Review : Famous Last Words by Katie Alender

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : Famous Last Words
Author : Katie Alender
Publication Date : September 30th 2014
Publisher : Scholastic
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes & Noble 

Hollywood history, mystery, murder, mayhem, and delicious romance collide in this unputdownable thriller from master storyteller Katie Alender.

Willa is freaking out. It seems like she's seeing things. Like a dead body in her swimming pool. Frantic messages on her walls. A reflection that is not her own. It's almost as if someone -- or something -- is trying to send her a message.

Meanwhile, a killer is stalking Los Angeles -- a killer who reenacts famous movie murder scenes. Could Willa's strange visions have to do with these unsolved murders? Or is she going crazy? And who can she confide in? There's Marnie, her new friend who may not be totally trustworthy. And there's Reed, who's ridiculously handsome and seems to get Willa. There's also Wyatt, who's super smart but unhealthily obsessed with the Hollywood Killer.

All Willa knows is, she has to confront the possible-ghost in her house, or she just might lose her mind . . . or her life.

Acclaimed author Katie Alender puts an unforgettable twist on this spine-chilling tale of murder, mystery, mayhem -- and the movies.

Personal Thoughts 

I'm always up for reading a murder mystery because it's fun trying to guess who the murderer is. What attracted me to Famous Last Words wasn't only the fact that it was a murder mystery, but I was also curious to see how Alender would implement Hollywood into her story line. I got out of Famous Last Words exactly what I was looking for : an entertaining read through and through.

After Willa's mother marries a Hollywood director, she winds up having to move from Connecticut to Los Angeles. Willa wasn't an entirely memorable character. She wasn't very smart either. She did some things in this book that had me shaking my head in disappointment. There were points where I wanted to smack the stupidity out of her, but I managed to calm down upon realizing that she was only a teenager and teenagers are known for being impulsive. The reason I got mad with Willa was that she repeatedly put herself in the face of danger. That's something that was hard for me to stomach as a reader because the minute she took a decision I knew it was the wrong one. Regardless, I didn't completely hate Willa, but I wasn't in love with her character either. I liked Wyatt's, her love interest's, character. He was definitely a bit more wary of the situations they found themselves in. I can't say he made me swoon though. He was supportive and despite being suspicious at first, he really grew on me. I didn't particularly appreciate Willa's shallow friend though. She made me want to stab her with pointy things for how annoying she was. I did wish Willa had more supportive friends at her new school, but that never happened.

While the characters weren't stellar, I did really love the plot. Sure, it was predictable and sometimes ridiculous, but it kept me glued to the book throughout. I can't hate a book that was fun to read. I thought the progression of the mystery was done really well. I knew who the murderer was the minute we met him, but it was still thrilling to watch Willa slowly discover who the culprit was. There were some minor paranormal elements in the book in the form of ghostly presences pushing Willa towards solving the crime that I thought weren't necessary to the plot. There were also no explanations to those paranormal occurrences, which was a bit frustrating.  Alender's writing is great though. You can tell she's an author that tries her best to make her setting vivid and her descriptions lively. I wouldn't hesitate to pick something else by her soon.

Fans of murder mysteries will enjoy Famous Last Words. It might not be mind-blowing, but it will keep you on the edge of your toes.

Rating 

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 3/5

Thank you to NetGalley and Scholastic for the e-ARC of Famous Last Words.
 

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