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Find out what Mumsnetters thought of Megan Abbott's books

225 replies

SorchaMumsnet · 18/07/2017 17:43

Megan Abbott is an award-winning writer of contemporary crime fiction and these three books are bound to have you up all night.

Lizzie and Evie are inseparable - until Evie goes missing, and Lizzie suddenly realizes their friendship wasn't quite what she thought. The End of Everything is a suspenseful novel of friendship, loss and the more sinister side of adolescence.

There's something dangerous about the boredom of teenage girls - Coach said that once. She said it like she knew, and understood. Dare Me tells the dark and tension-filled story of the new cheerleading coach and the deadly game she's playing.

When Lise Daniels collapses to the floor during maths class, unfortunately she's not the first. As hysteria swells in The Fever, the safe world they've been building for their children starts to come apart.

We ask all winners to share their thoughts about the book(s) on this discussion thread. Everyone who gives detailed feedback on the thriller of their choice by end of day, Friday 29 September will be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 Love2shop voucher.

Buy books by Megan Abbott on Amazon from 99p

This giveaway is sponsored by Macmillan

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Find out what Mumsnetters thought of Megan Abbott's books
OP posts:
scarrick87 · 10/09/2017 08:26

Received my copy of Dare Me. Love it would recommend. Defo a page turner. Have now passed it onto my sister to enjoy on her holidays. Looking forward to reading the others now

sallyc06 · 10/09/2017 08:36

The Fever was amazing, I really loved it, it gripped me so much that I could not put it down, well worth a read. Will read Megan's other books now.

mata777 · 10/09/2017 12:13

I received The Fever and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It keeps you guessing until the end, what is it affecting the girls - vaccinations or something else? I didn't guess the true reason at all and it kept me reading...

BizziLiz · 10/09/2017 13:39

I've just read 'The End Of Everything' in one go. I was mesmerised by it, in the kind of horrified way that a small rodent is by a predatory snake.

It brought back so many early teen memories for me, close friendships, preoccupation with sex, an older attractive sister, and the overwhelming need for things to happen now!

The story is told in the voice of Lizzie, whose best friend Evie has disappeared. Lizzie wants to find out what happened to Evie and we readers see things through her innocent eyes and while she is thinking one thing we know it's something else. Evie's disappearance affects all of her family too, and the repercussions spread throughout the neighbourhood. It's a very dark and disturbing coming of age story, and will remain with me for some time.

That said, I'm going to seek out more Megan Abbott books to read!

hobbska · 10/09/2017 21:39

Wow, I have just finished reading The Fever. What a gripping book! I had quite a few later nights than normal to try and finish it. To begin with I was bit worried it was going to be too 'teenage fiction' for me but I was pleasantly surprised. Very well written. In fact quite scary for a parent of soon-to-be teenagers to read really. Thank you so much for my book!

amysmum18 · 11/09/2017 13:19

Received my copy of The Fever last week and am already gripped. It's very well written and keeps me hooked. I wasn't convinced when I first received it but the writing style is excellent and I'm really enjoying it.

Dianec67 · 11/09/2017 14:37

Thanks for my copy of Fever. A good read that keeps you guessing until the end. An insight into teenage girl friendships & rivalries.

cathisherwood · 11/09/2017 16:39

I read The Fever which did keep me gripped to the end although I identified more with the Dad, Tom trying to bring up his teenage daughter and son alone and worrying about how to keep them safe while they were growing up. I found the most disturbing bits were when everything was recorded on phones and passed around through social media - what a nightmare for parents today!

Dianeayr · 11/09/2017 17:04

I have finished reading Dare Me, I really enjoyed it. It's not normally the type of book I read but it was very good, will look out for this author again. Thanks to mumsnet for the book.

Reastie · 11/09/2017 18:45

Thanks to mumsnet for my copy of 'the fever'. I picked it as the premise sounded good. It actually reminded me a bit of a film I saw some time ago which I can't for the life of me now remember, but it was about a girls school where they were all coming down with weird symptoms which seemed to have no cause yet spread.

I've never read anything by this author before. I found the second half of the book went far quicker with more grippiness than the first half which I found quite slow in pace. I really wanted to love this book but I just didn't (sorry). I wasn't keen on the story being jutted about being told from differ not perspectives so frequently. Should I have read this when I was a teenager myself I think I would have really loved it though. Maybe it's because I'm a teacher and I get enough of groups of school teenagers all the time at work but it felt more like a teen book/year until lesson book. I can imagine it could be made into a great teen movie and having said all the above it was an easy read with a good story.

Murine · 11/09/2017 18:59

I've just received my copy of The Fever, it had gone to my old address and the redirection I set up hadnt worked!

StillNoFuckingEyeDeer · 11/09/2017 20:00

Thank you for my copy of Dare Me.

At first I thought I must have made a mistake and applied for a teen fiction book, but it soon became obvious that this is a novel for adults. It's an intense, gripping tale about American cheerleaders. Megan Abbott really explores the dark side of teenage girls. Although some parts of the book can feel a little slow, it's a very good, but twisted, read. I would recommend it and will be seeking out other books by Megan Abbott.

MelanieD77 · 11/09/2017 22:08

I finished The Fever last night and have to say I was completely hooked - it really was a page turner and I stayed up way past my usual bedtime to get this finished. My only criticisms are that there was a lot of American high school slang, which I found irritating and quite hard to decipher (it felt a bit like I was reading teen fiction at times) and, without giving too much away, I found the ending a little disappointing. I think I was hoping for something a bit more original or more of a twist at the end. All in all though, an enjoyable, pacey novel that kept me interested until the end. Thanks for my free copy!

compstruck · 12/09/2017 10:59

The End of Everything. I have now finished the book and found it a really good read. It is mostly about the main character's relationships with varying family members and her best friend and family and her thoughts when everything is ruined one day by the disappearance of her best friend. Would recommend if you can get over some of the US words, one of which I had no idea what it was! And I haven't had time to look it up yet either. Thanks for the chance, Mumsnet.

itsonlysubterfuge · 12/09/2017 15:03

I chose to read Fever.

I found it a bit difficult to get into, it was slow and there were a lot of character names thrown at you randomly. The beginning of the book was really short and so was the ending. I found the middle bit of the book really dragged on, I just kept reading to found out. The ending was really boring and not at all surprising. The way the story was going I half expected the outcome to be supernatural, but it was a boring solution. I just didn't enjoy the book and based on my experience with this novel, I wouldn't seek the author out to read another of her novels.

Wizotto · 12/09/2017 20:48

Thanks for my copy of Dare Me. This is not the sort of book I would usually choose. I have tried to get into the book, but unfortunately I just don't identify at all with the characters or their lives. A lot of things happen that simply don't ring true. I have been trying to get to the end of the book, but it has become a chore so think I will give up for now. I don't have a connection with the characters or the writing style. However, it is alsways good to have the opportunity to try a new author.

10emptybottles · 12/09/2017 21:49

I received 'The Fever', thank you!
I really enjoyed reading the book and had a few late nights getting towards the end.
I really felt for Deannie, but maybe from a parents point of view - worrying that she would be affected.
I also didn't really like Skye but I guess that could be the point.
I was a bit disappointed in the ending, I think I would have preferred to have a supernatural ending but as another reader pointed out maybe that was the point, you are dragged along with the worry and hysteria. Very interesting how this builds with the help of social media.

clopper · 12/09/2017 22:53

I've just finished reading The Fever. I found it took me a little while to get into initially. Having had two teenaged daughters I could relate particularly to the complicated girl friendships and angst portrayed in the book. It was interesting to see the story from different points of view(dad, brother and the main character Deenie). There was a lot of misdirection and false clues in the book and in fact the ending was rather more ordinary than I expected it to be. I found it to be more teenage fiction than I was expecting, but I enjoyed it overall.

papaver · 13/09/2017 15:29

I received a copy of Dare Me which I enjoyed. I liked the pithy writing style and descriptions and it is certainly very different from anything I have read before.

girlsmum · 13/09/2017 15:37

Dare Me.

Not my usual book choice.

I'm sorry to say I didn't enjoy it.

I found the Cheer-leading terminology very confusing. I didn't warm to the characters.

If I hadn't had to review it...I wouldn't have finished it.

clairethewitch70 · 13/09/2017 17:50

Thank you for my copy of "The End of Everything".

I throughly enjoyed this book. It is a real page turner. I can't say that I like the cover artwork though and would not pick it up in the shop.

It is a tale of teenage sexual awakening, narrated through the eyes of 13 year old Lizzie. A lot of the narrative she used seemed too old for her age and the book reads as though it is through the eyes of an adult.

Lizzie's best friend and neighbour Evie is abducted and the story is of her family and Lizzie and their search for her. Mr Shaw is the number one suspect from the beginning, as Lizzie knows that Evie has been watched by him.

A turn of events means that Evie disappears and the search for Mr. Shaw is on. There is twist that I won't spoil here.

There are also some unanswered questions - was Mr. Verver acting inappropriately with his daughter Dusty? Was he grooming Evie?

All in all a four and a half star book (out of five).

alialiath · 13/09/2017 21:56

Thank you, received a copy of Fever which I'm reading at the moment. Will give my feedback as soon as I've finished reading it.

Baldwin1973 · 14/09/2017 14:43

This isn't the sort of book i would normally read. It took a while to get going for me but once I'd got into it i found it quite an easy read. It reminded me of school and i enjoyed it tremendously. thanks for the free copy. I've now lent it to my friend.

Baileycakes · 15/09/2017 14:42

I have started reading my copy of Dare Me it is taking a bit of getting into tye

Baileycakes · 15/09/2017 14:48

Sorry my son caught the post button 😊 I have started reading Dare me but I am struggling to get into the story so far it's been all about chearleading I will keep trying to get into the story