S.T.A.G.S. by M.A. Bennett is a YA thriller that’ll remind you of Mean Girls, until a lovely weekend away turns deadly.
About ‘S.T.A.G.S.’
At St. Aidan the Great School, or STAGS, new things–and new people–are to be avoided. The grandeur of the boarding school and the prestige of the students’ bloodlines seem surreal to Greer MacDonald. A scholarship student who recently transferred to STAGS, Greer is ignored at best and mocked at worst by the school’s most admired circle of friends, the Medievals.
Greer is taken by surprise when the Medievals send her an invitation to an exclusive weekend retreat at the private family estate of their unofficial leader, Henry de Warlencourt. It’s billed as a weekend of “huntin’ shootin’ fishin’.”
As the weekend begins to take shape, it becomes apparent that beyond the luxurious trappings, predators are lurking, and they’re out for blood.
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‘S.T.A.G.S.’ book review
“I think I might be a murderer.”
That’s the opening sentence to S.T.A.G.S. by M.A. Bennett, and it’s quite the hook, isn’t it? From the very beginning, you know the main character has killed someone. You even know who. You can guess why, but you don’t know how. And that’s just one of the many driving factors of this book. It’s what keeps you reading.
Greer MacDonald doesn’t fit in at St. Aidan the Great School (S.T.A.G.S.), the oldest school in England. You have to be wickedly smart to attend, and typically very rich. Greer’s got the smarts, but not the money. Fortunately, she’s there on a scholarship. Unfortunately, that puts a target on her back.
The Medievals are like the Plastics from Mean Girls, running the school like they own it. There are six of them, each incredibly intelligent, wealthy, and cunning. When Greer and two of her peers are invited out for a weekend of huntin’, shootin’, and fishin’, she thinks it’s because she might become a Medieval.
She’s dead wrong.
If you’re just dipping your toe into the thriller genre, S.T.A.G.S. is a great place to start. It’s mild enough that you won’t feel compelled to keep your lights on at night, but just deadly enough that you’ll stay interested. The mystery of the story is only a fraction of what makes this book so good.
Author M. A. Bennett has a knack for creating memorable characters. Each one has a defining characteristic, a unique quirk that makes them stand out in your mind. Despite telling you exactly who is the worst Medieval of them all from the start, she creates a character that you can’t help but feel for.
And that’s what gets Greer into such trouble.
But Greer is smart, and despite a few touch-and-go moments when she’s swept up in a possible romance, she’s the kind of character I love reading — smart, funny, independent, a tad rebellious, and empathetic. She’s got movie knowledge for days, and for the pop culture junkies out there like me, you’ll really enjoy a few of the references she makes.
Greer’s not perfect, however. She does make mistakes. But she owns up to them and rights the wrongs she feels she’s made.
This book is great, from start to finish. It’s one of the first books in a long time that I’ve had trouble putting down. But what makes it worth the nearly 300 pages of text is the ending. I wouldn’t have wanted S.T.A.G.S. to finish in any other way, as thrilling and as frustrating as it was. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.