Weekend by Christopher Pike
Written by Ashley Kelmore, Posted in Reviews
Three stars
Sorry folks. I really should stop reading these books. But this one was available at the library. I was helpless. And I can’t promise that I won’t be going back to the library for more; apparently there’s a five-book vampire series that came out this century, so I kind of feel obligated to check it out.
But back to this one, brought to you by the year 1986. Same basic premise as Slumber Party – a bunch of friends are getting together for a weekend away, and one of them was seriously injured (poisoned to the point that her kidneys no longer work) at a party a few months prior. This takes place at a beach, not a lodge, and there are guys already part of the group. It is set at a fancy house on the Mexican coast (Mr. Pike seems to enjoy his super-rich kids). There are cat-fighting girls. There is a mystical man (one guess as to his described ethnicity). There are snakes.
This one had one twist that I saw about two chapters in; there was another twist that took me maybe four chapters. What I’m saying is that there isn’t a lot left to the imagination. And sometimes the writing is kind of hilarious – Mr. Pike is clearly trying to paint pictures with words. Sometimes he is really successful (I have to say I have no problem conjuring up his worlds in my mind) and sometimes he just goes overboard.
Am I glad I read it? Sure. Can I recommend it? Eh. If you’ve got 90 minutes to kill and want to dive into a little YA fun, you could do worse.