Review: Dead Ringer by Jessie Rosen

Dead Ringer

Author: Jessie Rosen

Series: -

Publisher: Full Fathom Five

Pages: 352

Release date: 11^th November 2015

Synopsis (Goodreads)

From the moment Laura Rivers steps foot into Englewood High, she notices the stares—and they aren’t the typical once-overs every pretty new girl endures. The students seem confused and…spooked. Whispers echoing through the halls confirm that something is seriously off. “That new girl looks just like her,” they say.

It turns out Laura has a doppelgänger, and it isn't just anyone—it's Sarah Castro-Tanner, the girl who killed herself by jumping into the Navasink River one year ago.

Laura is determined not to let the gossip ruin her chances of making a fresh start. Thanks to her charming personality and California tan, she catches the eye of Englewood’s undisputed golden boy, Charlie Sanders, and it’s only a matter of time before they make their relationship official.

But something is making Charlie and his friends paranoid—and Laura soon discovers it has to do with Sarah Castro-Tanner.

What really happened to Sarah? Why is Charlie unraveling? And how does Laura Rivers fit into it all?

After all, she’s the dead ringer for a dead girl.

Review: 2 ½ out of 5 stars

I am not quite sure how I am feeling about Dead Ringer at the moment, I am surprised to say the least because it definitely went in a completely different direction to the way I thought it was heading; I was stunned at the huge plot twist.

Laura Rivers is new to Englewood High and is determined to be a different person and to make a fresh start. On her first day at school there are whispers and stares because she seems to be a doppelganger for another student, Sarah Castro-Tanner; a girl who commit suicide a year prior.

Laura soon begins to hang out with the popular crown, Charlie, Miller, Kit and Amber, a paranoid group because of their once association with Sarah. I didn’t feel the characters were developed enough to truly know them, besides Laura but then after a huge plot development we don’t truly know her until the end, I didn’t feel any of the characters showed sympathy.

This book had me baffled, I was confused about what was going on and it still wasn’t made clear until most of the way through – information was trickled out bit by bit, we know the key players in who was involved in Sarah’s demise but it isn’t until the end where we truly know what had really happened and why and it was all pretty horrible.

The storyline is intense but also intriguing, we have deceit, secrets, drama and a strange romance but the ending of this book didn’t seem to fit in with the beginning of the book; I was really lost by the strange changes and things seemed to happen just for convenience.

Told mainly from the POVs of Laura, Charlie and Sascha, it was nice to get input from each of them. This book is twisted and has a dark feel to it. I thought it would be a standalone but from the cliff-hanger ending I am anticipating a sequel. I think this book could have been amazing if it was executed in a different way.

Thank you to Full Fathom Five via Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review Dead Ringer.

About the author: Jessie Rosen is a writer, producer, and performer. She grew up in New Jersey, attended
Boston College in Massachusetts, and began her writing career in New York. Her live
storytelling series Sunday Night Sex Talk has received national attention. She was
named one of “The 25 Best Bloggers, 2013 Edition” by TIME magazine for her blog 20-
Nothings, which was also named in “The 100 Best Websites for Women” and “The Top
10 Best Websites for Millennial Women” in 2013 by Forbes.
Rosen is the oldest of four girls, which gives her a special window into the minds
of teenagers. She now lives in Los Angeles, where she’s working on film and television
projects, as well as her next novel.