#kara thomas

[lastfinalgirls]

Every book I read in 2023

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas

★★★★ / 5

[emmersreads]

A bit of an unconventional title for me: ya mystery novel The Cheerleaders. 

I hated it. 

If you want a subversion you’d better make sure it’s more interesting than the premise it would be subverting 

[princessofbookaholics]

currently reading 💀

[backlogbooks]

JOMP BPC September | Day 16 | Favorite Genre

Around when the pandemic started, i got really into thrillers, and am still reading a ton of them (though i’m mixing other genres in now and again lol)

[hercomputerruins]

~ the cheerleaders ~

THIS BOOK LEGIT GAVE ME SHIVERS

Kara Thomas, you have written the best murder mystery I have ever read. Tied with a few others.

The cheerleaders is creepy and funny. a murderous high school drama. When i found out who the murderer was i couldn't sleep. because seriously what if my (nonexistent) boyfriend is the murderer?! its not even like its never happened now!

As for the whole 'five girls lied five girls died' everyone lies. and everyone dies eventually *coughs* dumbledore * So im not in love with that bit

it is super catchy thoughhhh.

Monica is epic

[the-final-sentence]

You were going to have to leave us.

Kara Thomas, from Little Monsters

[bangbangwhoa]

books I’ve read in 2021 📖 no. 094

That Weekend by Kara Thomas

“I’ve seen people wait years to find out what happened to their loved ones and, when they finally do, the answers aren’t enough. The emptiness is still there. Sometimes it’s even worse.”

[one-of-us-is-fangirling]

The Cheerleaders Review

My Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Trigger Warning(s): Suicide, adult/minor relationships

Synopsis: Five years after the five deaths of Sunnybrook High’s cheerleaders, Monica Rayburn, sister to one of the cheerleaders, starts finding letters in her step fathers desk, and a stranger in her sister’s phone, causing Monica to begin to wonder, what really happened to the cheerleaders?

Non-Spoiler Review: This book had been on my wishlist for awhile, so I was super excited to read this. I can’t say this book was my absolute favorite, but it truly was a good read!

This book had enjoyable characters, my favorite being Ginny and Jennifer. Each character was constructed to have amazing backgrounds, and it was so fun to learn about each one throughout the book!

Also, I would have never guessed the culprit in this story. However, after I found out, I was like “wait, how did I not get that???” so it may be easier for certain readers to catch on compared to me. There were still plenty of twists and action packed scenes that excited me as a reader.

The only thing that kept me from really enjoying this book is that some parts were really difficult for me to follow, especially the beginning.

Spoiler Review: If I were to recommend this book to someone, I’d give it to someone who enjoys learning about character backgrounds.

I really enjoyed Ginny and Jennifer as characters because I learned the most about them. Jennifer (one of the dead cheerleaders and Monica’s sister) had her own chapters from her own POV (since it’s the book is all in Monica’s POV) that made it fun to see what everything was like before Jennifer died. And the final chapter with Ginny’s POV was a huge plot twist that made everything come to full circle.

Also, the character emotions in this book were amazing! You can truly see that some of these characters are still grieving the death of these girls, and the author captures these emotions perfectly. I remember one scene that Monica shared with her mom and it’s where they truly accept that Jennifer did indeed commit suicide, and I could feel there emotions.

I would have never guessed that Brandon killed Susan and Juliana at the start of the book. In the middle of the book, I did question his purpose in the book (since it made no sense to me that he was just there to have a relationship with Monica), but then it came in full circle when it was revealed.

Again, the beginning of the book was a bit hard to follow, and it did discourage me from reading until things started to make more sense to me. This book was still fun to read despite this though!

Conclusion: Overall, if you enjoy YA mystery, this a really fun read! There are definitely twists and plenty of character emotions and development!

[anintensityofblue]

The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas

The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas

Tessa Lowell has spent the last ten years living with her grandmother in Florida. Ten years away from everything she knew – the shit hole town where she grew up, ten years away from her friends and family, ten years away from the Monster. And then she receives a phone call that changes everything. Her dad is dying, and while she doesn’t care, not really, she gets on a plane anyway to see the man…

[maggieandtheferociousbooks]

august hopefuls

ft a new book that i ordered in july that didnt come till after i took these photos but i want to read aswell…

im currently reading the cheerleaders heres the blurb: “There are no more cheerleaders in the town of Sunnybrook. First there was the car accident--two girls dead after hitting a tree on a rainy night. Not long after, the murders happened. Those two girls were killed by the man next door. The police shot him, so no one will ever know his reasons. Monica's sister was the last cheerleader to die. After her suicide, Sunnybrook High disbanded the cheer squad. No one wanted to be reminded of the girls they'd lost. That was five years ago. Now the faculty and students at Sunnybrook High want to remember the lost cheerleaders. But for Monica, it's not that easy. She just wants to forget. Only, Monica's world is starting to unravel. There are the letters in her stepdad's desk, an unearthed, years-old cell phone, a strange new friend at school. . . . Whatever happened five years ago isn't over. Some people in town know more than they're saying. And somehow, Monica is at the center of it all. There are no more cheerleaders in Sunnybrook, but that doesn't mean anyone else is safe.” im only a couple of chapters in but i already love this book, its already made me sob like a bitch…

[bookcoversonly]

Title: The Cheerleaders | Author: Kara Thomas | Publisher: Macmillan (2020)

[your-average-emo-reader]

[clockworkbibliophile]

lunch break reads

[brightbeautifulthings]

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas

"Ginny's simple explanation has parted the jumble of thoughts clouding my brain. I don't know why I didn't think of the possibility sooner--that the deaths aren't a bunch of dots waiting to be connected, but a single series of events, set into motion by something that fall. But what happened? How am I supposed to find the exact spot where a butterfly flapped its wings five years ago?"

Year Read: 2021

Rating: 3/5

About: Five years ago, the town of Sunnybrook disbanded its cheerleading squad after five cheerleaders died in three separate accidents in the span of two months. First a devastating car accident, then a brutal murder, and finally a tragic suicide. Now in high school, Monica is old enough to start questioning her older sister's death. She's positive Jennifer wouldn't have killed herself, and when she discovers threatening letters and her sister's old cell phone in her stepdad's desk drawer, she's sure there's more to the story. But in investigating her sister's last weeks alive, Monica realizes that she didn't know Jennifer as well as she thought, and if there is a killer, they may be closer than she thinks. Trigger warnings: death (on-page), parent/child/sibling death, statutory rape, abortion, some gore, school shooting (mention), car accidents, abusive households, drug use, alcoholism, severe illness (mention), guns, threats, bullying, grief.

Thoughts: I liked this book, but it's not going to work for everyone because the things it does well aren't necessarily the things I look for in YA thrillers. I'm not even sure I'd call it a thriller, exactly, since most of the crimes are five years old. Instead, Thomas carefully layers the various aspects of her mystery. Instead of giving us more suspects, each clue brings a slightly clearer picture of what happened to these girls. It's not a very exciting or plot-twisty novel, but it's one of the more realistic murder mysteries I've read (with the exception of teenagers conducting an investigation and stealing evidence from police, but these always require a bit of handwaving). It struck me as more realistic in the ways that the characters react to things. Most people have something to hide, and they act poorly when they're responding to grief or fear. It's as much a character study as it is a mystery, and I think delving deeper into these characters' minds is the real payoff of the novel.

It's easy to slip into Monica's headspace, and at times she feels almost like an invisible narrator. I never quite believed she was as awful as she seems to think she is, which makes it all the easier to sympathize with her; she's a kid who's had some terrible things happen to her (some of them by adults who should know better), and the terrible things didn't stop with her sister's death. I enjoyed her developing relationship with Ginny, who's quiet, mysterious, and resilient under pressure. We don't quite know her motivations for helping Monica, but the friendship feels genuine.

The rest of the relationships are a complicated web between past and present as Monica attempts to chase down some of the last people to speak to the cheerleaders before they died. Shady characters abound, but with one exception, most of them are far less evil than they are simply flawed human beings. While not all that scary, the ending provides enough thematic closure for characters I'd come to like. I guessed the killer early on (mainly because why else would they be in the story?) but not the twist in the epilogue, which feels more like a period at the end of a sentence than pure shock value. It's unexpected, but it makes sense and brings a little more insight into the rest of the novel, as a twist should. Nicely done on character and overall storytelling, but a bit forgettable on plot.

[justagirlandherpersonas]

Reading.. fundamentals for the brain..

[princessofbookaholics]

cosy evening with a gripping thriller 🔪💀