Category Archives: Marieke Nijkamp

September 14, 2020 · 11:57 pm

Review: Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp

Title: Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Mystery, LGBTQ
Length: 248 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Marieke Nijkamp comes a shocking new thriller about a group of friends who go to a cabin to play a murder mystery game…only to have the game turned against them.

FIVE friends go to a cabin.
FOUR of them are hiding secrets.
THREE years of history bind them.
TWO are doomed from the start.
ONE person wants to end this.
NO ONE IS SAFE.

For five friends, this was supposed to be one last getaway before going their separate ways—a chance to say goodbye to each other, and to the game they’ve been playing for the past three years. But they’re all dealing with their own demons, and they’re all hiding secrets.

Finn doesn’t trust anyone since he was attacked a few months ago. Popular girl Liva saw it happen and did nothing to stop it. Maddy was in an accident that destroyed her sports career. Carter is drowning under the weight of his family’s expectations. Ever wants to keep the game going for as long as they can, at all costs.

When the lines between game and reality start to blend with deadly consequences, it’s a race against time before it’s game over—forever.

Are you ready to play?

Perfect for readers who love:

  • teenage mystery books or YA horror
  • LGBT stories about intersectional groups of friends
  • Karen McManus, Gretchen McNeil, or Natasha Preston

Review:

Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp is an intriguing young adult mystery.

With some of the group leaving for college in a few months, five friends go to a remote cabin to play their role playing game one last time.  Liva Konig’s wealthy family owns the cabin and she is the group’s costume designer. She is looking forward to one last game before she sets out on the course her parents have set for her. Non-binary Ever is the game master and they created and set up everything for this final game. They just completed their junior year and they are very devoted to taking care of their father and sister. Maddy is autistic and she relies on body language to help her gauge other people’s emotions. She is struggling with the changes in her life following an auto accident. Her friend Carter works for Liva’s family’s business and his parents urge him to work hard to get ahead. Finn is transgender and suffers from chronic pain due to arthritis. Finn has been estranged from the group for several months and harbors misgivings about the get together.

Everyone arrives together and after settling into their rooms, they begin playing their final RPG. Liva’s ghost stories add a layer of unease as they settle into their various roles. Despite some of the tension between friends, they are soon immersed in solving their final mystery. After an unexpected change in the game, things begin to go wrong. Strange occurrences are disconcerting and they make the mistake of splitting up to investigate a shocking discovery. Fearful of what is going to happen next, they agree to stay together as they plan their escape to safety.

Even If We Break is a young adult mystery with a clever storyline and interesting characters. While the characters are diverse, they are not very well developed. The narration shifts between each of the characters and some of their voices are too similar to tell them apart. The RPG element is unique and role playing readers will definitely enjoy the scenes where the final game takes place. The first part of the story is fast-paced but the last half becomes mired in long, repetitive passages of dialogue and internal monologues.  The mystery aspect is predictable and the perpetrator’s motive is bizarre. With the characters undergoing a touching journey of self-discovery, Marieke Nijkamp brings the novel to a satisfying conclusion.

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Filed under Contemporary, Even If We Break, Marieke Nijkamp, Mystery, Rated C+, Review, Sourcebooks Fire, Young Adult

January 3, 2018 · 11:56 pm

Review: Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp

Title: Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Magical Realism (slight)
Length: 372 pages
Book Rating: C

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller This Is Where It Ends comes another unforgettable story of loss, hope, betrayal, and the quest for truth

Best friends Corey and Kyra were inseparable in their snow-covered town of Lost Creek, Alaska. When Corey moves away, she makes Kyra promise to stay strong during the long, dark winter, and wait for her return.

Just days before Corey is to return home to visit, Kyra dies. Corey is devastated—and confused. The entire Lost community speaks in hushed tones about the town’s lost daughter, saying her death was meant to be. And they push Corey away like she’s a stranger.

Corey knows something is wrong. With every hour, her suspicion grows. Lost is keeping secrets—chilling secrets. But piecing together the truth about what happened to her best friend may prove as difficult as lighting the sky in an Alaskan winter…

Review:

Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp is a mystical young adult novel about friendship, mental illness and loss.

Corey Johnson and her family’s move from Lost Creek, Alaska to Canada means leaving behind her best friend, Kyra Henderson. The young women have sort of drifted apart since the move in spite of Kyra’s letters and Corey’s upcoming visit. Shocked to learn Kyra has died, Corey goes to Lost Creek to try to understand what happened to her friend. She quickly discovers the townspeople now consider her an outsider and despite some eerie and threatening occurrences, Corey is determined to understand what happened to Kyra in the months leading up to her death.

While Corey is more of a scientist, Kyra is a gifted painter who used art to help her deal with the manic phase of her bipolar disorder. Corey never dreamed the residents of Lost Creek would believe that Kyra’s vibrant paintings were anything other than art. Needless to say, she is stunned to learn that the townspeople finally accepted Kyra into their midst and they believed her paintings were portents of the future.  

As Corey tries to uncover the truth about what happened in the aftermath of her move, she is troubled by what seem to be ethereal encounters that she cannot decide are real or a product of her imagination. Even more frightening are the reactions of Kyra’s parents and the rest of the town when Corey refuses to stop trying to understand exactly why no one stepped in to help Krya is the months before her death.

Although well-written, the pacing of the novel is extremely slow. Neither Kyra nor Corey are well-developed and the secondary characters are somewhat superficial.  Much of the young women’s friendship is revealed through a series of non-linear flashbacks so trying to keep up with the time frame in which events are occurring is confusing. Toward the end of the novel, a few chapters appear to be written from the town’s perspective and these snippets are presented as if they are scenes from a play. The entire storyline is somewhat unrealistic and the townspeople’s collective reaction to what happened to Kyra  is too incredibly strange to believe.  And Kyra’s parents’ easy acceptance of the sequence of events is just so bizarre and the way they treat Corey is heartbreaking.

An interesting story with a great atmosphere, Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp is a unique young adult novel that touches on true to life issues.  Despite the fantastic setting, readers might be frustrated by the confusing timeline, a hard to believe storyline and a vaguely dissatisfying conclusion that leaves a few unanswered questions.

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Filed under Before I Let Go, Contemporary, Magical Realism, Marieke Nijkamp, Review, Sourcebooks Fire, Young Adult

January 4, 2016 · 11:57 pm

Review: This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

this is whereTitle: This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Fiction
Length: 288 pages
Book Rating: A

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

10:00 a.m.
The principal of Opportunity, Alabama’s high school finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.

10:02 a.m.
The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.

10:03
The auditorium doors won’t open.

10:05
Someone starts shooting.

Told over the span of 54 harrowing minutes from four different perspectives, terror reigns as one student’s calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.

Review:

Marieke Nijkamp’s debut novel, This Is Where It Ends, is a heartrending and riveting young adult novel. Spanning a mere 54 minutes and written from four different perspectives, this powerful story is a disturbing and realistic account of an all too familiar tragedy when a lone gunman opens fire during a school assembly.

It is an ordinary day for students in Opportunity, AL. The principal has just completed her back to school speech and released the teenagers to return to class. Slowly, but surely, everyone becomes aware that something is amiss and they make a startling discovery: the auditorium doors are locked, trapping them inside. Before they can process this information, a lone gunman opens fire, killing the principal along with several teachers and students. For the next 54 minutes, fear and panic reign as he holds them hostage and continues his murderous rampage.

One of the few students excused from the assembly, Claire Morgan is stunned when she and her friend Chris realize they have stumbled on the identity of the shooter: her ex-boyfriend. Unable to believe he is capable of such a horrific act, she tries to make sense of what is happening to her fellow students. Shock and disbelief quickly turn to panic when she realizes her brother Matt is in the auditorium. Holding out hope her ex will spare his life, Claire anxiously remains outside the school awaiting word of Matt’s fate.

Tomás Morales and his friend Fareed are breaking into the principal’s office when they hear gunfire and they immediately call 911. When they attempt to leave school, they discover the school’s exits have been chained and padlocked. With Fareed working to open the doors, Tomás is determined to rescue his twin sister, Sylv, from the auditorium. Together, the boys heroically work together to save the faculty and their fellow students.

Autumn is horrified by the gunman’s identity and she frantically tries to figure out how she missed seeing his instability. Flashbacks reveal the signs she overlooked but even with hindsight, she still cannot understand what drove him to such a violent act. While she distracts him, many of the students and teachers are able to escape but will Autumn emerge from the incident unscathed?

The main focus of Tyler’s attention is Sylv Morales and she knows all too well how capable he is of violence. Following an altercation with her at prom the previous year, the shooter dropped out of school but his obsession with her remained unchanged. During the siege at the school, Sylv has remained out of his sight, and as the students and faculty make their escape, Tomás and Fareed desperately try to get her to safety but how long will they be able remain out of the gunman’s reach?

In This Is Where It Ends, Marieke Nijkamp easily manages to convey the terror and panic as the events unfold. The reasons for the shooter’s actions remain just out of reach but some of the information about his past reveals possible motives for his rampage. He veers between eerily calm and manic as he terrorizes the students and faculty while he carries out his murderous plan.   Just as in real life, hindsight from the key players paints a terrifying portrait of a troubled young man who, for unknown reasons, commits an unfathomable act of violence that will leave forever change their lives. An incredibly well-written yet heartbreaking novel that I highly recommend to readers of all ages.

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Filed under Contemporary, Fiction, Marieke Nijkamp, Rated A, Review, Sourcebooks Fire, This Is Where It Ends, Young Adult