Tuesday 22 August 2017

Review: Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka

WHO ARE YOU WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING?

When a beloved high schooler named Lucinda Hayes is found murdered, no one in her sleepy Colorado suburb is untouched—not the boy who loved her too much; not the girl who wanted her perfect life; not the officer assigned to investigate her murder. In the aftermath of the tragedy, these three indelible characters—Cameron, Jade, and Russ—must each confront their darkest secrets in an effort to find solace, the truth, or both. In crystalline prose, Danya Kukafka offers a brilliant exploration of identity and of the razor-sharp line between love and obsession, between watching and seeing, between truth and memory.



Paperback, Canadian Edition, 368 pages
Expected publication: August 22nd 2017 by Simon & Schuster
Genre: Mystery/Fiction

Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from Simon & Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!**

Girl In Snow started with the discovery of the body of Lucinda Hayes in a school yard playground. Through three different points of view the story unfolded. There was Cameron who was obsessed with her and stalked her from afar, Jade who hated her for taking her love interest and Russ who was investigating the murder but also had a connection to Cameron.

My initial thoughts after only a few pages was that this book was going to keep me on my toes and keep me guessing. However, after continuing on it became clear that the plot was less about Lucinda Hayes and more of a character driven story about Cameron, Jade and Russ. Yes there was a murder and it was slowly getting uncovered but the focal point was these three characters who were each a little dysfunctional and messed up.

I have always been a fan of multiple points of view and that was definitely the case with this book. It was interesting to get inside the heads of these three characters because they were all very different but intriguing. Unfortunately I do feel like someone that picks this book up expecting a good mystery might find it lacking. It was certainly slow moving and although Lucinda was the connection between all of these characters, she wasn't the real story in my opinion.

I'm also not sure what the intended audience for this book should be. With the young characters I lean towards young adult but at the same time I'm not sure that audience would appreciate it and its slow moving pace. An older audience perhaps? I don't know?

In the end I thought the story was OK but that the mystery was predictable and somewhat disappointing.

 





About the Author

Danya Kukafka is a graduate of New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She works as an assistant editor at Riverhead Books. GIRL IN SNOW is her first novel.


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