No place left to hide

It's her senior year of high school, and Brooke is on top of the world: she's got the guy, she's at the head of her class, and she's about to go to Yale. In short, she's following in her perfect parents' footsteps, exactly as her family has always planned. So, in spite of being told no more parties after last year's unfortunate hosting mishap, best friend Jena talks Brooke into one more hurrah. Lally's wildly unbelievable (but who cares?) sophomore effort is a thriller told in chapters that alternate between the present party and a party that ended very badly the year before. Mean Girls energy and carefully designed plot twists propel the story, which refreshingly turns the tables on its protagonist, who is purposefully rendered less likable with every page. Also on display is an atmospheric Pacific Northwest setting and an unforgettable high-speed chase--elements that solidify the book's status as unputdownable.

Pacific Northwest Waldorf Prep senior Brooke Goodwin narrates this propulsive tale of revenge, surprising revelations, and confounded expectations by Lally (That's Not My Name). Class president Brooke, the daughter of a powerful family, is almost guaranteed acceptance into Yale--she is a legacy, after all. The only potential snag is her involvement in an "incident" involving former friend Claire Heck. Alternating chapters shift between present day and flashbacks to a party that occurred three months prior to the book's start. "Before" Brooke throws a rager at her family's lake house, during which she and Claire fight. "Now" Brooke attends a gathering at a beach house on the Oregon coast, where she connects with her school crush, hot soccer player Dylan Miller, Claire's former boyfriend. Both parties are filled with genre-typical happenings relating to teen drama and romance--until circumstances take a deadly turn. Mind-bending twists shift the action into high gear as Brooke endeavors to make it home alive in a thriller that's sure keep readers on the edges of their seats. Most characters are white. Ages 14--up. Agent Mandy Hubbard, Emerald City Literary. (Jan.)

Gr 9 Up--Two teens are pursued while driving on remote stretch of the Pacific Northwest in this propulsive thriller. Brooke, daughter of a prominent family (her dad is up for a judgeship, her mother is her private school principal), is determined to live up to the family name and go to Yale. She also wants to leave behind the "incident" at the start of the school year, when her former friend Claire died, and the creepy calls and other harassment that have plagued her since. Now, following a party months later, she and her best friend Jena are in a high-speed chase in a cell service dead zone; right before that, a disembodied robotic voice taunted Brooke by phone, demanding she tell the truth of what really happened to Claire--or die. The book alternates between the tense present-day car scenes (followed by a harrowing foot chase) and the events of the party that led up to Claire's death. Chaos and lies abound and readers are unsure who to trust as Lally explores wealth, privilege, family pressure, and toxic friends via a thrilling narrative peppered with some violence and f-bombs. Pages fly by and secrets are revealed in both time periods; readers will love being along for the ride. Brooke cues white and Jena is Black. VERDICT Highly enjoyable and highly recommended. In her second thriller, Lally continues to prove herself one to watch in the genre.--Amanda Mastrull

Two girls fight for their lives following a terrifying drive through the Oregon mountains. Brooke Goodwin has been on her very best behavior since "the incident" at her family's lake house. Her father is under consideration for appointment to a judgeship, and she can't do anything that will bring further shame to her family. But the day she finds out that she achieved her dream of getting into Yale, there's a party at the beach and her crush, Dylan, is going to be there. How can she say no when her best friend, Jena, insists that they go? Brooke has been keeping a big secret from Jena and their other friends, however--she's been the target of a campaign of anonymous harassment from someone who believes there was more to "the incident" than the official story. And when an old Bronco starts tailgating them on the remote drive home from the party, eventually causing an accident that sends the girls running into the woods, more than one secret is revealed. As the events of the pursuit play out, readers will feel ill at ease, then frightened, and then terrified right along with the characters. Teen thriller fans will be riveted. Brooke presents white, Jena is Black, and Dylan is described as being "like a genetic blend of Henrys, both Golding and Cavill." A pulse-pounding thriller.(Thriller. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

It's her senior year of high school, and Brooke is on top of the world: she's got the guy, she's at the head of her class, and she's about to go to Yale. In short, she's following in her perfect parents' footsteps, exactly as her family has always planned. So, in spite of being told no more parties after last year's unfortunate hosting mishap, best friend Jena talks Brooke into one more hurrah. Lally's wildly unbelievable (but who cares?) sophomore effort is a thriller told in chapters that alternate between the present party and a party that ended very badly the year before. Mean Girls energy and carefully designed plot twists propel the story, which refreshingly turns the tables on its protagonist, who is purposefully rendered less likable with every page. Also on display is an atmospheric Pacific Northwest setting and an unforgettable high-speed chase—elements that solidify the book's status as unputdownable. Grades 9-12. Copyright 2024 Booklist Reviews.

Pacific Northwest Waldorf Prep senior Brooke Goodwin narrates this propulsive tale of revenge, surprising revelations, and confounded expectations by Lally (That's Not My Name). Class president Brooke, the daughter of a powerful family, is almost guaranteed acceptance into Yale—she is a legacy, after all. The only potential snag is her involvement in an "incident" involving former friend Claire Heck. Alternating chapters shift between present day and flashbacks to a party that occurred three months prior to the book's start. "Before" Brooke throws a rager at her family's lake house, during which she and Claire fight. "Now" Brooke attends a gathering at a beach house on the Oregon coast, where she connects with her school crush, hot soccer player Dylan Miller, Claire's former boyfriend. Both parties are filled with genre-typical happenings relating to teen drama and romance—until circumstances take a deadly turn. Mind-bending twists shift the action into high gear as Brooke endeavors to make it home alive in a thriller that's sure keep readers on the edges of their seats. Most characters are white. Ages 14–up. Agent Mandy Hubbard, Emerald City Literary. (Jan.)

Gr 9 Up—Two teens are pursued while driving on remote stretch of the Pacific Northwest in this propulsive thriller. Brooke, daughter of a prominent family (her dad is up for a judgeship, her mother is her private school principal), is determined to live up to the family name and go to Yale. She also wants to leave behind the "incident" at the start of the school year, when her former friend Claire died, and the creepy calls and other harassment that have plagued her since. Now, following a party months later, she and her best friend Jena are in a high-speed chase in a cell service dead zone; right before that, a disembodied robotic voice taunted Brooke by phone, demanding she tell the truth of what really happened to Claire—or die. The book alternates between the tense present-day car scenes (followed by a harrowing foot chase) and the events of the party that led up to Claire's death. Chaos and lies abound and readers are unsure who to trust as Lally explores wealth, privilege, family pressure, and toxic friends via a thrilling narrative peppered with some violence and f-bombs. Pages fly by and secrets are revealed in both time periods; readers will love being along for the ride. Brooke cues white and Jena is Black. VERDICT Highly enjoyable and highly recommended. In her second thriller, Lally continues to prove herself one to watch in the genre.—Amanda Mastrull