Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor

e-ARC, 274 pages
 Release Date: July 30, 2013
Published by: St. Martin’s Griffin
Prep School Confidential, #1
Source: Netgalley (This was given to me in exchange for a just and honest review.)
For fans of: Mysteries, Thrillers, Contemporary, Boarding School, LOL

In this breathtaking debut that reads like Gossip Girl crossed with Twin Peaks, a Queen Bee at a blue-blooded New England prep school stumbles into a murder mystery.

Anne Dowling practically runs her exclusive academy on New York’s Upper East Side—that is, until she accidentally burns part of it down and gets sent to a prestigious boarding school outside of Boston. Determined to make it back to New York, Anne couldn’t care less about making friends at the preppy Wheatley School. That is, until her roommate Isabella’s body is found in the woods behind the school.

When everyone else is oddly silent, Anne becomes determined to uncover the truth no matter how many rules she has to break to do it. With the help of Isabella’s twin brother Anthony, and a cute classmate named Brent, Anne discovers that Isabella wasn’t quite the innocent nerdy girl she pretended to be. But someone will do anything to stop Anne’s snooping in this fast-paced, unputdownable read—even if it means framing her for Isabella’s murder.

*MY THOUGHTS*
     If there’s one thing I like every now and then, its a good mystery. And this one definitely served its purpose. I like to challenge myself and see if I can come up with “whodunit” and if I can’t it means that its the best of the best. I figured out who the culprit was in this one, but I still really liked it.
     The writing in this was one of my favorite parts. I had a bit of a heavy read last time where I was crying and upset and everything, but this one pulled me out of it. The humor in it made me laugh from the beginning to the end. Because I needed this comic relief, I enjoyed it that much more.
     I also liked the mystery in it. It was a little hard to decide who I thought did it because as normal, there were so many different things saying someone else did it, but I used my “CSI” and “Criminal Minds” investigative skills and I decided from there. And they all worked.
     The only thing I didn’t like was the juvenile feel of it. It grated on my nerves the entire time. For her to be 16 she seemed as if she were 12. It kind of felt more like MG vs YA. Honestly, I would’ve liked it more if it was. Then I wouldn’t have had to write this part of the review. 🙁
     But, overall, I liked this. It was a really great start to a new mystery series. I can’t wait to continue on and see the next things that gets in Anne in trouble.