Review : Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

Title : Dangerous Girls
Author : Abigail Haas
Genre : YA mystery, thriller
Release Date : July 16th, 2013
Publisher : Simon Pulse

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It's Spring Break of senior year. Anna, her boyfriend Tate, her best friend Elise, and a few other close friends are off to a debaucherous trip to Aruba that promises to be the time of their lives. But when Elise is found brutally murdered, Anna finds herself trapped in a country not her own, fighting against vile and contemptuous accusations. 

As Anna sets out to find her friend's killer; she discovers hard truths about her friendships, the slippery nature of truth, and the ache of young love.

As she awaits the judge's decree, it becomes clear that everyone around her thinks she is not just guilty, but dangerous. When the truth comes out, it is more shocking than one could ever imagine...

*Highlight for spoiler

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

Where do I begin this review? This book confused the hell out of me. I finish this book in a day and a half (which is very fast, btw) and continue to think about it for one more day. Not just confusing, it's also scary (and the fact that I'm reading it alone in a hotel made it scarier. I brought the wrong book for vacation)

The funny thing is, I originally want to DNF this one. The first half of the book is so confusing. And also boring. I don't know why, but I choose to do nothing on my flight rather than reading it. I'm so tempted to just skip to the end to find out who the killer is. But the second half of this book got me intrigued. Very very intrigued. The trials, the hearing, and the evidences got me really curious. And then there's the ending. The ending is so fucked up. I honestly didn't see it coming, but when I thought about it again, it made sense. I mean, who else? Sadly, there's so many unanswered questions about the ending that make me can't rate it higher than 3 stars.

One of the reasons I like this book is the writing-style. It begin with a transcript between some teenagers and 911 about a murder. And then, there's the questioning, evidences, talk show, and the trials. Haas did a great job writing and describing it. It tricked and played with our mind until we can't stop reading it. Though, truthfully, there's some part that's unrealistic, like is it really took months to determine the time of death? But other than that, it's captivating.

For probably the first time in my life, I hate all the characters, even the MC--Anna Chevalier--and the victim--Elise Warren. Dangerous Girls was told in alternative chapter between 'before' and 'after' the murder, and honestly, I dislike the 'before' part. It mostly show us about Anna and Elise platonic-but-maybe-not friendship, which is pretty boring for me. Also, I didn't like their behavior. They both like to go to parties, smoking, using pills, etc. I don't know why, but teenagers with that kind of behavior often pissed me off. Maybe because I'm a teenager myself but I never do it? Or because I can't connect with them? Either way, I didn't like them for almost throughout the book. Not just them, I hate the other characters too. When Anna was arrested as a suspect, they quickly turning against her, including her boyfriend Tate. Seriously, they have been friends for at least a year. Is it really meant nothing? That's why, even though I dislike Anna, I'm still on her side.

Like I said, the ending is so fucked up. It's really unexpected, yes, but it also end too abrupt for me. You know those psycho movies that end with someone we didn't expect smirk evilly? It end exactly like that. I know that it's a thriller book, but I want more. I have so many questions, like "Did she actually know or not about the cheating?", "Why did Dexter was so sure she is the killer in the beginning? Was there any other evidences or it's mere because he didn't want to be labelled incompetent?", "When did she kill Elise?", and also "What happen after the ending?". My point is, I'm still unsatisfied with the ending.

In conclusion, Dangerous Girls actually a great book. It trick your mind until you suspect everyone, and it leaves you want more. I'm sure if you love thriller, you'll end up liking this one. Unfortunately, my unsatisfied mind prevent me to like this book, though I can't say I didn't enjoy it.