Little Monsters by Kara Thomas | Review

Little Monsters by Kara Thomas | ReviewLittle Monsters by Kara Thomas
Published by Delacorte Press on July 25th 2017
Pages: 336
Format: Hardcover
Source: Publisher
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For fans of Pretty Little Liars, Little Monsters is a new psychological thriller, from the author of The Darkest Corners, about appearances versus reality and the power of manipulation amongst teenage girls.

Kacey is the new girl in Broken Falls. When she moved in with her father, she stepped into a brand-new life. A life with a stepbrother, a stepmother, and strangest of all, an adoring younger half sister.

Kacey’s new life is eerily charming compared with the wild highs and lows of the old one she lived with her volatile mother. And everyone is so nice in Broken Falls—she’s even been welcomed into a tight new circle of friends. Bailey and Jade invite her to do everything with them.

Which is why it’s so odd when they start acting distant. And when they don’t invite her to the biggest party of the year, it doesn’t exactly feel like an accident.

But Kacey will never be able to ask, because Bailey never makes it home from that party. Suddenly, Broken Falls doesn’t seem so welcoming after all—especially once everyone starts looking to the new girl for answers.

Kacey is about to learn some very important lessons: Sometimes appearances can be deceiving. Sometimes when you’re the new girl, you shouldn’t trust anyone.

My Thoughts:

I’ve finally found it!  After years of reading mediocre young adult thrillers, I’ve finally found the one that kept me guessing until the very end.  Little Monsters had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end.  Kara Thomas has a very twisted mind and I love it!

Little Monsters grabs you from the very first page.  The synopsis really only gives you the base of this story.  It’s very much a mystery but there is so much more to it than that.  There’s little bit of horror, a little self discovery, and more than a touch of Mean Girls.  It reads like a crossover between YA and adult.  There truly is so much more to this story than meets the eye.

Kacey is an interesting main character.  She is easy to like even though it’s clear that she is keeping many secrets.  She has not had an easy life and while things were looking up when she first moved to Broken Falls, they took a dark turn very quickly.  Her family is the one bright spot in all of this and even they may not be as perfect as they first appear.  Every person in Kacey’s life had secrets of their own, some darker than Kacey ever could have guessed.  When the police started looking at her as a suspect in Bailey’s disappearance, she took it upon herself to solve the mystery and in the process, brought all the dark secrets to light.

Kacey’s family may have had some secrets but I liked them all very much.  This wasn’t your typical story about a girl being taken in to her father’s new family of wicked stepsiblings and an evil stepmother.  Instead, Kacey found a family that actually wanted her and wanted what was best for her.  Her step brother and half-sister embraced her like she’d been there all along.  Kacey may have stood out like a sore thumb in the town of Broken Falls but her family didn’t care.  I won’t lie and say they didn’t have some suspicions when Kacey became a suspect in Bailey’s disappearance but I think I would have judged them more if they hadn’t thought her relationship with Bailey made her a likely candidate.

Also, while it’s not a huge part of the story, the town legend of the Red Woman really captivated me.  I’m not much for creepy stories and I’m easily scared but I loved that aspect of this story.  The Red Woman’s story had a lot to do with the overall story and every single mention of her creeped me the hell out! Little Monsters is not a horror novel and nobody would ever classify it as one but it is still one you might want to read with the lights on.

Overall, Little Monsters could not have been better.  Both adult and YA thriller fans will find something to love about this one.  I’ll definitely be checking out Kara Thomas’ previous novel as well as whatever she decides to write next!

What others are saying about Little Monsters:

Great Imaginations’ review: “Little Monsters had all the elements of a thriller I should love, and yet there was something missing that ultimately kept me from loving it as much as I should have.”

My Thoughts…Literally!’s review: “It had a great atmosphere and a plot that kept me hooked from beginning to end. It wasn’t perfect but it was thoroughly entertaining.”

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9 comments

  1. I thought Thomas’ last book was fantastic and the it had a twist that came out of nowhere. I am so pleased to see all the raves for this one, and really hope to get my hands on a copy soon. Great review!

  2. Ooh nice! Glad to hear such high praise for this one! I still have Kara’s first book which I’d though I’d read first just to give me an idea of what her writing will be like! I love a good thriller, be it YA or adult so I’m glad to hear this one was so good! Great review!

  3. Glad you liked this one!! I was definitely a fan. I just kinda wished that Kasie wasn’t so blah. I wasn’t excited by her at all. And OMG The Red Woman!! I loved that element and wish it was even a bigger part to the overall mystery. But like you said, I’ve searched high and low for great YA Mysteries and they are hard to find!! Her last book was pretty good too. Did you read it?

    1. I haven’t read her last one but I do have a copy of it somewhere on my shelves. I plan on picking it up soon so I’m glad to hear you thought it was good!

  4. I’ve heard amazing things about this book and I can’t wait to read it! The whole legend of Red Woman sounds intriguing and make me even more interested in reading the book.