Author: Corey Ann Haydu
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Publication Date: May 2014
Genre: Young Adult Fiction/Contemporary
Series or Stand Alone: Stand Alone
Synopsis can be found here.
I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Review:
Tabitha finds Life By Committee – a website that has some seemingly simple rules. Tell secret. In order to keep that secret safe, dares must be performed and proof must be shown. Or the secret will be released. Tabitha is in love with Joe, a popular boy at her school who also has a very artsy and popular girlfriend. And once Tabitha spills the beans to LBC, she can’t take it back.
The tone of the book is fun, a layer of dark play wrapping itself over the characters and their unnatural obsession with the Internet game. Tabitha has only one friend so it’s easy to see why she seeks solace in an online game/chat room such as Life By Committee.
Honestly, I can’t imagine what craziness teens have to deal with today. With Twitter, Facebook, The Internet, cyber bullying, there is so much more danger out there than when I was young. (And I’m not even that old!)
Anyway, I liked the overall idea of Life By Committee. Teen reaches out to a group of strangers for understanding and sense of community, something she is failing to get in her everyday school life. And of course, just like in real life, the Internet is dangerous. Being anonymous is dangerous, allowing people to say anything they wish without any repercussions. And of course that is what happens here.
I wish Tabitha was a more likeable character. I feel like you have to be really likeable in order for me to root for you to steal someone else’s boyfriend. I feel like you should have this really amazing connection to this boy and he should be exceptional and awesome. Sadly, Joe is none of these things and halfway through I was ready to slap Tabitha silly for not only being selfish and immature (I know, I know. Teenager, I know. But seriously, not all teenagers are that immature) I was also really not impressed with Joe. For the record, I don’t think I was supposed to be. But in the end, I didn’t care about either of the main characters.
Even Joe’s very special girlfriend is “artistic” and popular and awesome. But I didn’t really feel any of these things about her. I found myself being told she was all these things, and I never really saw this for myself.
While Life By Committee had some great ideas, overall I think the story lacked heart. I wanted the characters to be more interesting, more full of life, more something. But I wound up not liking any of them.
Rating 4 Not My Cup of Tea
Great and honest review, the book is on my wish list, but I haven’t bought it yet…
Thanks for reading my review!
I actually really like it. I wish there was more of Devon to balance it out, because that storyline just ended and I think that would’ve made you more sympathetic towards Tabitha if you had that other side. Also I really dislike the ending with the LBC, I hate how it ends on their terms. But I love the twist with Agnes.
I can see that. I’m glad you liked it!! I agree maybe it needed some balancing!