Friday, March 8, 2013

RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA: A REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

 
GIVEAWAY ENDED 
RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA
 BY KIMBERLY McCREIGHT

ABOUT THE BOOK:
When Kate, single mother and law firm partner, gets an urgent phone call summoning her to her daughter's exclusive private school, she's shocked. Amelia has been suspended for cheating, something that would be completely out of character for her over-achieving, well-behaved daughter.

Kate rushes to Grace Hall, but what she finds when she finally arrives is beyond comprehension.

Her daughter Amelia is dead.

Despondent over having been caught cheating, Amelia has jumped from the school's roof in an act of impulsive suicide. At least that's the story Grace Hall and the police tell Kate. In a state of shock and overcome by grief, Kate tries to come to grips with this life-shattering news. Then she gets an anonymous text:

Amelia didn't jump.

The moment she sees that message, Kate knows in her heart it's true. Clearly Amelia had secrets, and a life Kate knew nothing about. Wracked by guilt, Kate is determined to find out what those secrets were and who could have hated her daughter enough to kill. She 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. 

PRAISE FOR RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA:
“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 Island of Lost Girls
“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
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Kimberly McCreight, named one of Entertainment Weekly's "13 to Watch in 2013," attended Vassar College and graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. After several years as a litigation associate at some of New York City's biggest law firms, she left the practice of law to write full-time. Her work has appeared in such publications as Antietam Review, Oxford Magazine, and Babble. She lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, with her husband and two daughters. To read more about this author, visit her "Bio" on her website HERE.
MY THOUGHTS/REVIEW:
Kimberly McCreight’s first novel, RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA, is a realistic thriller woven around the relationship of a single mother and her teenage daughter. On the surface, all appears to be quite normal until a terrible tragedy forces examination of what is really going on in their lives. Inclusion of contemporary issues such as bullying and dealing with one’s sexuality, make this a timely narrative that grabs you from the start and makes it hard for readers to put down.

As an attorney for a busy law firm in New York, Kate Baron, is a single mother to daughter, Amelia. Amelia is a curious and bright sophomore who appears to love attending the elite, private Grace Hall School. With a best friend, Sylvia, Amelia enjoys doing well in school and even has a text pal, Ben, who she appears enthusiastic about. Amelia is chosen to be a member of the Magpies which is an unofficial, all-girls’ club who are very cliquey in who they select. Although Amelia doesn’t really want to be part of this group, she sees significant reasons for joining.

The story really takes off when Grace Hall calls Kate to tell her that Amelia has been suspended for a paper she says she wrote but rather had plagiarized it. Upset, she heads to the school only to get there too late. Kate is now shocked for when she arrives, she finds that Amelia is dead, having fallen from the roof of the school! It is originally believed that Amelia jumped. Kate is naturally distraught, filled with grief and guilt as she tries to examine where she failed Amelia. However, when Kate receives an anonymous text that says “She didn’t jump”, it sets in motion a mother determined to find out what really happened to her daughter.

RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA is masterfully written by alternating Kate and Amelia’s first person point of view so that the narrative shows readers what really was going on before and after Amelia’s death. Through examination of Amelia’s emails, blogging, texting, and even Facebook account, Kate begins to reconstruct what really was happening in her child’s life that led to her death. McCreight does a superb job of developing these two characters with such precision that you know them and totally feel for them both. Topical in scope, heartfelt in emotion, RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA is sure to draw you in and stay with you for a long while. How a mother and daughter can be so close and yet so far apart will play out as their secrets are revealed. Don’t miss RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA and if you are like me, you will eagerly await the release of more from Kimberly McCreight!


GIVEAWAY
THANKS TO KATHRYN AND THE GOOD
FOLKS AT HARPER COLLINS, I HAVE ONE
COPY OF THIS THRILLING NOVEL,
RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA
 
--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES
---INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
IN CASE YOU WIN!
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE TO
 

COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE!


HOW TO ENTER:

+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON WHAT YOU READ ABOVE ABOUT RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA THAT MADE YOU WANT TO WIN THIS BOOK, AND DON'T FORGET YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG AND/OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND COME BACK HERE AND LEAVE ME YOUR LINK

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FIND INTERESTING AT KIMBERLY McCREIGHT'S WEBSITE HERE 


+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE WAY YOU FOLLOW MY BLOG. IF YOU FOLLOW MORE THAN ONE WAY, YOU CAN COMMENT SEPARATELY AND EACH WILL COUNT AS AN ENTRY 

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON A CURRENT GIVEAWAY THAT YOU HAVE ENTERED ON MY BLOG. IF YOU ENTERED MORE THAN ONE, YOU MAY COMMENT SEPARATELY FOR EACH TO RECEIVE MORE ENTRIES

  GIVEAWAY ENDS AT 
6 PM, EST, MARCH 21
   GOOD LUCK! 

117 comments:

debbie said...

This sounds like a really good thriller. I would like to see how the mother finds out about what happened in her daughter's life. I would really like to read this book.
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debbie said...

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Reading said...

I think this sounds like a book I would like to curl up with at night. I love the mystery!

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Reading said...

I follow on GFC

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traveler said...

A compelling thriller. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

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traveler said...

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Unknown said...

I really want to read this book. I want to find out what happened to Amelia and what she was involved in. Please enter me in contest. I am a follower and email subscriber. Tore923@aol.com

Carol N Wong said...

This story sounds so real, gripping and tragic and mysterious. I really want to read it!

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petite said...

A new book that sounds excellent. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

petite said...

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petite said...

The author is talented and has written short stories in journals. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

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Carol N Wong said...

I enjoyed reading about she treated writing this book like putting together pieces of a puzzle.

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petite said...

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Carol N Wong said...

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Carol N Wong said...

I entered the giveaway for "Nickled and Dimed to Death".


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Mona said...

I enjoy books set in schools and bullying is, unfortunately, too prevalent these days.

Thanks :)
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Mona said...

https://mobile.twitter.com/Kulmona/status/310252173701296128

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Mona said...

I learned she went to law school and yet she quit both her lawyer jobs within a few months.

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Pamela Keener said...

Thanks to your review I want to read this book. It sounds so current and intriguing
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Linda Kish said...

This sounds intense. I'd love to find out what happened to Amelia. What a great first book.

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Linda Kish said...

Her extended biography tells a great story of what she went through to become a publish author.

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Margie said...

This sounds like an exciting mystery, discussing some very current and important topics. Thanks for the giveaway.
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Margie said...

In the beginning of her career this author would get up early before her legal job, to write short stories.
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Sue Farrell said...

I like that the author was good at capturing the angst and secret lives of teenagers---should be interesting.
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Margie said...

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Margie said...

entered Louder Than Words
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Misusedinnocence said...

I like the idea of seeing a chraracter constructed through her Mother's memories and research, because as far as I can tell we never see the character of the daughter. It sounds like a really good read.

Misusedinnocence said...

I learned that the author will be at The Corner Bookstore in New York, NY next month.

misusedinnocence@aol.com

rubynreba said...

I enjoy thrillers and this certainly sounds like a good one.
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