I feel like this book is bound to get a lot of mediocre reviews due to the fact that it's been pushed as a thriller when it's really not. There's virtually no suspense at all, and for people who primarily seek to read page-turners, it's going to fall flat. I'd call it more literary fiction about survivor's guilt and the aftermath of a tragic crime.

Once I had adjusted my expectations for what it was, I enjoyed it. The writing was very good, the characters were well-drawn (although I did think they hewed a little archetypal: the mean girl, the misunderstood rebel, the [drunk] Pollyanna), and I liked the way that music was used as a throughline. I do agree with others who'd pointed out that there was just too much detail at time - I think that at least 10% of the text could have been trimmed with no negative effect to the plot whatsoever.