I finished The Good Girls, book two in The Perfectionists series by Sara Shepard. That’s the same author who wrote Pretty Little Liars. I was a little worried about reading this one. PLL had made me want to both vomit and burn the world down, but I remember thinking the first book was alright. The Good Girls was a new book in the library and it was on display. Since it was the last book in the series, I felt obligated to finish it. I took it off the shelf and brought it home.
SYNOPSIS
The Perfectionists is about the murder of Nolan Hotchkiss, the most popular guy in school, and also the cruel manipulator who knew everyone’s secrets. In the film studies class, five girls finish watching And Then There Were None and discuss whether there were people who deserved to die. They name the people they’d kill and how they’d do it, but they all agree on Nolan. Days later, he is killed in the exact same way they’d planned — cyanide in his drink. In book two, the mystery killer goes further down the list, and the girls are left to figure who overheard their conversation — and who is next.
WHAT I LIKED
- Enjoyable enough to read that I got through it without feeling frustrated at anything
- The girls are actually friends with each other, and there are nice and sweet girl/girl friendships
- Supportive parents exist, and the police are competent
- Final relationships are realistic and not toxic
- Good non-stereotypical representation — there’s an Iranian, a South Korean, and lesbian parents
- An adequate portrayal of serious issues like bullying, domestic abuse, mental illness, suicide, drugs, and alcohol abuse
- The plot twist was unexpected and presents an excellent re-readability factor
- Clever red herrings. I’m not sure if Lucien’s description of being effeminate was intended to mislead us since we knew the killer had a girl’s build, but it definitely made me suspicious and clouded my thinking a bit
- Has a nice moral
- The ending was satisfying and bittersweet
WHAT I DISLIKED
- Using mental illness (especially DID) as a plotline, but at least it was portrayed okay.
- Plus, I’m pretty sure this idea’s been used a hundred times (still didn’t expect it though)
- Weird formatting. Some words like “Costco-size” and “ex-girlfriend” were written without the dash. Shepard’s habit of having up to three people speak in the same paragraph also really confused me as to who was saying what.
- The car mowing down Claire was unrealistic. How was the driver/killer supposed to know that Claire would be the only one on the road? They didn’t even ensure that Claire couldn’t just jump out of the way.
- Some characters were bland. Ava, Caitlin, and Mackenzie were very similar.
- Caitlin’s story was slightly boring. It’s great that her relationships are healthy though.
Some parts I was iffy about, but overall I enjoyed it. I think Sara Shepard has learned and improved a lot since Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game, and I’m excited to see the TV show based on this series!