What is this about?
Signal has been framed for her best friend’s murder and has been categorised as a Class A — a psychopath with no hope for rehabilitation. However, her way out of prison is the chance to join a very exclusive camp.
What else is this about?
There’s much that grabbed my attention in this book — from Signal, the camp members and other characters, and Signal’s own quest for the truth. However, as I continued to read, I grew weary of how romance overtook the best parts of this book, and worse still, a love triangle, with the elements I hate the most in love triangles. Just because the characters are killers, doesn’t actually make the love triangle less irritating.
Blurb
Framed for the murder of her best friend, a young girl joins a super-secret society of teenage assassins to avoid a lifetime behind bars–and discovers her own true self–in this mesmerizing debut novel.
Seventeen-year-old Signal Deere has raised eyebrows for years as an unhappy Goth misfit from the trailer park. When she’s convicted of her best friend Rose’s brutal murder, she’s designated a Class A–the most dangerous and manipulative criminal profile. To avoid prison, Signal signs on for a secret program for 18-and-under Class As and is whisked off to an abandoned sleep-away camp, where she and seven bunkmates will train as assassins. Yet even in the Teen Killers Club, Signal doesn’t fit in. She’s squeamish around blood. She’s kind and empathetic. And her optimistic attitude is threatening to turn a group of ragtag maniacs into a team of close-knit friends. Maybe that’s because Signal’s not really a killer. She was framed for Rose’s murder and only joined the program to escape, track down Rose’s real killer, and clear her name. But Signal never planned on the sinister technologies that keep the campers confined. She never planned on the mysterious man in the woods determined to pick them off one by one. And she certainly never planned on falling in love. Signal’s strategy is coming apart at the seams as the true killer prepares to strike again in Teen Killers Club.
You’ll see from the reviews on Goodreads, that the review that follows is in the minority.
Because yes, there’s a love triangle. It’s not even just a romance, with a focus on Signal and one guy, no there’s the tropey good guy versus bad guy(and yes, I can make that distinction in a book about teenage killers), but I’m guessing bc they’re both killers, it was supposed to be interesting?
It’s not that I am against love triangles, I just find them supremely irritating when they don’t actually do anything for any characters involved, and are just kind of there to inject angst and romance into a story that was actually incredibly interesting without it in the first place.
So what is the Teen Killers Club?
It’s a camp — a summer camp like no other and filled with teen killers, given a chance to basically live their lives in a different kind of prison — you see, they’re trained to continue to kill for the government, and learn everything from running obstacle courses to disposing of bodies in order to give them the best chance of survival because they won’t be rescued if they get caught on their mission.
Signal and this world
Signal has been framed for her best friend’s murder, though no one will believe her. The camp is a chance, she thinks to escape and find out who really killed Rose, but she didn’t reckon on kill switches being implanted in every one’s necks to control them. And yes, if these guys run or veer away from their missions, a flick of the kill switch and they die.
Signal and Nobody, another teenage murderer are brought into the camp and meet the other campers — all killers. The dynamic between this group, and the training and learning about each other is hands down the best part of this book. I genuinely wasn’t sure what was going to happen next because these characters are capable of anything — like Jada, who is cutting Signal to keep her away from Erik, her supposed boyfriend, and is then helping her do her make-up.
And that’s where the love triangle comes in
Two guys vie for Signal’s affections inbetween helping her survive the camp and find out what happened to Rose.
The author does try to balance the romance with the search for the truth, but honestly, I was disappointed that such a creative premise got overtaken by a romantic triangle. I think that’s what pisses me off the most: Signal has an interesting backstory, and that is paid off in the end somewhat…. but my gosh, did I want to know about the others in the camp too — and how Signal interacts with them because she makes some interesting comments about choices, and who these killers want to be.
Do I mind a romance? No, I mind a love triangle and tropey teenage angst that comes with it especially when everyone is infinitely more interesting without it.
And what does it say about her that she begins to make friends and falls in love with a killer? Or Killers (I don’t even know how to describe it) Nope, the book doesn’t even go there.
The central premise of this book is incredibly interesting and compelling, but for me at least the love triangle overpowered Signal’s character at vital parts of the story.
Sighs.
I like the premise, though a shame about the romance spoiling it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts
It’s such a good premise, I died a little inside when I realised where it was going.
Love triangles and too much attention to romance has ruined many a book!
For sure. I don’t know why this couldn’t have one romance the worked with the plot.
Oh, no…a love triangle! Those are so irritating!
Especially when they take over EVERYTHING interesting.
A summer camp for teen killer, sounds fun… ahem. But yikes, I dislike love triangles too.
The summer camp idea, the teen killers — all of that? PERFECT. Then the love triangle happens, swallows all the goodness and spits it out like because the two of the trio are murderous teenagers, it should have made the love triangle work. It may very well have if they all weren’t so damned irritating and took me right out of the book. UGH. Still pissed I wasted my time with this.
Ugh, I hate when romances are shoehorned into a book! Not every story needs a romance!
EXACTLY!
I’m so into this concept, but the romance angle seems a bit out of place.
VERY. I kept wondering why Signal wasn’t good enough to stand as a character without a romance — or a love triangle. I adored her.
The premise sounded incredible and I don’t know why there needed to be a romance at all, never mind a love triangle. I think it lost me where the child killers are enlisted to kill for the government, I was hoping the camp might have been for reformed killers with a redemption storyline. So much potential though. Brilliant review as always Verushka, I’m sorry you couldn’t have enjoyed this one a little more.
I really wished there was a redemption storyline instead of this stupid love triangle. There’s a brief bit where Signal tries to come to terms with how she sees this bunch of teenagers and what they’ve done, but then all that potential just gets swallowed whole by the stinking love triangle. UGH. I’m still mad. Sighs. She really is a character that is (and could be even more) so much more than who she happens to be in love with.
I’m not a fan of love triangles either so I’ll probably pass on this one. Great review though.
So much lost potential and I am clearly still annoyed.