I was so excited to find out Ashley was writing a new book and so happy to get to be a part of the blog tour for This Is Our Story! Â Before we get to our reviews and the giveaway, let me tell you a bit about the book!Â
This Is Our Story Published by Disney-Hyperion on November 1, 2016 Genres: Contemporary, Crime, Dating & Relationships, Family, Law & Crime, Mystery & Detective, Romance, Young Adult
Format: ARC
No one knows what happened that morning at River Point. Five boys went hunting. Four came back. The boys won’t say who fired the shot that killed their friend; the evidence shows it could have been any one of them.
Kate Marino’s senior year internship at the District Attorney’s Office isn’t exactly glamorous—more like an excuse to leave school early that looks good on college applications. Then the DA hands her boss, Mr. Stone, the biggest case her small town of Belle Terre has ever seen. The River Point Boys are all anyone can talk about. Despite their damning toxicology reports the morning of the accident, the DA wants the boys’ case swept under the rug. He owes his political office to their powerful families.
Kate won’t let that happen. Digging up secrets without revealing her own is a dangerous line to walk; Kate has her own reasons for seeking justice for Grant. As she and Stone investigate—the ageing prosecutor relying on Kate to see and hear what he cannot—she realizes that nothing about the case—or the boys—is what it seems. Grant wasn’t who she thought he was, and neither is Stone’s prime suspect. As Kate gets dangerously close to the truth, it becomes clear that the early morning accident might not have been an accident at all—and if Kate doesn’t uncover the true killer, more than one life could be on the line…including her own.
I knew I was going to love this book, the big mystery was going to be just how much! I’m a huge fan of Ashley Elston’s writing and if you haven’t read her The Rules For Disappearing Duology then you must do so immediately because it’s one of my all-time favorites and I think so very underrated.
That said, I’m talking about This Is Our Story. First, that cover is gorgeous, and oh so fitting for this story, and if you didn’t notice, I’m going to mention that the title also highlights His Story which when you read this you’ll get a feel for why that is so fitting. It’s told from two points of view. The first narrator is Kate and the second is part of the mystery that you have to figure out as you read.
Kate lives in the small town of Belle Terre where everyone knows everyone and she’s definitely not part of the social elite. Her mom is the admin for one of the local DA’s and she’s lucky enough to work as an intern in the court house for the same lawyer, helping out with odds and ends.
All hell breaks loose when five friends head out hunting one morning and only four come back alive. The River Point boys as they’re named, because that’s the location they were hunting when the incident happened, are four boys who have been friends for ages and whose families are among the wealthiest and connected in the area. None of the boys are speaking about what happened and no one knows just went down in those woods, but it’s apparent once the evidence comes in, that whatever it was, it definitely wasn’t an accident.
When the case falls on the desk of the DA that Kate works for, she can’t help but become even more entrenched in figuring out who did what and she wants justice for Grant, the boy who died, even if it means one of the other boys will go to jail.
I’m not going to spoil this for anyone, so I’m just going to stop there with the story specifics. Instead I’m going to tell you why you need to read this.
1. The mystery is so wonderfully plotted. I read a ton of mystery and suspense and I hate it when I can figure out who the ‘bad guy’ is before the end of the book. That was definitely NOT the case here. I went back and forth from guy to guy and then even people outside the group with my suspicions and I didn’t even realize who it was until Elston spills the beans and everyone finds out!
2. The characters are layered and complex and so, so real. I loved all the real complications and struggles that these characters had to wade through. I loved that nothing felt contrived or like it was just a set up for the story, and I loved that Elston weaved in some pretty serious issues that are happening in real life to help make her point about consequences.
3. I really enjoyed the romance. Like really, really enjoyed it. It’s sometimes hard to include romance in books like this that are so suspenseful, and it is especially hard when you don’t know if those in that romance pairing are guilty. Despite the unknowns, I found myself swooning over this guy and I really loved the two together!
4. The friendship! I adored Kate’s best friend Reagan and the wonderful friendship between them! They had each other’s backs no matter what and I love seeing that in YA.
5. The unique way this story is told. Not only are we getting the story from Kate’s perspective, but we get to read along to video interrogation of those who were at the party the night before the incident, text messages, and of course the words of the person who committed this crime. It’s such a great way to learn about everything that led up to the incident and it’s told in so many different perspectives so you don’t actually know what exactly is true or what’s been influenced by the person’s perception!
So to wrap this up, this is a book you want to read. If you don’t currently have this on your TBR pile, I can’t stress enough how much you need to add it. I’m so excited to see what Elston gives us readers next!
Fans of wonderfully written and plotted mystery and suspense definitely need to read this one the day it hits shelves!
Tour Schedule:
Week 1:
11/7: Bookiemoji – Review
11/8: The Book Addict’s Guide – Book Scents
11/9: Fiction Fare – Review
11/10: Adventures of a Book Junkie – Q&A
11/11: Caught Read Handed – Review
Week 2:
11/14: The Irish Banana Review – Fast 5
11/15: Addicted 2 Novels – Review
11/16: In Wonderland – Guest Post
11/17: Ex Libris – Review
11/18: The Fake Steph – Top 10
Giveaway:
3 Finished Copies of THIS IS OUR STORY (US Only)
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