Review: Rosebush by Michele Jaffe

Title: Rosebush
Author: Michele Jaffe
Publisher: Razorbill
Release date: December 14th 2012
Pages: 326
Genre: YA; mystery
Source: Bought
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Instead of celebrating Memorial Day weekend on the Jersey Shore, Jane is in the hospital surrounded by teddy bears, trying to piece together what happened last night. One minute she was at a party, wearing fairy wings and cuddling with her boyfriend. The next, she was lying near-dead in a rosebush after a hit-and-run.
Everyone believes it was an accident, despite the phone threats Jane swears were real. But the truth is a thorny thing. As Jane's boyfriend, friends, and admirers come to visit, more memories surface-not just from the party, but from deeper in her past . . . including the night her best friend Bonnie died. With nearly everyone in her life a suspect now, Jane must unravel the mystery before her killer attacks again.

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars


I really don't know what's going on with my taste in books lately. I rarely read mysteries, but I've read loads in the last few months. And even though I've read quite a few now, Rosebush is by far my favorite!


The suspense in Rosebush is amazing, so well-done. There wasn't a minute while reading this book where I wasn't either completely terrified or trying to figure out who the killer is. It's so compelling to find out what happened alongside Jane, seeing how everything she slowly remembers adds a piece to the puzzle of what happened that night. Each suspect is fully-developed, and I don't think there's a character in the book that I didn't suspect at one point or the other. The hints are placed perfectly - I never would have guessed who the killer turns out to be, but it all makes sense in the end.


I love how, even though the mystery is the main plot, this book managed to make me think. Scott and Pete are two characters who make Jane question everything, and they made me question some things about my life, too.


I had a hard time relating to Jane at first - all the "I'm so popular"-talk annoyed me - but later on, I ended up liking her. I felt for her and her struggle of no one believing her and thinking she's going crazy, and I really liked her towards the end.


At some parts of the book, I was a little confused by all the side characters. There are a lot, and I had some trouble keeping track of who's who. Not because they're one-dimensional or anything like that - most of them are actually complex, fully-developed characters - just because there are so many of them. But even though that confused me, I liked it that way, since that meant there are that many more people you can suspect of being the killer. I liked reading about all the characters and their relationships with Jane, and the family-storyline is good, too.


I don't have all that much to say because, with a book like this, saying too much could spoil the whole thing, but I really liked Rosebush. With thrilling suspense and revelations that'll make your heart stop, Rosebush is one of the best mysteries I've ever read.

Do you have any recommendations for more contemporary YA with strong mystery storylines?