School Library Journal Review
Devon Knox, 15, is a brilliant gymnast and far more talented than the other girls training at BelStars gym. Her path to success could lead to the Olympics. Everyone knows it-all the other gymnasts, all the coaches, all the booster parents, and, most especially, Devon's parents. Her mother, Katie, dedicates her afternoons to sitting in the stands at BelStars, soaking up the envy of the other mothers as Devon flies over the vault. It's Katie who shows how secrets, betrayal, and murder can shatter the tight-knit group of girls and parents. At first, Katie seems like a well-balanced narrator, fair-minded in her attitude toward those with less amazing daughters, tenderly caring for Devon's little brother when he becomes ill. But readers notice that Katie seems to be missing some obvious signs of trouble. Katie discovers Devon, remote and self-contained by nature, in a cat fight with another girl in the locker room. Katie's husband, Eric, spends way too much time with Gwen, a wealthy booster mom. Even as the narrator increasingly suspects disturbing secrets, readers increasingly wonder how much to trust her. Abbott, who put a menacing spin on the world of cheerleading in Dare Me, amplifies the sense of danger implicit in high-stakes gymnastics, as well as the competition among the highly invested parents. Think Dance Moms, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. VERDICT Teens will get a hard-hitting look at competitive gymnastics, framed in a tale of gripping psychological suspense.-Diane Colson, Gainesville City College, FL © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Ever since their teen daughter, Devon, hinted at a special talent for gymnastics, Katie and Eric Knox have spared nothing to get her whatever she needs to qualify for the Olympics. When the novel opens, Katie is beginning to wonder if they have given up too much. Her doubts increase when a family friend is killed by a hit-and-run driver in a car that seems similar to Eric's. Reader Fortgang catches every subtle mood shift of Katie's, from her delight at Devon's ability to her fear that events, real or imagined, will derail her daughter's progress. Eric usually sounds uptight and anxious, and when he and Katie are alone, a little furtive. Devon is brimming with entitlement, impatience, and intolerance. Her fellow gymnasts are humorless, snarky, soft-spoken or arrogant. All are almost as driven as their parents, for whom Olympic excellence is all that matters in their lives. A Little, Brown hardcover. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
This latest novel from Abbott (after The -Fever) centers on a young man's -hit-and-run death shortly before a major gymnastics competition, ripping apart that sport's close-knit community. Immersed in her life as an Olympic hopeful, 15-year-old Devon Knox is in a tailspin. Her mother, Katie, goes into protective mode and attempts to salvage her family from ugly rumors involving her husband and questions about the boy's tragic end. Trying to keep her daughter's dream alive at any cost, Katie is as much a focus of this story as Devon. In true Abbott style, nothing is predictable here; the plot consistently confounds expectations with its clever twists and turns. -VERDICT Admirers of -Patricia Highsmith, Laura Lippman, and Kimberly Pauley (Ask Me) are in for a treat. New readers have a backlist to explore! [See Prepub Alert, 1/26/16; see also profile of Abbott, p. 65.-Ed.]--Frances Thorsen, -Chronicles of Crime Bookshop, Victoria, BC © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
