Very Bad People

By: Kit Frick

Narrated by: Devon Sorvari

“A twisty, deeply satisfying ride.” —Sara Shepard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars

In this dark academia young adult thriller for fans of The Female of the Species and People Like Us, a teen girl’s search for answers about her mother’s mysterious death leads to a powerful secret society at her new boarding school—and a dangerous game of revenge that will leave her forever changed.

Six years ago, Calliope Bolan’s mother drove the family van into a lake with her three daughters inside. The girls escaped, but their mother drowned, and the truth behind the “accident” remains a mystery Calliope is determined to solve. Now sixteen, she transfers to Tipton Academy, the same elite boarding school her mother once attended. Tipton promises a peek into the past and a host of new opportunities—including a coveted invitation to join Haunt and Rail, an exclusive secret society that looms over campus like a legend.

Calliope accepts, stepping into the exhilarating world of the “ghosts,” a society of revolutionaries fighting for social justice. But when Haunt and Rail commits to exposing a dangerous person on campus, it becomes clear that some ghosts define justice differently than others.

As the society’s tactics escalate, Calliope uncovers a possible link between Haunt and Rail and her mother’s deadly crash. Now, she must question what lengths the society might go to in order to see a victory—and if the secret behind her mother’s death could be buried here at Tipton.

Idk

For me, it was not what I expected. It had a disappointing plot and a cut off ending.

Disappointing

Six years ago Calliope’s mother drove into a lake. She died but three daughters escaped. Now Calliope, a junior, is at Tipton, the boarding school her mom attended.

I’m a big fan of Kit Frick, so giving VERY BAD PEOPLE only two stars pains me. Perhaps Frick is a victim of her own success, particularly of the wildly successful I KILLED ZOE SPANOS. The lure of boarding school books always pulls me in. Secret societies can be intriguing if done right.

The *Ghosts* of Tipton are a vigilante secret society righting social injustices like a dorm named after a slavery proponent and a predator teacher. Vigilante justice has never been a draw for me. I don’t believe the ends justify the means or cheering on the pain of others, even VERY BAD PEOPLE. I don’t celebrate pain.

Calliope’s back story was the most interesting part of the story. The fact that it could have been a crime perpetrated by someone other than her mother made the “accident”, less, not more interesting.

The voice of the audiobook narrator grated on me but wasn’t so distracting that I hated it. At times she sounded artificial, which is ironic since I’ve read talk of audiobooks doing away with human narrators, a big mistake in my opinion.

Like almost all reviews, I hated the ending. It felt like a rip off. Sadly, I didn’t enjoy VERY BAD PEOPLE. I do think mystery lovers without exoectstions might enjoy the book.