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The Dead Girls Detective Agency

(Dead Girls Detective Agency #1)

Suzy Cox

3.61 · Rating details · 1,343 ratings · 205 reviews

Pop quiz: What would you do if you had to solve your own murder to get anywhere in death?

Maybe if I hadn't slept through my alarm, slammed into Kristin (my high school's reigning mean girl) or stepped in a puddle, destroying my mom's new suede DVF boots (which I borrowed without asking), I wouldn't have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, and I wouldn't have been pu ...more

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Paperback, 384 pages

Published September 18th 2012 by HarperTeen

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Jun 28, 2012 B rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2012-reads, disappointments, netgalley-edelweiss-arc, didn-t-see-that-coming, judge-a-book-by-the-cover, read-reviewed

I don’t have much to say about The Dead Girls Detective Agency, and the hardest reviews to write are for the books I don’t have much to say for.

The Dead Girls Detective Agency is about a girl named Charlotte, who, one day, is murdered, being pushed onto a train track. As a teenager who was murdered, Charlotte is immediately brought into The Dead Girls Detective Agency. Her purpose in The Dead Girls Detective Agency is to find her killer, and, in doing so, go to heaven.

I picked up this book bec I don’t have much to say about The Dead Girls Detective Agency, and the hardest reviews to write are for the books I don’t have much to say for.

The Dead Girls Detective Agency is about a girl named Charlotte, who, one day, is murdered, being pushed onto a train track. As a teenager who was murdered, Charlotte is immediately brought into The Dead Girls Detective Agency. Her purpose in The Dead Girls Detective Agency is to find her killer, and, in doing so, go to heaven.

I picked up this book because I was looking for a cute, quick and funny read, and this book seemed like it would be exactly that. In hindsight, I should have picked up a different book ( Social Suicide , perhaps?), because, while it was a very quick read, I didn’t find it to be very cute or funny. In fact, more often than not, I found it to be depressing rather than cute. And about the humor in The Dead Girls Detective Agency… it just didn’t work. The jokes in this book feel (and are) forced, and their turnout is at best receiving a slight giggle from me, or a miniscule smirk, but that’s it. Most of the jokes in this book were just trying too hard, and just weren’t funny like I had hoped.

As well as the fail (in my opinion) with the humor in The Dead Girls Detective Agency, the writing in it is alarmingly bad, but, going into this, it’s not like I was expecting the next great piece of literature. But I guess when you have a book narrated by an annoying teenager, you’re going to have an annoyingly narrated book (and what an annoyingly narrated book it is). I get it, Suzy Cox made it a point for us as readers to know that the narrator in this book was a (painfully stereotypical) teenager, and the characters surrounding her were (painfully stereotypical) teenagers, and it got really old, really, really quick. Very early in the book, we’re bombarded with acronyms (I’ve not once heard a teenager actually say an acronym in a conversation), many capitalized words (you know, italicizing can hold the same purpose as capitalizing), and many exclamation points (seriously, I think one exclamation point after a sentence is sufficient enough). At first, all of this was something I was able to just pretend wasn’t there and hope it would go away, but, of course, it didn’t go away, and it was completely and utterly cringe worthy.

While Charlotte herself was at times a fun and witty character, she seemed too preoccupied with worrying about her ex-boyfriend’s life without her as opposed to finding her killer, and it just ended up annoying me how she kept on worrying about typical high school drama, when she really should be focusing on finding her killer, and I didn’t think she was anything to praise, and I honestly don’t think it was a good decision in my part to compare this book to Deadly Cool , and compare Charlotte to Hartley. (Because this book can’t stand up next to Deadly Cool . Deadly Cool is cute and funny without trying so hard, unlike The Dead Girls Detective Agency.)

That being said, if you’re looking for a fun, witty and quick read to pass the time, I’d go with Deadly Cool , and take a pass on The Dead Girls Detective Agency. The ending of this book clearly sets up for a sequel, and possibly a whole series, but I don’t think I’ll be coming back to read more of Charlotte and The Dead Girls Detective Agency.

*Looking back on review*

Hmm… For a book that I didn’t have much to say about, this is a pretty long review! ...more

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Sep 28, 2012 Mitch rated it really liked it

As kind of gimmicky stories go, The Dead Girls Detective Agency is just the right mix of hilariously entertaining ghost caper and sassy investigative whodunit. Suzy Cox sure has a knack for writing appealing, snarky sleuths who can poke fun at their own deaths, but, at the end of the day, still get across that it is nevertheless a murder investigation. I don’t even think I cared about the problems with having dead people investigate their own murders, starting with, well, they’re dead, because, As kind of gimmicky stories go, The Dead Girls Detective Agency is just the right mix of hilariously entertaining ghost caper and sassy investigative whodunit. Suzy Cox sure has a knack for writing appealing, snarky sleuths who can poke fun at their own deaths, but, at the end of the day, still get across that it is nevertheless a murder investigation. I don’t even think I cared about the problems with having dead people investigate their own murders, starting with, well, they’re dead, because, gosh, this book was so much fun.

I have to start my praise first and foremost with Charlotte Feldman, erstwhile subway rider and currently investigating her own murder, for making this book such a breezy read. The concept’s not hard to grasp - the book’s title alone gives away pretty much the entire setup, dead teen must solve her own murder before she can move on, but Charlotte mixes things up and makes it fun, starting from the very first scene describing her death. Obviously, being pushed off a subway platform, getting run over, and becoming one big red smear on the train tracks is really no laughing matter, but the way Charlotte goes on about things, even her presumed epitaph, “Here lies Charlotte Feldman. She pissed off commuters. A lot.” (because the police had to shut down the trains for two hours during rush hour, see?), those are the priceless things that makes what would otherwise be a dry and angsty book way fun to read about. Charlotte’s got the snark down pat through her introduction to the Detective Agency, learning the rules of the game (she has to figure out who murdered her before she can get the key to the Big Red Door and be let through to wherever ghosts go next), figuring the ins and outs of haunting, and plowing through the suspects (sometimes literally) until she hits the right one, so hers is a story that’s a lot of fun and never a bore to read even if it’s pretty basic when I really think about it.

Along the way, Charlotte’s helped by the other members of the Detective Agency, a trio of girls who definitely make her investigations way more interesting. Nancy’s the by the books Nancy Drew type while Lorna’s more fast and loose with the clues, but Charlotte, Nancy, and Lorna together, they have some pretty good back and forth banter that, while playing to various ghost stereotypes (yes, ghosts can’t imbibe ice cream as a comfort food or wear anything except the out of style clothes they were killed in, truly appalling), are still pretty darn funny when coming from those three, I swear. Not to mention various investigative antics *cough* possessions *cough* that deserve every single snicker I gave them. The only Agency member I wasn’t so sure about at first was Tess, who seemed like the stereotypical ice queen even though Cox drops a couple of hints that there’s way more to her story than meets the eye, and I only wish the big reveal with Tess’s backstory could’ve happened before the very last chapter because those last couple of details completely changed her character and now I’ll never get a true picture of her character, which is actually quite tragic, until any possible sequel.

The actual investigation, interestingly enough, isn’t the focus of the book until after the halfway point; until then Charlotte spends her time getting acclimated to her ghost status rather than pounding the pavement looking for clues or at suspects, although, like I said, Cox’s writing and Charlotte’s voice keeps the story flowing smoothly. If I had one complaint, it’s that Charlotte spends almost all her time either mostly fixated on her boyfriend David for er moving on too quickly after her death or occasionally on kind of stereotypical bad dude slash ghost Edison that she seems to find her murderer only by sheer coincidence because of the murderer’s connection to David rather than a lot of work on her part (don’t worry, that’s not really a spoiler, it’s not like the book gives any other avenues for possible motives for Charlotte’s murder). In other words, it’s always the person mentioned the least. Oh well, even if the investigation wasn’t really smart (and it’s smarter than what the police did, immediately ruling her death an accident) and Cox has to insist on a triangle, Charlotte and her investigative partners’ ghostly escapades entertain until the very last paragraph.

The takeaway I guess is that The Dead Girls Detective Agency is way more fun when it’s about the dead girls than when it’s about the detective agency. That’s not a bad thing though, not when there’s a sassy girl detective slash ghost on the loose. ...more

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Aug 05, 2012 Elizabeth Drake rated it did not like it

Shelves: 2012-books, ghosts

This and other reviews can be found on Reading Between Classes

Cover Impressions: This cover feels very contemporary fiction to me. There is nothing about the cover image that feels supernatural and only the title hints at the paranormal elements that are crucial to the story. I do not feel this one would stand out on a shelf.

The Gist: Having been pushed in front of a subway, Charlotte wakes to find herself in a swanky hotel and in the company of the Dead Girls Detective Agency. Together they mus ...more

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Jan 02, 2013 Hayley rated it it was amazing

I LOVED IT!!!! I don't get why there are so many 1-3 star reviews...seriously. Okay, so just for the records, I'm a 13 year old girl (almost 14) and I really liked this book.

Charlotte dies unexpectedly when she 'trips' into the subway track just as the F train is coming by. Then she awakes in Hotel Atessa and is informed that she has died and she's now a ghost, but that she didn't trip and that someone pushed her-on purpose, and that's why she wasn't immediately transferred to the other side, l I LOVED IT!!!! I don't get why there are so many 1-3 star reviews...seriously. Okay, so just for the records, I'm a 13 year old girl (almost 14) and I really liked this book.

Charlotte dies unexpectedly when she 'trips' into the subway track just as the F train is coming by. Then she awakes in Hotel Atessa and is informed that she has died and she's now a ghost, but that she didn't trip and that someone pushed her-on purpose, and that's why she wasn't immediately transferred to the other side, like most people who pass. In order for her to go through the Big Red Door, which is the door to the Other Side she needs her Key, which she can only get by making her murder confess out loud. But how is she to do this, when she doesn't even know who murdered her? In The Dead Girls Detective Agency, EVERYBODY is a suspect, nobody is off the hook. Not her best friend Ali, her now(ex) boyfriend David or the cheerleaders.

So, I liked everything in the book pretty much. It was a very good read and I didn't want to put it down, like at all. I read it quickly, in 3 days. It can take me up to a month to finish some books. The one major thing I didn't like about the book is that abbreviations were used in thoughts and conversations through out the book. Seriously? Nobody not even a text obsessed teenage girl thinks in her mind "LOL" "WTF" "WTH" or "IDK." So that was annoying, but honestly other then that I really loved the book. The characters were fairly good, and the story idea is so creative and unique. It caught my eye right away.

Seriously....go buy this book right now. It's really good. :)

What age I recommend it for: 13 and up.
Gender: GIRLS! I doubt boys would like this considering most of the characters are girls and it's from a girls POV.
S*xy stuff: Not much, there's kissing and hugging. Dances, and mentions of "hook ups" or "sleeping around" but nothing most thirteen year old's haven't at least heard of.
Violence: Not much, there's the mention of her death, which is her being pushed under a train and that it took "hours to clean up." But nothing really violent happens, at the end of the book a character almost gets stabbed, but it's not a very violent book.
Scary stuff: Even though the book is about ghosts, since it's from the ghosts POV, it's not scary at all.
...more

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Oct 08, 2012 Lili rated it it was ok

I traded for this book in hopes of getting a quick, hilarious read with an interesting concept. Well, the read is quick...the book has a very interesting and unique concept...but the plot felt flat and I don't have many things I enjoyed. In my opinion, the hardest type of review to write is one for a book you really didn't like. I sit here wanting to be honest with you, but it's hard to highlight the positive points without dwelling on the negatives. So I'm going to try to make this a simpler r I traded for this book in hopes of getting a quick, hilarious read with an interesting concept. Well, the read is quick...the book has a very interesting and unique concept...but the plot felt flat and I don't have many things I enjoyed. In my opinion, the hardest type of review to write is one for a book you really didn't like. I sit here wanting to be honest with you, but it's hard to highlight the positive points without dwelling on the negatives. So I'm going to try to make this a simpler review, but elaborate on my qualms and share what I adored.

The plot in this one was set up for so many amazing things, though it did fall flat. One day Charlotte was murdered, pushed in front of a train on the subway train track. She then woke up in some type of limbo for murdered teens in New York City where she meets the Dead Girls Detective Agency--Lorna, Nancy, Tess, and supposedly Edison. She can't move on and leave limbo until she solves her murder and gets the key to her freedom, so she embarks on a twisted journey to find her murderer--one the most unsuspecting characters ever.

However, I have to say that the plot was hindered by a lack of humor and odd characterizing. This book was littered with jokes to lighten to the mood of death, but they all fell flat to me. I could see the jokes so obviously there, but the only reaction they were able to solicit from me was the occasional eye roll or the need to just ignore it and keep going. I feel as if the humor was geared more towards a younger teenage who thinks weird sayings and cheesy sarcasm is hilarious. The lack of humor made the book slightly morbid at times because the humor was supposed to override the team of death and it didn't.

Next, the characterization. For the life of me, I could not connect to Charlotte. I didn't agree with her decisions, her thought processes seemed skewed and slightly batty, and I just didn't like her. While Lorna and Nancy were somewhat entertaining every now and then, they couldn't make up for my dislike of Charlotte. I also really didn't like her ex-boyfriend. Truth is, if you love someone who is murdered, you don't go and hook up with half of the cheer-leading squad just because you don't know what to do and they pay a lot of attention to you. He was not a respectable character at all and more often than not, I just wanted to get rid of him.

And I have trouble grasping the motivation for the murderer. We spend the entire book trying to figure out who it is, and while I was shocked because it was the last person I expected, I hated the motivation to take someone's life. It was messed up, to put it honestly. I know you have to be a little messed up in the head to want to murder someone, but this was just a petty excuse that should never lead to murder. I was slightly angered after reading this part of the book because it was so insane. The big climatic moment fell flat because there was no logic in it.

Sitting here reflecting on the book, I think that one of the reasons that I had all of these problems was the writing. It didn't seem that complex. It was very simple, and while I like simple, too simple can sometimes be bad. I feel like more description and attention to detail regarding emotions and descriptions may have allowed me to enjoy this book slightly more than I did. I wish that the creativity behind the plot could have been handled in such a way to create a stronger story with more likable and respectable characters. ...more

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Sep 01, 2013 Sarah Elizabeth rated it it was ok

Shelves: contemporary, young-adult, mystery, paranormal, fantasy, read-with-abbie, read-2014

(Source: I own a copy of this book.)
Charlotte is dead, but who pushed her?

I thought this would be good. It wasn’t.

The characters in this were all pretty annoying. They were juvenile, they cared more about shoes than catching killers, and why on earth so many people liked the conceited ape that was David I do not know!

The storyline was also pretty juvenile, and I just could not get into it. I was bored, the things people said were cringe-worthy, and getting to the end was just torture.
The romance ...more

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Dec 16, 2012 Trisha rated it liked it

This was a cute but interesting read. I didn't guess who done it, because I think it had an interesting twist that you wouldn't necessarily see coming.

The only thing I grumbled at was Charlotte's reaction to the living. I don't think she had a right to be mad....

But the detective agency was interesting, their rules for the living vs the dead and what they could do were fun to read. all in all, I enjoyed it. ...more

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Jun 08, 2012 shady boots rated it really liked it

Shelves: fluffy, 2012-faves, heroines-i-adore, covergasm

This review is also available over at my blog.

__________________________

There's nothing like a fluffy and hilarious read to boost my mood.

The Attesa hotel is a place where teens in the New York City area who have died in mysterious circumstances─usually murder─find themselves ending up in. There, they need to figure out who exactly killed them and therefore obtaining a Key that they'll have to use to unlock the Big Red Door that will allow them to pass on to the next life. When Charlotte Feldman This review is also available over at my blog.

__________________________

There's nothing like a fluffy and hilarious read to boost my mood.

The Attesa hotel is a place where teens in the New York City area who have died in mysterious circumstances─usually murder─find themselves ending up in. There, they need to figure out who exactly killed them and therefore obtaining a Key that they'll have to use to unlock the Big Red Door that will allow them to pass on to the next life. When Charlotte Feldman ends up there, she meets other teen girls that are also dead. Nancy (the brainy and responsible one), Lorna (the girl obsessed with anything fashion-related) and Tess (the cold and sarcastic one). They call themselves the Dead Girls Detective Agency. Also lurking around is Edison─the boy with intentions that Charlotte can't seem to figure out. With their help, Charlotte adjusts to her new afterlife and is intent on finding out who her killer is.

It was easy for me to like Charlotte. She was funny and overall very likable. When she was still alive, Charlotte had a boyfriend, David, who she was with for quite a long time. David seemed to be the nice guy and Charlotte had thought that he was her soulmate. But after her death, David is suddenly getting the attention of the popular girls in their school, and Charlotte is furious to find that he soaks up their attention and is using the "broken-hearted boy" act to his advantage. During this time, I was glad that Charlotte didn't mope around and cry all the time. She got over him pretty quickly, actually, and had no trouble seeing him for what he really is: a class-A jerk.

The actual love interest in this book, Edison, well . . . I don't really have much to say about him. He appeared to be your typical brooding bad boy at the start, but I guess he sweetened up eventually. You don't really see much of their romance. They do kiss at one point─very far into the book, thank god─but Charlotte didn't seem to be all that smitten with him, which I think is a good thing.

This book made me laugh out loud several times. The murder mystery element was okay. It wasn't exactly all that exciting, but I did enjoy some parts of it. When it was revealed who was the murderer, I'll admit it was a bit too unexpected. It was actually someone that I think only appeared in one scene of the book. Like, literally, one scene.

As for the ending, the final chapter, it was really irritating. All these bombs started dropping and made me frown and go "Wait, is this really the last chapter?" more than once. It didn't end with a cliffhanger exactly, but it was a very very very open ending. This better be a series or I'm going to flip out. It would be too evil for the author to just leave the book there and not write a sequel.

All in all, this was a pretty funny and fluffy ghost book, with a little bit of murder mystery added into it. I would definitely recommend it.

A review copy of this book was sent to me by HarperCollins via Edelweiss. Many thank you's! ...more

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Mar 27, 2012 Danny rated it really liked it

Although I’m repeating myself. I am not a big fan of Ghost Stories, however this synopsis totally grabbed me and I was eager to dig into this mystery/ghost story… and I wasn’t disappointed!

Charlotte – suddenly dead. But how?!
It was easy to get hooked right from the start. Charlotte’s voice was light and had the perfect amount of humor to make me smile despite the fact that she just died! Truly, Charlotte was a great main character I loved her witty personality and her eagerness to make the bes Although I’m repeating myself. I am not a big fan of Ghost Stories, however this synopsis totally grabbed me and I was eager to dig into this mystery/ghost story… and I wasn’t disappointed!

Charlotte – suddenly dead. But how?!
It was easy to get hooked right from the start. Charlotte’s voice was light and had the perfect amount of humor to make me smile despite the fact that she just died! Truly, Charlotte was a great main character I loved her witty personality and her eagerness to make the best out of her new situation.
One might think that the story holds a touch of sadness, since we begin with Charlotte dying! But, this is not the case and made me even like the story so much more. It’s definitely not an issue book, and rather a fun, light story of a girl finding her murderer, dealing with an (ex-) boyfriend and new mysterious boy and the her new (also dead) friends.

Flashed out secondary characters and a cute concept!
Imagine a (not to be seen) hotel full of teenage girls, all ghosts and all trying to uncover the truth behind the latest murderer. Each of the girls from the agency had their own distinct character and together they had everything from bouncy, cute, eager and .. too eager! Seeing those different girls forming a bond over the common dead/ghost status was cute and added to the overall enjoyment of the story!

Suspenseful! Murder! Mystery! A cheating Boyfriend and a new hotness on the horizon…

The story itself was absolutely great and there was never a moment of boredom! From finding Charlotte’s murders to learning what a Ghost can do, do Charlotte’s ex-boyfriends, the story was resourceful and diversified! Then there is Ed – the only boy among the girls and he’s mysterious and it’s hard to get is personality and agenda. This is also the only complain I have – I would have loved to get deeper into his personality but I am sure this is yet to come in the upcoming sequel.
Also, the latest twist was nice but could have been flashed out a little more!

Bottom Line
Cute, Entertaining, Fun and a suspenseful mystery filled with great Characters and a starring genuine heroine makes this book to a cute page-turner. The Dead Girls Agency is an awesome kick off into a new series that will get a place on my reading pile when I’m looking for a light and fun distraction!
...more

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Mar 26, 2014 Emma rated it really liked it

Overall I enjoyed this book. But I had to take it for what it is, a light hearted book aimed at teenagers. If I tried to take it too seriously I would have become disappointed. It was a fun read the story line kept me guessing. I had no clue as to who the murderer was, and how could I? I liked the rules that were laid down and how they banded together to solve murders. But if it was me and I had died, I honestly do not think that would be my reaction. Tess goes to show that bitterness and resent ...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Theresa ♫ marked it as curious

BEFORE THE BOOK HAS BEEN READ!!! A pre-review!

Ohhhhhhhh-kay, that seems interesting. The blurb . . . kinda attracted me in.
I mean the blurb had voice!!

Look, I'm SOOOOO tired of overly dramatic blurbs that go something like

Princess Shaloobaloo is a very beautiful pretty-pretty princess. One day, on an adventure to the magical kingdom, she meets a beautiful prince. But the prince has a dark secret, and no one knows it. It's Princess Shaloobaloo's job to stalk the prince to find out! But what will ...more

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Sep 13, 2013 Abbie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

The Dead Girls Detective Agency looked good, but i quickly realized it was aimed at the younger side of YA.

The characters were all really annoying, so i didn't like any of them.
They all tried really hard to be funny, but everything they said just made me cringe.

The character that i hated the most was Charlotte.
She wouldn't shut up about her boyfriend in the beginning, even though she mentioned not long before that she hated those kind of girls. She still went on about him throughout the story, ...more

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Apr 09, 2012 Lauren rated it really liked it

"Nancy Drew" meets "Pretty Little Liars" in this fun, frothy debut - here's hoping it's a series! ...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Gillian rated it really liked it

For a book about being dead, The Dead Girl’s Detective Agency sure is funny. Charlotte’s voice is awesome. I just want to hang out with her and talk about everything under the sun. But Charlotte’s a little busy, of course- solving her own murder. With a hook like that, I was sold.

Now, obviously, the plot would have to live up to my expectations. Did it? (Just look at the stars at the top of page.)

It’s a tall order to write a book about a girl who recently finds out she’s dead and keep it from b For a book about being dead, The Dead Girl’s Detective Agency sure is funny. Charlotte’s voice is awesome. I just want to hang out with her and talk about everything under the sun. But Charlotte’s a little busy, of course- solving her own murder. With a hook like that, I was sold.

Now, obviously, the plot would have to live up to my expectations. Did it? (Just look at the stars at the top of page.)

It’s a tall order to write a book about a girl who recently finds out she’s dead and keep it from being too emo depressing. But again, Charlotte is fun and funny, and it’s her attitude and the absurdity of the situation that keep it light and comical. And it’s a hoot, frankly.

Edison it totally fun too. He’s dark and dangerous, and all the not-allowed ghost stuff they do is tremendously entertaining. He is also delightfully swoon-worthy. (SPOILER) was an appropriate skeeze. Tess was an excellent foil. And Nancy and Lorna were so adorable and charming that I want them to be my friends.

And then there were the parts that weren’t entertaining, but were sad. In a good way. I was a little wary of how such a lighthearted narrator would tackle the weightier parts of death, but I have to say they worked. I actually teared up during a scene in which Charlotte observes her best friend. It was probably a smart choice not to deal too much with Charlotte’s parents, as that would have gotten WAY too heavy and I would have bawled. Every time they were mentioned, though, it was pretty affecting. I love how Charlotte, despite being dead, is able to mature from a slightly patronizing but likable hipster girl to someone a bit more grounded. All it took was being brutally murdered.

I had a minor complaint about some of the high school clichés, particularly the cheerleaders. While they made formidable villains, they were not particularly original, though sometimes that was amusing. They almost became a parody of themselves, which sort of fit in with the tone of the book. And they were admittedly hilarious. But at least the most important part- the ending, the revealing of the murderer- was something I didn’t see it coming. I enjoyed the murderer reveal, though I have a few spoiler-y quibbles I won’t get into. Mostly, I wish the motive for the murder had had more to do with Charlotte herself, rather than those around her.

Another tiny nit-picky still-loved-the-book-beyond-words-but-this-really-irked-me thing was the time Charlotte’s high school started. Yes, I'm anal like that. But any high school where you stroll on in at 9 am is my kind of high school. Meaning I’m not really sure it exists. And if it does, then that’s so not fair.

But seriously, I read this book straight through, laughing uproariously the whole time. I definitely recommend it for a fun romantic romp through the afterlife, full of heart, spunk, and charm. There's no doubt that I'll read what Suzy Cox writes next.

Originally posted at Writer of Wrongs

...more

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Oct 17, 2012 Lottie Eve rated it it was ok

This book was okay… that’s it.The Dead Girls Detective Agency could have been really good if not for a few flaws that really bothered me.

The characters were all stereotypes and when I say everyone I mean everyone even the characters that do not even play a big role in the story. I admit Nancy and Lorna were fun characters and I did enjoy reading about them even though they did not have any character development or much depth. Tess(the mean girl) is my second favorite character as she had develo This book was okay… that’s it.The Dead Girls Detective Agency could have been really good if not for a few flaws that really bothered me.

The characters were all stereotypes and when I say everyone I mean everyone even the characters that do not even play a big role in the story. I admit Nancy and Lorna were fun characters and I did enjoy reading about them even though they did not have any character development or much depth. Tess(the mean girl) is my second favorite character as she had development and depth. I felt for her and sympathised with her. Edison was a pretty good character to but sometimes I just felt he was there just so Charlotte could have a boyfriend. Charlotte the protagonist of The Dead Girl Detective Agency annoyed me…a lot. She did have her moments but her obsession with her boyfriend bothered me to the point I felt like jumping into the book and shake her for bit. Not ounce did she ever go see her parents, and only ounce did she actually check on her living friend Ali. I thought she was very judgmental and just plain bratty. My first favorite character in the book was the murderer of Charlotte. I do not know why but I felt more sorry for the crazy killer than all the other characters combined.

The story would have been good if there was more investigating than teen drama. I am okay with drama in a story but The Dead Girls Detective Agency made me feel like I was just watching some show about a girl spying on her boyfriend awhile said boyfriend is getting with other girls. The story did take off near the end of the middle part of the book(this saved the book from being a one star). The mystery took off and I started to feel excited as I was about to learn who was the murderer. The killer was someone you would never suspect and I was really impressed with the author when the killer was revealed. My conclusion: story was jut okay.

The writing was really bad in my opinion. When reading this book I was getting very irritated with all the acronyms and abbreviations. Nobody I know speaks using OMG, OMFG, and obv. In my experience they say the whole word or sentence. The dialogue felt forced most of the time and the “funny moments” were never that funny. Sometimes the book could have a really good and emotional moment but then some “funny line” would come in and ruin the moment.

So The Dead Girls Detective Agency was just not my cup of tea.

I give The Dead Girls Detective Agency 2 out of 5 Stars
You can find this review on my blog: http://lalovelystories.wordpress.com/ ...more

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Aug 01, 2012 Christy LoveOfBooks rated it it was ok

Shelves: arc-galley, e-book, read-in-2012

I knew I had to read The Dead Girls Detective Agency as soon as I saw the cute, but slightly creepy (look at the hands) cover and read the blurb. Teen ghost girls solving a murders? Yes, please. I was expecting some fun and clever shenanigans. Did it deliver? Not so much. It actually took me almost a month to finish it because I fell asleep every time I read it. I’m not even joking. At the same time though, I did like it a little. Just a little.

Charlotte is sixteen and dead. Someone pushed her i I knew I had to read The Dead Girls Detective Agency as soon as I saw the cute, but slightly creepy (look at the hands) cover and read the blurb. Teen ghost girls solving a murders? Yes, please. I was expecting some fun and clever shenanigans. Did it deliver? Not so much. It actually took me almost a month to finish it because I fell asleep every time I read it. I’m not even joking. At the same time though, I did like it a little. Just a little.

Charlotte is sixteen and dead. Someone pushed her in front of the subway, but everyone assumed her clumsy ways caused her to trip to her demises. When teens are murdered they check-in at the Attesa Hotel where they have to solve their murder in order to obtain their Key to the great beyond. This is where Charlotte ends up. She joins four other ghosts who haven’t received their Keys for one reason or another, and they all start working to try and figure out who killed her. Sounds pretty good, right? Unfortunately, no. I did so many eye rolls while reading this book… well, when I wasn’t falling asleep, that is. There were too many times that I had to question the point of what was going on, it was like Cox just needed to add fillers in the story to make it longer. They reminded me more of a bunch of ten-year-olds playing detective, instead of 16 and 17-year-olds who had been solving murders for years.

The characters were kind of boring and had no real depth; I can’t say that I cared for any of them. I expected to like Charlotte, and should have wanted to root for her. Instead, I found myself wanting her to hurry and get her Key so she would hurry and leave. All of her attempts at witty humor got old fast. Don’t get me wrong, I love all types of humor – dark, cheesy, snarky, etc. But 80% of the humor in this book just fell flat for me. As for the other characters, they honestly aren’t worth mentioning.

So why did I say that I liked the book a little when it sure doesn’t sound like it? I don’t know. Maybe it’s the idea of what this book could’ve been that gives me a tiny soft spot for it. As of now, the book seems to be a standalone, but it could easily be turned into a series. To be honest, though, I don’t think that tiny soft spot is enough for me to want to read a sequel.

Overall, I just couldn’t get into The Dead Girls Detective Agency. I’m sure there will be plenty of people who love this book, but I’m not one of them.
...more

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Aug 28, 2012 Laudys rated it liked it

Shelves: giveaways

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Disclaimer: I won this book in a giveaway.

I wanted to like this book. The idea/plot/concept is really good, other than that.... I couldn't really get into it. The characters were just so, ugh. I wanted to throttle them most of the time instead of caring about their hardships and feelings.

David went from the most perfect specimen of human male to douchebag in no time flat. I couldn't understand why Charlotte reacted so strongly when the Queen Bitch kissed him. She was the one putting all the mov Disclaimer: I won this book in a giveaway.

I wanted to like this book. The idea/plot/concept is really good, other than that.... I couldn't really get into it. The characters were just so, ugh. I wanted to throttle them most of the time instead of caring about their hardships and feelings.

David went from the most perfect specimen of human male to douchebag in no time flat. I couldn't understand why Charlotte reacted so strongly when the Queen Bitch kissed him. She was the one putting all the moves on David, whose girlfriend just died and was pretty lost and confused, but suddenly he was the bad guy? Why, I wondered. Then I realized, David needed to step down from the pedestal so Ed, the cliché mysterious and bad guy could get on it. Because he was so infuriating that Charlotte, obviously, couldn't keep away from him. Yeah, right.

I couldn't get past of how much Charlotte kept talking about David and how much they had been in love when it took her, what, four days to start rambling about how green Ed's eyes were or how tall he was and so hoooooooooooooot. Talk about double standard, but wait, it was okay because it was already established that David was a cheating bastard! How convenient.

And what about the rest of the cookie-cutter cast? The bookish by-the-rules Nancy, the fashion airhead Lorna, the bitch Tess, the perfectly blonde and evil cheerleaders, the fat loser Brian, who of course must have disgusting eating habits, talk in technology analogies, have a blog, play Dungeons and Dragons and, God forbid, actually watched Ghost Busters; and Library Girl. Yes, Library Girl. So invisible she doesn't even have a name and so perfectly crazy.

And what about self-righteous Charlotte? She was as every bit judgemental as those Cheerbitches about everything. Listening to Kelly Clarkson, saying "dude", so proud for not knowing Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, Evanescence. Like if she was sooo much better than the rest of them because she listened to Death Cab for Cutie or The Artic Monkeys. Give me a break.

The only reason why I'm not giving it a lower rating is because it's passable enough, if you can live through all the obvious tropes and outcomes. ...more

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Jun 17, 2012 Amber at Fall Into Books rated it it was ok

The Dead Girls Detective Agency is supposed to be cute, funny, and lighthearted, but it just wasn't for me. I felt like this book was intended for more of a pre-teen audience than young adult. Because of that, it was hard to stay focused on this book. It didn't hold my interest very well, and the characters were a bit immature and flat for my liking. People who like books for the younger teen audience should enjoy it, though!

The narrator, Charlotte, was extremely annoying. She was a stereotypica The Dead Girls Detective Agency is supposed to be cute, funny, and lighthearted, but it just wasn't for me. I felt like this book was intended for more of a pre-teen audience than young adult. Because of that, it was hard to stay focused on this book. It didn't hold my interest very well, and the characters were a bit immature and flat for my liking. People who like books for the younger teen audience should enjoy it, though!

The narrator, Charlotte, was extremely annoying. She was a stereotypical bratty teenager, and I really couldn't connect with her at all. She was also a weak, boy-crazy girl. She cared more about what her ex was up to than who killed her. Like I said, seriously immature. I can't stand when heroines are obsessed with boys. It's so obnoxious. Furthermore, the supporting characters were flat and stereotypes as well. I really hate stereotypes, and this book was full of them. Even the dialogue was stereotypical "airhead" teenager. It got on my nerves fast and made it hard for me to concentrate. A younger audience may not notice things like that, but I did.

Another thing that disappointed me was the fact that this book wasn't as humorous as I had hoped it would be. The supposed humor felt forced, and it just flat out wasn't funny. The writing was sub-par at best. Cox needs to learn the proper usage of punctuation and not put 5 billion exclamation points after every sentence. It was seriously ridiculous and made me want to throw my Kindle out the window.

The mysteries also weren't that mysterious to me. I don't know if everyone could figure everything out as easily as I did, but there was no mystery about this book to me. The plot dragged for me in places, too. Additionally, the synopsis is a bit misleading... This book read nothing like a Meg Cabot book. I'm a huge fan of her Abandon series. Cabot's books actually have some stuff going on under the surface. This was just all fluff.

Overall, I'd recommend this book as a light read to people 13 and under. They would enjoy it much more than I did, I'm sure. ...more

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Sep 16, 2013 Alexandra Florence rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: don-t-bother, review, young-adult

I liked the concept of this novel, ghosts searching for their murderers in New York City, however I felt that the story was centred far too much on Charlotte loving her ex-boyfriend. The protagonist Charlotte's obsession with her love for her ex-boyfriend, which led her to the idea of a beyond the grave love affair, was irritating. Suzy Cox repeatedly highlighted the teen love, which created Charlotte as a winey character. Unsurprisingly, the annoying character of Charlotte created a book that w I liked the concept of this novel, ghosts searching for their murderers in New York City, however I felt that the story was centred far too much on Charlotte loving her ex-boyfriend. The protagonist Charlotte's obsession with her love for her ex-boyfriend, which led her to the idea of a beyond the grave love affair, was irritating. Suzy Cox repeatedly highlighted the teen love, which created Charlotte as a winey character. Unsurprisingly, the annoying character of Charlotte created a book that was annoyingly narrated. There was very little humour within the novel, any humour that was present appeared forced and was never really that funny.

Charlotte’s preoccupation with her ex-boyfriend's new love life was focussed on in the novel more than finding her killer; this was therefore very frustrating as the 'true love' between the teen characters became very stereotypical.

Within the novel Suzy Cox used acronyms, such as OMG, OMFG, and WTF. Acronyms are not cool, they are not effective, but they are infuriating. Along with the (very) annoying use of acronyms, Suzy Cox deviated from the traditional italics to highlight and stress words, and instead used capital letters. I also found this decision irritating, however as much as I tried to ignore them, they did not go away.

All of the characters in the book, Charlotte, David, Nancy, Lorna, Tess and Edison were stereotypical. Tess was the typical sarcastic character with an evil glare. Tess, along with Edison, the dark and mysterious male with a troubled past, were the two most complex characters within the novel. However, upon figuring out their characters and motives their actions were predictable.

Overall, I would not recommend this book, unless you want to waste a few hours. This was a humourless, boring and predictable read with annoying characters that lacked depth and that were all stereotypes of students at high school. The end of the book is clearly structured for a sequel, however I will not be revisiting Charlotte and ‘The Dead Girl’s Detective Agency’. ...more

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Jul 02, 2012 Emma rated it it was amazing

This is definitely a fun read! I found the plot line intriguing and compelling, and enjoyed the way that the book kept me guessing without being too far-fetched - well, yes, I realise that a dead girl trying to track down her own murderer is a little beyond the realms of reality, but in terms of the relationships and the reactions of Charlotte, the main character, I found it very convincing.

When Charlotte comes round after being pushed onto the subway track, she understandably cannot believe wh ...more

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Dec 16, 2012 Jessica rated it it was ok

Shelves: first-reads

It's been a few years since I was a teenager, but I have a question: are teens today really that obsessed with fashion, to the point that they know tons of different designers just by looking at an article of clothing? Is this something that just happens in New York City? I'm really not sure, but I felt like this portion of the story was pretty unrealistic. I wouldn't know a Gucci if it hit me in the face, even though I read at least a few issues of Cosmopolitan every year, and I don't know anyo ...more

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May 08, 2014 Michelle rated it liked it · review of another edition

I have seen The Dead Girls Detective Agency around on the blogosphere but never got a chance to read it. I got a copy sent to me from the publisher to read both books in the series as part of the blog tour, and I got to it as soon as possible. The idea of The Dead Girls Detective Agency sounded interesting, and I wondered how this would work, how would a ghost solve their murder?

The whole learning curve on how to be a ghost isn't as easy as Charlotte or myself expected, and there is the whole 'Y ...more

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Aug 26, 2013 Melissa rated it liked it

I liked The Dead Girls Detective Agency. It was entertaining. A few things though. The main character, Charlotte doesn't seem too? Pressed? For lack of a better word to find out who killed her. Granted the mind of a teenage girl (even in the afterlife) maybe wouldn't stray to far from her boyfriend. BUT, if said boyfriend wasn't letting your seat in chemistry get cold before he started hooking up with "not his type" cheerleaders (plural) after you are murdered... Maybe you'd see the more urgent ...more

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Nov 19, 2016 Catie Brutvan rated it really liked it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 19, 2012 WatermeLoonie rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2014

First thoughts in the first chapter? Fuck. This is going to be horrible.
Luckily, the strange and admittedly anticipating plot line had me hooked despite the poor and bland writing. The ideas that turned up in this novel were fun, admittedly BUT I'M SUPER PISSED THAT THEY CAN'T FLY. WHY ARE FLYING GHOSTS ILLOGICAL? MURDERED GHOSTS TRYING TO FIND THEIR KILLER TO GET INTO THE AFTERLIFE IS WHAT'S ILLOGICAL HERE, NOT THE FLYNG. AND PORTING? SERIOUSLY? T_T NO.

But otherwise this book was fun and suitab ...more

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Mar 07, 2012 Tabatha marked it as to-read

Shelves: owned, owned-to-read, i-want-this-now

This sounds right up my street! Can't wait for it to come out, and I will be counting the days for sure! (: ...more

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Sep 29, 2014 Alyssa rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorites

I loved it!I loved how the author wrote it. I couldn't put it down! ...more

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Feb 23, 2020 François Thurston rated it it was ok

This book was an ok read. Not amazing but also not terrible.

3 CON's:

1) The references to actors, shows, films, singers, bands and songs. - Ok, so if a book references some famed 'thing' normally I don't mind as it's done maybe once or twice. This book was LITTERED with these references. From Jack (Titanic) to Edward & Bella (Twighlight) to Leonardo Di Caprio (in a seperate reference from the earlier 'Jack' one) to Robert Pattinson (in a seperate reference from the earlier 'Edward & Bella' one). ...more

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May 26, 2018 old account (rl) rated it liked it

Shelves: 2014-read

2.5 stars

The Dead Girls Detective Agency promises for a gripping murder mystery with some ghostly and pathetically girly fun yet all we got was the pathetically girl part. Where was the clue solving? The detecting? All that fun tracking-the-killer-from-beyond-the-grave stuff? I know it was in there somewhere but I guess it was just piled beneath all the cheesy and overdramatic boy drama and twelvie nonsense. I have to say that I am really disappointed that this wasn't as good as it could have be ...more

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Dec 31, 2018 ladybookwyrm111 rated it did not like it · review of another edition

DNF I think the last percentage was 17%. I really tried to finish this one. I really wanted to like it.
I found out about this book when I stumbled on the show (on Snapchat and YouTube) and quite liked it. The bare bones of that and this are similar. Teen gets pushed of a train platform wakes up in a mysterious ghost hotel, with the title group.
While I expected major differences between the show and this...I thought that the book would be better. The book is always better, right? Unfortunately, ...more

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About Suzy Cox

Suzy Cox

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Suzy Cox is deputy editor of Cosmopolitan UK. She lives in London, but she loves New York.

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Dead Girls Detective Agency (2 books)

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“There must have been a real mess on the tracks,’ Lorna said, ‘They shut down the F train line for a whole two hours for you. Two hours! And in rush hour!’
My final achievement. Man, I hoped Mom was getting that put on my gravestone. Here lies Charlotte Feldman. She pissed off commuters. A lot.” — 12 likes

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