I downloaded “The Twisted Thread” from Net Galley last month. I would have loved reading this book as a teen: beautiful and popular senior girl found dead in her room at prestigious private boarding school, and – gasp! – she had been pregnant! Who killed her? Where is the baby? What secrets are being hidden behind those ivy covered walls? Junior faculty member Maddie Christopher becomes embroiled in untangling the threads of this mystery.

I enjoyed this well-plotted YA suspense novel. I can be a hard critic of stories set in private schools since I worked in one for so many years. Too many times the depictions of boarding school life are fairly outrageous and ridiculous with wealthy, privileged kids running willy-nilly and ignorant adults being conveniently absent. I give Ms. Bacon credit for giving an accurate portrayal  of life in an independent school. I thought her depiction of Maddie as a young faculty member was particularly well-done and believable. In fact I would bet money that Ms. Bacon has either taught in or attended boarding school herself. The strength of this story, in my opinion, lies in Ms. Bacon’s depictions of the various relationships portrayed.

Thanks, Net Galley and Hyperion Voice for my copy!