Review by Booklist Review
For film noir fan Neve Lanier, it seems like her life is taking a dark, cinematic turn. After a devastating end to the school year, when her best friend, Yasmin, did something unforgivable, Neve signs up to attend a girl's empowerment camp. Feeling lost and alone, she grows close to fellow camper Diane, who offers Neve all the attention she needs. As the girls bond over mutual heartbreaks and trying experiences, they make a ridiculous pact: If Neve murders Diane's awful stepbrother, Javier, Diane will take care of killing Yasmin. Neve, who doesn't think Diane is serious, is therefore shocked when Yasmin is found dead soon afterward. When Diane begins blackmailing Neve to keep her part of the bargain, Neve tries to stay ahead of Diane's machinations, which prove increasingly numerous. Full of twists and turns, suspense, and dark drama, this story will keep readers guessing about what the truth is and what might happen next. Giving Strangers on a Train the YA treatment, McNeil's creepy tale is perfect for fans of psychological thrillers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In Carlsbad, Calif., 17-year-old Neve Lanier, who comports herself in the style of her beloved film noir films, is attending GLAM--Girls Leadership and Mentorship camp--like her mother before her. It's not the sort of place for a self-confessed social pariah, but Neve's grandmother has promised to pay her college tuition if she goes--something her family cannot otherwise afford. And Neve finds that she likes GLAM, especially after acting in a scene directed by fellow camper Diane Russell, to whom she finds herself romantically attracted. In what Neve thinks is a joke based on Strangers on a Train, the two assumed-white teens agree to kill the other's "problem": Neve will take out Diane's stepbrother, hazel-eyed Javier Flores, whom Diane indicates has been sexually assaulting her, and Diane will murder Neve's ex-friend, Yasmin Attar, broadly cued through an instance of Farsi as of Persian descent. But the joke becomes all too real when Yasmin is murdered and the evidence implicates Neve and her father, portrayed as "frail" following a mental health crisis. Centering a quirky protagonist and a heinous killer, McNeil (the #murdertrending series) studs this unevenly paced thriller with noir references while neatly unspooling the plot. Ages 14--up. (Mar.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--Neve Lanier has always been an outcast in school, but when her best friend, Yasmin, betrays her, she goes from outcast to public enemy number one, facing severe harassment from her classmates during the final months of her junior year. Neve, bisexual and closeted, doesn't expect to be making new friends anytime soon, especially not at GLAM summer camp, but she's surprised to enjoy the camp and the girls she befriends there, especially the alluring Diane. As the two grow closer, Neve shares her pain at Yasmin's betrayal with Diane, who in return reveals that her stepbrother has been sexually assaulting her. On the last night of camp, the girls bond over the idea of killing each other's tormentors, Neve assuming it's a joke. But then Yasmin ends up dead, and Neve suddenly finds herself living out the plot to Strangers on a Train. This thriller quickly picks up the pace following Neve's return from camp, giving the novel an exciting, edge-of-your-seat feel. Character development, however, suffers in exchange for plot. Neve begins the novel with bad taste in friends and a better-than-everyone attitude; she ends the novel basically the same, but with one decent friend. VERDICT An easy sell to thriller readers craving a great twist, pair this with You Owe Me a Murder by Eileen Cook for a fun comparison of the "murder in exchange for murder" plot.--Mariah Smitala
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A self-aware retelling of Strangers on a Train with a twist. Friendless Carlsbad, California, teen Neve Lanier goes off to GLAM--the Girls Leadership and Mentorship summer camp--where she befriends perky Diane Russell, quickly developing a crush on her. In a reference to the plot of the movie, they jokingly swear to kill each other's bullies. For Neve, the perpetrator in question is her former best friend, Yasmin Attar, who, cued by her use of Farsi, reads as Persian American. In contrast to the default White main characters, this nonspecific coding of people of color is followed for Diane's bully, Javier Flores, her stepbrother, who is supposedly guilty of sexual assault. While Neve had perceived this pact as a joke, Yasmin in fact turns up dead, and Diane starts blackmailing her to do her part and kill Javier in return. Complicating matters, Neve develops a crush on Javier once she gets closer to him. The story falters under the weight of pacing issues--static for nearly two-thirds of the book and rushed toward the end--as well as plot holes and inconsistent character development. Neve's unsympathetic framing of her father's mental illness as burdensome will not sit well with some readers. Neve is a fan of classic films, but the continual references to old movies take readers out of the narrative and ultimately add little to the story. An anticlimactic thriller that tries to do too much. (Thriller. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
