Mini Review:
Title: The Lifeboat Clique
Author: Kathy Parks
Publishing: March 1st, 2016 by Katherine Teagen Books
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC
Date Read: November 2015
Genre: YA; Contemporary
Some people might say that Denver had a death wish. Why else would she have dared to sneak into a Malibu beach party where she’d be surrounded by enemies, namely including her ex-BFF Abigail?
Oh yeah. Croix. Denver never thought in a million years he’d ask her out, but who was she to question this miracle of fate? Well, that wasn’t the only surprise fate had in store.
During the party a tsunami hit the coast of California, wiping out everything in its path. Denver and a handful of others escaped death by holding onto the roof of the house and were swept out to sea. Of course, one of her fellow castaways was none other than Abigail, who could barely stand the sight of her.
Now that she’s floating in the ocean, stuck on a small boat with the most popular kids in school and waiting to be rescued, Denver wonders what might kill her first-dehydration, sunstroke, or the girl she used to think of as a sister?
Thoughts:
Why did I read this book? Well first off I discovered it by accident while scrolling through Goodreads sometime in early fall of 2015. Then, to my delight the bookstore where I work received an ARC of it from the publisher, and I was asked to read and review. I, having read the blurb, snatched it up and read it. I was initially super intrigued because I love disaster stories (i.e. Unbroken) and though that the comparison to “The Breakfast Club” would create an interesting dynamic.
Immediately after beginning The Lifeboat Clique the protagonist of the novel (named Denver) introduces the reader to the cast of characters in a very “Hello MTV, this is my crib” kind of way. Instead of letting backstories flow with the pace of the novel, the reader is given carbon copy opinions about each character from the very start. Additionally, the characters themselves weren’t all that interesting. Each of them fit an “archetype” of typical high school hierarchy that in reality just doesn’t exist. I was disappointed to have Trevor-the-braineless-surfer, Sienna-the-major-bitch, Hayley-the-follower, and Abigail-attention-seeker, and Denver-the-social-outcast all shoved in my face. Needless to say the characters didn’t exactly exhibit ~growth~ per say; instead, the Denver herself has relizations that she pushed labels on these people and there’s actually more to them… Can you tell how clichéd this all felt to me?
The plot of this novel– I had so many expectations. The premise had a lot of potential… I mean, teenagers thrown together on a boat because a tsunami interrupted their rager? Count me in! However, to my surprise, the majority of the plot focused less on the actual survival of the teens and their ability/inability to work together. Instead pre-disaster drama dominated the conversation and, to be honest, got boring really quick. Parks employed the big-secret-backstory with Denver and Abigail, and what could have been a fun joke if the reader had been in on it turned into a guessing game and annoyingly ~basic~ climax moment when the secret was revealed. I was unenthused.
The Lifeboat Clique is generally very plain, and honestly? Not worth your time. Parks took a potentially fascinating premise and whipped together a very simple and cliché ridden novel. While it was certainly not the worst book I’ve ever read by an means, I was left dissatisfied and unimpressed. The worst part about it? The cover is so wonderful– too bad it incases a boring book.
xoxox
