Rowena’s review of Dead Girls Don’t Lie by Jennifer Shaw Wolf.
Rachel died at two a.m . . . Three hours after Skyler kissed me for the first time. Forty-five minutes after she sent me her last text.
Jaycee and Rachel were best friends. But that was before. . .before that terrible night at the old house. Before Rachel shut Jaycee out. Before Jaycee chose Skyler over Rachel. Then Rachel is found dead. The police blame a growing gang problem in their small town, but Jaycee is sure it has to do with that night at the old house. Rachel’s text is the first clue—starting Jaycee on a search that leads to a shocking secret. Rachel’s death was no random crime, and Jaycee must figure out who to trust before she can expose the truth.
In the follow-up to her powerful debut, Jennifer Shaw Wolf keeps readers on their toes in another dark, romantic story of murder and secrets.
This was one of those small town mysteries with high school students turning up dead. The police seem to think that the two murders have two different Mexican kids is gang related and they’re warning the town to be on alert for any suspicious activity. Stuck right in the middle of everything is Jaycee. Jaycee’s best friend Rachel was killed in a drive by shooting. She was in her room when it happened and she was calling Jaycee for help. Jaycee was mad at Rachel for going out with the boy that she had always had a thing for so she didn’t pick up. Instead, she was out with Skyler Cross. Kissing him. That’s something that Jaycee is going to have to live with because well, it happened and Jaycee can’t take it back.
So, this book was one giant ball of mystery and suspense. I was at the edge of my seat throughout the entire book and as exciting and suspenseful as it was, when everything is revealed in the end, I was a tad bit disappointed. Disappointed in that I had everything so wrong and disappointed because of that. I was also disappointed because Jaycee was a hard person to like. She was strong, yeah but she was also very stubborn and she trusted the wrong people, even when she was told by the one person that she did trust to trust in so and so, she didn’t trust in them. It drove me nuts but in the end, it was all good.
Man, this book is definitely not a romance because the person that I had everything so very wrong. But, still…it was a good story but I just wished that I could connect with the characters a little more. I felt disconnected from Jaycee and Eduardo and even Skyler. If I could have connected with them a little more, I might have cared a little more about what happened to each of them. I will say kudos to Jennifer Shaw Wolf because she really did fool me with who the killer was. I did not see that coming and I probably should have but it’s all good.
Grade: 3 out of 5
This book is available from Walkers Children. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
