I would recommend this book with full confidence to people who loved Truly, Devious. I think it has such a similar tone, goal, and character setup. Unfortunately, many of the same things I didn't love about Truly, Devious I also was not a fan of in this book.
The Hawthorne brothers felt so forced. Their personalities were completely stale, yet everyone insists they are so mysterious and so captivating (no). I couldn't really figure out why certain characters were in the book (Thea, Nash); it just seemed like the author wanted to fill out the space in the novel more. I absolutely hated the romantic relationship between Stevie and David in the Truly, Devious books and similarly I hated the fact that there was a romance between Avery and not one but TWO of the Hawthorne boys. And it was the two with personalities of cardboard! It felt weird and not natural and gross.
What this book really has going for it is the Hawthorne House. A mysterious mansion with secret doors and passages, built and kept by a puzzle-loving old man? I'm hooked. I just wish the book had gone more into that and less of Avery's "wahhh I don't belong in this rich person world" monologues. I also must just point out how annoying the repetition in this book was. If I never read the words "the glass ballerina--or the knife" again it will still be too soon. Same thing with the line about "Even if you thought you'd manipulated him, I guarantee he was the one who was manipulating you". Completely distracting from the story.
Final verdict: A tragic case of the concept was better than the execution.
CAWPILE: 6 - 7 - 6 - 7.5 - 8 - 7 - 7
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