Review: She Was the Quiet One

She Was the Quiet One by Michele Campbell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Review: SHE WAS THE QUIET ONE by Micheledorn Campbell

From the beginning, we know of a murder; we know the victim is a sibling, and we realize that the remaining sibling, proclaiming innocence, is suspected and accused. What we don't discover until much later in the novel is the identity of the victim, and conversely, the identity of the survivor as well. I paged through the novel with the nagging thoughts in the forefront of my mind: "Who died? Who survived? Who is the killer? Could the murder have been circumvented?" So for me there was much continuing suspense and tension. What I didn't achieve a lot of was character empathy. I managed some for Rose, and for Bel' s roommate Emily, and some for dorm co-head Sarah Donovan. Most of the characters, including the school's administration and board, elicited either dislike or actual contempt. Perhaps it was {tongue in cheek} class envy.

View all my reviews