An atmospheric young adult thriller with dark secrets and a haunting curse, Bad Things Happen Here is the perfect book for young readers this summer. With refreshing characters, a beautiful setting, and a modern observation of what it is to be young and explore one’s self and sexuality, all with a bit of murder on the side.
As with most young adult thrillers, the thriller aspect is only a small part of the story which only had much of an impact at the end. But before that, Bad Things Happen Here is a brilliant coming-of-age story with phenomenal representation, so I would consider it more of a powerful exploration of identity than just a thriller.
Luca is a brilliantly original lead character. Although she has her flaws, she’s also very confident, empowering and headstrong, all of which make her an engaging character to follow.
I was hoping for more descriptions of the island as I couldn’t really picture Parris away from the book’s cover, but the small-town setting works well to heighten the tensions and I really got a feel of summer with the lazy days spent with friends and the spark of new relationships.
I could really see this being made into an indie film with talented young actors set against beautiful sunset-hued backdrops and an indie pop soundtrack, so I think Barrow perfectly captures that sense of melancholy and the emotions of being on the cusp of adulthood.
Barrow is sure to be a very popular author with young adult readers as this is exactly the kind of book that we need to see in our modern all-encompassing world, and it’s definitely one that I would recommend this summer.
As with most young adult thrillers, the thriller aspect is only a small part of the story which only had much of an impact at the end. But before that, Bad Things Happen Here is a brilliant coming-of-age story with phenomenal representation, so I would consider it more of a powerful exploration of identity than just a thriller.
Luca is a brilliantly original lead character. Although she has her flaws, she’s also very confident, empowering and headstrong, all of which make her an engaging character to follow.
I was hoping for more descriptions of the island as I couldn’t really picture Parris away from the book’s cover, but the small-town setting works well to heighten the tensions and I really got a feel of summer with the lazy days spent with friends and the spark of new relationships.
I could really see this being made into an indie film with talented young actors set against beautiful sunset-hued backdrops and an indie pop soundtrack, so I think Barrow perfectly captures that sense of melancholy and the emotions of being on the cusp of adulthood.
Barrow is sure to be a very popular author with young adult readers as this is exactly the kind of book that we need to see in our modern all-encompassing world, and it’s definitely one that I would recommend this summer.