2.75 stars. this is a little hard to rate because i really enjoyed parts of this, but definitely not all of it, although i did mostly find her writing to be excellent.

i think, in the end, that i didn't like the mystery or feel like that was particularly well done, but that i did really like the rest. i thought the way she captured a way of thinking, the classism, the discontent, and also the friendships and love, was what carried this book. there was maybe a little too much voice; at times it felt like she was trying too hard, but mostly it felt really richly drawn, full of references that let you know where madeline came from and the things she cared about and related to. for that, i really thought this was great, and a truly excellent first book. i'm not totally sold on the mystery and there were a couple of significant chunks of the book where i stopped appreciating the voice and felt it was too overdone. so maybe that's a first book problem. her writing is absolutely good enough that i'd try her again. ( )

Pretty good, though the self-doubting youthfulness of it all is a bit tiresome, but certainly well-written enough, and an intriguing mystery. Not a terrible ending, either. I'll check out #2. Maybe. I give it a 3.5. ( )

This one is a bit different from what I usually read. The main character is a pretty mixed up woman--from a very wealthy family, with drugged out hippie parents, and a huge store of angst. I really didn't like Madeline Dare, but I did admire her perseverance in trying to figure out who brutally murdered two young women 19 years in the past.

I usually figure out "whodunit" within the first third of the book. Ms. Read's plot was twisty enough that I kept rethinking my choice...always good in a mystery/thriller. At the end, everything tied together and the villain made sense.

I'll be reading more Cornelia Read books and hope for more likable characters in future titles. ( )

It took me awhile to get into this, and it may have been a touch too long, but the suspense was really ratcheted up in the second half of the book, and the ending was something else. I guess I do wish there had been a little more information about why the killer did what he did...it was hinted at but not explained. I have already requested the second book... ( )

It took me awhile to get into this, and it may have been a touch too long, but the suspense was really ratcheted up in the second half of the book, and the ending was something else. I guess I do wish there had been a little more information about why the killer did what he did...it was hinted at but not explained. I have already requested the second book... ( )