Ten teens. Three days. One killer. That's the tagline for Ten by Gretchen McNeil and pretty much sums up the book. Meg and her friend Minnie are going to an isolated island on the coast for a party- an invite only party. One of the popular girls at school has invited them to her parents' house on the island for a weekend of boys, booze and good times. Meg doesn't really want to go, but is there to keep an eye on Minnie, her best friend. Minnie is bipolar and a party girl, and it usually falls to Meg to rein her in when needed and keep her on her meds.
As soon as they arrive on the island things get interesting. It turns out that T.J. was also invited- the same T.J. who invited Meg to Homecoming, and who Minnie is in love with. Awkward. We find out that Meg didn't go to Homecoming because she didn't want to hurt Minnie, and she hasn't spoken to T.J. since. Some of the other guests have arrived as well, but the host of the party and the rest of the invites won't be there until the next day. A storm rolls in (yes, a storm- I know), and it's a doozy. As the partiers settle in and start drinking, some hostilities surface and it turns out some of these people have a history with each other. Fun!
Before long the storm gets worse and murderous things begin to happen. The body count rises and there are clues that someone from their past may be stalking them. Is there someone else on the island- or is the killer one of them? Before the weekend is over, there may be no one left to find out.
Ten was a lot of fun. It's a quick read with suspense that steadily ratchets up and a couple of nasty twists at the end. The big reveal was a bit farfetched for me but I still enjoyed this book a lot. The voices seemed authentically teen and the author touched on themes of acceptance, loyalty and friendship. This gave the story an emotional heft and a surprisingly deep backstory, along with a healthy dose of mayhem. Just be warned- if you read this late at night or during a storm, you may want to have a few extra lights on.
Sounds like a teen version of Agatha Christie's 'And Then There Were None'. Is the solution similar, or has the author changed it enough that I won't figure it out?
ReplyDeleteI'm ashamed to say I have not read "And Then There Were none.". I know, i know... :) So I can't really speak to that, I know for myself I was not sure who the culprit was, I had a suspicion and it was wrong. I've seen one reviewer who did figure it out tho, so...
DeleteSounds creepy!
ReplyDeleteOh, if you haven't read And Then There Were None, check it out. I don't read very many Christie books, but this one I thoroughly enjoyed, and also saw the old film version of it.
I really should read that! It's a classic, I know... I've only read a few christie, but never that one for some reason. This one was a little suspenseful, I liked it.
DeleteThis is an Agatha Christie adaption and like you I enjoyed it. It had just the right amount of suspense and well over the top ending.
ReplyDeleteYup, I agree with that assessment. It was fun and quick and just scary enough to keep you on edge. :)
DeleteI really enjoyed this one when I read it ages ago. I really liked the authors quick paced writing style.This reminds me that I not only have to read And Then There Were None (see you aren't alone in not having read it) but I have to read her other teen thriller as well . Glad you liked this one.
ReplyDelete-Kimberly @ Turning the Pages
I really did, I agree that it was a page turner. She kept things moving which was nice. Nice to see I'm not the only one who hasn't read the Christie original! I probably should though!
DeleteSound like something I would give a go, and I think I could get if for my daughter as she 'needs' books where the story moves on.
ReplyDeleteI hope you like it if you get it, it really appealed to me for some reason. A nice mystery, some chills and it didn't drag on forever! A good little read.
DeleteI like a good page turner and I'll definitely be reading it with the light on ;)
ReplyDeleteI think you'll like it, it's not perfect but I was entertained. There's a character named Kumiko who kinda snarky and i loved all her lines.
DeleteI don't recall if you've read 3:59 yet or not. If not, you might like that one as well. There's a lot of science-y stuff in with all of the suspense.
ReplyDeleteI have not, but I saw an excerpt in the back of Ten. Forgot to read it, I better do that! AS much as I liked Ten, I'll definetly be getting 3:59. Thanks for the reminder!
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