Book Review: 13 Minutes

13 Minutes

by: Sarah Pinborough

Publication Date: October 3, 2017

Finished on: October 8, 2017

Publisher: Flatiron Books

I won a free Advanced Reader's Copy of 13 Minutes from a Goodreads Giveaway.  All opinions expressed below are are my own.

Synopsis:

A popular high school student, Tasha, is pulled from the ice-cold water and revived.  It is thought that she has been dead for 13 minutes.  The problem is, she doesn't remember why she was in the water.  Was there foul play?  If so, who did it?  13 Minutes is pegged as an updated version of Mean Girls for the Instagram era.  It is a young adult psychological suspense/thriller, that will likely gain fans from a variety of generations.

My review:

When I originally entered the Goodreads Giveaway for 13 Minutes, I did not recognize the author's name, but rather was sucked in by the premise.  A high schooler who was dead for 13 minutes but can't remember what happened?  Count me in!  Upon further reflection, I realized that I previously read Behind Her Eyes by the same author this year and really enjoyed it.  Upon looking through her Goodreads profile, she has published many books.  I'll definitely need to check out more in the future.

I was intrigued at the start of 13 Minutes.  Initially, it reminded me of the Pretty Little Liars (young adult) series, which I read several books from many years back.  There is a lot of high school drama going on here.  I have to admit that my high school experience was much less dramatic...and that is probably a good thing!

13 Minutes is a strong read.  I was guessing through a large portion of the book to figure out who did it.  When Pinborough reveals the answer, she does so with a punch.  This isn't a light read, but rather more of a twisty, psychological suspense.  In my opinion, it will appeal to readers of many ages.

Overall, I rate this 3.5/5 stars.  13 Minutes is a strong young adult read.  My main issue with the novel was that the middle of the novel felt like it dragged a bit and there were many characters I simply couldn't like...but then again, that's high school for you!