A Line in the Dark

I really feel like this book was poorly marketed If you re anything like me, you were drawn in by that gorgeous and sinister cover, and a title that seems to promise something dark and creepy but the book s content is very different There were some things I liked, but overall it lacked the darkness and thrills required for a mystery thriller.Let s start with what I did like I quickly realized that A Line in the Dark was not the book I was expecting that it read like a quiet contemporary about a [...]

This was weird And not in a good way.I know this is marketing itself as dark, creepy, and atmospheric, but I m going to be totally honest it s not There is embarrassingly little atmosphere The tone is uninteresting, but occasionally inconsistent And truly, this book just doesn t go dark enough The only creepy thing about this book is something I m pretty sure wasn t meant to be creepy Jess crush on Angie I had a crush on my girl best friend once It was deep It was intense It was not this obsessi [...]

1.5 starsSEE MY VIDEO REVIEW HERE Unfortunately this had everything I wanted but nothing was executed to my satisfaction The two halves of the book did not come together first person in the 1st half and 3rd person texts and transcripts in the 2nd half There was an excess use of the modifiers really and super , which adds superfluous bulk to the writing and shows that the word choice wasn t strong enough and needs to improve There were also times where one thing would be explained multiple times. [...]

A Line in the Dark is a book that came highly recommended to me, and since I was already eyeballing it in the store, I felt like this would be perfect for a November read.I was right, because I truly enjoyed this book.The book follows a teenage girl named Jess, who is extremely passionate about drawing Jess has a best friend named Angie and the two have been thick as thieves for a really long time, until Jess notices a girl approach Angie at the Creamery where she works and it kind of puts a wed [...]

I really wanted to like this book Pros There s great diversity Asian main character queer girls Cons The first half of this book was so boring I almost quit many times I didn t like any of the characters so I just didn t care what happened to them there was a shift from first person to third in the second half that felt strange it almost made this seem like two different books the thriller aspect wasn t at all thrilling and the conclusion was just annoying I m really sad I didn t like this book [...]

3.5 starsI m a sucker for a psychological thriller and the synopsis coupled with that gorgeous cover sold me.I liked Jess well enough She s loyal and smart and just a bit stalker ish to keep me guessing on what she was up to I felt like Angie, Margot, and Ryan were never really fleshed out I m not sure if it was on purpose, but it was quite effective in making me not trust anyone.Plot wise it was of a quiet anticipation than a thriller It was slow moving, but I was interested the entire time I [...]

Full review to come

To be honest, I was expecting this to be better, as I LOVED her last SF dulolgy, especially the first book Adaptation those books were exciting and page turning and had great alien conspiracies and bisexual romance Unfortunately in A Line in the Dark there were quite a few things that didn t work for me very awkward POV switch two thirds of the way through, flat characters, and just a general not great grip on the thriller genre conventions The twist ending fell flat for me, partially because I [...]

Let s get something straight, this is not an f f romance There s no happy ending about it A Line in the Dark is a mystery thriller that fuses relevant themes in the plot It isn t dark or twisted per my standard The plot is straightforward, it s predictable However, it s engaging which what matters the most I finished it in one gulp It s fast paced You ll like and distrust the characters at the same time.The story follows Jess Wong, who s in love with her best friend Angie Redmond They re your st [...]

4.75 starsA Line in the Dark is the first contemporary mystery I ve ever loved.It s a story about unhealthy friendships and relationships between three teenage girls, all three of them queer.The narrator is Jess Wong She s Chinese American, she has always loved art, and she s in love with her best friend Angie This crush is unrequited, and that becomes even clear when popular, beautiful Margot starts flirting with Angie But Margot and her rich friends are not good news under the money and the p [...]

YES GIMME MORE COMMERCIAL QUEER LADY GENRE YA FICTION I looooooooved this Delightfully flirts those lines between obsession, love, and friendship An unreliable narrator thinky face emoji Oh my, yes Perfect for fans of Kara Thomas or, if I have to say it, E Lockhart.

3.5 rounded upThis book suffers from a bit of an identity crisis The cover which is what first drew me to the book portrays a super creepy, goth feel but that s not really what the book is The book itself is almost like 2 books The first part is great It s a first person narration through Jess Jess is a high school girl trying to figure her life out There is a lot here about identity and the intense friendships girls develop at this age Then someone dies and it becomes a mystery thriller When th [...]

UPDATE It s been a few hours since I finished this book and 1 I ve bumped up the rating because I ve given it thought, and 2 I cannot stop thinking about it.I take back what I said about the ending being a missed opportunity regarding the character development Thinking about it carefully and reflecting on the events that led up to the ending, I m now inclined to say that Lo s storytelling was fantastic Without giving away what happens, the second half of the novel weaves such a complex and fa [...]

Oof I can t say that was fun It was quick read, and captivating, but even before it got into the mystery, it was painful to read That toxic friendship and jealousy gets to me No one is particularly likable, and there s no real moment of catharsis after that strangled, uncomfortable feeling that permeates the whole book It s well done, but it wasn t exactly enjoyable for me which is why I m not rating it.

I don t read much realistic young adult fiction It s just not my jam I already lived through high school once and taught it for another four years, so when it comes to teen angst, I ve graduated twice But I love YA fiction that brings another element along with it, like a historical bent or a bizarre fantasy world or a dystopian nightmare scenario A Line in the Dark is a delightful combo a YA thriller And it s super thrilling because it s a known and universally accepted fact that there is nothi [...]

I liked this A phycological thriller with queer girls Chinese main character drama secrets perfection But I just didn t like it as much as I thought I would Here s why There s a shift between first and third person POV halfway through, and it felt awkward I liked the first person much I wanted from the ending It wasn t what I was expecting, but it just shocked me and then it was over Maybe that s the point of a thriller I don t read many, obviously , but I wasn t a fan It wasn t as thrilling a [...]

Super quick and super queer two things I like a lot I thought the ending was a little rushed and I wanted from it and of it, but overall definitely a positive recommendation.

En muchas partes este libro me ha tocado de forma personal Empezando por Jessica Wong, la protagonista.Jess tiene una mejor amiga y esta enamorada de ella, siempre la apoya y nunca la deja sola, sus sentimientos hacia ella eran tan intensos y palpables que pude sentir todo su amor y su a oranza, y el no poder exteriorizar esos sentimientos por miedo a perder a su mejor amiga Adem s estos sentimientos me parecieron tan inocentes y puros, por ejemplo en una escena Jess dice que tiene una regla nun [...]

3.5 5 Pros Loved the diversity Queer girls Chinese main character Super quick read was intrigued with the story Cons Ending was a bit rushed POV shift Wasn t as thrilling as I was hoping it would be

3.5 5.0 1 2 For such significant cover Much diverse from the vague interpretation I had after reading the blurb, lusting after the cover, and pondering over the title I was kind of slightly perplexed what to categorize this was into as the aspects covered are flamboyant The first part kind of submerged me into High School girls constantly dealing with jealousy and melodrama.Jessica and Angie s, Margot and Ryan s friendships peculiarly fit this quote Jessica s art is the most alluring elemental p [...]

GRADE B4 STARSIf a tree falls in a forest, and no one hears it fall, did it make a sound The philosophical conundrum attributed to Charles Berkley makes me ask, If a novel highlighting mental illness never mentions mental illness, is the book still about mental illness A LINE IN THE DARK is marketed like a psychological thriller, but reads psychological than thriller, though mental illness is never addressed Jess and her best friend Angie have an enmeshed relationship, mostly from Jess s side o [...]

Psychological thrillers aren t typically my thing but I really liked this one I wasn t really sure where the mystery was going to go and I was pretty shocked at the ending Like a few reviewers noted already, the switch from first person to third person in the second part of the novel didn t flow too well and I also preferred the first person narration to be continuous instead Overall, A Line in the Dark is a thrilling mystery that is perfect for your fall TBR.

This was the perfect way to start off 2018 I really liked the characters My grade ten self and Jess were basically identical, except I can t draw for shit Angie was kind of a selfish bitch Letting Jess pine over her very obviously while constantly talking about Margot was a dick move I wasn t entirely expecting the ending, which was a good surprise view spoiler Emily was ignored when it came to the investigation, so I was expecting her to be involved in Ryan s death, so it was big surprise that [...]

A huge thanks to Penguin Random House for providing me an eARC This,by any means, did not affect nor influence my review 3.5 starsTwisting, dark and disturbing, A Line in the Dark by Malinda Lo is a diverse read that explores the depths of friendship, identifying and accepting one s sexuality, love obsession and murder.What I liked Dark atmosphere and eerie vibe from the very beginning We were welcomed by an intriguing prologue but the story started 14 weeks ahead of the time when the prologue o [...]

I have to start by saying I absolutely love the cover of A Line in the Dark by Malinda Lo I immediately wanted to read this based on the cover alone Once I read the summary though I was even intrigued Once I dove into this book I didn t really want to put it down It was definitely a quick read and I found myself pulled into this story that revolves around friendship, relationships, and a bit of a mystery I have to admit the first half went well but I wasn t a fan of the POV shift in part two It [...]

I m torn A Line in the Dark on the surface is my bread and butter a psychological thriller with diverse characters, an unreliable narrator, and a love triangle Plus, look at that cover It opens with a bang literally but I was left feelingunsatisfied at the end I have some somewhat incoherent thoughts Jess Wong has had a long standing crush on her best friend, Angie And everything was peachy while it was just the two of them, but then Angie meets Margot, a student at the ritzy private school, and [...]

whispers softly what the fuck Anyways this was really good and I really enjoyed it but I would ve enjoyed it much had it not been for the POV shift switches from 1st person narration to 3rd person halfway through and that the ending felt rushed Review soon.

Actual rating 4.5 starsI may actually try to write a review for this one it packed a big punch for such a slim book.

if you hear screaming in the distance that s me bc I m the tension and in this really got under my skin and the setup shifts in narrative format in the second made it feel like a real mystery investigation TWs homomisia, ableism, overdrinking, murder, statutory rape mention

3.5 rounded to a 4 Thoughts to come.