The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die

By April Henry

“Take her out back and finish her off.” She doesn’t know who she is. She doesn’t know where she is, or why. All she knows when she comes to in a ransacked cabin is that there are two men arguing over whether or not to kill her. And that she must run. In her riveting style, April Henry crafts a nail-biting thriller involving murder, identity theft, and biological warfare. Follow Cady and Ty (her accidental savior turned companion), as they race against the clock to stay alive.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Jun 11, 2013
• ISBN: 9780805095418

April Henry

April Henry is the New York Times bestselling author of many acclaimed mysteries for adults and young adults, including the YA novels Girl, Stolen and The Night She Disappeared, and the thriller Face of Betrayal, co-authored with Lis Wiehl. She lives in Oregon.

Reviews for The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die

[tiffanyak_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thought it was ultimately pretty simplistic, even for a YA book. Probably the biggest flaw that I noticed is a tendency toward telling rather than showing. While it's good to close plot holes, it quickly becomes tedious to have it be done in such a fashion. For example, one character who cannot possibly know exact events will recount them to the character that does know purely for the sake of the reader. But, this of course becomes a plot issue all its own. Now outside of this, while I disliked the first-person narration, it did soon grow on me quite a bit, and the central plot at the start of the book is extremely intriguing. Events did seem to soon stretch well beyond the point of reasonable believability, but it was still an interesting ride. While I didn't really love it, the book was still a quick and worthwhile read.

[shellypya · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

She doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know where she is, or why. All she knows when she comes to in a ransacked cabin is that there are two men arguing over whether or not to kill her. And that she must run. Follow Cady and Ty (her accidental savior turned companion), as they race against the clock to stay alive.

[lillibrary · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

After reading April Henry's "The Night She Disappeared" I was looking forward to her newest release, especially since it had been described as a "Jason Bourne-like thriller for teens." Alas, no. While it was fast-paced and action oriented, the storyline was thin and suffered from too many contrivances and stock characterizations.
Unfortunately, the people in this story did not act in a plausible way. Katie's skillful fighting, for example, honed after a few months of self-defense instruction, felt unrealistic. Her instant bonding with a McDonald's employee who found her hiding in the bathroom was eye-rolling at the very least, and another instance of reader disbelief. Too much of this and the plot began to feel less compelling.

[sues7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Reminded me of a female version of The Bourne Identity to begin with. Story moved along quickly with plenty of intrigue and action to keep your attention.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

THE GIRL WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE was an engaging, heart-pounding thriller that was filled with mystery and danger. A sixteen-year-old girl returns to consciousness to hear the two men who have tortured and beaten her decide to kill her. She manages to use skills she didn't know she had to get away from the man left of kill her but her troubles are just beginning.She has no idea who she is or what it is she is supposed to know. She doesn't know who she can trust. She has quite a few close calls because the unknown villains are hot on her trail. She is befriended by Ty who is a formerly homeless young man finishing his senior year and working at McDonald's. He decides to help her because people had helped him when he needed it. Together the two of them manage to unravel the mystery. I liked Cady and Ty and thought they were very realistic. I liked the writing style which relied and short sentences and first person narration. I think this title would be good for middle graders and reluctant older readers as well.

[a_reader_of_fictions · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This review is going to be uncharacteristically short for me, but the book itself is pretty short, so I suppose that's fitting. Since this is going to be one of those 3 star reviews that sort of reads like I didn't like the book, let me say this up front: I did like The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die. I'm not generally a big fan of thrillers, but I previously quite enjoyed Henry's Girl, Stolen, so I hoped that I would like this one just as much. Still, TGWWSTD was a fun, quick read overall.In general, I would say that April Henry accomplishes what she set out to do in this book. TGWWSTD entertains. The plot moves along at a fast pace, and it's certainly never boring. The reader can't help but be curious and the pages flip by quickly. TGWWWSTD serves as the literary equivalent of a fairly mindless action movie, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.The techniques Henry uses to accomplish this are quite standard thriller fare, which is why my enjoyment of this one boils down purely to the sheer entertainment factor. The main character has amnesia for much of the book, waking up in a cabin as two men prepare to kill her. Sure, amnesia happens, but it's over-employed in such action plots to up the danger level, since the MC doesn't have any idea where to go or who to trust.Henry's writing consists of simple sentences and fragments. This style does create a sense of rushing headlong through the story. Thriller authors employ this method to create a feeling of urgency. While I do think it does work, I just generally prefer complex, more ornate writing. The combination of the writing, short chapters, and fast pace will likely make this an excellent choice for reluctant readers.Most every chapter ends on a mini-cliffhanger, immediately resolved on the next page. Yet again, this technique does keep the reader moving through the novel at a fast clip. It's designed to make TGWWSTD a one sitting read, because you have to keep going to answer the lingering question from the last chapter. Effective, but trite.While not thoroughly fleshed out, Henry's characters are sufficiently realistic for her purposes. Cady and Ty are likable enough that the reader does want them to win out over the bad guys. The skills that Cady possesses seem a bit convenient, though some are explained, like her ability to fight. What really feels unlikely is that Cady met Ty, a boy just this side of destitution, who is willing to miss class, endangering his dream of being an EMT, and work, risking putting him on the streets, to help save her from men with guns. Sure, he's nice, but, really, who's going to do that? I can see helping her when they first meet, but he's with her to the end, and I just don't see that. He also just happens to have the right amount of cash saved up so they can do what they need to do.The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die runs just 213 pages. With short chapters and a fast pace, it's an excellent choice when you want something you can read quickly for sheer entertainment value. Ultimately, though, it's not particularly memorable and I won't be revisiting it.

[mirandalg14 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.5 stars.

I enjoy a good suspense, so as far as that goes this was good. I had an issue with the way the amnesia was addressed in the beginning, but that seemed to reconcile itself as it went along and was explained in the end. There were some "twists" that weren't really that surprising to me, but they weren't horrible so it didn't detract from the story too much.

[warriorlibrary · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very fast paced thriller with short chapters. It would be good for reluctant readers.

[goorgoahead · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I loved the opening chapters of this book, as we meet Cady, who has no memory of who she is or why she's being held captive by men who want to kill her. The scenes are quick and short as she slowly comes to and gets an understanding of her surroundings, and tries to figure out how to get herself out. Watching Cady try to understand the situation only to have her escape be undermined by the people who are after her makes for some very tense ready, especially as she has to try to convince people that she's not crazy.

Despite the trauma Cady has endured, she is very smart and quick on her feet to help get her out of the situation and to safety. She winds up being helped out by Ty, who is an interesting character in his own right, and I wish we'd seen more of him. Despite getting a pretty thorough backstory, he sometimes feels a little flat, and I would have liked to see him get more fleshed out. Regardless, he's a huge help to Cady and while there's some flirtation between them, the bulk of the story is really focused on Cady's situation and getting her out of danger, so it's not distracting to the overall storyline.

For me, however, the story started to go downhill as Cady got closer to unraveling the mystery of her identity and why people were after her. Other than one red herring early in the story, the bad guys are all super obvious and not really believable at all, once their identities are revealed. The writing gets less tight and a little clunkier as the book finishes up, and, well, I guess this is a spoiler, but things go right into Happily Ever After land, which felt way, way too easy given all of the terrible things that happened.

As an aside, not to related to my enjoyment of the book or anything, but I definitely do not love this cover. Aside from the man's hand looking like it was poorly Photoshopped there, I think the image is menacing in a way that's very unappealing. The ARC cover is just text with a mottled blue/green/grey background -- while simple, it felt eerie and moody, like the opening chapters of the book. I would have preferred something a little more abstract than faceless-girl-with-hand-over-face.

Despite some scenes of violence, I would say this book is appropriate for readers on the younger age of the YA spectrum and up. It's written in a very simple, quick-paced way and more advanced readers will probably fly through it.

[agentx216 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A real middle of the road book. The plot has been done before. The characters do all the right things to advance the plot. It's a quick read and doesn't seek to improve upon the tropes. Final Grade - C-

[beth.clarke · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If you're looking for a face-paced book that is exciting from the first page, this is it. There isn't a boring page in the entire book. I will warn you though, once you start reading, you'll want to read until it ends. A great book for high schoolers that want a non stop thriller.

[skstiles612 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely love April Henry's books. In this book the first chapter grabs you and reels you in. A young girl comes to unsure where she is, who she is or what has happened. The only thing she knows for sure is she just overheard two men talking about how she knows nothing and they need to kill her. From here on out the story unfolds in layers. From her escape at the beginning of the story to finally remembering who she is, what happened to her, and finally to its awesome ending, this book will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat. I read it in about three hours. I knew there was no way I could not finish the book. This has been on my shelves at school and many of my students have read it. The only reason I finally got my hands on it was it was turned back in and I immediately put it in my own bag to read. I highly recommend this book. The events are so realistic I found myself worried for the main character. The reader finds themselves identifying with the character and wondering what they would do in a situation like that. Go ahead start with this one and see if you don't have to read her other books.

[bookswithbite · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wanting something a bit different to dive into, I picked up this book knowing it get give me exactly what I’m looking for.1. Plot. Dude. Seriously, this author really knows how to write a plot. It’s intense with so much fear and adrenaline going on, that you can’t help but be sucked into the book.2. Characters. Did I mention that not only can this author write a plot but her characters rock as well. Well written and easy to step into, I fell into this book fast. Nothing can pull me out of it.3. Mystery. This book made me feel like I was on a quest. A quest for answers. Who is she? Why can’t she remember what happen? Is she being setting up? So many questions, it kept me firmly in the book and very entertained.4. Unexpected love. I really loved this part. Through out the story, Cady finds love in the most horrible time of her life. He is awesome and a great friend. And really their friendship turned into a unexpected love that I still can’t get over.5. Too short. That was my only problem. I wanted more!!!!! WAH!!! Still, in this short book the author is able to pack in so much goodness that I can oversee it and still be happy.In the end, I LOVED this book. Like, loved it so much I can read it over again. Admirably faithful to a great plot and world building, I have fallen into the story with much satisfaction. Showcasing a well paced story with such visuals it will shock you, The Girl Who Was Supposed To Die is magnetizing.