5 STARS FOR SKYLER STONE: FINALLY! A MURDER MYSTERY FOR TODAY’S GENERATION!
Book Review By The Book Club Elite

If Nancy Drew was a hyper-hacking, Silicon-Valley-level, tech genius Super-Nerd-- her name would be Skyler Stone.

Chris Taylor’s The Killer Secrets of Skyler Stone: My Funny Valentine starts out more like a John Grisham novel than it does a YA story, with Skyler’s major case detective dad, Sirius Stone, studying the startling scene of a chilling crime-- an interesting choice, considering that in the very next chapter, and throughout the rest of the book, you see that it’s really more of a coming-of-age YA story about a brilliant teen youth, who’s plagued by the dark ills of society. --Ills that effect certain demographics more than others.

But before we delve into that psychological-sociological drama, one that many people have confessed to still facing, even in today’s “progressive” society (issues like institutionalized abuse), we learn that there’s a serial killer on the loose, and her name is The Valentine Killer. She leaves a unique trademark on her victims, and we see some of her handiwork at the top of the very 1st chapter.

First, the authors paint a very clear contrast between Skyler Stone and his dad, highlighting the unfortunate disconnect that many youths say they feel with their parents, from another generation and a totally different mode of thinking. Then we enter into Skyler’s world, where we meet his friends, his admirers, and his ex-girlfriend-- who is soon destined to become another victim.

Before she dies, Sky reflects back on a memory of awkward interaction with her after their breakup, in between ranting humorously about her in his head, which is kinda funny. But then, as soon as he gets a weird phone call from her on his cell phone, shortly after that-- the action begins and the story takes off down roads you don’t expect to go, taking you by surprise and pulling you in, as the plot thickens.

I like this story, but’s weird-- not in a bad way, and not in its delivery or style, as it’s a very coherent narrative that’s clear, honest, youthful and meaningful, with a very focused drive-- which I like. But it combines completely unexpected themes together into 1 story, in a way that I’ve never seen done before. And it does so in a casually organic way that feels both real, fascinating and alarming. Then, some themes just make you care more about the characters, the more you realize the profound newness and struggle of both their purity and their pain.

It’s not a perfect book, as it does take the long-winded approach, describing every last detail of things down to the very last molecule. And it’s not a traditional sleuth novel either, with a crisp, clear, clean-cut set of suspects to choose from, all with compelling motives, as they each point the finger of blame at each other, whilst a nosey-- or paid-- hyper-sleuth interrogates them all thoroughly, anxious to figure out whodunnit. In fact, it’s quite possibly the exact opposite.

Most of the suspects you meet in this story are really so subtle that it’s entirely up to you to decide if they’re even suspects at all. And they all seem clueless to the idea of Skyler’s ex’s death being a murder, and they all appear to have no idea who The Valentine Killer might be. --All of which is actually much more realistic than most murder mysteries portray people to be, and it makes it much harder to figure out who actually dun it.

Also, the amateur sleuth-- Skyler Stone-- is really the reluctant hero, who doesn’t really like sleuthing, and is pretty convinced that he’s not very good at it, because his forte is hacking technology and inventing things-- not solving crime mysteries, like his dad-- as he states very boldly to his curiously motivated new love interest. He only gets compelled to dive into the deep end of this mystery because of its personal connection to him-- because he knows in his gut that his ex gf did not commit suicide like everyone says she did.

What’s also interesting about this story is that it’s more than just a murder mystery or coming-of-age drama. It graduates into a full-throated conspiracy thriller that keeps you guessing til the very end, and as soon as you think you know what happened and whodunnit-- you realize, in a surprise twist-- that you don’t. And I won’t spoil it for you, but the key culprit is a humdinger!

The thing that’s so fresh about this story, besides blending a mildly romantic YA coming of age murder mystery with a terrifying conspiracy suspense thriller, is that it finally brings YA murder mysteries into the 21st century, with advanced technology and modern-day creativity.

It also deals with real world issues like racism, cyber-bullying, and the horrors of Powers-That-Be that go wrong and unchecked, as well as the scary fear that some of our heroes and protectors in society are secretly villains and violators-- and nobody stops them.

It handles fresh, trendy issues in a familiar, classic way, and it handles familiar, classic issues in a fresh, trendy way.

So if you’re a fan of murder mysteries, conspiracy thrillers, or YA coming-of-age dramas with a splash of romance-- you will enjoy this story. Skyler Stone takes you on a surprisingly chilling ride, into a hidden secret world of stunning fright, with unique, funny and fascinating characters, who feel like they're your friends.

But make no mistake, this is not a story for light readers who are just looking for a fluffy feel-good fantasy to read. This is a dark, scary, gritty, haunting, stirring, witty, socially important, and refreshingly unpredictable, page-turning #YA #PsychologicalDrama and #MysteryThriller.

It's the techno geek generation's Nancy Drew-- at a Christian High School.

Finally-- A gripping murder mystery for today's generation! And it deals with controversial and taboo real world issues in a compelling, powerful, surprise-twist way.

Skyler Stone is fresh, exciting, riveting, captivating, morally meaningful, trendsetting literature, pioneering the new niche genre of romantic, faith-friendly, teen / young adult mystery suspense thriller stories. This is great for any cutting edge YA book lover, but I'd especially recommend it for any fan of murder mysteries, conspiracy thrillers, love stories, and psychological dramas.

Sleuths, Believers, Technology Lovers, Conspiracy Theorists, YA Junkies, and Students of Psychology will LOVE Skyler Stone. It was written for YOU! I give it 5 out of 5 stars. Why? Because it’s 1 of those unique novels, that gives you a full plate of scares and hard truth-- with a spoonful of sugar and friendly warmth.

But it’s not for young children. I’d say early teens to late 30’s would probably be the base audience.

--The Book Club Elite

READ IT NOW HERE ON AMAZON @ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074JGP918 ( )