Prep School Confidential
by Kara Taylor (Website, Twitter)Published by St. Martin's Press on July 30th 2013
Genres: Contemporary, Mystery and Suspense, Thriller, Young Adult
Format: eBook
Source: Publisher
Amazon • Goodreads
In this breathtaking debut that reads like Gossip Girl crossed with Twin Peaks, a Queen Bee at a blue-blooded New England prep school stumbles into a murder mystery.
Anne Dowling practically runs her exclusive academy on New York’s Upper East Side—that is, until she accidentally burns part of it down and gets sent to a prestigious boarding school outside of Boston. Determined to make it back to New York, Anne couldn't care less about making friends at the preppy Wheatley School. That is, until her roommate Isabella’s body is found in the woods behind the school.
When everyone else is oddly silent, Anne becomes determined to uncover the truth no matter how many rules she has to break to do it. With the help of Isabella’s twin brother Anthony, and a cute classmate named Brent, Anne discovers that Isabella wasn’t quite the innocent nerdy girl she pretended to be. But someone will do anything to stop Anne’s snooping in this fast-paced, unputdownable read—even if it means framing her for Isabella’s murder
Lately, I’ve been enjoying good mystery stories They are meant to keep you on edge and often are truly compelling! Also, the selling point for this one was, Gossip girl meet Twin Peaks! YEAH!
Surprising and Exciting Character Cast!
Anne is such a fun, bold, snarky and strong-willed girl who I liked instantly! I loved her voice and her attitude. I was a little afraid of her being spoiled brat and way to snobby – and while she most definitely was a spoiled rich girl, she was never overdoing it and never to the point where she was annoying. What I also loved about Annie, was that she never looked down on people who were less fortunate than she was.
“Prep School Confidential” comes with a vast cast of interesting and compelling characters and we find nearly all expected characters. The truly spoiled bitches, the nice best friends, the smart geeks and some boys, both a badboy and a goodboy!
Thrilling Murder Mystery!
Very soon after transferring to her new boarding school, Anne’s roommate and friend is murdered! It seems like the school has no real interest in finding the murderer and even more, there are some secrets the school desperately wants to keep a secret. This is stuff made for a good and page turning mystery and it doesn’t disappoint!
Of course, a good Mystery needs some twist and turns that make our head spin and make us constantly guessing who the murderer really is!
Good Boy – Bad Boy
On her path to find out her classmates’ secrets and the murder, she makes some friends, enemies and finds some boys to flirt with. And Anne does not just find one boy, she actually finds two! The bad boy Anthony has the classic bad boy attitude and I really liked how Anne didn’t shy away from his attitude and also from his upbringing. He’s the opposite from Anne – always having money problems and is far from having a life like Anne. Still, she always challenged him and always made it clear that she doesn’t care about these things! Go Girl!
Then there is the Good Boy Brent, who also seems to have interest in Anne. He was a fun character Anne could always count on!
My main problem with this Triangle was that I didn’t truly felt the chemistry between Annie and the boys and it was never clear which direction we would go. Sure, we were actually as conflicted as Anne – but I ended up not caring which one she would end up. Which is not to say that I didn’t like these characters – I did! But, I just didn’t get the butterfly feelings.
Bewitched Rating
Bottom Line
Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor was a surprising and compelling debut with a great mystery that will keep readers on edge and constantly guessing which direction the story goes. The characters were amazingly flashed out and Anne’s voice was fresh, smart, snarky and pretty bold. The romance could have been fleshed out a little more, but other than this, fans of a good murder mystery with great characters will truly enjoy this one!
Do you like Teen murder mysteries?
A little creepy , some murder and a girl in between trying to find the truth!
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This sounds right up my alley! I do love a good mystery, especially when there’s a prep school and snobby rick folk involved. Mix in a little Twin Peaks weirdness and I’m all over it!
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Ah this one is light and fun!!! Totally worth your time – if we forget a little about the romance which could have been better
Danny recently posted..Surprising and Compelling! Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor
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I love the Gossip Girl meets Twin Peaks reference. I’ve been wondering if this one is a bit of a ‘younger’ read alá the Hex Hall series. The cover just gives off a ‘younger’ vibe to me and even though I like the sound of it I’m not sure if I’ll read. What do you think?
Leanna recently posted..Delightful Debutantes Revisited – Catching up with Josephine Angelini!
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No, not as young as HEX HALL I would say. The girls here feel a little older, more sophisticated but still girlish. Especially Anne feels really independent and strong.
I totally get your fear, I do not truly like when the protagonists are too young and I shy away from books where the protagonists are 14 and younger.
So, you shouldn’t be concerned about the book feeling too young:))
Danny recently posted..Surprising and Compelling! Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor
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Thanks! 🙂 That’s good to hear. I think I’ll check this one out. It’s getting a lot of high ratings on Goodreads!
l recently posted..Delightful Debutantes Revisited – Catching up with Josephine Angelini!
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I got this book and I am so excited to read it (now)! I love how it has the mystery and thrill feel to it vs the usual snooty tooty prep school theme. It has that too, but it has an extra zing to it.
Thank you for clarifying that. I was honestly a bit worried it was too teeny bopper-ish.
Have a great Wednesday 🙂
Bella’s Shelf recently posted..Beauty and Brains: Beauty Product Reviews and Sunkissed Vox Box
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Haha – teeny bopper-ish love that word 🙂 And yes, I really enjoyed i :))
Danny recently posted..Creepy and Thrilling – Truly, Madly, Deadly by Hannah Jayne
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This book sounds like so much fun! I adore both Twin Peaks and Gossip Girl (Well, the early years, anyway) and this definitely sounds like something I would enjoy. I love a good mystery and set against the backdrop of an exclusive, elite boarding school I’m sure Taylor had a lot of fun with this narrative. The inclusion of the love triangle does give me a moment’s pause, though, as I’m rarely a fan of that particular trope.
Jen @ Pop! Goes The Reader recently posted..Review: Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
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I loved Gossip Girl but admit that I stopped watching after the frist seasons. but what I love a lot are boarding schools :))
And yeah. the love Triangle was not my favorite part either, especially since I was truly confused and I found the chemistry to be lacking..
Danny recently posted..Bewitched Kids Corner {11} Kelsey Green, Reading Queen
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I was like ooh this sounds fun and then I saw muuurder, haha. I’m really curious now esp because I like boarding schools. Sorry you didn’t get butterfly feelings but glad you liked it overall!
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Despite not having butterflies, the story was still kind of great! I loved the bold and snarky characters. It really was all kinds of fun and mysterious 🙂
Danny recently posted..Bewitched Kids Corner {11} Kelsey Green, Reading Queen
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I’ve read nothing but great things about Prep School Confidential and here comes once of my trusted reviewers loving it! Plus, it’s set in a boarding school! <3 I hope I get to read this soon! Thanks for the review, Danny!
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