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| image copied from bookshop.org |
The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson is an homage to Agatha Christie with the angsty teen tone of the TV series Veronica Mars (the first two seasons, which were in my opinion, the best). Like Agatha Christie we have a story set in a seemingly idyllic small town, but when a murder occurs it becomes apparent that beneath the surface there are plenty of people with things to hide. At the same time the Veronica Mars vibe is strong because much of the story revolves around two high-school-aged teen girls in a town that is divided up into the have and have nots in the community. We also open with one of the most popular girls in school being a pariah after her ex-boyfriend not only broke up with her but took up with her best friend. All the angst, privilege, sex, drugs, and backstabbing that are so prevalent in Veronica Mars is on full display at Castle Cove High.
Another fun element to the story is that when all of the terrible went down with her boyfriend and best friend, Alice Olgivie former rich golden girl, pulled a disappearing act for several days in a similar manner to what Dame Agatha did when she found out her husband was cheating on her and wanted a divorce. This is in part why Alice is now on the outs with her former friend group. They didn't appreciate all the notoriety her running away got her or the fact that it made the police suspect her ex-boyfriend, Steve. It has also caused Alice to be placed under house arrest by her parents when she returns unharmed and this is the reason that when she returns to school she's assigned another student to help tutor her in her classes.
Enter Iris, the other main point-of-view character in this mystery. Iris has secrets of her own and is more than happy to earn some extra money tutoring Alice so Iris can get her and her mom out of Castle Cove and settled someplace else, someplace safer. But things don't go as planned since after their first tutoring session Alice's ex-best friend Brooke disappears during a wild Halloween party and unlike Alice, doesn't resurface alive. From there Alice and Iris, who both saw Brooke the night she disappeared, begin digging into what happened when it seems the police are only too happy to blame Steve again rather than carryout a thorough investigation into the murder.
I thought what followed was a well developed series of misadventures as the two girls become amateur sleuths with Agatha Christie as their guide. The cast of suspects is wide. Could it be one of Alice's former friend group? It was no secret that with money, good looks, and her pick of guys wanting to date her, one of them could have been jealous of Brooke. But were they jealous enough to kill? Then there's Brooke's step-dad who acted very odd the morning he realized Brooke had disappeared. Does he care about what happened as much as he claims, or does he stand to benefit from Brooke's demise? There is also Steve himself. Is he as innocent as he claims? The clues lead Alice and Iris down a twisty path that reveals some less than savory things about their community and the people they think they know. I enjoyed the red herrings and misdirection that are scattered throughout the plot. They definitely reflect those you'd read in a classic Agatha Christie novel.
I also found Alice and Iris to be relatable and fully developed characters. Each is struggling with her own personal demons and just trying to survive high school. But their mutual sense of obligation to figure out what really happened to Brooke helps each of them tap into their better selves and let their walls down just enough to become sort of friends. The side characters are a little less developed in this book but I can see that changing in the sequel where they might be on the page more. But honestly, that is a small complaint for what is otherwise a fun and fast-paced mystery adventure. I will definitely be reading the next installment in this series soon.
If you enjoy teen mysteries with brave and clever female characters that are similar in tone to Veronica Mars then you will enjoy The Agathas.
For my next review in a couple of weeks I will be discussing Goldenborn by Ama Ofosua Lieb. It is a near future urban fantasy that incorporates Ghanian folklore and mythology into its fantasy world. But it is also a fun and action-packed mystery as well. Both the cover and the blurb for the book below are copied from Bookshop.org.
A girl with a mission. A god with a deal. A story that could change everything.
When 17-year-old Akoma Addo stumbles into a world of ancient gods and modern magic, she’ll have to choose between saving her father… or staying true to everything she’s ever believed.
Akoma Addo has one rule: don’t get too close to the supernatural.
Ever since a blazing orb of light left her father in a coma, she’s buried herself in her secret job investigating magical crimes in San Francisco’s AfricaTown -- just enough to keep her grief at bay. But when a body turns up in a pool of molten gold and ash, Akoma’s pulled into something much bigger -- and far more dangerous. At the center of it all is Anansi, the trickster god of stories, who makes her an impossible offer: help him catch a killer and awaken the ancestral magic buried deep in her blood... and in return, he’ll give her a chance to bring her father back. To take the deal, Akoma will have to lie to everyone she loves and embrace the very power she’s spent years trying to deny. And as her connection grows with Xander, the new guy in town with secrets of his own, Akoma must decide who she can trust -- especially when she’s no longer sure she can even trust herself.
Rooted in Ghanaian mythology and packed with mystery, danger, and slow-burning romance, Goldenborn is a gripping fantasy about legacy, lies, and what it really means to rewrite your story.
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