Review: THE 100 SOCIETY by CARLA SPRADBERY

Title: The 100 Society

Author: Carla Spradbery

Release Date: September 4th 2014

Age Group: Young Adult

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

BLURB

For sixth-form student Grace Becker, The 100 Society is more than just a game; it's an obsession. Having convinced her five friends at Clifton Academy to see it through to the end, Grace will stop at nothing to carry out the rules of the game: tagging 100 locations around the city. With each step closer to the 100-mark they get, the higher the stakes become. But when the group catches the attention of a menacing stalker - the Reaper - he seems intent on exposing their illegal game, tormenting Grace with anonymous threats and branding their dormitory doors with his ominous tag.
As the once tight-knit group slowly unravels, torn apart by doubt and the death of a student, they no longer know who to trust.
With time running out, Grace must unmask the Reaper before he destroys everything she cares about for ever...

Purchase: Amazon

Review

"You've been tagged. Let the games begin."

This quote from The 100 Society is reminiscent of a famous phrase in The Hunger Games. Though Carla Srradbery's story is set at a private school and not in a bleak dystopian world, this Young Adult thriller deals with the same themes of death, fear and misplaced trust.

Grace and her group of friends are talented art class students at Clifton Manor school. They are all mixed personalities with their individual hang ups, but together they form The 100 Society. To gain membership into this elite, but illegal club, 100 local landmarks need to be tagged with the artist's chosen letter of the alphabet. Grace is the self-appointed leader of the group, eager to succeed where her elder brother failed in reaching the target.

The terror begins on the night Grace and her accomplices are tagging number 96 on their list. After finding a hooded figure watching them, their blog is hacked and a Reaper graffiti tag appears not only on each society members' door, but across each landmark they have visited.

Our fear escalates concurrently with each characters' and as it becomes apparent that their lives are in danger, we question whether anybody is whom they appear to be.

Carla Spradbery successfully builds the atmosphere of suspicion and terror, but her inclusion of a romantic plot thread does not give us comfort, instead she uses the situation to invoke further feelings of mistrust.

My favourite character is Trick who is at Clifton Manor on a scholarship; being the least privileged of the group makes him the most genuine. Although he enjoys being rebellious he proves he has a huge heart.

Carla Spradbery's writing is fast-paced and her use of strong imagery makes The 100 Society an exciting read. Although this is a Young Adult book, it could easily be enjoyed be adults because of its subject matter and that makes it a definite recommendation from me!

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