Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas | Rating: ★★★★★

“Wouldn't we all look guilty, if someone searched hard enough?” 

 Holy--sh*t. Oh my God. Out of curiosity, how the heck am I supposed to get over this book hangover? Because I'm at a loss. I'm completely consumed with thoughts of the aftermath of Dangerous Girls I fear I can barely sit still, let alone write a review of my thoughts. Let's just say... Abigail Haas knows how to not only pen a chilling tale, she knows how to compel her audience and leave them speechless when the curtain falls.

Seemingly ripped from the headlines. It is all about one crime, one vacation, one group of friends, one trip that changes everything . Two cases seem to have inspired the novel but this doesn't define it: Dangerous Girls is a force of nature in literature and a story all its own. In fact, it was one of the most captivating young adult novels I've ever had the pleasure of reading. There's a lot of complications that come with the restrictions one would have in writing a young adult novel--but this one doesn't have a problem with it.

The book got under my skin in the most deliciously dark way imaginable. It's that kind of feeling I got when I read so many others (yet so few when considering how many books I have read in my entire life): Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn, The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, The Fever by Megan Abbott, Wanted and The Good Girls by Sara Sheppard, Pretty Baby by Mary Kuba and My Sweet Audrina by V.C. Andrews. You're left feeling chilled to the bone after you close it and it doesn't leave your mind for days and days.

Haas weaved the story together beautifully and coherently. There is not a single nod to sloppy construction of the tale--there's no lacking in emotions, terror, nor normalcy. Dangerous Girls rotates its timeline often; splitting it into various parts as well as including transcripts like a true crime novel.

For some novelists, this is often done without grace and leaves the audience confused. This is not one of those books. Everything is attentive and with purpose, one revelation after another hitting readers with a lot of questions. The entire time, you're suspecting everyone and everything. Who killed Elise? I had a feeling of who it would be and when it comes to unreliable narrations, and the overall secretive tone the novel took, you just never know. I was very satisfied with the reveal and the way that the trial, the aftermath, unfolded.

It left me feeling cold and warm all at once. It stuck with me for days, the phrase: "I win."

Overall, it's an unforgettable novel that has fast become a favourite of mine. I loved it.