Krysten Ritter rocks. Not only is she a total badass on Jessica Jones, and she rocked my world (and made me laugh out loud constantly) on her old television series Don't Trust the B— in Apartment 23 (still bitter it was canceled), but now her debut novel, Bonfire, is a really good read. I hate overachievers...

Abby Williams couldn't get out of her Indiana hometown, Barrens, fast enough. Tormented by her childhood best friend Kaycee and her band of mean-girl minions, mistreated by her father, she fled the first chance she got, changed her accident and landed a job as an environmental lawyer in Chicago.

"I couldn't even explain it to myself. All I knew is that Barrens broke something inside of me. It warped the needles on my compass and turned the south to north and lies to truth and vice versa."

Ten years later, Abby's firm is investigating Optimal Plastics, the most high-profile company in Barrens, and the one that single-handedly rescued the town from all but certain elimination. The thought of going home again and facing her nemeses, including her father, is almost too much to bear, but she'll admit that the opportunity to enact a little revenge isn't totally unappealing. But it's not too long after she arrives back in Barrens that she realizes that the more things change the more they stay the same—or people want to pretend things have changed, even when they haven't.

As Abby and her colleagues try to make sense of whether Optimal is truly the town's savior or more of a danger, she finds herself unable to shake her memories of a scandal that Kaycee and her three friends were involved in all those years ago, a scandal which could possibly have ties to the problems with Optimal occurring today. She's desperate to find out what really happened to Kaycee, who allegedly disappeared all those years ago, and she is trying to decide whom she should trust—if anyone.

To uncover the truth, Abby must reopen doors that people want to remain closed, and that includes coming to terms with her father as well. She finds a web of blackmail, corruption, trading sexual favors, and lie upon lie. Her job and her mental state, perhaps even her life, are at stake.

I'm always a little bit dubious when a celebrity writes a novel. Sure, there are talented writers among them, but for every Carrie Fisher and Ethan Hawke comes a James Franco or Joan Collins. Ritter has a natural voice as a storyteller, and the book quickly hooks you and doesn't let you go, even as you may see how things will play themselves out. She is particularly impressive with her imagery as well as her descriptions of emotions, and what it's like to return home to a place where you never felt comfortable anyway.

It's not a perfect debut—she falls into the trap that so many action and crime movies do, where the villain gives a long, dramatic speech justifying why they were so hell-bent on destroying everything. (See Michael Shannon in Man of Steel for one.) But while that is a little annoying, I found Bonfire a really compelling read, one I devoured pretty quickly and enjoyed quite a bit. I'll definitely be looking out for Ritter's next book at some point.

Okay, Krysten...now how about a Don't Trust the... reunion?

NetGalley and Crown Publishing provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!

So I read the blurb on this book and thought, sounds interesting. Then I really noticed the author's name and thought, "wait, THAT Krysten Ritter??!?!!!!" Yeah, I'm a big fan of hers. I went into this book hopeful and excited because I think she's wonderful, so I started it in a good mood....and then things got even better because the book was excellent! Another level of talent for Krysten and thanks for writing a twisty, fun story that kept me hooked to the end. Five star read!

3 stars

Can we go home again, or maybe the question should be should we go home again? Abby Williams does just that, she goes home, but returns as an environmental lawyer digging into a possible case against a corporate giant company Optimal Plastics. She has been gone for ten years but remembers all the horrible things that had happened to her while growing up Barrens Indiana. She remembers the cruelty of her fellow students especially her former best friend Kaycee Williams. Kaycee had disappeared but the memories of all that had happened, the supposed feigned illnesses, the shaming of girls targeted as weak, the playing of The Game comes rushing back in foggy memories.

Abby, tries to unravel the connection between what happened ten years ago and now. How is Optimal, the savior of the town involved, and how will she get people to believe her now that she dredges up one conspiracy theory after another. Compounding all of this is the extremely tenuous relationship she has with her father. Abby's world seems to be crashing as she descends further and further into wanting to believe and trying to prove that what she feels is right. The two worlds that Abby experiences come to a conclusion that in reality was ever so expected.

This was at times a very confusing novel. It meandered through relationships and made sometimes tenuous connections. It seemed to that the the heroine of this tale always seemed to be in a drunken state wandering from one bar to another, drinking one drink after another. In this she lost her true voice as the main protagonist and seemed detrimental to all she was trying to convey. The author tries to make Abby a pathetic sad creature but in doing so she creates a character that is often one that dredges up little sympathy.

Thanks to NetGallery and Crown Publishing for providing an advanced copy for an unbiased review.

Honestly, I would not have read this book had it not been written by Krysten Ritter. I have been a fan of her work and thought I'd give her book a try. I was not disappointed. For a psychological suspense thriller it was really good. At first, I was reminded of Megan Abbot and her awesome book Fever, but this became less about teenaged mean girls and more about really messed up adults. The characters were all very well written. Our hero, Abby, is a refreshing departure from the usual damaged woman so often placed in psychological thrillers. Her damaged is undeniable and yet she doesn't use it to seek revenge or manipulate, Abby is self destructive and does really stupid things while trying to come to grips with her past in a way which is all too familiar and relatable. The mystery unfolds in sometimes unclear ways and the end does become a little predictable. I do hope that Ritter continues to create more female protagonists who defy stereotypes.