From breakout debut author Chelsea Ichaso comes Little Creeping Things, a compulsively readable YA suspense novel with a narrator who can’t be trusted, perfect for fans of Natasha Preston. She never meant to hurt anyone…When she was a child, Cassidy Pratt accidentally started a fire that killed her neighbor. At least, that’s what she’s been told. She can’t remember anything from that day. She’s … She’s pretty sure she didn’t mean to do it. She’s a victim too. But her town’s bullies, particularly the cruel and beautiful Melody Davenport, have never let her live it down. In Melody’s eyes, Cassidy is a murderer and always will be.And then Melody goes missing, and Cassidy thinks she may have information about what happened. She knows she should go to the cops, but…she recently joked about how much she’d like to get rid of Melody. She even planned out the perfect way to do it. And then she gets a chilling text from an unknown number: I’m so glad we’re in this together.Now it’s up to Cassidy to figure out what’s really going on, before the truth behind Melody’s disappearance sets the whole town ablaze.Perfect for fans of: Detective stories for teens Teen thrillers Karen McManus and Natasha PrestonPraise for Little Creeping Things: A Junior Library Guild Selection! “Chelsea Ichaso has without a doubt written the breakout thriller of the year.”—Dana Mele, author of People Like Us “Ichaso’s debut is a riveting whodunnit… a psychological thriller worthy of mystery aficionados.”—School Library Journal “Guaranteed to keep young readers guessing until the final pages…will satisfy the appetites of all manner of mystery fans.”—Booklist”[A] genre-solid whodunit and keeps readers guessing until the very last page.”—Publishers Weekly
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I’m usually not into thrillers, but maybe I should rethink my attitude towards this genre after having read Little Creeping Things by Chelsea Ichaso.
This story kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time and I read the 313 pages in one day. It was a perfect combination of a fast pace, humour and suspense. And if I happen to have screamed when my phone rang right next to me – of course, right when the suspect sent another text – then I’ll count that as bonus points for the book.
The narrative is without a doubt what fascinated me the most about this book. The story is told entirely from the point of view of Cassidy, who fits the archetype of the unreliable narrator. Her perspective on the events cannot be trusted per se, so the reader is constantly left unbalanced. Does she speak the truth? Is she hallucinating? Is she lying? You simply do not know. And that’s what makes this book so interesting: nothing is as it seems.
The ending was not as strong as I would have liked, but I was nevertheless a page burner till the end. Not bad for a girl who dislikes thrillers and is terrified of fire!
I bought this, not only because it was a Chirp deal for $2.99, but because I love Amy McFadden’s narrations. I’m also on a bit of a suspense kick lately and this was a great addition to my recent listens.
While this stand alone YA has a bit of a romantic element – the main focus is a mystery/suspense aspect. Cassidy tries to Nancy Drew… if Drew was worried about whether or not she’s played a part in a murder. I found myself frustrated with Cassidy at different points during the story, mostly due to her immaturity – but she is only 17 and deeply concerned about protecting not only herself but the few friends she has left.
Ultimately, it kept me intrigued and guessing. I didn’t figure out the “whodunnit” until it was revealed which is an indicator of a solid mystery to me. Cassidy gets answers, but ones that she didn’t expect.
This is the debut novel for Chelsea Ichaso, but her writing deserves the praise it’s received and I’m looking forward to more of her work.
Narration:
I really get a kick out of the fact that Amy McFadden can bring anyone to life – from child to teen to college age and beyond. Here she does a wonderful job of evoking the emotions of, at turns angsty and frightened, teens. Her portrayal of the Cassidy’s tormentors was particularly unnerving. A great listen.
At a party a few weeks ago, Cassidy Pratt had some harsh but harmless things to say about her queen bee nemesis and volleyball rival, Melody Davenport. At least, she thought they were harmless, until Melody went missing and Cassidy and her best friend Gideon were the last to hear her voice. Cass has her suspects, but it isn’t as easy as just telling the police, especially after Cassidy receives some pretty damning evidence as blackmail. And nobody in town has ever quite forgiven Cass for a crime in her past…
I was lucky enough to read an early version of this before it was published, but even though I knew whodunnit, it was still fun to go back and see all the breadcrumbs Chelsea Ichaso drops along the trail.
I was first drawn to this book by the cover. It had a creepy, cool vibe to it. And I am all about a cover. Plus one point for this YA mystery!!
With that said, I am not a huge YA reader, but I do like thrillers and mysteries so I thought I’d give this a shot. I could at least see if it would be a book I’d recommend to my teen. The books don’t always appeal to me, but I can see the draw for a younger fan. I definitely saw this with this particular book. The story has lots of high school characters and you get a feel for the hierarchy of it all. The cool kid, the bully, the best friend, the kid that’s picked on, etc etc. They are all there. There’s almost TOO many characters, but that’s what set the tone and feel of the story. It left you with so many choices of “whodunit”.
Cass is our unreliable narrator. She was a young girl when she started a fire that killed her friend/neighbor. Or so she thinks. She has no real memory of the event, except in flashbacks that are slowly filling her memory. Her past follows to her present and people call her Fire Girl. She is made fun of and bullied. Typical, awful high school stuff. She is not exactly a likable characters, but this is her story. She knows she always has her best friend Gideon and her brother Asher. They seem to be her constant.
After her tormentor, Melody goes missing is when the real story starts and we get to run around and figure out what happened and who did it.
A story filled with high school drama and so many possible culprits, you’ll be sure to be swept up in the story. Some of the characters are more likable than others, but overall the story flowed well. The beginning draws you in, the middle is lagging a little bit, but it’s the ending that really gets you. Even if Cass isn’t the main character that I would like to have rooted for, she gets us to a satisfying ending that may just have you flipping right back to the beginning to see if you picked up on the clues.
A solid debut from Chelsea Ichaso that I will definitely be recommending to my teen that likes suspense and thrillers. 3.5 stars rounded up
Little Creeping Things is a mystery thriller with a great twist at the end. Opening with a sequence of scenes highlighting how unreliable Cassidy is and how haunted she is by her past, Ichaso creates tension and mystery.
The novel raises many questions, as Cassidy tries to solve the mystery without implicating herself in the crime. However, when she starts getting mysterious text messages, her sanity is pushed to the edge. It makes sense that her secrecy would alienate those close to her, but the way she develops throughout the tension of the story, it makes her a better person.
As for the story itself, it has excellent pacing to develop the plot and tension and Ichaso does a great job with misdirection. Some characters are the obvious red herrings, but when Ichaso reveals the villain it does take the reader by surprise because of all the misdirection, all the twists, and turns that keep the reader looking away from the actual suspect. There are so many shifts in the character dynamics to keep the tension high and the pacing steady. That is what made this a gripping read, how it keeps the reader on their toes.
Little Creeping Things is a great thriller that keeps the reader guessing