Review: And Then Everything Unraveled

And Then Everything Unraveled by Jennifer Sturman
Publisher: Point
Pub. Date: July 1st, 2009
Pages: 244
Age Level: 13+

Synopsis from GoodReads
Delia Truesdale has no idea her life's about to change forever. She's too busy enjoying the California summer. Her internet tycoon mother, T.K. Truesdale, is out of town, and that means Delia can spend all her time at the beach, surfing. That is, until everything unravels.

Her mother suddenly goes missing, and everyone thinks she's dead - except Delia, who knows T.K.'s way too organized to simply disappear. But Delia's still sent to New York to live with her two aunts - a downtown bohemian and an uptown ice queen.

And in case that's not bad enough, she also has to deal with a snooty new school and trying not to fall for the wrong guy. Oh, and finding her mother.

As she delves deeper into the tangle of conspiracies and lies surrounding T.K.'s disappearance, Delia begins to suspect that the wrong guy may be the right guy...and that some secrets - especially the dangerous ones - were never meant to be unraveled.

Review
Jennifer Sturman, author of mystery books for adults, branches out with her intriguing debut YA mystery, And Then Everything Unraveled.

Delia is a fairly strong and determined character, though not without faults. Sometimes I thought she was a bit naive in how she approached things and when it came to who she should trust but in a way this made her seem a bit more real because, after all, she is just 16. Another thing, it really annoyed me how she kept calling her mom T.K. instead of ever actually referring to her as mom. Other than that, I liked her pretty well. As for Quinn, well like Delia, I was often dazzled but also confused by him; I ended up really liking him in the end though. Then came Delia's aunts, Charley and Patience, who were polar opposites but together made for a humorous combination.

And Then Everything Unraveled was very fast paced and well plotted. It's been a while since I've read a mystery and this one, though occasionally predictable, really grabbed my attention and made me keep the pages turning. I also loved the originality of the mystery and how environmental aspects are subtly incorporated. There was also some humor and a touch of romance to spice things up. The writing wasn't anything spectacular but it was good enough and I didn't find anything particularly wrong with it though nothing really made it stand out either.

I will admit, the end surprised me a little bit because my opinion of someone turned out to be wrong. Which is odd cause ya'll know I'm never wrong. *jokes* It was definitely enough though to leave me looking forward to the next book.

In the end, And Then Everything Unraveled was a quick, fun, and suspenseful read that I think most young adults, and even some adults, would enjoy. I recommend it and I'm looking forward to starting And Then I Found Out the Truth.

Grade
Characters: B-
Writing: C
Plot: B
Ending: B
Enjoyment/Likability: B-
Recommendable: B

Overall: B-

Cover: C (Cover loses serious brownie points with me since the girl on the cover looks nothing like Delia who is half Indian and, I'm pretty sure, has black hair. The paperback is way more accurate)