First published 2012
Addy Hanlon lives for cheerleading and her volatile friendship with Beth Cassidy, the squad's queen bee. When glamorous new coach Colette French arrives at their high school, she transforms the team with her demanding methods and mysterious past. Beth becomes obsessed with uncovering Coach French's secrets, dragging Addy deeper into dangerous territory. The squad's tight bonds begin fracturing under pressure from rigorous training, sexual tensions, and Beth's increasingly reckless behavior. When Coach French's personal life explodes in scandal, the cheerleaders find themselves witnesses to events that spiral toward violence. Addy must choose between her loyalty to Beth and her own survival as their friendship turns toxic and potentially deadly. Abbott captures the fierce intensity of female adolescence and the dark underbelly of competitive cheerleading.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, contemporary, adolescence, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: dark-academia, enemies-to-lovers, toxic-relationship
326 pages · Hardcover · Picador USA
Content warnings: abuse, violence