It Started with a Dare by Lindsay Faith Rech

It’s never easy moving to a new school, especially when you’ve always been on the sidelines, so imagine CG Silverman’s surprise when she’s adopted into it girl Alona Spelton’s inner circle. CG is terrified that once Alona and her clique discover who she really is, an unworldly tomboy, they’ll drop her like last season’s fads. CG is desperate to impress these girls, so when playing truth or dare, she maybe goes a little too far. One or two little lies grow into a monster that CG doesn’t know how to stop. Propelled by a new rebellious image, CG finds herself getting involved in schemes she never would have before, like sneaking around with Alona’s older brother and having an illicit online affair with her English teacher. Can CG stop herself before it’s too late, or will everyone find out that’s she’s just a fraud?

It Started with a Dare tells the not particularly original story of a girl trying to fit into a new high school. The only way CG’s story stands out is that she doesn’t deliberately court popularity, or at least at first. Her inclusion in the in crowd comes as a total surprise to her, and unfortunately, once she realizes she’s in, she focuses on staying in, transforming herself into a careless and selfish person. Although CG holds herself above the other members of Alona’s clique, because she could care less about how she dresses and because she hangs out with a social outcast on the side, she really is no better than any of them, as CG eventually comes to understand. Her commitment to her new life of lies leads her to betray nearly every person, important or not, in her life, including herself. While CG’s exploits contain an important message or warning to readers, it is poorly executed. I had difficulty getting into this story because I could see the path that CG had chosen was a terrible one and personally could not relate to her choices at all. To make matters worse, every other supporting character was poorly developed and often hard to understand or inconsistent.

Though I didn’t find this novel particularly enjoyable, It Started with a Dare may still appeal to fans of Little Black Lies by Tish Cohen and The Diamonds by Ted Michaels.

Rating: 2.75

Review copy from NetGalley