Perfect Little Monsters

March 4, 2024
Having moved from Santa Cruz, Calif., white high school senior Dawn Foster is the new girl at Sierton High in Wisconsin, where she and her parents—who were injured in an accident—live with her aunt Maddy. Though Dawn wrestles with secrets surrounding her past, she attempts to fit in by auditioning for the cheerleading squad. She makes the team, which includes popular white cheer captain Ella Moore; Latinx Lucy Aguilar, who has an eating disorder; and “half-Caucasian, half-Asian” Naomi Chen. After attending a pool party thrown by Ella, Dawn awakens the next morning to learn that Ella has been found dead. As Dawn, Lucy, and Naomi are brought in for questioning, alternating chapters chronicle events three years prior in which white Sierton High freshman Hannah Smith contends with vicious bullying perpetrated by Ella. Debut author He adds grit to a plot built on familiar high school mystery elements via the intertwining narratives, which dispense information in lightning-quick intervals that will keep readers on their toes all the way to the shocking conclusion. Ages 14–up.

March 15, 2024
When Sierton High's cheer captain, Ella Moore, is found dead after a party, all eyes turn to the other seniors who were with her that night. Each one had a reason to want the white-blond Ella, a vicious bully, to disappear. Her boyfriend, Scott Russell, recently discovered that Ella was cheating on him. Lucy Aguilar resented Ella for stealing Scott from her. Naomi Chen was being blackmailed by Ella over information that could have destroyed Naomi's reputation. Then there's brooding outcast Isaac Caldwell, whose sister was driven by Ella's bullying to the point of attempting suicide a few years prior. Newcomer Dawn Foster, who just moved to Wisconsin, was also at the party but left before anything seemed amiss. As rumors spread, Dawn starts digging into her classmates' secrets for clues that could lead her to the murderer. In alternating chapters set three years in the past, shy, self-conscious freshman Hannah Smith joins the Sierton cheerleading team and immediately becomes the target of relentless mockery led by who else but Ella. The story begins as a typical murder mystery, but a chilling twist in the third act will make readers rethink everything they've read up to that point. Until then, it's up to Dawn's investigation and the tension between the past and present storylines to keep readers going, since most characters lack the depth to garner much interest. Central characters are white; Lucy is Latina, and Naomi is white and Asian. A dark and vindictive tale. (content warning, author's note) (Thriller. 14-18)

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May 1, 2024
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* This fast-paced, psychological thriller follows Dawn Foster, a high-school senior who just moved to a small, midwestern town from Santa Cruz to live with her aunt, after tragedy struck her parents. Almost immediately, Dawn decides to join the cheerleading squad, and she's quickly drawn into the circle of the most popular cheerleaders at the school, Ella, Lucy, and Naomi, though she's wary of the way they treat others. At a party one night, Ella, the squad captain, is murdered, and Dawn stops at nothing to figure out what happened at the party and who killed Ella, digging up all kinds of secrets about other suspects and trying to clear her own name. In her debut, He leads readers through a twisty, tense plot that alternates between Dawn's narrative in the present and, three years in the past, the narrative of shy freshman Hannah Smith, who endured intense cruelty from Ella. Woven throughout are themes of bullying, suicidal ideation, and eating disorders, which have meaningful bearing on the ultimate resolution of the mystery and might resonate with readers who have struggled with those experiences. Quick reveals and suspense drive the propulsive, Hitchcockian plot to an ending sure to leave teen mystery fans amazed at He's careful structuring of the story. Hand to Karen M. McManus' fans.

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