The dare by Natasha Preston

Marley and her friends are on the doorstep of independence and College life, but first they have to survive the last days of High School. As Seniors there are lots of end of school year events and activities, but there are also lots of unauthorised pranks. A wealthy young student, Rhett,  has ‘inherited’ his family’s entitled attitude and sets dares and tasks for his classmates to complete. He is virtually blackmailing them to complete the dare, or he will release the dirt he has accumulated on them. An accident leads to Marley’s friendship group feeling compelled to lie and hide truth, because they are afraid of the consequences. The web of lies leads to fractures in their relationships and twisted complexities as they attempt to escape being found out. Can Marley survive the last days before school ends or will truth catch up with them?

This is a USA High School drama with twists and turns. The moral choices that are made are distressing and lack wisdom, but the twisted nature of some of the characters reveals that evil hides just below the surface. This is a story that teens will enjoy reading, because the tension keeps building. Every character seems to fall apart slowly and there are relatable examples of regrettable decisions made that have long term consequences. The twist for one of the characters is unexpected and readers will be surprised. I am not sure that everything in the story is believable, but this example of the thriller genre has all the features of a book that will be peer-to-peer recommended. Recommended for readers aged 14+, who love thrillers and teen realistic fiction.

Themes: Thriller, Murder, Conspiracy, USA - school, Friendship, Trust.

Carolyn Hull