A review by sarahweyand
The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book was just super average. For a YA mystery/thriller, I think it was totally fine - I'm learning I'm not the biggest fan of the genre because it tends to be a lot tamer than some of my favorite adult thrillers. The mystery here was interesting and I enjoyed the relationships developed between our three protagonists even if the characterization of the cousins themselves was a little lacking. The pacing was slow but picked up towards the end, which I didn't mind, but the reveal(s) were a little out there for me. I guess this could be considered a spoiler, but I didn't like how each twist
was pretty much exactly the same device/style of reveal. THREE TIMES.


Overall, it's kind of just another book in the YA mystery genre. Nothing egregious, but nothing to write home about either.