Book Review: Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman

Book Cover

📘 Girls on Fire

by Robin Wasserman

Genre Fiction ◦ Thriller

Format & Source Print ◦ For review, TLC Tours

Publication Harper ◦ 2016

Dates Read June 4 – 15, 2016

Rating ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

📚 What It's About

Girls on Fire is the story of Hannah and Lacey, and their intoxicating teenage friendship. Shortly after a shocking suicide rocks their quiet town, Hannah Dexter befriends new girl Lacey, quickly transforming from the good girl into “Dex:” the person that bad girl Lacey wants her to be. Though they experienced very different upbringings, with Lacey coming from a broken home and dysfunctional family, the two set off into an obsessive and sometimes dangerous friendship with shocking secrets.


📝 My Review

If I had to describe this book in one word it would be this: captivating. I was captivated from the very beginning and got sucked into this dark story, not wanting to put it down as I followed along with this intense and obsessive friendship.


It’s a very character driven novel which I find myself drawn to quite a bit. You really get into these character’s heads, each with their own very distinctive voice and personality. I felt this sense of really knowing these two girls and felt like I was a part of their world. Even though I could see that there was so much wrong in their world, I didn’t want to leave; I could hardly put the book down because I just had to keep reading. You really get this strong sense of foreboding as you read along, meaning many late nights reading as you race along to see what happens.


One of my favorite aspects of this novel was the standout writing style. I really, really enjoyed her writing which managed to be both gritty and beautiful. With both vulgarity and violence, it really set the tone of the story. It’s full of so many wonderfully crafted sentences that I often found myself rereading certain phrases or portions. It’s as though the author really and truly thought out each and every word choice with such precision… a really admirable writing style!


This book has very dark undertones, and because of that, it may not be for everyone. I really enjoyed every minute of this thrilling tale though and would highly recommend it. It is incredibly captivating and compelling in its entirety. I very much look forward to reading more of Wasserman’s writing!

“Girls had to believe in anything but their own power, because if girls knew what they could do, imagine what they might.”

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