The Girls Trip, Ally Condie (Review by Rachel Taran)

As a big fan of thrillers, I was instantly hooked on this plot: famous actress Hope Hanover meets two random girls anonymously during the pandemic through a virtual book club. They become great friends, Hope eventually reveals her identity, and a few years later, they decide to take a trip together where they all agree they will disappear. Now, they don’t intend to ACTUALLY disappear, do they? They seem to just want to disappear from their own lives and responsibilities for a week but there may actually be more to this plan than they all are aware of. The setting is perfect, out in the desert of Utah at a fancy all-inclusive resort. Hope is thrilled to step out of the spotlight for a bit, and Caro and Ash are both excited to get away from their husbands, jobs, and kids. It will be the ultimate girls week and also the first time the three of them meet in person. After a few days at the main resort, the girls head out on their multi-day hike to the Underground, a beautiful but sometimes challenging hike that can quickly become dangerous due to occasional flash flooding. From here, everything goes wrong, people go missing, and stories unravel. Everything about this plot is the type of story I usually love. However, the execution of the story fell apart for me. The chapters jumped around between different perspectives. The characters were not very fleshed out and many of their choices lacked motivation or didn’t make sense. The twist at the end came out of nowhere, but much of the storyline felt unfinished. The hook of the original plot did keep me invested throughout the book, I just wish it had all come together a little better.