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ridiculousamanda's review against another edition
3.0
David Yaffe is a high school senior... again. Recently acquitted of the accidental death of his girlfriend, David moves in with his aunt and uncle in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to avoid the sideways glances of his former friends and to finish high school. He believes that this move will help him to forget what happened to his girlfriend, the trial and the heartache, but he is wrong. In the attic apartment above his aunt and uncle's house, David hears a mysterious humming and sees shadowy figures. His aunt rarely speaks to him, his uncle is slightly aloof, and his cousin, Lily, is a troublemaker. Her parents never see it, though, but that's probably because they're still upset over the tragic suicide of their other daughter, Kathy, which happened some years before. Lily is in the spotlight, being the go-between of her parents, until David moves in. Now she plays evil tricks on him, trying desperately to get him to reveal the way he feels now that he's a killer, and to get him to leave the attic that once belonged to her sister. Through several plot twists, secrets, lies and the like, David discovers that his cousin Lily killed her older sister. After he finds this out, Lily tries to kill herself by setting the house on fire, but David rescues her and promises, "We'll help each other ... When it hurts, when we're afraid, if we're ever tempted (to kill again)--we tell each other. I'll help you. You'll help me. We won't use the power we have. And we'll find ways to do good. To .. to atone" (226).
David tells this mysterious story, the story of Lily, the killer's cousin, but reveals his story at the same time. By telling Lily's story, which tells his own, the reader sees the theme of living with consequences develop. David must live with what he has done, and so must Lily. Together, the two realize this and learn to live despite the terrible things they've done in the past.
This book is very intriguing and would be great for reluctant teen boy readers and those who like crime shows like Law and Order, NCIS and CSI. The only thing that I did not like about the book was the fact that Lily's parents saw no problem with the things she was doing, or ignored them, and put the blame on David. I believe to a certain degree that everyone thinks their child is precious, but you have to realize there's a problem eventually, and before the child burns the house down.
David tells this mysterious story, the story of Lily, the killer's cousin, but reveals his story at the same time. By telling Lily's story, which tells his own, the reader sees the theme of living with consequences develop. David must live with what he has done, and so must Lily. Together, the two realize this and learn to live despite the terrible things they've done in the past.
This book is very intriguing and would be great for reluctant teen boy readers and those who like crime shows like Law and Order, NCIS and CSI. The only thing that I did not like about the book was the fact that Lily's parents saw no problem with the things she was doing, or ignored them, and put the blame on David. I believe to a certain degree that everyone thinks their child is precious, but you have to realize there's a problem eventually, and before the child burns the house down.
captkaty's review against another edition
3.0
This isn't that old but seemed pretty dated with usenet and X-Files references. Really good depiction of parent/child and husband/wife relationships, but supernatural element unnecessary and poorly done. Didn't buy that one bit.
iddylu's review against another edition
4.0
I went into this figuring it would be a pretty standard "creepy child" psychological thriller, and it did seem like that's the direction it was going for a good chunk of it, but I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and thoughtfulness of the ending. Definitely worth a read.
desterman's review
3.0
Part mystery, part horror, part psychological thriller - this was a real page turner. Not sure the ending was entirely satisfying - still lots of unanswered questions, but certainly a chilly little read.
annebennett1957's review against another edition
3.0
(Date entered 7/21) I read this Award Winner in Sept 2009 and often book-talked it for students looking for a book to read for class. It was suspenseful and I didn't figure out the mystery.
poachedeggs's review
3.0
Even though you can see the solution to the mystery from a mile away, this is still a pretty creepy book in some parts.
David, who has been accused of killing his girlfriend Emily, but has subsequently been acquitted of this crime, tries to finish high school in Massachussetts, living in the attic of his uncle and aunt's house. He has not seen them ever since their elder daughter Kathy died at the age of eighteen, four years ago, and in the meantime his younger cousin, Lily, has turned eleven. The Shaughnessys make an unnerving family, with Lily acting as the go-between for her parents at the dinner table (because the adults never speak to each other) and being unaccountably hostile to David.
While the second-floor tenant and on-and-off romantic interest Raina is a little distracting in her function and presence, David's struggles with his guilt and his relationship with his parents are quite interesting in their ugly and awkward moments.
David, who has been accused of killing his girlfriend Emily, but has subsequently been acquitted of this crime, tries to finish high school in Massachussetts, living in the attic of his uncle and aunt's house. He has not seen them ever since their elder daughter Kathy died at the age of eighteen, four years ago, and in the meantime his younger cousin, Lily, has turned eleven. The Shaughnessys make an unnerving family, with Lily acting as the go-between for her parents at the dinner table (because the adults never speak to each other) and being unaccountably hostile to David.
While the second-floor tenant and on-and-off romantic interest Raina is a little distracting in her function and presence, David's struggles with his guilt and his relationship with his parents are quite interesting in their ugly and awkward moments.
michelle_pink_polka_dot's review against another edition
3.0
After being aquitted of his girlfriends murder, David is moving to Cambridge to live with his estranged Aunt, Uncle, and 10 yr old cousin Lily. How did his girlfriend die? He acts pretty guilty...
He moves into the 3rd floor apartment where his other cousin, Kathy, died and he realizes that all is not well in this family. Julia and Vic don't speak to each other and when they do they use Lily as a pawn. And then there's Lily... odd, odd Lily. David can tell there's something really wrong with her, but her parents are in denial. She starts breaking into his apartment to constantly to pull pranks/destroy things, and it pushes David over the edge...
Will Vic and Julia ever see that Lily needs help? What really happened to Kathy? What really happened to Emily (the girlfriend)?
My first Audiobook!!! Yay me!!
Anyway...
I found this book addicting even though I knew where the plot was going. The only reaosn I gave it 3 stars is I found some of the details to be unbelievable.
Like: 1. Do you really expect me to believe that he killed a girl with one punch? I mean I guess it's humanly possible, but unlikely.
2. The Kathy thing was a little better but still... someone is going to take a giant sip of ammonia and not know...even with a cold I'm not sold on it.
3. All of sudden 3/4th of the way through the book, David and Lily are connected telepathically??? Wait, what? Yes they talk to each other through the ceiling...yeah I'm not buying that...
4. Ghosts? I don't know about that either...
5. I dont get how David made the leap from basically thinking she's a psychopath to instant forgiveness... what he did and what she did were 2 completely different things. Yes in the end 2 ppl died, but an accidental death or even an involuntary manslaughter is not the same as a murder, and Lily's was at least 2nd degree. I dont get where he's all "my Lily" all of a sudden...
I liked the way it made me feel about David, he was a very well developed character. Also I loved the supermarket card swaps, that was super-cute. The Epilogue made me smile, so at least it ended on a good note :)
He moves into the 3rd floor apartment where his other cousin, Kathy, died and he realizes that all is not well in this family. Julia and Vic don't speak to each other and when they do they use Lily as a pawn. And then there's Lily... odd, odd Lily. David can tell there's something really wrong with her, but her parents are in denial. She starts breaking into his apartment to constantly to pull pranks/destroy things, and it pushes David over the edge...
Will Vic and Julia ever see that Lily needs help? What really happened to Kathy? What really happened to Emily (the girlfriend)?
My first Audiobook!!! Yay me!!
Anyway...
I found this book addicting even though I knew where the plot was going. The only reaosn I gave it 3 stars is I found some of the details to be unbelievable.
Spoiler
Like: 1. Do you really expect me to believe that he killed a girl with one punch? I mean I guess it's humanly possible, but unlikely.
2. The Kathy thing was a little better but still... someone is going to take a giant sip of ammonia and not know...even with a cold I'm not sold on it.
3. All of sudden 3/4th of the way through the book, David and Lily are connected telepathically??? Wait, what? Yes they talk to each other through the ceiling...yeah I'm not buying that...
4. Ghosts? I don't know about that either...
5. I dont get how David made the leap from basically thinking she's a psychopath to instant forgiveness... what he did and what she did were 2 completely different things. Yes in the end 2 ppl died, but an accidental death or even an involuntary manslaughter is not the same as a murder, and Lily's was at least 2nd degree. I dont get where he's all "my Lily" all of a sudden...
I liked the way it made me feel about David, he was a very well developed character. Also I loved the supermarket card swaps, that was super-cute. The Epilogue made me smile, so at least it ended on a good note :)
christiek's review against another edition
3.0
When this arrived from the library I had no idea why I put it on hold. The title is bad, and the cover on the copy I have is really bad. It *looks* exactly like the a book I wouldn't read. I flipped to the first page and realized it would be just fine. And it is. Especially the first two thirds. I found the story of David's attempts at getting on with his life after being acquitted of murder during his first senior year of high school to be very interesting and well thought out. The last third of the novel is about his cousin's psychotic drama and it is a bit theatrical and overwrought.
librariann's review
3.0
After David is acquitted of intentionally killing his girlfriend, he goes to live with his aunt, uncle and 11 year old cousin Lily, a strange and malicious little girl. A bit dated with the alt.tv.xfiles references (David would be my age now) but otherwise a can't-put-it-down thriller.
book_nut's review
4.0
Fascinating and creepy. I can't believe I missed out on this one when it came out.