Like its said above, there are parts that shouldn't be read unless you can handle it. The book starts of strong and will pull at your emotions, so be ready!

Emily just wants to leave her town and get away. Then one day she is just in the park where she watches a kid get bullied. She sort of just freezes in place. She wants to help the boy but just can't bear to move. Then Jack steps into the picture. Jack helps the boy and tah-da hero!

Jack is just awesome. First off, I have no idea where he puts all the food he eats. I mean, how much can one person eat! Then he has this secret side, this brainy side, and a sick side. Emily loves everything about him and together they are adorable.

Then things aren't so peachy. The bullies started to go missing and a girl is even dead. Then things just start going and you get pulled in. You just have to know whats going on. I really loved this book, it just blew me away.

Little note.....Now I have no problem reading any book, except those few genres that I don't like. But anyway, this book was a tough one. Some scenes are tough and you'll feel for whats going on. Even the bully scene was hard. Not just for what happened, but it seemed real, and sadly it could happen to some out there. So just keep that in mind.

This is the story of Emily Heath and dead-end town, known locally as "The Sham". When the quiet town is turned uspside down with mysterious writings popping up and one of Emily’s classmate’s body is washed up by the floods, the suspicions turns to her boyfriend Jack. Jack is very sick and little is known about his background. Emily’s loyalties tie her to Jack when everybody is looking to pin the mysterious things on him.

Emily is a loyal one. She stands by Jack no matter what and it helped me warm up to her. She also stands up to bullying, another admiring quality about her. Jack’s character is well developed and well portrayed. There are a couple of more important characters in the book but I do not know how to talk about them without giving away the plot. Let’s just say that each character has an important role to play. Each have been placed exactly where they should be and each of them are well developed.

The plot is something else on the whole. It is so intricately woven that every little thing and every little action means something. The mysteries in the book keep you glued to the pages and keep you guessing. Every time you think you have got it, something turns up that change everything you think you know. The author’s language is simple and the narration is complimentary to the characters and the plot.

Overall, this was a very interesting book that I simply had to finish in one sitting.

This book wasn't what I thought it would be like. It was very well-written. It was intense and a little bit graphic.

The book is definitely on the harsher end. It portrayed a life that was hard for me to read about. But it was a good book that I enjoyed. I'd recommend it for fans of darker fiction.

It wasn't for me, but I think most would enjoy it.

This book started out with a bang in a horrific and graphic scene with 18 year old girls bullying a 10 year old boy. A few pages into the story, I wondered if I would be able to stand such cruelty and explicit evil. I am glad I pressed beyond the 1st chapter. I read the entire book in 1 night because I had to know .... Everything. I received an advance copy of this book to provide an honest review / opinion of.

Once the initial shock of the events at the beginning of the book were over (the bullying scene), I was able to enjoy getting to know Emily and Jake. Jake was a mysterious character and I wondered about him the entire book. I was really pulling for him not to be the killer by the end, but couldn't see much of a way around it. There is a mild supernatural element in the story... Jake can physically feel other's energy, vibes, or whatever you might call it. Jake gets physically sick in high stress, dangerous situations. The bully group of 4 girls are absolutely horrible, with the open descriptions of their deeds unsteadying me immediately.

Once some of Jake's own secrets begin to surface, I doubted his innocence (as I am apparently meant to). Emily tried remained faithful, but had some doubts when she found out Jake was actually a boy named Matthew. Jake's explanations (or lack of explanations) made him look guilty of murder & being crazy to me as well as to the police in the story. I enjoyed the fast pace, and the back & forth about what might be up with Jake.

I was in knots in the last chapters thinking that Emily was falling into the same trap the other girls must have in their last hours alive. There is a great ending and lots of twists & turns on the way. I could relate to Emily's need to get out of a small town. Very fast paced & full of surprises.

Ellen Allen. Remember this name because you will be seeing it on the Best Seller Lists for years to come if she continues to write mind blowing thrillers that will leave you reeling long after you have finished it. An assault on all emotions. I can almost guarantee the word WOW will be in more than half the reviews of this book.

Thank you Ellen Allen and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for this review.

You won't want to put THE SHAM down.

It starts gruesomely...but leads to the important question: How well do we ever really know people? Enough to defend them? Enough to trust them with your life? The lives of other people that you love?

That's soon the question Emily has to answer. Girls are going missing...only to be found murdered. And she may be next. The police suspect her new boyfriend - they think he isn't who he says is. All she has to go by is her intuition...and is that right?

The SHAM is full of twists and turns. Who is being lied to? Who is lying? Who isn't what they seem? Every character has a secret or a quirk. Every character has depth.

I'll admit - Emily doesn't always make the best decisions, but I found this to be realistic. What teen doesn't think they're doing the right thing when really they're far from it?

I'd recommend this book to readers who love more literary thrillers, or dark mysteries - not the light twists that we oft see in thrillers.

This was a crazy, wild ride!

Some strange twists in a murderer mystery with slight romantic love interest. It definately kept my attention and was a surprise ending that I would have never guessed. A great young adult book!