Wow-what a read! The mystery/suspense/thriller element of this book combined perfectly with the individual character arcs to create a very interesting storyline. It was definitely very suspenseful; that element was very well done. There were enough clues left within the text so that you would want to keep reading and guessing at things while you also got a background look from the different character POVs.

For the characters- I'll start with Gigi. I think she's so sweet! Her character is definitely a nice contrast from the other more evil girls at the school. Everyone is painted to be brutal and willing to take down anyone, and Gigi has lots of things that set her apart, but especially her personality. She is supposed to be Cassie 2.0 in a way, and the victim of a lot of the things happening. She does have spirit and a fight within her, though. It was especially interesting to see how the events affected her in the end, and how they would affect her relationships with other characters. Her suffering paired with the success that she experiences really made me empathize with the character. I just really hope that her character and personality aren't ruined in the second book (ahhh). Bette was also a super interesting character even though I think she is quite evil, lol. Her story ties really well into Gigi's and the author does a wonderful job of creating the Bette that everyone sees and the Bette that the reader sees. Seeing the background of the "villain" adds to the suspense and mystery being spun, and it helped me to understand Bette as a character more. June was also interesting, but I feel like her story was just super disconnected from Bette/Gigi's arc. June was kind of the outside factor in the story, and maybe this was to elevate the feel of her in-the-shadows type attitude/personality. She also deals with a lot of issues and events that don't exactly involve Bette or Gigi's story. I do want to see more of what happens with her in the second book.

The book does leave you wanting to keep reading, and it's one shocking event after another. The author really nailed creating the mood of the book, and the drama is definitely very well crafted. Comparing it to the Netflix series, I feel like they shouldn't have changed Gigi out with Neveah - I liked the presence Gigi had in this book, as well as the "victim" perspective. I also liked Alec's character, and wish they could've kept that in the series. Bette was cast perfectly in my opinion, but wish we could've seen Eleanor in the series as well. Henri (or who Henri is supposed to be) is completely changed up, but I really liked the lurking feeling he gave this book - you weren't really sure who he was or what he was going to do, and we didn't really get that in the series.

Overall, really amazing writing and a really good storyline with great characters - filled with suspense, action, drama, romance, and danger!