Bloggin' 'bout Books: 08/08/17

2026 Literary Escapes Challenge

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Casey's YA Mysteries Just As Compelling As Her Adult Books

7:00 AM

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Most people would be ecstatic about spending their summer holiday at the seashore. Not 16-year-old Jess Tennant. She doesn't have anything against the beach, it's just the odd circumstances under which she's being taken there. Her mother—who has always been tight-lipped about her past—has suddenly decided to whisk Jess away from London to tiny Port Sentinel, the seaside town where she was reared. They'll be staying for months with an aunt and cousins Jess has never met. Talk about awkward.

Even more awkward is the reaction Jess receives while walking around town. People gawp at her like they're seeing a ghost. Which they are, kind of. Turns out, Jess bears a remarkable resemblance to her cousin Freya, who recently died in a fall off a steep cliff. The death has been ruled a suicide, but not everyone is convinced. The more Jess learns about her late cousin, the more she suspects Freya didn't die by choice. Jess wants answers, but her questions only provoke stern warnings and unsettling threats. What really happened to Freya Leonard? Jess is determined to find out.

I'm a big fan of Irish crime writer Jane Casey's adult novels, so I was eager to give her YA series a go. I ended up liking it quite a bit, even more than her other books in some ways. How to Fall, the first installment in the trilogy, introduces the intrepid Jess Tennant. Our heroine is tenacious, brave, and independent. With a funny, self-deprecating voice, she's easy to both like and admire. There's plenty going on in How to Fall to keep readers engaged. In fact, it's a fast, exciting page turner that can easily be read in one sitting. The story takes some dark turns and the teen characters often act a lot older than they're supposed to be, but overall, I enjoyed How to Fall. It took less than a chapter to convince me to put the next two books in the series on hold at my library. I've already devoured them because, well, they're just that compelling. Enough said.

(Readalikes: the other two books in the trilogy, Bet Your Life and Hide and Seek)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (no F-bombs), violence, sexual innuendo, and depictions of underage drinking

To the FTC, with love: Another library ~~fine~~ find

Books Read in 2026 (asterisks denote favorites)

1. Such a Clever Girl by Darby Kane (Jan)
2. When No One Else Will by Amanda Skenandore (Jan)
3. Atomic Habits by James Clear* [re-read] (Jan)
4. Murder on the Farm by Kate Wells (Jan)
5. Murder at Ochre Court by Alyssa Maxwell (Jan)
6. Not Dead Yet: The Memoir by Phil Collins* [audio] (Feb))
7. The Women in White by Sarah Pekkanen (Feb)
8. The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers (Feb)
9. One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day (Feb)
10. A Tour to Die For by Michelle Chouinard (Feb)
11. Bluebird by Sharon Cameron* [re-read] (Feb)
12. The Lake Escape by Jamie Day (Feb)
13. Treacherous is the Night by Anna Lee Huber [audio] (Feb)
14. The Last Resort by Erin Entrada Kelly (Feb)
15. The Missing by Kristen Landon (Feb)
16. Dark and Bright by Catherine Lyon (Feb)
17. The Wild Robot by Peter Brown* [audio] (Feb)
18. Boiled Over by Barbara Ross (Feb)
19. Some of Us Are Looking by Carlene O'Connor (Feb)
20. Coach by Jason Reynolds* [audio] (Feb)
21. The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey (Feb)
22. The Claiming by Jasmine Warga (Feb)
23. Dark and Deep by Catherine Lyon (Feb)
24. Ours is a Tale of Murder by Nora Murphy (Feb)
25. Zoom With a View by Jess Cannon (Feb)
26. The Nowhere Child by Christian White (Feb)
27. An Ordinary Kind of Evil by Kelley Armstrong* (Feb)
28. Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (Feb)
29. Murder at 30,000 Feet by Susan Walter (Feb)
30. Dive Bar at the End of the Road by Kelley Armstrong (Feb)
31. You Were Always Mine by Nicole Baart [audio] (Feb)
32. In Case I Go Missing by R.N. Swann (Mar)
33. A Lie for a Lie by Ren DeStefano (Mar)
34. Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton [audio] (Mar)
35. Murder is a Piece of Cake by Valerie Burns [audio] (Mar)
36. Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon (Mar)
37. Death at the Dinner Party by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Mar)
38. The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives by Elizabeth Arnott (Mar)
39. A Holiday Homicide by Elile Alexander [audio] (Mar)
40. Summer's Never Over by Darby Bozeman (Mar)
41. The Body in the Woods by April Henry [audio] (Mar)
42. Every Borrowed Beat by Erin Stewart (Mar)
43. First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston (Mar)
44. Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen (Mar)
45. This Weekend Doesn't End Well for Anyone by Catherine Mack (Mar)
46. A Victim at Valentine's by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Mar)
47. Rock-Solid Relationships: Strengthening Personal Relationships With Wisdom from the Scriptures by Wendy Watson (Apr)
48. A Body at the Book Fair by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Apr)
49. Our Marriage is Murder by Carol Goodman (Apr)
50. A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee (Apr)
51. Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce [re-read] [audio] (Apr)
52. Live and Let Chai by Bree Baker (Apr)

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Casey's YA Mysteries Just As Compelling As Her Adult Books

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2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge

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2024 - Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction

2023 - Middle Grade Fiction

2022 - Middle Grade Fiction

2021 - Middle Grade Fiction

2020 - Middle Grade Fiction

Books Read in 2026 (asterisks denote favorites)