Review:
Title: Dangerous Girls | Goodreads
Author: Abigail Haas (Pseudonym)
Publication: July 16th 2013 by Simon Pulse
Source: Independent bookseller
Format: Paperback
Genre: YA; Mystery; Thriller; Contemporary
It’s Spring Break of senior year. Anna, her boyfriend Tate, her best friend Elise, and a few other close friends are off to a debaucherous trip to Aruba that promises to be the time of their lives. But when Elise is found brutally murdered, Anna finds herself trapped in a country not her own, fighting against vile and contemptuous accusations.
As Anna sets out to find her friend’s killer; she discovers hard truths about her friendships, the slippery nature of truth, and the ache of young love.
As she awaits the judge’s decree, it becomes clear that everyone around her thinks she is not just guilty, but dangerous. When the truth comes out, it is more shocking than one could ever imagine…
Thoughts:
Dangerous Girls is one of those books that you think about reading for ages but for some reason you never quite get around to it, for whatever reason. To my delight, In September (I think?) my #epicrecs partner Lara made me read Dangerous Girls! Finally, I was going to get to read it.
Moving onto the book itself, Dangerous Girls immediately jumps into the transcription of a 911 call instead of prose. Not only is this extremely grabbing, but Haas continues to supplement the story with similar material throughout the novel, always used at strategic times to tether distract or move attention to different aspects of the mystery. As we eventually move into prose, the reader is provided with convenient labels to describe when chronologically the current pages are taking place (Ex. “Before”. “The Trial”, etc). Because the novel constantly is switching between a myriad of different situations, these labels are vital to the reading experience. That being said, Haas is a talented enough writer that even without labels, readers can quickly discern when the events are taking place.
As for the story, our premise revolves around the murder of the protagonist’s former best friend Elise and the subsequent investigation that follows. Aside from our protagonist Anna, the main characters the novel focusses on our Anna’s boyfriend Tate and the deceased Elise. The novel is also peppered with Anna, Tate, and Elise’s other friends, as well as a slew of parents, island locals, and lawyers. At times the amount of characters was a little distracting, but I was able to keep track of everyone important with ease.
As a protagonist, Anna is instantly likable because of her dire situation that they reader easily sympthasizes with. It is clear from 
flashbacks that her family situation and relationship status with friends have shaped her character, which grows more interesting as this affects the ways she interacts with them. Although no other person is as fully fleshed out as Anna, each character mentioned served some purpose or had significance, leaving me satisfied with the large cast.
In terms of plot, Dangerous Girls will have you not only sitting on the edge of you seat, but scratching your head in wonder. The artful switching between timelines means that as the reader you are never 100% sure what is going on, and might I say that Dangerous Girls will certainly surprise you. I even thought I knew what was going on, but it managed to get me. The ending of this novel may initially seem as though it has wrapped itself up a bit too quickly, but if the reader only considers the actual overall reading time spent on “the ending”–even if out of order– I am convinced that they will be satisfied.
Final Thoughts:
Dangerous Girls is the perfect mix of high school shenanigans with a true phycological thriller. Haas bends through time and space, placing her characters in various times and settings to create a very layered, complex story. The sophisticated high school notions leave mean remembering Those Girls, with expertly mentioned teenaged habits, while the true mystery nature at the core of the story brought We Were Liars to mine. Dangerous Girls is the perfect example of the sort of mystery that YA needs right now; current, enticing, exciting, and romantic. I thank Lara again for recommending it to me, and now I recommend it to you! 🙂
Other Opinions:
Jamie | The Perpetual Page Turner
