Hardest Ones to Fool
High schooler Amelia Wu is secretly dating three guys—debate team captain, indie filmmaker, and tennis star. They all know her as different people with different names, personalities, and backstories. She’s the perfect girlfriend to each.
They don’t know she’s a con woman. She’s working each of them for gifts she can hock to help her mother get back on her feet and fund Amelia’s college. She’s savvy and smart; in fact, she’s top of her class. But when her rival for valedictorian is on to her scheme, things unravel. Then, when Amelia’s best friend, Ingrid, dies, fun and games are over. Amelia unwillingly teams up with her nemesis to solve the murder and find justice for her friend.
I really liked this young adult book by author Christina Li.
The mashup of genres—romance, suspense, mystery, contemporary, and coming-of-age—is deftly woven into a story that makes you abhor the protagonist’s behavior but love her all the same.
Amelia has an incredible heart. Despite the scheme she cooked up with her bestie, Ingrid, she is doing a lot of good in the guys’ and their families’ lives. And she’s fiercely loyal. Protective of her mom, who was forced to grow up too fast, and willing to jeopardize it all to find Ingrid’s killer. Not a normal teenage lifestyle. In the end, she prevails, but not without some hard knocks and life lessons that unfold through a carefully planned and satisfying character arc.
Well done.
Book and Image Courtesy of Penguin Young Readers and NetGalley
