Kit Frick

A People Best Book of Summer 2020 A Parade Best Book of Summer 2020 “The YA thriller of the summer.” —Bustle For fans of Sadie and Serial, this gripping thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost. What happened to Zoe won’t stay buried… When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year’s Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe’s life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected—and that she knows what happened to her. Two months later, Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna’s confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina’s podcast uncover the truth? Inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Kit Frick weaves a thrilling story of psychological suspense that twists and turns until the final page.

I Killed Zoe Spanos

Leticia Leal

Thank you Netgalley and Simon and Shuster for providing an ARC of I killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick for an honest review.

I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick was a quick and enjoyable read. It may be because I am so entrenched in the genre, that this book didn't impress me as it did some other reviewers. It has been compared to Sadie, and while Sadie is a superior book, the Missing Zoe podcast excerpts transcribed in the book were my favorite part. 

The story follows Anna as she takes a nannying job in the Hamptons, and tries to shed her former party girl life. Soon after she arrives in the Hamptons it is revealed that Anna strongly resembles Zoe, a girl that has been missing for several months. As Anna spends time in the Hamptons she finds herself oddly connected to Zoe. The story is told in THEN/NOW timelines, and slowly the mystery of what happened to Zoe is reveaed. The beginning of the book shows us Anna confessing to Zoe's death, but her confession is full of holes and her story is muddled. Honestly, I was mildly confused by the ending and am still not entirely sure what happened. Other than the HUH ending, that tried to tie up too many loose ends, the writing was compelling and the descriptions of the Hamptons were interesting and lush.

I have very conflicting feelings about this book. The first like 3/4ish was really good, and I was super invested. But the whole ending was honestly just anticlimactic and kinda disappointing. I was really expecting this to take a turn into like Anna being insane or smth like DID or even taking some sort of supernatural turn. But the whole forgotten childhood memories and getting mixed up with another death honestly feels like a stretch? i don’t even know, but it was disappointing 

Kimmy Hobden

Alexa M

3.5
this was fun and enjoyable but kind of aggravating at the same time cuz ur just like tell me wtf happened!!!

Salem Jackson

Perfect for fans of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, I absolutely loved this book. One of my fav reads of 2022 so far and definitely has reread potential for me (as I don’t often reread books).

Shareca

This was a great YA mystery. It does almost make you want to put it down as it begins very slowly. Beware that the beginning is slow but it does pick up pace fairly quickly. It is difficult to relate to Anna, but it depends on the reader. She was fine with my reading, the voice was also great. Once you are able to get into the story a bit, it also might get better in that regard. Easily can be read in one sitting.

Cheri McElroy

Anna Cicconi needs a fresh start before college. Too much partying has left her messed up and burned out. And, lucky for her, she lands a job nannying in the Hamptons. Soon she finds out that the reason she got this job is that she looks like a missing girl, Zoe Spanos. Then she starts having memories that seem to connect the two of them. Did she have something to do with Zoe's disappearance?

Kit Frick weaves a tight story, drawing inspiration from one of my favorite novels, Rebecca. The plot moves along in alternating timelines, and the tension builds to the final reveal. If you liked A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, as I did, I think you'll like this novel too.

Alyssa Huffman

FINALLY A BOOK THAT DOESNT SUCK! i really really liked this. a lot. usually with mysteries it's somewhat easy to guess what happens but i was genuinely shocked by the ending of this. wowowowowowow

Holly

4.5 rounded down. The ending twist really reminded me of Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas, except the twist wasn't as shocking.

Campbell Berry

This book promised a murder mystery but I don’t feel like I got it. I was really confused throughout the book on why Anna was having these memories. I just thought how the mystery was tied up was dumb and didn’t make a lot of sense.

Rosie

The book over all was an easy read, and I found myself thinking of so many different outcomes other than what happened at the end. 

The murder mystery takes places over memories with holes, and an unreliable narrator (bc she can’t remember anything)

The main story is written in first POV while some chapters are written in third POV, which had the whole book been written in third it would have been a 4.5 star read.  

The pacing is fast, every chapter kept you wondering what was happening next and it had an excellent ending.  

“A shivery delight.” —People For fans of Sadie and Serial, this “gloriously twisty” (BuzzFeed) thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost. What happened to Zoe won’t stay buried… When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year’s Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe’s life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected—and that she knows what happened to her. Two months later, Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna’s confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina’s podcast uncover the truth? Inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Kit Frick weaves an electrifying story of psychological suspense that twists and turns until the final page.

Sheila

3 stars. This was an enjoyable YA thriller! I liked the format of (limited) POV switches and time jumps to set the scene and lay out the case; it was done very cleanly despite this style being more of a handicap IMO in other books. Interspersed between some chapters are podcast transcripts, which I also liked! 

Overall I felt this was a well-done and creative thriller - YA thrillers can be so hit-or-miss - but the conclusion left me wanting more. I felt like we didn't get satisfactory explanations for (view spoiler)[Anna's memory issues or Paisley's negative emotions towards Windermere and Max Adler (though the latter is probably just because he's a douchebag lmao) (hide spoiler)]. A more satisfying ending would've compelled me to give this 4 stars; oh well!

Sofie

“Maybe I thought it’s what she would have wanted. Maybe I was trying to make things right.”
“Make things right?” The detective repeats Anna’s words back to her.
“In some small way. After what I’d done. It was an accident, but … I killed Zoe Spanos."


What a trip. Anna was a great unreliable narrator, and the whole novel I was trying to parse out what was true and what wasn't. How did this girl, who comes to Herron Mills for a summer job, end up confessing to the murder of a girl who went missing months prior from a town she's never been to? How could we possibly get from point A to point B?

The back and forth timelines worked really well, though I'm not sure how much it was necessary. Part of me thinks that, after the first "Present Day" chapter, the whole story could have been told as "Then" until the timelines meets up with chapter 1. Still, The voices were very distinct (it helped that all the present day chapters were told in 3rd person and all the past chapters were told in 1st person). I understood the appeal of having some perspectives, particularly Martina's, following the case in the present day, trying to work through all the nonsensical of Anna's "Then" chapters.

This book reminded me of We Were Liars but with more enjoyable prose. We think we know where things are going until we don't. What happened on New Years Eve? Where is Zoe Spanos? Who is Anna, who looks uncannily like the missing girl? Why isn't Zoe's longtime boyfriend being completely honest with the police? Where is the missing boat from the dock? Why does Anna have memories of Harron Mills when she's never been here before taking the job?

These questions are all answered, of course, but it's a fun ride trying to figure it all out on our own. I'll admit, I wasn't even close (which is super fun, as the last few mystery/thrillers I've read, I've managed to guess the plot twist). While I did have to suspend my disbelief a bit (or perhaps I just don't know enough about how repressed / childhood memories can present themselves to teenagers), the ending was very satisfying. Even when you think things are all wrapped up, we get that delicious last chapter. 

I ployed through this. The plot kept me guessing, the characters were simultaneously shady and charming, I could never tell when people were being honest, and I wanted to retain every small detail I could in case it ended up being important later. Frick did a great job blending a character driven and plot driven novel, providing readers just enough to make us think we knew where things were going.

Who Killed Zoe Spanos? You've gotta read to find out!

Tiffany Robinson

This was really good until the big revel came.

Sofia 

3.3**

I expected to like this book way more than I did, but it was still a ready good book. I literally had a hard time falling asleep because I went to bed soon after reading and my mind still could not comprehend everything.

It took me a long time to get into the book and I just kept on going because I wanted to see how it would come together and find out what happened to Zoe. I really liked when the book got closer to the ending because it felt like everything was meshing together and I wanted to see how it all would make sense. I did enjoy the plot twists at the end although it did seem like there was a lot that happened just to satisfy the need of being a thriller book. I am still confused about the stuff that was mentioned at the end but oh well I guess.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and it was a fun read that kept me guessing.

Katie

I was very excited by the premise of this book. Heck, even the title grips you! I enjoyed a lot of the journey and getting to know the characters, with many popping out as possible culprits of the whodunnit. Unfortunately, I felt like the ending fell very flat and didn't jive with the rest of the book. In a mystery you expect to have some kind of twist but this twist didn't feel earned and it cheapened the rest of the story. I am super picky with mysteries and I am disappointed in the endings more often than not, so take my opinion with a grain of salt! I highly encourage looking up other reviews to see what other folks have to say.

laura

*I would give this book 4.5 stars for review*

I really wound up enjoying this read. This book was nice mix between a mystery, mistake identity and podcast elements. I also liked that this book had two different timelines. I also liked that this book had various POV. It was super fast pace read and one that I had hard time putting down. I thought the unreliable character of anna made the story so fun to read. I also thought the twists were hard to predict. I sometimes struggled a tad with the pacing of the story but overall def a new fav thriller.

Jelke Lenaerts

I received a galley of this book through Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. 

This book has content warnings for alcoholism, and mention of schizophrenia, astraphobia and generalized anxiety disorder.

Throughout a big chunk of this book I was super confused. It just took a while for the pieces to fall into a place where it made sense for me. For the rest I think the mystery didn't really have any breadcrums leading up to its conclusion. When it came to Anna's life I do think it was set up well and it was difficult to piece together but it happened for me. The characters felt very one dimensional for me. Besides the two main characters I didn't really get any of the character's motivations, which might have added to the fact that I was so confused for a big chunk of this book. It was a quick read though so that's a plus.

Ruth Parker 

This book was ok. Just ok. I enjoyed the characters and the podcast element of the story but I guessed what the twist would be fairly early on and I was surprised by anything. The book moved quite slowly and I found myself trying to turn the pages fast as I could, not because I wanted to find out what happened, but because I wanted to get to the end. That being said, it’s not a bad book. Just not the best.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher and netgalley. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: I Killed Zoe Spanos

Author: Kit Frick

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 5/5

Recommended For...: Mystery lovers, thrill seekers

Publication Date: June 30, 2020

Genre: YA Mystery

Recommended Age: 16+ (death, arson, drugs, drug overdose, gore)

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Pages: 384

Synopsis: When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year's Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe's life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected--and that she knows what happened to her.

Two months later, Zoe's body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna's confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn't satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina's podcast uncover the truth? 

Review: This book is so good! I loved the slow build up to this novel and it’s more than a whodunit novel! It has highly developed characters with amazing backstories. The plot was intriguing and kept me hooked from beginning to end and the world building was stupendous!

The only issue I had with this book is that it is a bit slow but I was just invested in the story so much I wanted to breeze through it.

Verdict: Totally worth the read!

Deniz Hasanzaadeh 

** Scroll down for English **
واقعن نمیتونم بگم چقدرررر از این کتاب لذت بردم. فوق العاده بود. پرورش شخصیت ها عالیه. قلم نویسنده هم روونه و کتاب راحت خونده میشه. با اتفاقات و توصیف های بیجا حوصله ی خواننده رو سر نمیبره. چیزی که ممکنه یکمی اذیتتون کنه، ریتم کتابه که یکمی کنده. ولی چیزی که من به عنوان خواننده از کتابای ژانر میستری انتظار دارم رو کاملن برآورده کرده: پلات توییست. اتفاقات غیر منتظره و سرنخ های ریز ریز و کوچولویی که لا به لای خط های کتاب قایم شدن و باید خیلی دقیق باشین تا به چشمتون بیان

همونطور که خود نویسنده هم گفته، از داستان "ربکا" نوشته ی دفنه دوموریه الهام گرفته؛ ولی چیزی که زبردستی نوسنده رو میرسونه اینه که هیچ چیزی توی داستان به چشمتون نمیخوره که مستقیمن به داستان ربکا اشاره کرده باشه یا عین اون باشه. ولی به محض تموم کردن کتاب وقتی به داستانش فکر میکنین میبینین که وجه شباهت های زیادی وجود داره

خلاصه که اگر به ژانر میستری (نوجوان) علاقه دارین، این کتاب رو از دست ندین. امتیاز من به کتاب: 5/5

*

I can't tell how much I enjoyed reading this book. It was extraordinary. Great character development and a real page-turner. It will not bore you with unnecessary details and events, although the pace is a little slow and it might annoy some readers. But there is one thing I expect from mystery books and this one did not disappoint me on that: plot twists. Teeny tiny clues, hidden between the lines, and you have to read very carefully to point them out.

As the author has said, she was inspired by the novel "Rebecca" by Daphne Du Maurier; but there is nothing in the book that points the similarities between them, and you can't actually find anything that is exactly like Rebecca. It's just mostly "ah-uh!" moments after you finish the book; when you think about little details, you can point out the similarities and I think that shows how professional Frick's pen is.

All in all, if you like mystery (YA) books, this is a must-read. My rating: 5/5

Emily C Peterson

Becca Futrell

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of I Killed Zoe Spanos in exchange for an honest review!

I'm finally here with my review! I let this one stew a bit which honestly helped me realize that this one wasn't a favorite for me. I love the premise & the writing is phenomenal, but in the end, I found that I just really didn't care about the characters.

With that being said, prior to getting to the ~plot twist~, I still really wanted to know what the heck was going on. It's very twisty-turny & I think fans of YA thrillers should still check it out! In the long run, this just isn't a book that's going to stick with me whatsoever.

Ashley

First, I want to thank Kit Frick and Simon Teen for this ARC of I Killed Zoe Spanos.

This book might be based on Rebecca, but it read a lot like A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. That's not really a complaint. I would say that my review is closer to 3.5 stars, but my problem came from the fact that I read AGGGTM so recently that it felt like a remake before it's time. 

Anna Cicconi is a party girl from Brooklyn looking to start over through her summer job as a nanny for the Bellamy's in the Hamptons. But once she arrives, she becomes painfully aware that to this little town, she is the salt in their still very open wound as she bears a striking resemblance to a young woman, Zoe Spanos, who recently disappeared. 

Throughout this book, of course the reader is led into having suspicions about the circumstances that lead up to Zoe's disappearance. And, further, why Anna has confessed to the murder. With a dual timeline (then and now) we are lead not only through the events that precede the confession, but also through a teen girl's investigation because the police, ultimately, didn't seem to care enough to do their jobs properly. 

Once the big reveals happen within the last three or so chapters of the book, it didn't give me an "I knew it!" moment or even an "I never saw that coming!" moment. Instead, I found myself thinking "... huh." There were just so many threads revolving around the knot of this murder that I wasn't sure how they could all be tied together. Anna's memory loss, the similarities between her and Zoe, the other missing and silent friend from Anna's life. The mysterious behavior of Mr. Bellamy. The secretiveness of the boyfriend and his schizophrenic mother. It left me unsure which thread to follow to the point that when the ending came, it didn't feel as satisfying as many other mysteries do. Instead of focusing on the murder, I found myself, instead, counting how many times Anna pressed her lips between her teeth. Or wondering if her memory loss was really just due to her drinking or if she'd taken a fall at one point and suffered from some amnesia due to head trauma. I focused on things not relating to mystery, not related to trying to solve it myself, and instead figured I would just hang around for the journey until the author some how tied everything together. 

I did enjoy this book. I enjoyed the personalities of the characters. It's actually refreshing to find someone write a child (Paisley, the girl Anna nannies) in a believable manner. I liked Anna and Martina and Caden and Kaylee. I enjoyed the visualization offered through Frick's writing. But by the end of the novel, when there were so many other things I was curious about, I just cared so much less about who actually killed Zoe. 

I Killed Zoe Spanos is a fun read. It's an easy read with interesting characters. But it just reminded me so much of AGGGTM and, honestly, I enjoyed the other book a bit more.

Aubrey Erskine

Full review to come!

I Killed Zoe Spanos was attention gripping from start to finish. I started it one evening and stayed up past midnight just to finish it because I couldn’t go to sleep without knowing how it all ended. There were so many twists and turns, clues hidden in plain sight everywhere, but even so it was still hard to piece together just what the hell happened to Zoe and what was going on with Anna.

I Killed Zoe Spanos

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