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3.5/5
Non-Fiction
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Rating: 4/5
Pages: 368
Started: 17 October 2023
Finished:19 October 2023
Summary:
Goldie has been going to Camp Lake Alpine since she was eight. A lifer, they call her, though she's only there because her parents are members of the camp's staff. The rest of the campers, including her two best friends Ava and Imo, are swimming in money, members of a class entirely removed from that of Goldie and Heller, Goldie's ex-boyfriend. A few nights into Goldie and her friends' first summer as counselors--the summer that's going to be perfect, the summer that's going to fix all the problems that plagued the three girls throughout their year-- Heller is found dead. Though Goldie knows firsthand that when class and money are involved, things are often better left alone, she is determined to find the killer, and fight for justice.
Thoughts:
This was a very cozy YA murder mystery. It followed a relatively generic YA formula--a protagonist is an outsider with a tragic past who must find her courage to solve a threatening murder with deep political implications, at summer camp--but it was quite well done. The writing was clear and immersive and suspenseful, the characters all had distinct personalities, and the solution to the mystery was just the right amount of obvious. The sense of place at the camp was very clear, and it was fun to be immersed in such a escapist world. The end was also really sweet, with friendship, rather than romance, being the prevailing relationship, something that I was not expecting. I am very impressed by the feel and structure (the chapter organization was brilliant) of this novel, and I will definitely look for more of Jessica Goodman's books in the future.