ARC Review: Grit

About The Book:

  Title: Grit 

  Author: Gillian French 
  Pub. Date: May 16th, 2017
  Publisher: HarperTeen 
  Pages: 304

  Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery 

  Rate:  3/5 stars 

Synopsis :

Seventeen-year-old Darcy Prentiss has long held the title of “town slut.” She knows how to have a good time, sure, but she isn’t doing anything all the guys haven’t done. But when you’re a girl with a reputation, every little thing that happens seems to keep people whispering—especially when your ex-best friend goes missing.

But if anyone were to look closer at Darcy, they’d realize there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface. Staying out late, hooking up, and telling lies is what Darcy does to forget. Forget about the mysterious disappearance of her friend. Forget about the dark secret she and her cousin Nell share. Forget about that hazy Fourth of July night. So when someone in town anonymously nominates Darcy to be in the running for Bay Festival Princess—a cruel act only someone with a score to settle would make—all of the things that Darcy wants to keep hidden threaten to erupt in ways she wasn’t prepared to handle…and isn’t sure if she can.

Review:

Grit actually wasn't even on my radar until my friend Heather over at Harper Collins sent me a copy. I've read the synopsis before but it appealed to fans of E. Lockhart and Gayle Forman. Guilty as charged, I haven't read anything by E. Lockhart or Gayle Forman so I wasn't sure how I would like it. I'm glad my friend told me to give it a try, because Grit is truly a mystery that unravels at a formulated pace. Grit is told from the point of view of Darcy, who doesn't care what people think of her and really just wants to have a good time. However, she truly does care about her family more than anything in her life and she puts them before her time after time again. 

"It was never your secret to keep"

Darcy's ex-friend went missing a year prior to the story, making tense times for everyone in the small town of Sasanoa. Her and Darcy haven't been close for awhile, so Darcy isn't necessarily grieving the loss of her friend. The plot was great, it was fast paced and had me questioning motives and outcomes of characters and situations. I liked the characters too, however I don't feel like I really connected with them as much as I'd have liked to. You get to know Darcy the most, which is obvious since she's the main character. She was very well-written and basically loyal to a fault. But one of my favorite things about the novel was her closeness with her sister Mags and her basically sister Nell. I wanted more from them, especially Mags, considering how much she sacrifices for Darcy. I feel like Mags wasn't given the kind of attention she deserved. Towards the end of the book, Nell annoyed the absolute shit out of me. She didn't listen to reason and only cared about herself. The dark "secret" that the synopsis talks about between Darcy and Nell isn't what I would have expected and I don't know if its a good or bad thing but i definitely think that it tied everything together very well. 

Since E. Lockhart and Gayle Forman are now on my radar, you may see some reviews coming your way regarding their books! I'm glad I read Grit because it was an immersion into a genre I don't necessarily read a ton of - mystery. Grit is guaranteed to keep you engaged in every chapter. I wish we knew the characters a little bit deeper, but it was only a 300 page stand-alone so... Are you a fan of Gayle Forman or E. Lockhart? Are you planning on reading Grit? 

"I'm not scared, but I guess my heart is, because it starts sprinting without me." 

- Jocelyn