Monday, December 2, 2019

Review: They All Fall Down by Roxanne St. Claire


Review:

At the start of the book we are introduced to Kenzie Summerall, who is your typical over achiever.  She is a member of the Latin club and is hoping to win a state Latin competition that could earn her a scholarship to the college of her dreams. She is not one of the popular girls and certainly doesn't consider herself prom queen material, so she is shocked when her name appeared on the annual "hottie list" at school.

For the past thirty years at Vienna High, the junior class boys have voted on the top ten hottest girls in their class.  Appearing on the list instantly catapulted Kenzie to the top of the social circles.  She is now being invited to parties and boys she never would have even considered to be in her league were asking her out.

The girls on the list form a sorority of sorts when they start having near death experiences.  When the first member on the list dies from an accident, they think it must be an unfortunate coincidence.  When the second girl dies, they believe they are cursed. Kenzie doesn't believe there is a curse, but instead thinks there is a serial killer who is taking advantage of this annual tradition.  Being number five on the list, she realizes she must work quickly to solve this mystery or they could all fall victim.

This was an entertaining YA murder mystery.  I never would have guessed why the "hottie list" was first established and what its role was in the larger scope of the story.  This book doesn't appear to have a sequel, but I felt like the author left a great opening to potentially continue the story with a few of the more prominent characters.

Overall, I liked the story, but it wasn't a sit on the edge of your seat type of thriller. I enjoyed all of the Latin quotes and how Roxanne tied in some ancient Roman history. I also felt like Kenzie's character grew tremendously over the course of the novel. She was very weak and timid in the beginning, but she really took charge and acted with remarkable bravery to help save and protect herself and the people she loves in the end. I also admired the fact that the author brought to light the fact that Levi, a new boy at the school the previous spring, was dyslexic. Everything anyone seemed to know about him was based on speculation and gossip, but Kenzie gave him a chance. He had a rough childhood and is trying to turn things around. As easy as it was for some of the students to blame him for the accidents because of his reputation, and the fact that he always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, Kenzie didn't buy it and even sought his help in solving the murders. These two are polar opposites, but they made a great team and a perfect couple.   

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