I was so hooked on this – the story, the vibes, the character drama.

 

Energy: Plucky. Ominous. Jaded.

Scene: 🇺🇸 Berkeley, California (the town).

Perspective: We follow our main character 10 years after a high school post-graduation prank gone wrong, with flashbacks to their time in high school. 

 

🐩 Tail Wags: Jolene. The annoying can’t-read-the-room characters. Second-hand cringe & unhinged. The unraveling quirkiness and touch of bizarro. Steady pacing. 

 

🤔 Random Thoughts:

The plot is layered, and character driven. If you’re introverted, this has extra discomforting moments ~shudder~. As little things occurred, I’d agree with Jolene sometimes and other times look for an alternative explanation. That push-pull kept me reading.  

 

The action scenes were wacky and weird but that worked! Near the end I was starting to suspect the Big Bad, but it was still a twist. The ending had a touch of symbolism or meaning in there too. 

 

There is a wacky kind of weird fiction vibe to the story. Sometimes it’s no plot just vibes. Then something eerie happens and it’s ominous bizarro. Then watching Jolene navigate it is quirky mess of a dark comedy. It felt balanced and made the story more enjoyable for me. 

 

🤓 Reader Role: Tagging along with Jolene hearing her thoughts, watching her navigate situations and people, low-key freaking out when she does something unwise. Almost like she turns to us sometimes to give us her thoughts. 

🗺️ World-Building: Atmospheric with energy built through sensory details and observations. Easy to imagine. 

🔥 Fuel: Will Jolene be able to finally get her adult life started? Is someone really out to get her or is it her guilt projecting? What were the high school dynamics that led Jolene to think up the prank?  

📖 Cred: Suspended disbelief in a fun way. 

 

Loud pipes. Burnt rubber. Improv class. Upspeak. Cookies. Yipping dog. Footsteps upstairs. Patchouli. Clanking bracelets. Wind chimes. Text notifications. 

 
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Content Heads-Up: Car accident. Medical (burns, amputation, eye damage). Mental illness (guilt, auditory hallucinations, depressive symptoms). Prank gone wrong. Cancer (very brief mention). Loss of parent (as toddler; very brief mention). Narcotics self-medicating/recovery. Vomit. Stalking/obsession. Suicidal ideation (very brief). Pill use. Alcohol use. Psychedelics. Murder. 

 

Rep: Bisexual. Ambiguous and Italian Americans. Cisgender.

 

📚 Format: Advance Reader’s Copy from Mirror House Press and BookSirens