Reconstructing Amelia - Softcover

Kimberly McCreight

3.83

132,379 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1471111296 ISBN 13: 9781471111297

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK, 2013

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Single mother and lawyer Kate Baron is in the meeting of her career when she is interrupted by a telephone call. Her daughter Amelia has just been suspended from her exclusive prep school. When Kate eventually arrives at Grace Hall an hour later, she is greeted by the news that no mother ever wants to hear. A grieving Kate can't accept that her daughter would kill herself. But she soon discovers she didn't know Amelia quite as well as she thought. Who are the friends she kept, what are the secrets she hid? And so begins an investigation which takes her deep into Amelia's private world - and into the mind of a troubled young girl. Then Kate receives an anonymous text: AMELIA DIDN'T JUMP. Is someone toying with her or has she been right all along? To find the truth about her daughter, Kate must now face a darker reality than she could ever have imagined.

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Review:

'This year's Gone Girl.... Like Gone Girl, Reconstructing Amelia seamlessly marries a crime story with a relationship drama. And like Gone Girl, it should be hailed as one of the best books of the year...in her debut novel, Kimberly McCreight spins a riveting narrative that somehow delivers thoughtful commentary on working-mom guilt, bullying, police corruption, and Gossip Girl. Every single twist in Reconstructing Amelia is clever, and rightfully earned. As that righteous babe Virginia Woolf once said, ''Fiction is like a spider's web.'' McCreight is a masterful weaver.' Entertainment Weekly

A fantastic novel. If you liked Gone Girl, you'll love this too.' Jodi Picoult

'[A] mystery with enough red herring to stock Lake Michigan...this is the novel most likely to be found in coming weeks not on the beach but on the F train.' New York Times

'Clever and scary . . . McCreight has her finger on the private school zeitgeist. . .and this disturbing tale will make older readers fondly recall the days when kids got in trouble for passing (print) notes in class.'USA Today

'Reconstructing Amelia will keep you hooked till the last page.'BookPage

'McCreight captures the complexities, cruelty and angst of teenage girls so well my stomach was in knots. What really happened to Amelia? You'll find yourself staying up all night to find out.' Jennifer McMahon, New York Times-bestselling author of The One I Left Behind

'The real story of Amelia's life and death emerges slowly, through a creative blend of Kate's present, Amelia's past, and such varied communication methods as texts, e-mails, blog entries, and Facebook status updates. . . . Fans of literary thrillers will enjoy the novel's dark mood and clever form.' Publishers Weekly

'A multilayered legal thriller. . . . Comes to a seamless and unanticipated conclusion.'Kirkus Reviews

'An elaborately plotted mystery. . . . A harrowing story. . . . McCreight does a fine job of building suspense and creating characters, notably Kate and Amelia, whom the target audience both adults and older teens will care about and empathize with.'Booklist

'McCreight combines a poignant, pulled-from-the-headlines story with writing sanctified by Antietam Review and Oxford magazine.' Library Journal

'We love a powerful debut, and this is just that.... It's Mean Girls meets The Secret History meets the cyberbullying case of Amanda Todd and it's unputdownable.'Daily Candy

'Fast-paced and suspenseful.... a page-turning mystery and thriller will appeal to...fans of Jodi Picoult.' School Library Journal

'If you loved Gone Girl, why not try Reconstructing Amelia...This is a very clever, menacing novel that will make you rightly wary of damaged teenage girls' Daily Mail

'Gossip Girl meets Gone Girl...' The Times

'Reconstructing Amelia' has used all the best ingredients to make the perfect thriller and I hope there are more books similar to this in the future' Asoulfluorescent Blog, ASoulFluorescent.wordpress.com --Asoulfluorescent Blog

From the Back Cover:

When Kate, single mother and law firm partner, gets a phone call summoning her to her daughter's exclusive private school, she's shocked. Amelia has been suspended for cheating, completely out of character for her over-achieving, well-behaved daughter.

Kate rushes to Grace Hall to pick up Amelia, but what she finds when she arrives is beyond comprehension. Amelia has jumped from the school's roof in an act of impulsive suicide. At least that's the story Kate believes until she gets an anonymous text:

Amelia didn't jump.

Determined to learn the truth about what really happened on that roof, Kate searches through Amelia's e-mails, texts, and Facebook updates, piecing together the last troubled days of her daughter's life.

Reconstructing Amelia is a stunning debut page-turner that brilliantly explores the secret world of teenagers, their clandestine first loves, hidden friendships, and the dangerous cruelty that can spill over into acts of terrible betrayal.

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