GUILT TRIP
Anne Cassidy
Anne Cassidy
British writer Anne Cassidy was born in London in 1952. She has worked as a teacher in London for nineteen years. She is an author of several teen thrillers and young-adult novels which are known for their compelling plots. She is interested in murders and attracted to dark subjects. That's why her books are full of different murders, dark sides and acts that are hidden in us like Guilt Trip and Looking For JJ. Other novels by Cassidy also include tough love, abduction, violence and drugs. In her stories she focuses on the dark sides of people and on their subconscious acts. She tries to present reasons for different behaviors, consequences that happen in individual's life and actually wants to teach us how to act in unimaginable and unpredictable moments. Cassidy has also contributed some books to her detective genre with her East Side Murders series. Including the novels Death by Drowning, No Through Road and Dead Quiet. Especially these novels tell you a lot about human nature and a darker side of life. After all everyone is hiding and covering dark origins of violence and horror.
http://www.annecassidy.com/contact/
http://biography.jrank.org/pages/1983/Cassidy-Anne-1952.html
The murder notebooks series
General
The book summary
Ali, Stephen, Jackson and Hannah saved Daniel Fenny two years ago. He tried to commit suicide. They suddenly became local heroes. Everybody knew them. Since the day they saved Daniel they have been known as a good example of modern teenagers.
Ali wanted to get to Cambridge University, Hannah planned joining her mother in her hairdressing saloon, Stephen was about to start his own business and Jackson was getting ready to reunite with his brother. Teachers encourage them to develop a new relationship with Daniel, because Daniel was always a bit quiet and he held for himself. Teachers insisted that helping Daniel would be good for the school and also for their future ambitions. Stephen and Hannah was excited and wanted to meet Daniel to help him but Ali and Jackson did not like this idea. Stephen and Daniel became good friends and Ali didn’t support that. She was worried. After all Stephen and she had been a couple for a few years. The same situation happened between Hannah and Jackson. Jackson didn’t like Daniel. He was a little jealous. Stephen and Ali started to grow apart. Ali wasn’t happy anymore. She became more interested in Jackson and she finished with Stephen.
Five weeks later something horrible happened. Jackson was very angry with Daniel because Hannah didn’t like him anymore. She had a new boyfriend and his name was Daniel! Daniel had taken his girlfriend from him! That’s why he accidentally killed Daniel. It happened on the evening of Daniel’s dad’s wedding. Ali, Jackson and Stephen took him. They were driving until they found an appropriate place. It happened to be a resting place. Jackson was very incensed. And he wasn’t thinking clearly. He pushed Daniel away and Daniel hit a corner of the container with his head. Ali, Jackson and Stephen decided nobody should ever find out what had happened and they hid Daniel’s body into the container.
Two years later Ali and Jackson began to wonder whether they could go on covering up the past and whether it was better to come clean and face their demons, no matter how terrifying.The burden of guilt became too much to bear. They decided to go to the police and admit their involvement and mistakes.
My opinion
The story has a dramatic beginning. It has very powerful and very important fact. It touches on the subject of teenage suicide-common fact. I think it’s a pity that we don't explore this story deeply. When Daniel’s life was saved, Ali didn’t really seem to care.
The main point of the story is suicide. I found it strange that such an important issue as teenage suicide is marginalised. There's no explanation of the suicide. The author didn't mention any reasons. I would have appreciated a detailed explanation of suicide and reasons for it.
Guilt Trip presents a gap between leaving school, childhood and fully-fledged adulthood. Dramatic events that pull the reader in are left without any depth. Maybe it should stay like that. Perhaps, Anne Cassidy has succeeded in bringing us a lot closer to the confusing world of a 16-year-old, by leaving us with a lot of unanswered questions. But although the story is not explored deeply the book is still a page turner.
I'd recommend reading Guilt Trip in spite I might have found some things missing from the story. This book should be read by 16-18 year-olds who also find themselves at crossroads in their lives and sometimes don’t know what to do. It should also remind us that life is transient and one unexpected or precipitate action can ruin our life.
The music
Something more
Book is a mix of thriller and crime. It is based on teenage love, mistakes… It alternates from past to present and this makes it interesting.
The novel is wonderfully plotted, but the psychological dimension could be also stronger. I noticed one bigger psychological characteristic. The dark container became a metaphor for Alison's locked-up guilt. For Ali it became the symbol of suffering and dread.
It was a page turner, but I noticed that the story was maybe moving on too slowly. And characters were a bit boring. The actions of the characters were predictable. Well we actually don’t know a lot about them just a little bit about Ali.
She is a weak and pathetic girl. Her actions are not fully explored. All we know about Jackson is that he is simple kind and loving man. He is the opposite of Stephen. Stephen is a man who "likes" getting in trouble. That's why he has a criminal record. Maybe that could be the main reason that Ali liked him. And there's also Hannah. She is a hedonistic girl and Ali's friend.
The story is told from Alison’s point of view. You know know what is going to happen but the suspense keeps you going on.
But I do liked the motive of saving and murdering-the heroes became the murderers. As I mentioned the book was also suspense and that is good for summer read.
http://www.inismagazine.ie/reviews/book/guilt-trip
http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/index.php?title=Guilt_Trip_by_Anne_Cassidy