Book Review: The Amateurs by Sara Shepard

The Amateurs
Author: Sara Shepard
Publisher: Allen and Unwin Australia
Publication date: 23/11/2016
Pages: 336 pages
R.R.P: $16.99
When Aerin Kelly was eleven, she idolised her seventeen year old sister, Helena, and they did everything together. But when Helena went into senior year things started to change. Rather than being Aerin's inseparable sister, she started to push her away. Then, on a snowy winter's day, Helena vanished.

Four years later, Helena's body is found. Wracked with grief and refusing to give up on her sister, Aerin spends months trying to figure out what exactly happened to Helena and who killed her.

A young, familiar officer named Thomas wants to hell and suggests she checks out a website called Case Not Closed. Hesitantly, she posts, and when ten angers Seneca and Maddix show up on her doorstep offering to help investigate she accepts in desperation. But as their investigation begins, it seems that maybe it's no accident that they are all together, and that maybe the crimes have something- or someone- in common.

My review
Thoughts on the book: I loved TV series Pretty Little Liars which is based on the book series that Sara Shepard wrote. I have previously read and reviewed The Perfectionist series and I felt that it was a lot like Pretty Little Liars with basically different characters but one of the girls actually doing the killing (sorry spoiler alert if you haven't read The Perfectionist series). So if I'm perfectly honest I totally expected The Amateurs to be along the very same lines, as once again a crime has been committed and a group of young teenagers are being super sleuths and trying to figure out what happened, well ok it is but so much better. 

In The Amateurs all of the main characters have pretty much never met before, which is why Seneca thinks Maddox is a girl when they first meet, but have all logged on and been a part of the online group Case Not Closed. Case Not Closed is where everyday people can make a post about a case, such as Aerin's sister's case, where the police basically have no leads and nothing is being done. There are heaps of people who are willing to give new insight into the case and there are even professionals on their, such as retired police, doctors and such, who are willing to help in any way they can, So when Aerin reaches out as a last resort to find out what happened to her sisters killer she is met with three complete strangers who are willing to help. The idea behind Case Not Closed is really interesting and I wonder if there was a sight like this (which I'm sure there are properly a couple) if more crimes would be sold because everything is being seen from a new vantage point and different people may offer different options that even the police haven't thought of. Hmm something to ponder.

I felt like I was being thrown all over the place in this book. I would think I have all the evidence of what happened in front of me and then something else would be found and the. I would have to reasses with where I thought the story was going. I was thrown for a loop on multiple occasions  and that ending OMG. Hurry up and give me book 2 so I can find out what happens next. Seriously people have to stop leaving me with these cliffhanger moments!

Rating: 5/5

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