Review by Booklist Review
To be fair, Bianca Torre is not afraid of everything--just a long list of very specific things. These fears have caused them to live as a shut-in, more or less, with their only forays to the outside world being high school and weekend meetings with the local birdwatching club. Otherwise, Bianca experiences life vicariously by using their birding telescope to watch their neighbors. This habit gets the teen into real trouble one night when Bianca inadvertently witnesses one of their neighbors being murdered. With the help of Anderson, their only friend, Bianca embarks on a mission to discover the neighbor's killer, but they're not prepared for how deep the conspiracy behind the murder goes or how much their investigation will endanger them and the people they love. Smart, witty, and daring, this debut is a fast-paced whodunit-conspiracy story with a strong subplot following Bianca's journey to better understand where they fit on the gender spectrum. Bianca is a wonderful character who shares their hilarious observations of the world and works through their own issues with a healthy sense of humor. Their relationship with Anderson is at the core of the story, and the friends' banter is one of the book's highlights. The plot is a standout as well, escalating into absurdity and a wild finish without collapsing into itself.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Sixteen-year-old white lesbian Bianca Torre thought they had enough on their plate dealing with their "full CVS-receipt-long list of fears," a burgeoning gender identity crisis, and a massive crush on a girl they're too scared to talk to ("Fear #13: Beautiful Women"). But when the death of their conspiracy-obsessed neighbor is ruled a suicide, Bianca feels compelled to add "solve a murder mystery" to their accounting of troubles. Especially because their bird-watching--and people-watching--habit resulted in them being the sole witness to their neighbor's murder by a knife-wielding stranger wearing a beaked plague doctor mask. With the help of their Black best friend Anderson Coleman and their Chinese American crush Elaine Yee, Bianca embarks on an investigation to find the culprit despite "Fear #3: Murder." But as the trio delve further into their inquiry, Bianca must drum up the courage to push past "Fear #26: Dangerous situations in general"--or risk jeopardizing their loved ones. Via Bianca's savvy teenage voice, punctuated by humor both whip-smart and absurdly campy, Winans portrays Bianca's gender exploration and timid steps toward bravery with as much heft as the narrative's deliberately plotted overarching mystery in this exuberant read. Ages 14--up. Agent: Jordan Hamessley, New Leaf Literary and Media. (Apr.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An anxious teen solves a murder mystery. Bianca keeps a running list of things to be afraid of: public speaking (#1), sheep (#24), opening up to strangers (#37), and ringworm (#118), to name a few. But when the White 16-year-old witnesses a real-life murder in the course of pursuing a semi-innocent hobby (spying on North Hollywood neighbors with a telescope), Bianca has to face a healthy chunk of those fears. Teaming up with charming, geeky neighbor and friend Anderson; Anderson's trans brother, Ronan, (both of whom are Black); and Bianca's Chinese American crush, Elaine, they unravel a series of clues that eventually lead to an incredibly strange cult linked to embezzlement from a number of local institutions. Meanwhile, Bianca is also untangling some questions of gender identity and sexuality, mostly by scrolling through terms and definitions online and contemplating what words make the most sense. Most of these introspective interludes feel awkwardly and didactically wedged in rather than engagingly explored through a compelling teen voice. Minus the murderous conspiracy-driven cult, most of the characters come across as carefully drawn sketches of supportive friends and family, with almost identically scripted one-note reactions to Bianca's coming out. A mostly suspenseful hike through self-discovery and saving the day. (Mystery. 13-17) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
