Pretty Dead Queens

YA chiller 

     Even though we've passed Halloween I still have a bunch of scary stories to read and review.  But with darkness falling faster each day good chillers are very much in season.

     Remember how Alexa Donne convinced us that elite boarding schools might not be the best place to spend one's teens in The Ivies?  Now with Pretty Dead Queens she's taking us to a small town rife with intrigue and secrets.  The complex and often toxic relationships between the characters, revealed bit by bit, build the suspense in this impossible to put down narrative.

     After her mother's death Cecelia moves to live with her maternal grandmother, Maura. The woman is very much a celebrity due to her published mystery books, one of which is based on a local tragedy, the murder of the homecoming queen half a century earlier.  Cecelia catches a glimpse of the poor dead girl--a photograph in a trophy case--on her first day in her new high school.

     "I realize it's Maura, not my mom, in an old homecoming-court photo.  She and four other girls flank a blonde at the center, who beams, crown atop her head.  Next to it is the same girl's yearbook photo and a plaque: IN LOVING MEMORY OF CAROLINE QUINN, 1953-1970."

     Cecelia is drawn into an alpha group, achievers in a wide range of extracurriculars.  Maura is quite impressed.  The parents of her new friends are the town's movers and shakers.

     "That's a lot of power in one friend group.  And my baby has a seat at the table."

     At halftime of the homecoming football game the court is announced.  The queen and king, Natalie  and Luke, are both in Cecelia's friend group.  History is about to repeat itself.  Searching for a bathroom without a huge line, Cecelia heads for the pool building.  About to head back to the game, she sees what she perceives to be a CPR dummy in a dress.  Only it's Natalie floating face down in the water in the same place poor dead Caroline had been discovered.

     Cecelia has decided to find Natalie's killer and find out more about Caroline's demise.  Only that's quite risky business.  There are people in her new town who have secrets they don't want discovered, ways to keep a snoopy newcomer from achieving her goal, and no moral qualms about permanently silencing her.

On a purrrsonal note, I had a great Halloween.  I was cosplaying as Cat in the Hat all day with a sign saying "Be badass.  Read banned books."  The chancellor was meeting with people on campus.  I made sure to be the first.  He recognized me despite the costume.  I explained why we need to hold a new COVID booster clinic on campus.  He promised to look into it.  Then I got computer help on homework I had to turn in that day.  The cat made the rounds of Hilltop, wishing people a happy Halloween and stealing cookies.  In the evening I helped the women's basketball team at the trunk of treat in downtown Orono.  The weather was perfect.  The kids were adorable.  And when some music started I sure did impress the athletes with my dancing skills.  They formed a circle around me just like in the movies.  It was magic, the kind of moment in time that makes you super glad to be alive.  (Jules)

I got cat treats for trick or treat. (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to all who feel the magic and enchantment of Halloween.

Tobago and Jules Hathaway