April Henry

A YA 2024 Edgar winner that's more than just a whodunnit. Seventeen-year-old Piper Gray discovers her own personal identity after moving in with her dad, her stepmother, and her step siblings. When Piper becomes a transfer student at her new high school, it begins to transform her. Mainly, because when she must select a senior "passion project" that should last the whole year, Piper decides that she'll do a podcast and is forced to engage in her new surroundings. She's a fan of true-crime podcasts that she'd always listened to with her mother, who is no longer in Piper's life. Piper is assigned a technical partner--she knows nothing about how to initiate a podcast--and her senior classmate, Jonas, walks her through the process. She met Jonas, who struggles with a disabling limp, days before school started while she'd been hanging out at the town cemetery, where Piper happen to notice a gravestone of a girl who'd died at seventeen, precisely seventeen years ago. Soon, it's revealed that the girl, Layla Trello, had been murdered, and no one has ever been charged. The crime then becomes Piper's cold-case podcast project. Although Piper at first feels invisible at her new school, with her own unique style (she buys and wears vintage clothes) only shortly after a few of her true-crime podcast are aired, Piper becomes high viz. She meets with Jonas on their free period in the school library, where they use not only new technology, but good old-fashion microfiche to do research and delve into the crime. Yet, there are so many unknowns because doesn't everyone harbor secrets? Once Piper begins to interview those who'd been around when the crime was committed and might be potential suspects, things start to get a bit hairy and threats against Piper soon follow.

About two-thirds through the story, intriguing plot twists are raised. Plus, I liked the way the ethics of what should be provided publicly as Piper tries to get to the truth and uncover what happened so many years ago. It was skillfully woven into the storyline by presenting an explanation from Piper's father and stepmother (they're both lawyers) on defamation of character, libel, slander, and First Amendment rights. This novel succeeds in so many ways. As a reader, I wanted to root for Piper and Jonas as they struggle to overcome challenges. I highly recommend this novel for YA and any age mystery readers alike.… (mere)

Ever since I was in middle school, whenever April Henry published a new book, I'd pick it up right away. However, her books are very different nowdays, and this will probably be the last that I read.
This one seemed to be a And Then There Were None retelling so I was super eager for it. I ran into my first problem when the characters started using an Ouija board to communicate with spirits. I don't think I need to specify any more about that.
Secondly, this book is set in the Midwest with Midwestern characters. In a room full of Midwestern teens, it is extremely unlikely that none of them have handled a gun before/are afraid of guns/don't know gun safety. In all reality, most of them would have and also know safety since that is taught from a young age in the Midwest.

Tropes: retelling of And Then There Were None

Content: hanging, attacked by animal, characters nearly freeze to death, illigal immigration, human trafficking, murder (described in detail), stuck in burning building, messing with witchcraft

1 Star

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All thoughts are my own and a positive review was not required.… (mere)

I was very excited when this book came in. Being new to Goodreads' giveaways, this was the first one I won and received. Opening the package, I pulled out a short, 224 page book with the cover art as seen above. The teaser for the book is that 16 year old Cheyenne Wilder, blind for three years, is kidnapped after begging her stepmother to leave the keys in the ignition of their high-end SUV while she goes into the pharmacy to pick up Cheyenne's prescription for pneumonia.

This is the epitome of a comedy of errors. Griffin, the kidnapper, doesn't realize that she's in the back until he's driving the SUV out of the parking lot. He also doesn't realize that she's blind until it is too late. His father, Roy, along with his two sidekicks Jimbo and TJ, want to keep her for ransom, while all Griffin wants to do is hit the delete button on the day.

Fortunately, there is no unrealistic friendship or romantic development between Cheyenne and Griffin; while predictable in some moments, this was not one of them. Both Cheyenne's and Griffin's point of views are told in such a way that is not distracting, and Henry's writing style is interesting and will keep you wanting more.

There were a few problems: One, there are some editing mistakes--the publisher needs to proof one more time, though I think this is normal as an advance copy. Second, you will find that you do not really care about the characters. It's a wonderful read, I found it immensely entertaining, but I do not want to necessarily read a sequel to it. I think that had there been a little more substance to the character development, this would have been a five-star book.

All in all, however, this was an excellent book and I recommend it to all lovers of Young Adult fiction.… (mere)

This is a bit of a different one from April Henry in that it has ghosts in it rather than just your murder-mystery. Adele has always seen ghosts so when she is lead to the body of her ex best friend Tori buried in a park by her ghost she is surprised but not shocked. What happens next is shocking though, as through twists of circumstance, people begin to suspect HER of Tori's murder, as they were seen having a huge argument at the party before Tori was killed. Adele must fight against people thinking she is either crazy or a murderer to work out who committed the crime, all the while avoiding the aggro that the ghosts she can see throw at her.... Not bad for fans of supernatural and mysteries.… (mere)