Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

"Wouldn't we all look guilty, if someone searched hard enough?"

Dangerous Girls is a contemporary mystery thriller. It's the story of Anna, a girl who is away in Aruba for Spring Break with a group of friends, when one morning they find her best friend Elise stabbed to death in her room. Anna is immediately labelled as the prime suspect. The book follows Anna's desperate attempts to prove her innocence, and as the mystery is unravelled further, it grows clear that some members of the group are hiding things from the night of Elise's murder... 

Angharad:

Okay, I just read this book in one sitting and now my eyeball hurts. I am in too much shock to form a coherent review so I'll do some bullet points. Okay? Good.

- THE COMPLEXITY OF TEENAGE GIRLS AND THEIR RELATIONSHIPS. Were Anna and Elise more than just friends? Probably. Does it matter? No. I think we will all have our opinions about the nature of their relationship but deep down, it is two girls with an obsession with each other. And obviously, if you've read the book, obsession isn't always a good thing. 

- The entire justice system. I wanted to scream because it couldn't be real but at the same time, yes it is. We see this happen in real life, like Anna says, it is all like a well-constructed play and everybody has their parts. It doesn't always matter whether a person is innocent or guilty. Also the whole media coverage?? It really makes you think how much is real.

- Anna is such a complex character? I can't get too much into my thoughts about her because she is just one big mystery but woah, her character was so amazing to read. She was so unpredictable and also relatable to me. 

- Overall, this is a book that you will start and within a few pages, will become hooked by. I just wanted to get to the end (in a good way) so I could find out what happened. The novel includes transcripts, phone logs and even a floor plan which makes you feel so much more immersed in the story and trial itself. I haven't previously read any of Abigail Haas' work before but I definitely will from now on. I'm so annoyed that this book has been on my shelf for so long. 

- Go and read it!

- But prepare to have your mind blown!

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Becky:

Dangerous Girls is such a compelling read. I loved this book so much that I finished it in just a few hours - it drags you in and keeps you captivated throughout its entirety. I couldn't put it down as I had to know who had killed Elise - I really couldn't concentrate on anything else until I'd found out! Then, when I did find out, I was so shocked but at the same time, so happy. This book had such a perfect ending.  Everything about this book was so complex, from Anna and Elise's relationship and what their possessiveness over each other entailed, to Anna's character in itself. I loved the way that the story unfolded, starting with Elise's death, and how the reader was allowed to see more and more of 'behind the scenes' and flashback moments as the book went on, as well as floor plans of the holiday home and other pieces of evidence used in the trial. It allowed you to form your opinion on each character and on who committed the murder, change those opinions constantly as the book went on, and then have your mind completely blown when you reach the end and find out that everything you thought you'd worked out in this book was a lie. I can't recommend Dangerous Girls enough - I'm not always a fan of contemporaries, but this beautiful little contemporary mystery-thriller just blew me away. I can't wait to read Dangerous Boys!

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Have you read Dangerous Girls? Let us know what you think of it in the comments!