individuals and their own dark pasts. 

The second half of the book was even better than the first as secrets start to get spilt and peoples' true characters come to light.  The ending was a stroke of pure genius and was brilliant because I never saw it coming.  'The Amateurs' was a super read and I'm thrilled that there will be another instalment in the series next year.  There's no doubt that I will be lining up to get my hands on it.

Review: The Perfectionists - Sara Shepard

The Perfectionists by Sara Shepard, published by Hot Keys Books on 2nd October 2014

Goodreads synopsis:
Mackenzie, Ava, Julie, Caitlin and Parker seemingly don't have much in common. Each has their own friends, dramas and goals. But one thing they do share: they all have a deep hatred of Nolan Hotchkiss. And they all think it's about time he paid for what he's done. They come up with the perfect murder - a hypothetical murder, of course. It's all wishful thinking ... until they wake up one morning to find that their wish has come true. Nolan has been killed - in exactly the way they planned. The thing is, they didn't do it. So who did?

Review:
This book was a really good read which left me puzzling out all the clues and trying to work out who did what.  I'm a big fan of the Pretty Little Liars book and television series, so I was itching to read this new title by Sara Shepard as soon as I heard about it.  The only thing that worries me is that the series will end up being as drawn out and protracted as PLL was.  I like a generous helping of suspense and lots of red herrings and twisty plot turns but I also don't want to get fed-up with being left in the dark for too long.

The story focuses on Ava, Julie, Mackenzie (who was my personal favourite), Parker and Caitlin.  Each chapter is from a different girls' point of view as they get drawn together by their shared actions.  They all have seemingly perfect lives but they are all hiding secrets which they don't want anyone to reveal.  The basic premise of the plot is that Nolan Hotchkiss, a rich kid who they hate, ends up dead at the beginning of the book.  The reader is left to work out who did it and why as the girls find themselves up to their necks in trouble.

There are quite a lot of similarities with the PLL series, least of which being about a group of girls brought together by a dark secret, but I didn't really mind that as the story was so gripping.  I couldn't connect up all the dots but I'm going to enjoy puzzling it all out and trying to discover who the guilty party actually is.

There is a massive cliff-hanger ending in the book which has left me in a state of suspense.  I'm hooked and I desperately need to know what is going to happen to all the girls next.

Deliciously dark and twisty, this is a great read which will leave you wanting more...immediately!

Review: Pretty Little Liars - Sara Shepard

Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard, published by ATOM on 4th November 2010

Goodreads synopsis:
Three years ago, Alison disappeared after a slumber party, not to be seen since. Her friends at the elite Pennsylvania school mourned her, but they also breathed secret sighs of relief. Each of them guarded a secret that only Alison had known. Now they have other dirty little secrets, secrets that could sink them in their gossip-hungry world. When each of them begins receiving anonymous emails and text messages, panic sets in. Are they being betrayed by some one in their circle? Worse yet: Is Alison back?

Review:
The 'Pretty Little Liars' series is one that I've been meaning to read for a while now.  With the launch of the TV series in the UK, I thought that it was about time I caught up with the books.  The story is basically about five best-friends who do everything together until one of them disappears and the friendship between the other girls falls apart.  An investigation is launched into what happened to Alison but no one knows how or why she disappeared.  Fast-forward three years and the girls are reunited in Rosewood.  When they start receiving mysterious text messages, emails and letters from someone calling themselves 'A', they begin to wonder if someone knows what really happened to Alison after all.

This was a fantastic start to what I suspect is going to be an addictive series.  The story is fast-paced and exciting and although on the surface it may first appear to be no more than a shallow story about a group of glamorous girls, it's actually pretty gritty, with everything from eating disorders to shoplifting to issues about sexual identity being discussed.  It's also really creepy and puzzling as the identity of 'A' remains a secret both to the girls and to the reader.  I tried puzzling it out but frankly I don't have a clue who it is yet!

Each chapter presents an alternative viewpoint from each of the girls and this helps to establish their very unique characters, feelings and motivations.  My favourite characters were Spencer and Aria and I'm loving both of their story lines so far.  All of the girls present very particular images, from fun-loving party girl, to school swot, to sports star, to arty culture fan but underneath they seem to be another person entirely with deep, dark hidden secrets which they'd go to any lengths to protect.

This book reminded me a little bit of Kate Brian's Private series and if you love gossipy, back-stabbing, scheming fun then you'll definitely enjoy 'Pretty Little Liars'.  The ending is absolutely tantalising and has left me desperate for more.  Sara Shepard is giving very few clues away which only makes me want to read the next book even more.      

I'm looking forward to the scandal and intrigue unravelling further in future installments of the series which I have lined up and waiting for me to read next.  Now, I just need to resist peeking at the end to see 'who did it'!