Tolog Review: The Girl is Murder

The Girl is Murder
by Kathryn Miller Haines
reviewed by Ava Manson

Possessing an intriguing title, The Girl Is Murder by Kathryn Miller Haines automatically peaked my curiosity. After reading the synopsis of the book, seemingly interesting and free spirited Iris seemed to be the best character to read about for my SSR book. As I expected, the story of Iris Anderson, a 15 year-old girl living in the 1940’s, includes drama and mystery that almost any teenage girl can hope to relate to. Her story possesses a strong theme of growing up and finding oneself, making it popular and enjoyable for teenagers to read. A twist makes the story unique because not only does Iris live with her private investigator father, she attempts to assist him with his cases. Iris finds, in her transition from a public school to private school, that the mysteries in need of uncovering are in fact, her classmates. The Girl is Murder shows the transformation of a quiet and polite young lady into a rebellious teenage girl, sneaking out to parties and hanging out with troublemakers. Although seeming to solely have the purpose of helping her father, it takes time and development of character for Iris to understand what her true priorities should be. 

Personally, I believe that The Girl is Murder began with a slow-paced start, that I was not necessarily fond of. As the story progressed, I found it more interesting, and the mystery became increasingly more compelling. However, I noticed that Iris, along with most of the supporting characters, were often in need of more personality and depth. Although these are less than positive aspects of the book, overall I found it to be a light and fun read. I thought the story had great structure, and the end result was satisfying. I would recommend this book to a teen who enjoys mystery, even though lack of action would not make me consider it to be a thriller. The Girl is Murder was not quite the book I expected, but I found it to still be enjoyable and relatable.