The Dead Girls Club is a pretty morbid book title — so, naturally, I was immediately drawn to it. The synopsis promised a mix of psychological thriller and supernatural suspense, so I was all “Yup, yup, that’s my kind of book!”
I’m not usually a fan of books that blur the line between “is this a haunting or a pyschotic break?,” with a very few exceptions. However, author Damien Angelica Walters did a good job with this one. Normally, I’m all aboard the “It’s a ghost, people!” train for stories like this — and although there are plenty of ghastly, ghostly moments in The Dead Girls Cub, I surprised myself by falling firmly in the “It’s all in her head” camp on this one.
The story is told across two timelines: “Now” and “Then.” The “Now” follows adult Heather, who’s an anxious, nervous, borderline personality disorder wreck for much of the novel. And, she has good reason to be: someone’s stalking her I Know What You Did Last Summer-style as she tries to hush up the fact that she accidentally offed her best friend 30 years ago. Meanwhile, the “Then” part fills us in on how it all went down that fateful summer beween teenage friends Heather and Becca.
The “Then” sections were actually my favorite part of The Dead Girls Club. Walters perfectly captures carefree, childhood summers spent laughing and giggling and having slumber parties, telling spooky stories and holding séances… aaaaaand dealing with the petty drama that accompanies all pre-pubescent female friendships.
GOOD TIMES.
It’s all very Now and Then meets Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. I ate it up since it reminded me of my own middle school years. Minus the murder part. (I was a dark kid, but not that dark.)
Plus, the “Then” storyline is also where the Red Lady appears. The Dead Girls Club delivers a solid ghost story: a local witch is unjustly killed by ignorant townsfolk — in a particularly gruesome manner, I must add — and comes back as a ghost, first to avenge her death, then over and over again to help other unfortunate souls. However, she extracts a terrible price for her unearthly services.
The “Now” section is chock full of suspense and thrills, and “Then” evokes plenty of looming creepiness and uncertainty. The timelines eventually bring the bigger picture into focus as the tension mounts, and there are some Big Twists at the end.
Well….there are supposed to be. I called one early on, and the other felt a bit contrived and more than a little unbelieveable. I read it and was like, “Really?? That’s where you’re going with this??”
I mean, I didn’t see it coming…but I also wouldn’t have suggested that be the way to tie the whole thing up. *shrug*
The Dead Girls Club delivers an as-promised creepy, suspenseful, twisty story filled with psychological drama and supernatural scares. If that’s what you’re in the mood for, then give this one a read.
And, happily, The Dead Girls Club did inspire a bookish recipe, so be sure to check back in next week for Red (Lady!) Velvet Brownies.
