What better time than summer to get immersed in a thriller? Especially one that makes you feel the heat, the urgency, and the exhilaration of summer all at once. There are few better locations that get the job done like an amusement park. And if you agree, waste no time in picking up Veronica Bane’s Difficult Girls. With each turn of the page, we can almost feel the sweat clinging to us. Sounds uncomfortable, right? Exactly. Difficult Girls keeps us just on edge enough to trust nothing, to be just a little put-off with every word. We were immersed so fully into the world of Hyper Kid Magic Land that we felt ourselves go into detective mode right along with Greta.
Book Overview
Content warnings: death, blood, violence, threats, murder
Summary: Greta Green didn’t take the job at her local amusement park, Hyper Kid Magic Land, to be a star, she did it to reinvent herself. After the incident last year, Hyper Kid is her fresh start, and she is going to become the best employee they have ever had…whatever it takes. Mercy Goodwin is a star—beautiful and confident, she dazzles audiences daily in the park’s most popular show. Everyone is convinced she’s destined for bigger stages…but Mercy should know: the higher your star rises, the more people are determined to put it out. And people at the park are watching her, both on and off stage, so when Mercy starts mysteriously calling in sick, Greta is sure something’s wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time a young, talented actress came to a sinister end at Hyper Kid, after all.
Greta’s own history is the problem. The job was meant to be a reboot—a summer without trouble. But if there’s one thing she’s sure of, it’s that Mercy needs her help. And to do that, she’s going to have to dig into the past—and all she wants is to forget her own.
Main Character
True, this book is a thriller. But chilling is far from the only descriptor we would use. It’s also hilarious. Our main character, Greta, is painfully awkward. Coming from a mysterious incident that leaves her alone and running from her past, she desperately clings to the idea of a fresh start at her summer job. Such desperation had her stumbling on her words, practically tripping over herself to impress a crush. She’s overthinking every interaction with each new coworker. What would make her seem cooler? What would get her inside the group of friends?
The performers at Hyper Kid’s theater are stars to Greta. Leagues above her, she thinks. The key to a new beginning. When one disappears, she’s set on a quest to find answers. She’s unstoppable, she’s sharp, and she won’t quit until she finds Mercy—even if she has to listen to the Criminal Minds theme on repeat to put her in the right mindset. Rather than a stereotypical action hero who gets lost in the mission, we have a realistic teenage girl just doing her best.
Lore
Built into the story is deep lore behind the theme park, which pulls us in even further. Hyper Kid is already a true crime hotspot, with fans wanting a look at the place where a worker was killed on opening weekend. The crime was never solved, and when Mercy goes missing, it looks like the killer may be at it again. While Greta pieces together the old and new mysteries at once, we desperately jumped between theories on how the two crimes—so many years apart—were related.
Relationships
More than anything, Greta wanted to fit in. She wanted people who loved her for her. Who didn’t recoil when they found out what happened in the past year that she keeps hidden away. And throughout her investigation, she finds exactly that. Potential romances and unwavering friendships let her know that it’s always possible to find your people.
Difficult Girls takes us through a gripping mystery that has us not only rooting for the main character, but feeling everything right alongside her.
If we’ve convinced you, we have good news! Veronica Bane’s Difficult Girls just released in a bookstore near you. So grab a copy now, or order it here.
Once you’ve read it, you’re guaranteed to have thoughts to share. Head over to @thehoneypop on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to chat with us!
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