Book Review: “The Perfectionists” by Sara Shepard
Title: The Perfectionists
Author: Sara Shepard
Genre: Young Adult – Mystery/Thriller
Release Date: October 2nd, 2014
Published by: Hot Key Books
I bought this book myself! As always, my reviews are fair and non-bias.
In Beacon Heights High, Nolan Hotchkiss is king. His charm, wealth and good looks are deceptively seductive, and many are the students whose lives and reputations have been ruined by it.
All while Nolan continues to reign, unquestioned and undisrupted. Until now, that is.
Mackenzie, Ava, Julie, Caitlin and Parker seemingly don’t have much in common. Each has their own friends, dramas and goals. But one thing they do share: they all have a deep hatred of Nolan Hotchkiss. And they all think it’s about time he paid for what he’s done. They come up with the perfect murder – a hypothetical murder, of course. It’s all wishful thinking … until they wake up one morning to find that their wish has come true. Nolan has been killed – in exactly the way they planned. The thing is, they didn’t do it. So who did?
Give me a Sara Shepard book and I’ll tell you a thousand amazing things about it. So when I saw The Perfectionists on Twitter, I went right to Amazon and pre-ordered. And the day it arrived, I read the WHOLE THING in a few hours. So, if that doesn’t tell you how much I loved it, I’m not sure what will!
Nolan Hotchkiss is your answer to everything egotistical and idolized for all the wrong reasons at Beacon Heights High. He’s loved for reasons he shouldn’t be, from bullying students to sending explicit pictures of girls to his friends. It’s for those reasons and so many more that Mackenzie, Ava, Caitlin, Parker and Julie, hate Nolan Hotchkiss more than life itself. Nolan is pretty much the only thing that glues them all together if they weren’t friends before, so when they’re paired together for a project, they plan his “hypothetical” and completely imagined murder as a talking subject.
So when Nolan actually is murdered, exactly like they planned down to the small details, they’re all struggling to take the spotlight off themselves from the Cops when they come knocking. Now these five girls that couldn’t have more complicated personal lives if they tried, have another thing to add to their list: get away with the murder they never committed. Even if all the evidence points to them.
I thought I loved Pretty Little Liars the most of all Sara Shepard’s novels – now, I am totally torn. The Perfectionists, whilst giving me that Little-Liar feel, is in a completely different world of secrets, lies and suspects. There’s no “-A” but there is a killer – one that is determined to pin everything on the five girls who didn’t even commit the murder – a sneaky, but not completely undetectable killer. It left on a pretty heart-racing cliffhanger that totally knocked the killer I thought was framing the girls, off the radar.
Overall, The Perfectionists is a compelling, electrifying and chaos-filled read that took my breath away. I loved the girls’ friendships and how Sara wrote the strong, female characters realistically. It’s part of what makes me love her writing, that no character is flawless, alike real life, we all have our flaws. I can’t wait to see what book two has in store for all the readers and how everyone else will adore it. You MUST add this to your to-read immediately – you won’t regret it.
It’s got to be the beginning of the book – the calm before the almighty storm – the part that reeled me in!
YA Contemporary/Mystery/Thriller readers to Adult readers alike. If you loved Pretty Little Liars, you’ll love this no doubt.
Have you read The Perfectionists?
What did you think?
Tell me in the comments, on twitter or by using the hashtag #ThePerfectionists
happy reading!
I can't wait to read this, after being on a bit of a book buying ban due to lack of money rather than choice, I have put it on my Christmas list (along with the final PLL book) and I am sure I will get stuck into it on Christmas night.
The only thing that disappoints me is that there will only be 2 books in this series, I am SO ready for another huge Sara Shepard series.
I'm SO happy for this new series and it sucks there's only 2 books! If you want a chance at winning a Katie McGarry book, I have a new giveaway up on my blog, too. I know what it's like to want books and have to save instead!
Thanks so much for stopping by! 🙂