Summary
Friday is a bright, bored middle schooler who puzzles out the solution to a bank robbery. The reward money lets Friday buy her way into a prestigious boarding school. While there, Friday uses her powers of observation and her crazy-high IQ to tackle some mysteries at her new school, too.
Review
Wow, I liked this book! My first criteria for a “good” book is always the main character. Friday clicked for me from the start. Her family situation endeared her to me. But Friday handles her family’s quirks so matter-of-factly, I didn’t pity her.
Next, since this was a mystery, I needed the “cases” to be good. Friday is a bit Sherlockian in her methods and her brilliance. I didn’t feel like it was my job to solve the mystery before her. I didn’t have enough information. So instead I just got to sit back and watch Friday do her thing.
The thing I noticed most about this book, though, was the fast, snappy writing. It’s like watching an episode of The West Wing – part of you knows that there’s a wordy-ness to the writing. But at the same time the words are essential – no fluff. They are establishing a fast pace to every scene. The words are sharp and clever. I think this would be a fun story to read out loud.
Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥
If this sounds like a good read for you – or someone you love – be sure to have book 2, Under Suspicion, handy because this one ends on a cliff hanger. Books three and four are coming in 2017 and are pictured below.
