Only the Pretty Ones

A beautiful cover and evocative title were what initially piqued my interest in reading Only the Pretty Ones. I was further intrigued by the premise that promised this to be a much more modern type of serial killer. I shudder to think how much more prolific some of the murderers operating in the 70s, 80s, and 90s could have been with something like dating apps being available back then. The moral grayness of a character catfishing as their sister then landing themselves into hot water because of that decision also pulled me in. Yet, My expectations for what the novel would be didn't quite match what I thought it was. And as beautiful as that cover remains, it doesn't really match any of the crimes therein.

The technical quality of the writing is better than most novels I'd review this low. Other than a few typos/errors scattered through, the author does well to deliver an emotional heft to some scenes, and descriptions can easily create mental pictures. However, the meat of the story, especially through the lens of crime fiction, just isn't where it needed to be. The characters are quick to throw around monikers like serial killers and copycat killers, but the criminals and crimes depicted in the novel don't match those terms even by looser definitions. We don't even know until the very end how many victims there were of the newer killer. The natural build up of tension or fear in a small community ravaged by these killings isn't there, and not just because of the statement being made about the community or how it reacts to different ethnicities of victims. Even through the lens of the main character who knows much more than the people at large do, reactions aren't consistent with what I would expect. The few times there is an attempt for more emotion or stakes, things feel forced and artificial because of the void present in the rest.

Emotional whiplash describes a lot of what I felt from the main character. Crushes and the newest accusation of who she thinks the culprit is come fast and hard, with little to no consideration for what came previously. Even a personal tragedy early on in the novel seems to have no real import other than to be a talking point with other characters, the loss only really showing in dialogue and not in the rest. Motivations for many of the characters felt missing or just suffered from a lack of build up, and I quite often kept asking myself...but, why?

I struggle with giant leaps of intuition being what drives the plot forward in crime or mystery fiction, particularly when the character repeatedly shows bad judgment in previous guesses. I'm also in the school of thought that twists are exciting but should have that trail of breadcrumbs to make them worthwhile. With this one, it didn't necessarily come out of left field. Yet, I found myself asking the same question again...but, why?

Despite those sentiments, I do still believe some readers will enjoy Only the Pretty Ones as long as they go in with the right expectations. Readers looking for something with crime or mystery as the focus and a well-executed plot to match should keep searching. This one is lighter on the sleuthing and heavier on the teen angst.