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Review: Quarry by Ally Kennen

Quarry by Ally Kennen
Published by Scholastic
Challenge: BBC
Source: Review Copy (UK proof)





The explosive new novel from Ally Kennen, master of teen thillers.

Who is texting Scrappy freaky dares? The anonymous sender is untraceable. At first they're weird but fun. They they become dangerous. Then deadly. But by then it's too late for Scrappy to stop ... 


***
I haven't ever read anything by Ally Kennen before and I was pleasantly surprised by how good her book was.

Quarry is a story about a 15 year old boy who lives in a scrap yard called Scrappy. Scrappy is generally a bit fed up with his day to day existence. His mother has got fed up with his dad and packed up and left. His Grandfather is going senile and he has been left to look after him and generally life is a bit dull. One day Scrappy starts to receive strange dares via text. To start with he goes along with them for fun (and the monetary reward that comes with their completion) but as things progress the dares become more frightening and nasty and Scrappy is left wishing he never got involved in the first place.

I loved Scrappy as a character. He is surprisingly upbeat despite all the things in his life he has to deal with. You can;t help but feel bad for him and the situation he is in. I loved the relationship he had with his grandfather and seeing their interactions (especially the scenes on the old plane wreck).

The whole story was really creepy. There were some scenes where I was generally freaked out with several bits where I wasn't sure if I'd be able to continue reading (but couldn't put the book down all the same because I needed to know what was happening). The dares get pretty gruesome and it seems like the person daring Scrappy is everywhere and no where at the same time.

I enjoyed the final resolution of the book and didn't see where it was going at all. A gripping read throughout.

The only thing I thought was a little off with this book was the age at which it was aimed at. The ideas and language used flipped between being quite young at some points and aimed at younger teens while at others it was really quite uncomfortable and maybe a bit too frightening for younger teens.

All in all a fantastically creepy book which I really enjoyed.

Comments

serendipity_viv said…
This book keeps jumping out in front of me. I do like creepy so I know it will suit me. Didn't know whether I had to read Beast first or not?
Mel said…
I've not heard of this book before, but it sounds creepy - in a non-supernatural way. I could do with a break from preternatural scares! :)
Unknown said…
Uh-oh! It sounds completely sinister. Fab review!