Bree, Olivia, Kitty, and Margot have nothing in common—at least that’s what they’d like the students and administrators of their elite private school to think. The girls have different goals, different friends, and different lives, but they share one very big secret: They’re all members of Don’t Get Mad, a secret society that anonymously takes revenge on the school’s bullies, mean girls, and tyrannical teachers. When their latest target ends up dead with a blood-soaked “DGM” card in his hands, the girls realize that they’re not as anonymous as they thought—and that someone now wants revenge on them. Soon the clues are piling up, the police are closing in . . . and everyone has something to lose. Summary by Goodreads After interviewing Ten author Gretchen McNeil, I decided to read another of her books--this time, the first of the Don't Get Mad series, the second book of which comes out in a few months--I can't wait! This book is dark and suspenseful, almost more so than Ten, in fact, because it's set in such a nonchalant setting instead of a stormy, dark island with no one around. I enjoyed that it was set in a Catholic school, though a bit cliche at times. I think the characters in this book are a little bit static, but overall pretty relatable and their emotions were conveyed nicely through Gretchen's writing style. Fabulous job :) As for plot, it actually moved a tad slowly in the middle, but really fast at the beginning and the end. There seemed to be a lot of unrelated subplots that occasionally distracted from the overall goal, which can get frustrating, but my suspicion is that these subplots tie in to later books--oh, and definitely don't read this if you don't like cliffhangers! Can't wait to see how this one is resolved. However, as far as this book goes, it's a solid eight out of ten! Read on for further commentary/some spoilers! Thanks for reading! -Mallory The romance in this book drives me up a wall a bit because it's so frustrating: it has a tendency to push all other relevant plot points out of the picture, which, I guess, is realistic in some cases but I'm just sitting here like "Hello? You were trying to figure out who killed this guy? Why are you obsessing over a boy all of a sudden?" But hey, that's just me.
Okay, can we talk about the end for half a sec? I nearly DIED reading Margot's last perspective, I was so sure we were going to see the killer and then that happened. I feel so bad for her, and from what I've heard/read about the next book she doesn't actually wake up from the coma. Hopefully she will at some point! Right? RIGHT?! I do like how it was a bit storybook ending-ish ("Yay! Nobody died tonight! We outsmarted the killer! Everything is cool! Some things aren't but still! Happy!") and then there's your classic horror movie bloodcurdling scream. What is up with John--or should I say Mr. Detective--over here? WHAT DOES HE KNOW? HOW DID HE KNOW THE PHOTO WAS THE CLUE? WHY IS HE ALSO RECEIVING CLUES FROM THE KILLER? WHY IS THE KILLER SENDING CLUES IN THE FIRST PLACE? WHAT DOES ED KNOW? I'm going a little nuts about this book, but that's a good thing with a mystery story! Bear with me, I swear, I'm not insane. :) There is a lot of open-endendness in this book, which, for me, isn't really a good thing. I'm not sure what to think when characters just drop a plot point completely, because my mind doesn't work that way and I'll keep being all "When are you going to finish such and such? When are we going to see so and so again?" So if you're like me, and your brain doesn't like open ended plots, then I don't recommend this. I DO, however, highly recommend this if you like spunky characters. I love how the four girls all come from slightly similar, but still really different, backgrounds that made them disagree with each other on certain things and agree on others. They work really well as a team, which was...surprising. I think the bullying scenarios in this book are a tad unrealistic, no matter how heartbreaking. Nowadays, especially in middle school, bullies tend to be very secretive and more now-you-see-me-now-you-don't style of mind control, not post-that-ugly-picture-everywhere. That's the kind of thing that gets kids in trouble, but I guess it's also the severity of something that would drive Margot to suicide. (Gotta love how her parents react, though.) I think that the suicide attempt in general was a good addition to the book. Well, not GOOD, but...you know what I mean. Good for the writing. Not good for poor Margot, though. Thanks so much for reading! Feel free to comment suggestions!
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