Name: nina 's review of The Amateurs, Book 1 The Amateurs by Sara Shepard
Item: The Amateurs, Book 1 The Amateurs
Rating: 3
Author: nina

Sara Shepard

Five years ago, high school senior Helena Kelly disappeared from her backyard in Dexby, Connecticut, never to be heard from again. Her family was left without any answers--without any idea who killed Helena, or why. So when eighteen-year-old Seneca Frazier sees a desperate post on the Case Not Closed message board, she knows it's time to change that. Helena's high-profile disappearance is the one that originally got Seneca addicted to true crime. It's the reason she's a member of the site in the first place. Determined to get to the bottom of the mystery, she agrees to spend spring break in Connecticut working on the case with Maddy Wright, her friend from Case Not Closed. However, the moment she steps off the train, things start to go wrong. Maddy's nothing like she expected, and Helena's sister, Aerin, doesn't seem to want any help after all. Plus, Seneca has a secret of her own, one that could derail the investigation if she's not careful. Alongside Brett, another super-user from the site, they slowly begin to unravel the secrets Helena kept in the weeks before her disappearance. But the killer is watching... and determined to make sure the case stays cold. #1 New York Times best-selling author Sara Shepard is back with The Amateurs, first in a gripping new series packed with scandalous twists, shocking betrayals, and sizzling romance. Praise for The Amateurs * "Shepard . . . unravels the truth, the author lulls readers into a false sense of security before expertly pulling the rug out from underneath them. This is a delicious start to the Amateurs series." --Publishers Weekly, starred review "A twisty and ultimately satisfying romantic whodunit." 'Kirkus Reviews "A delicious and suspenseful page-turner. I want more!" --I. Marlene King, Executive Producer, Pretty Little Liars "Chilling and romantic and full of surprises." --Cecily von Ziegesar, New York Times best-selling author of the Gossip Girl series "Long live the queen of secrets! The Amateurs is a dark and twisty thriller which might just fill the Pretty Little Liars-shaped hole in my heart!" --Danielle Paige, New York Times best-selling author of Dorothy Must Die "Deceitful and delicious!" --Kami Garcia, #1 New York Times best-selling coauthor of Beautiful Creatures and author of The Lovely Reckless

The Amateurs, Book 1 The Amateurs

Lynn Braden

As soon as Seneca Frazier sees the post on the Case Not Closed website about Helena Kelly, she's hooked. Helena's high-profile disappearance five years earlier is the one that originally got Seneca addicted to true crime. It's the reason she's a member of the site in the first place. So when Maddy Wright, her best friend from the CNC site, invites Seneca to spend spring break in Connecticut looking into the cold case, she immediately packs her bag. But the moment she steps off the train in trendy, glamorous Dexby, things begin to go wrong. Maddy is nothing like she expected, and Helena's sister, Aerin Kelly, seems completely hostile and totally uninterested in helping with their murder investigation. But when Brett, another super user from the site, joins Seneca and Maddy in Dexby, Aerin starts to come around. The police must have missed something, and someone in Dexby definitely has information they've been keeping quiet. As Seneca, Brett, Maddy, and Aerin begin to unravel dark secrets and shocking betrayals about the people closest to them, they seem to be on the murderer's trail at last. But somewhere nearby the killer is watching . . . ready to do whatever it takes to make sure the truth stays buried. First in a new series by the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Pretty Little Liars series, Sara Shepard, The Amateurs is packed with the twists and turns, steamy romance, and stunning revelations that her fans have been waiting for.

The Amateurs Book 1 The Amateurs

nina 

Geez, was not expecting that. This makes things very interesting

The Amateurs

Sam Kiszonka

See all my reviews at my blog onebookishgirl 
I really enjoyed this book!
Sara Shepard is currently queen of young-adult thrillers! I mean not much can top Pretty Little Liars.

This book follows the same sort of direction, girl goes missing then turns up dead.
However, the plot was still refreshing, fun and full of whodunit mystery! 
I loved ALL the twists, whilst some were predictable, there were that many twists I had absolutely no idea who the murderer was until the very end (the ending killed me!).

So I can understand why the book is called 'The Amateurs', because these people have no idea! Like they are mostly just wrong throughout the whole book, and so many fights!! Seriously. Get. It. Together! The 'gang' trying to solve the cold case is like watching a car crash, but somehow it works. 

The characters are bearable, but horrible, like you really want to like them but you mostly want to slap them and tell them to harden up. 
Seneca is probably the worst person ever at the start of the book. She's whiny, annoying and just plain bitchy. Her attitude doesn't change too much throughout the story. 

So this review really just sounds like all bad, but I honestly really enjoyed this book. It was fun and well written. Shepard knows what she does best and has stuck to it.I can't wait to see what the rest of this series brings! Hopefully another, highly addictive, tv series haha.

I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

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Anastaciya

Megan Leprich

Holy moly this book was good. I love anything glitter Sara Shepard and this book did not disappoint. Great writing style and great wording that never left me bored. The ending is a holy shit ending you will never see coming.

Cath

I'm not actually very picky when it comes to mystery, so I dived into this book without expecting to be completely blown away. I definitely needed this. I was drowning myself in all the angsty contemporary books and this was the perfect remedy. It was hilarious! There were so many laugh out loud moments. I love the concept of amateur crime enthusiasts doing what they love despite not being very good at it (but they are good though.. does it make sense? xD )

 I was in the mood for a fast paced I-can't-stop -turning-these-pages kind of book, and well, this book was it! It had the right amount of twists and turn, every chapter kept me at the edge of my seat. I can't deny the plot holes and flaws that came with it, though. But I learned to overlook all of that as I read the book because my sole focus was on one thing: who did it? and why? Sure some things did not make sense and the plot stretched a little, but it was super addicting and suspenseful :o I finished this late at night and I couldn't bring myself to turn the lights off (just goes to show how inexperienced I am when it comes to mystery novels ^^' )

Overall I really enjoyed this book! It's not for everyone though, especially not for people who are captious. It was not a mind-blowing, perfectly crafted mystery novel by any means, but it is great! It was more fun than clever, and wittier than it was serious. If you're a contemporary girl like I am and wants to explore the mystery genre, this is it! It's a very light read, and you're sure to fly through it in a couple of sittings!
Thank you so much to Allen and Unwin for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review! <3

Jessica 

Blog | Twitter | Instagram

Raise your hand if you're utterly addicted to anything that Sara Shepard writes! ME! That's me. I'm a self-proclaimed uber fan of Sara Shepard's work and probably always will be. She is one of the few authors that I've carried over from my teenage years (has it REALLY been ten years since PLL was first published?!) and still frequently return to. There's something so devilishly feel-good about her indulgent mysteries. From Pretty Little Liars to The Lying Game and everywhere in between, Shepard dominates her genre and has continued to show us her story telling skills.

The Amateurs is no different and may be her best release in recent years. Fans who found themselves disappointed in The Perfectionists will find their Queen of Stylish Suspense once more with this delightful young adult mystery that reminds us why she's been a bestselling author for so long. I think we all know by now that nothing is ever what it seems in Shepard's books and The Amateurs will slap you down with a huge plot twist, I promise you: your head will be spinning.

I love that the pace was really solid: quick but not too quick, the relationships were set up perfectly. And the typical Sara Shepard signature "I've got you now, don't I?" because, let's face it. 
  It's Sara Shepard's world and we're just living in it. 


Continued: BOOKEDJ

Kate

The Amateurs gave me all the nostalgic Pretty Little Liars feels and it was brilliant. Sara Shepard really knows how to keep you reading and I'll never get bored of the way her books totally play with my mind. Although this wasn't my favourite of Sara's books and didn't blow my mind as much as her previous books have done in the past, since I quite quickly predicted the outcome (perhaps because I've read so many of her previous books?) it didn't stop me from getting that 'oh.my.gosh.' feeling. I really enjoyed that the characters were slightly older than the characters in her other books, I thought it was a nice change to see a range of ages as some were college students and some where in high school and because of this the plot possibly felt a little more plausible? I though all of the characters and their different backgrounds and stories were really interesting and despite the large cast of 'main' characters, there was never a point where it was overwhelming or confusing who was who. I'm very much looking forward to reading the next book in this series? trilogy? duology? Whatever it is, it's definitely captured my attention and I have a feeling the next book is going to be even crazier!!

isabella

Hazel 

Grace Piper

Courtney 

madison

Sarah Allan

isabella t mejias

Fabienne 

Stephanie Dimovski

Amanda N McColly

Leonor Estrela

Zoe Smolen

Faith Collins

Everyone's dying to know the truth . . . When Aerin Kelly was eleven, she idolised her seventeen-year-old sister, Helena, and they did everything together. They made Claymation movies and posted them to YouTube. They made fun of Windmere-Carruthers, the private school they attended, they invented new flavours for their parents' organic ice cream shop, and they dressed up their golden retriever, Buster. But when Helena went into senior year things started to change. Rather than being Aerin's inseparable sister, she started to push her away. Then, on a snowy winter's day, Helena vanished. Four years later, Helena's body is found. Wracked with grief and refusing to give up on her sister, Aerin spends months trying to figure out what exactly happened to Helena and who killed her. But the police have no leads. A young, familiar officer named Thomas wants to help and suggests she checks out a website called Case Not Closed. Hesitantly, she posts, and when teenagers Seneca and Maddox show up on her doorstep offering to help investigate she accepts in desperation. Both have suffered their own losses and also posted to the site with no luck, so they are hoping this case might be the one they crack. But as their investigation begins, it seems that maybe it's no accident that they are all together, and that maybe the crimes have something - or someone - in common.

Lynn Braden &
The Amateurs, Book 1 The Amateurs by Sara Shepard

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The Amateurs, Book 1 The Amateurs by Sara Shepard