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Even If We Break

Marieke Nijkamp (Goodreads Author)

3.44 · Rating details · 61 ratings · 46 reviews

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Marieke Nijkamp comes a shocking new thriller about a group of friends tied together by a game and the deadly weekend that tears them apart.

FIVE friends go to a cabin.
FOUR of them are hiding secrets.
THREE years of history bind them.
TWO are doomed from the start.
ONE person wants to end this.
NO ONE IS SAFE.

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Hardcover, 336 pages

Expected publication: September 15th 2020 by Sourcebooks Fire

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Even If We Break
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Marieke Nijkamp (Goodreads Author)

Release date: Sep 15, 2020

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· 61 ratings · 46 reviews

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May 20, 2020 Nilufer Ozmekik rated it liked it

Oh, no! I hear the choo choo sounds of the disappointment train is about to arrive to the “this story is going anywhere” stop! Five friends in the cabin with secrets gave me “Cabin in the Woods’ vibes but promising premise and exciting start turned into something slow, repetitive, boring drama. And slowly all those brilliant potentials start to drown in a muddy place as my dreams about reading action packed, full of adrenalin rush thriller disappear forever!

I like the representation of transgend Oh, no! I hear the choo choo sounds of the disappointment train is about to arrive to the “this story is going anywhere” stop! Five friends in the cabin with secrets gave me “Cabin in the Woods’ vibes but promising premise and exciting start turned into something slow, repetitive, boring drama. And slowly all those brilliant potentials start to drown in a muddy place as my dreams about reading action packed, full of adrenalin rush thriller disappear forever!

I like the representation of transgender kids and five friends’ gathering together for playing a game before parting ways is a promising idea to start a story. Finn got into a fight caused him walking with crutches and ending his friendship with Liva. And now they’re in the same group, barely looking each other’s faces. Ever suffers from guilt feelings because of burden of the secret he carries and Carter starts being paranoid because as soon as they reach the cottage where they perform their role-plays, finds notes about his secret left in his room. And Maddy is still traumatized, suffering from PTSD because of trapped in her burning car after her accident.

I actually didn’t expect their game would be a role-play, wearing costumes, investigating a murder mystery for visual universe. But I was still invested and kept on reading and second half of the book turns into some kind of teenager drama: instead of slow-building high tension thriller, the characters start to make long talks about their feelings and regrets so I felt like I was reading a never ending therapy session.

The conclusion of the story is not bad but I find it unrealistic and a little illogical. It didn’t fit my expectations. So I’m giving three stars only because of the smart plot, likable characters but in my opinion the second half of the book should be rewritten. The ultra- slowed down paced and story’s changing direction disappointed me. It was great start but it could be so much better.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for sharing this intriguing ARC with me in exchange my honest review. ...more

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Mar 06, 2020 megs_bookrack marked it as to-read

Shelves: ya-thriller-horror-to-read, 2020-releases

1. A Weekend Getaway.
2. A Game.
3. Deadly Secrets.

I will never skip a book with these buzzwords.

Sign me up! ...more

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Apr 20, 2020 Mara YA Mood Reader marked it as to-read

Shelves: 2020-new-releases, autumn-reads-halloween

Yaasss bring on the creep factor just in time for Fall!!

4/20/2020 ...more

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Jan 07, 2020 Rec-It Rachel rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020-releases, 2020-reads

first book finished in 2020

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Jun 25, 2020 Tracy rated it really liked it

Shelves: teen

I had a little trouble with the point of view changes. I also find this a little too violent for me to recommend to most teens. Maybe I'm a naive parent, but I'd like to think none of my kids friends are capable of this kind of terror

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May 23, 2020 Theresa rated it really liked it

Shelves: friendship, death, romance, thriller, lgbtq, realistic-fiction, addiction, autism, contemporary, high-school

I received an ARC through NetGalley from Sourcebooks for this YA thriller. Five teens with a stressful friendship history go to a cabin to play an RPG, when things start to go off script and they are running for their lives. I liked the alternating character perspectives of 5 unique and diverse characters. Each character felt very distinct, but I wanted more backstory to make the tension higher. The story was not defined by their diversity, but about what got them to the cabin and what would hel ...more

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Dec 28, 2019 여리고 marked it as to-read

Shelves: 2020-reading-list, wishlist, 2020-releases, dying-to-get-ahold-of

I hope this turns out to be everything her sophomore novel is not. I will gladly wish for anything but.

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Jun 21, 2020 Lu rated it really liked it

Shelves: in-english, earc, drammatic, lgbt

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you, Sourcebooks Fire, for this opportunity!

TW: transfobic assault, panic attacks, addiction, torture, death, violence

Ever, Finn, Carter, Liva and Maddy are a group of friends tied together by a game called Gonfalon, a role play game created by one of them. Now three years later, everything is different, they are changed and one weekend in a forest cabin will force them to confront their lies, fears and secrets and while I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you, Sourcebooks Fire, for this opportunity!

TW: transfobic assault, panic attacks, addiction, torture, death, violence

Ever, Finn, Carter, Liva and Maddy are a group of friends tied together by a game called Gonfalon, a role play game created by one of them. Now three years later, everything is different, they are changed and one weekend in a forest cabin will force them to confront their lies, fears and secrets and while playing the role game Gonfalon, they start to realize something or someone is playing with them, trapping them in a more lethal game.

I liked Even if we break so much! Set in a luxorious cabin in the forest, everything changed and adapted to recreated the invented world of Gonfalon, the story is told by five different POVs and through flashbacks, memories and game the reader is able to know all the characters.
Ever are the game master, the creator and they are burdened by secrets, worrying for their sister and future and for their crush.
Finn is disabled and struggles with his crutches and a transfobic assault and the indifference of a nearby friend left him scarred, distrustful and in pain, psychological and physical.
Carter is a wannabe rich kid, always clashing with the actual rich kid of their group, Liva and one of the few people able to connect with Maddy.
Maddy is autistic and a knee injury left her without be able to play her favourite sport and lost in pain and in herself.
Liva is the rich kid, the almost too cheerful and insensitive one, the costume creator.
During the game, playing their own characters, they realize they are being targeted, scared and hurt by someone or something in the cabin or in the forest around them and when one of them is missing and one is killed, the three of them realize only together and relying on one other will they be able to escape.

I found the character well written and rounded and I was involved in the situation, while reading about their "adventure".
One of the things I loved the most in this book is the way the author talked about the neurodivergent character, Maddy; she, with her panic attacks, her thought and emotional process was incredible to read, very realistic and well done.
The way both Finn and Maddy were struggling with their pain, emotional, physical, was beautifully and skillfully written and really relatable.
Reading about their struggles, Ever's because of their poverty, their need to take care of their younger sister, their worry about their future and the money struggles, Maddy's depression and addiction, Finn's mistrust and fear of being let down and hurt again, even Liva's jealousy, Carter's actions, everything was intense, captivating and I couldn't put down the book until the end.
The game, Gonfalon, was interesting, and the game created to hurt and expose them was creepy and thrilling.

I I loved the trans rep and the connection, friendship and love between Finn and Ever, they are incredible together and so cute and sweet. I liked reading about their crush for one other, their friendship, their memories.

Even if we break is a book about friendships and connections and I really liked the relationships between the characters, above all between Ever, Finn and Maddy and how they support, help and love one other so fiercely.
It's a thrilling thriller, creepy, captivating and with wonderful, intense and complex characters, with their problems, fears, emotions and relationships. ...more

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May 06, 2020 Andria Sedig rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2020

This book had SO. MUCH. POTENTIAL. The first half of the book did a really spectacular job building anxiety and suspense while creating an incredibly spooky ambiance. I loved that this book was about a bunch of kids who like to role play stories together. I loved the different point of views and how the author slowly began to unravel backstories and create tension between the characters. I loved the haunted cabin backstory and how that was woven into the mystery that the characters were solving. ...more

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Jun 17, 2020 Tina rated it it was amazing

EVEN IF WE BREAK by Marieke Nijkamp is a fantastic YA thriller! I loved reading this book and finished it in one day! This novel is about a group of five friends who go to a cabin to play a game but no one is safe. The point of view switches between the five friends so you really get to feel where their motivations come from. I loved the elements of suspense and mystery but I really loved the diversity of characters. It was so great to read a book with a character who uses they/them pronouns, a ...more

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May 21, 2020 Audrey rated it liked it

Shelves: alright, 2020, arc

I'm torn.
This is the second book I've read by Marieke Nijkamp, and there were some things I enjoyed. Ahem:
1) It was definitely a thriller and I'm usually hard-pressed to find a thriller that doesn't keep me turning the pages
2) It's use of RPGs as the backdrop for the plot and the friendship was really interesting and well done; I hadn't seen a book that used that before. I'm not super familiar with that world, but it seemed very well-researched. And finally:
3) The diversity?
This is where thi I'm torn.
This is the second book I've read by Marieke Nijkamp, and there were some things I enjoyed. Ahem:
1) It was definitely a thriller and I'm usually hard-pressed to find a thriller that doesn't keep me turning the pages
2) It's use of RPGs as the backdrop for the plot and the friendship was really interesting and well done; I hadn't seen a book that used that before. I'm not super familiar with that world, but it seemed very well-researched. And finally:
3) The diversity?
This is where this book gets hard to review for me. I really admire the work that Nijkamp does in promoting diverse books and calling for greater representation in YA. It just felt a little forced? I don't know how to explain it. I was thrilled to see representation in this book that I've literally never read in fiction before. And I appreciated that a character could have a disability, or not be neurotypical, or not be cisgender, and not have that be the only aspect of their personality. But the fact that there were soooo many of these aspects for such a small cast of characters, and many of them really weren't explored at all, it almost felt like they were just tossed in there, and didn't give any legitimate representation to the experience.
There was a comment early on in the book about how the characters were considering adding another member to their friend group because they were collectively too white. It just started to give me the vibe that this was diversity for the sake of getting diversity points.
This kind of plays into my overall problem with the book. It just lacks subtlety. Everything was extremely cut and dry; the characters almost felt like caricatures. They would go on paragraph long rants explicitly outlining their struggles, or what they're feeling, or how they believe things should be. I felt like I was just being handed morals.
The mystery element also was kind of lacking. Sure, there definitely was a mystery, but the reader isn't really given many opportunities to solve it. There is one solution that is foreshadowed so obviously throughout the beginning of the book that you realize it CAN't be that one, and the true solution just comes out of nowhere, with very little explanation for how it could've even been possible.
I do appreciate this book for what it did do well. It was fast-paced and easy, which is what I was hoping for. And it did give lots of important representation. I just feel like it could've been executed better. This is pretty similar to how I felt about Nijkamp's debut, as well. The ratings of her three books have been pretty consistent across Goodreads, so I'm wondering if her writing just isn't for me. However, if you're looking for a fast-paced story with some rep and RPG references, it's worth a shot. ...more

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May 21, 2020 Chloe added it

*Spoiler free*

Even though thrillers are so hit or miss for me, I seem to be drawn to every single one I stumble across. This one was no different. I had seen it around here and there, but when I finally found out what it was about, I was intrigued. And when I got the chance to read it, I jumped. Broken friendships and a deadly weekend, secrets and lies. It sounded like something that'd terrify me in the best way. Trigger warnings: blood, addiction, gore

I guess thrillers that I love are just real *Spoiler free*

Even though thrillers are so hit or miss for me, I seem to be drawn to every single one I stumble across. This one was no different. I had seen it around here and there, but when I finally found out what it was about, I was intrigued. And when I got the chance to read it, I jumped. Broken friendships and a deadly weekend, secrets and lies. It sounded like something that'd terrify me in the best way. Trigger warnings: blood, addiction, gore

I guess thrillers that I love are just really hard to find for me. This definitely isn't a bad book and there were things that I really liked about it! There were just some aspects that I felt missed the mark or fell a bit flat.

Starting off, this book has SO MUCH REP. Like, I'm so shocked that I haven't heard more about this! There's a trans boy whose disabled, a non-binary person, and an autistic girl. I can't comment on the quality of the rep other than it's there. Expect the non-binary rep, which I loved. I also loved that so much of it is just there. The characters are trans, disabled, and autistic and that's just fact. I loved how it was such a big part of the book, but also felt so casual.

The other thing that I liked was that when this book got it intense, it went intense. When it decided to ramp things up, it went all in.

I also really liked the role playing game all the friends played! They created such a cool fantasy world and I loved how it played into the plot.

Now on to the things that weren't my favorite. I felt like this book was really, really wordy. There were so many flashbacks, and I didn't quite understand the point of them. I liked seeing the group of friends when they were happy, but I didn't quite get what they were supposed to add to the plot. And there just seemed to be so many of them. I think I got frustrated because I wanted things to move forward. There were so many long stretches of thought, about the deep feelings between characters or how they see their place in world, in between tense moments, that I felt like the tension and suspense was slowly draining out of the scene. And then flashbacks would happen and it just got two wordy for me.

This book also managed to seem too fast and too slow at the same time. I felt like two major things (trying to be super spoiler free haha) happened a bit too early. I felt like the thriller was kicking off and the mystery beginning before enough groundwork was laid. Then, as the book went on, I felt like the story dragged because of the wordiness. It was a weird mix of "please speed up" and "please slow down" at the same time.

I feel pretty neutral about the twist. It's dark and it where the book begins to get intense. I wasn't sure at first when it was revealed but the reasoning behind it was terrifying. Though, I do wish more time could have been spent on the effect it had and why it happened. I felt like it was cut a bit short and I would have loved to delve deeper into it.

All in all, I didn't hate reading this book. The writing style is incredibly readable and it's obvious that Nijkamp is really talented. I loved how much rep this book had and the intensity of it when it decided to go all in. There were just a few things that missed the mark for me. Nevertheless, I think it's a really solid book! ...more

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Jun 14, 2020 Alex rated it liked it

Shelves: 7-8-and-9

Thanks to the publisher for providing a digital ARC of Even If We Break in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a self proclaimed horror junky. I used to pride myself on having read every single goosebumps book (published pre 2013), I grew up on scooby doo, then goosebumps, then are you afraid of the dark and the haunting hour and now I watch and read every horror story I can get my hands on. Even If We Break is not a horror story.

Even in kids horror, one of the most important aspects of a scary st Thanks to the publisher for providing a digital ARC of Even If We Break in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a self proclaimed horror junky. I used to pride myself on having read every single goosebumps book (published pre 2013), I grew up on scooby doo, then goosebumps, then are you afraid of the dark and the haunting hour and now I watch and read every horror story I can get my hands on. Even If We Break is not a horror story.

Even in kids horror, one of the most important aspects of a scary story is anticipation. It's why monsters usually don't get screen time until the third act. Even if We Break has all of its 'horror' packed into the same few middle chapters and once it happens, tensions lost. The set up was really cool. A splintered friend group going to a cabin to play a murder mystery themed RPG? Incredible. But then there's a whole lot of "I see a shadow" before an actual threat is introduced to make the shadows add tension before two back to back killings. Our group is a group of 5 kids and by not spacing out the deaths, it ruined a lot of the tension the book could have built (especially considering the first one happens 'off screen'. Not showing a body adds to the fear of uncertainty but then a few pages later the book goes 'here's a body' and ruins it).

This is shelved as a mystery/ thriller though, so is it a mystery? Again, I don't really think so. The moment the first murder happens, you know who it is because of things I won't discuss for obvious spoilers. This book really only has 6 suspects, the 5 players and their one missing member and once two characters are gone, it's hard not to know exactly who did it. I loved how diverse this book is and saw a few reviews saying having a neurotypical character, an enby character, and a trans character in the same group of 5 was unrealistic but I don't believe that's the case. That being said, a book claiming to highlight this diversity is extremely unlikely to have on of their diverse characters be a secret sociopath so since the story also has such a small cast, it was hindered from the get go.

Even though I knew who the murderer was going to be, the twist STILL felt ludicrous. I'd had most of the book to try and wrap my head around a motive and while they (I use the anonymous they here, I'm not confirming or denying that the only character in this book who uses they/them pronouns is the murderer) technically reveal it, it still felt way too out of left-field to be buyable.

Scary stories stay with you because of their believability. We abandon fears of monsters and boogeymen when we become sure they don't really exist. Realistic set scary stories need believable antagonists more than they need antagonist heroes because a murderer who you could realistically imagine in the real world is terrifying. Even if We Break has a lot of really fleshed out characters and character dynamics, but falls short on its villain and ultimately suffers for it. ...more

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Jun 27, 2020 Sarah Leigh rated it really liked it

"Your journey always starts with a murder."
Five teenagers go up a mountain to spend one final weekend playing their LARP/RPG. Each of them is broken. Each of them has a secret. Each of them is doomed.

Full disclosure - I started reading this book at about 11:30 at night and ended up reading it straight through because I could not put it down. I NEEDED to know how the story ended. If you are like me, with a bit of a runaway imagination, and you tend to be drawn into thriller/horror novels - maybe "Your journey always starts with a murder."
Five teenagers go up a mountain to spend one final weekend playing their LARP/RPG. Each of them is broken. Each of them has a secret. Each of them is doomed.

Full disclosure - I started reading this book at about 11:30 at night and ended up reading it straight through because I could not put it down. I NEEDED to know how the story ended. If you are like me, with a bit of a runaway imagination, and you tend to be drawn into thriller/horror novels - maybe start this one during the day. The premise was extremely engaging - five friends are coming back together one last time to play a type of RPG that they all created together and have inhabited for the past three years. You find out early on that something has happened to fracture and break different individuals, but you don't get to find out why all at once. Nijkamp does a great job including just enough information to keep you guessing and trying to figure out the puzzle. The cabin where they are all staying is supposedly haunted (very "Cabin in the Woods" vibes here) but once they get to the cabin and begin the game it seems that things will go okay. Until one of the five disappears, leaving behind a pool of blood (and other spoiler-related things) and the night starts to go very wrong, very fast. Nijkamp is great at the suspense building - my heart was pounding, my brain was racing, and about the time I got to the first major scare, I had to turn on the lights to calm down. The story continued in ways that were predictable at times but always managed to be surprising in other ways. My one complaint is that the reveal/conclusion of the mystery didn't seem to have enough explanation. When we find out why all of this is happening and who/what is behind it I was a little disappointed that there wasn't more specific, explicit information about the why behind it all. However, this could also be because it was about 3 am and I was a little wired. It also doesn't negate how twisty and turny the story is and how much I needed to know what happened.

The story features great representation as well, with two trans/non-binary characters, and a character who is realistically neurodivergent. None of this felt forced either; it very much felt like these were real people and a realistic group of high schoolers who would naturally have become friends and formed bonds. I loved the way that the POV changed from chapter to chapter which let me have a better understanding of the situation as a whole as well as how each character was responding to stress and would potentially respond in the future. Definitely a great read for the fall, when the nights start getting longer, and the ghosts come out to play. "The mountain is hungry. The night has teeth. And both demand to be paid their price in blood." Ready to play?

*ARC received from Netgalley in return for honest review ...more

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Jun 30, 2020 Baraboo Public Library Teen Reads rated it really liked it

Shelves: staff-recommendations, ya-horror, ya-realistic-fiction

Rating: 3.5 stars

Even If We Break has a lot to offer as a YA novel. The characters are wonderfully diverse: two of the five (Finn and Ever) identify as transgender (one of them is non-binary, while the other suffers from arthritis and uses crutches). The third main character, Maddy, is non-neurotypical and suffers from chronic pain, leading to a pain pill addiction. Carter has secrets of his own, while Liva, the rich popular teen, always feels left out. The romance between the two transgender te Rating: 3.5 stars

Even If We Break has a lot to offer as a YA novel. The characters are wonderfully diverse: two of the five (Finn and Ever) identify as transgender (one of them is non-binary, while the other suffers from arthritis and uses crutches). The third main character, Maddy, is non-neurotypical and suffers from chronic pain, leading to a pain pill addiction. Carter has secrets of his own, while Liva, the rich popular teen, always feels left out. The romance between the two transgender teens is beautiful and I really loved the friendship between Carter and Maddy.

The premise of this novel is wonderful. The five teens, who have become distant as summer approaches, and due to a painful bullying incident for Finn, come together one last time to play their beloved RPG. (Thing Dungeons and Dragons as a murder/mystery live action scenario). They have all traveled to Liva's family cabin deep in the woods for the weekend. As they prepare to play, terrifying things start happening, and instead of having their one weekend to enjoy their game and reconcile their differences, they must instead work together to fight for their lives.

First of all, I LOVE scary books. I've never had to put a book down because I was so thoroughly afraid, but this was the first one that made me do so. I loved that about it. I loved the characters, and I loved how they worked together. The only reason I'm giving this book 3.5 stars instead of 4 is because I thought the ending fell a little flat after the incredible first half and the scares I encountered. I did also wish there was more to the book. Because the characters were so different and their voices are so needed in YA, I wish there was more to this . I would have loved more backstory on the characters and their friendship because I think the terror and the way the characters were manipulated by the evil force in this book could have hit even harder.

I also LOVED the RPG element of this book. It was beautifully done (saying this as a DND novice) and I really enjoyed that aspect of the plot. And in addition to being really diverse, the characters felt real, and their friendships felt genuine. I just wish it had been a little more fleshed out. I'm excited to recommend this book to teens and educators in my community.

*** SPOILERS***

Content: There was pointedly no (or very very little) profanity, no sex but some kissing, and there was some violence due to the nature of the book. There was drug use, but the character dealing with the addiction had a redemption moment. ...more

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Jun 06, 2020 Daniel rated it liked it

Shelves: lgbtqia, ya, suspense-thriller

I was so happy to read this story centered around trans, non-binary, disabled, and neurodiverse teens! The representation is fabulous, and the characters are interesting. No character is defined by their gender, sexuality, disability, or anything. They all have complete lives, positive traits, and flaws. At times, the story was terrifying, gripping, heartfelt, and funny. The characters' relationships were interesting and complex, and I liked how the story highlighted themes of wealth, class, and ...more

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Jul 10, 2020 Erikka rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2020, mystery, lgbtqia

What starts as a queer Clue-like LARPing romp turns into a real mystery in this amazing new heart-pounder from Marieke Nijkamp. While I felt that there were some laggy bits in the plot (I am often bored by long stretches of self-reflection), there was enough action to keep the plot moving along. I love that, although the characters are all implied white, there’s a tiny comment that sneaks in that basically says “this is what YA always looks like and it’s time for that to change” (it’s subtle, bu ...more

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May 29, 2020 Dallas Strawn rated it liked it

I have such mixed thoughts on this book. I consider myself a fan of Marieke Nijkamp's. I LOVED her debut book....hated the second book she wrote, but was still super thrilled for this one and hit the button to request it on NetGalley as quickly as it was on there. And at first I was so disappointed. I was bored to tears by the beginning, I thought the whole role-playing game plot theme was dumb as could be, and at the 30% mark I was ready to DNF this and call it a day...but then something wild h ...more

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Jun 01, 2020 Sam rated it liked it

I’ve never read a book with so much diversity. I think it will resonate with a lot of young adults as it represent more of the current culture than any other book I’ve read. It’s diversity in race, which is one of the things that goes mostly unspecified, but neuro-diversity a gender-diversity are a big part of this book, but definitely not the main point.

Ever, Finn, Maddy, Carter and Lila are group of friends who are going to Liva’s cabin the woods to play their role playing game one last time. ...more

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Jun 12, 2020 Ab rated it it was ok

Shelves: netgalley, ya-ness, queer-lit, it-s-a-mystery

So, like several other reviews, this book has several good things about it - inclusive character representation, from trans characters, differently abled characters, an autistic character ... It also treats each of these characters as significant, essential elements of the whole story. They aren't just "window dressing" or tokenized additions. That being said, the story itself was just not great. I really didn't feel like it went many places that mattered, or, rather, the book didn't do a good e ...more

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May 01, 2020 Elizabeth rated it really liked it

Five friends head out for a weekend to complete their long-standing role-playing game, knowing it is the end as they graduate high school and head off on their own paths. Though they have grown apart over the years, each has their reasons for wanting to bring the group back together one last time. For one, the purpose is more deadly.

One of the main things I loved about this was the use of the RPG to drive the story-line. RPGs, like D&D, have risen in popularity over the last couple of years. I ...more

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May 22, 2020 Anika rated it really liked it

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC!

YO THIS WAS WILD (until about 2/3 of the book, then it kind of dragged)! This book was so incredibly well-written and the plot of it was great. Again, Marieke proves just what a great writer they are and how well they handle multiple POVs.

My favourite part of this book was the RPG element. I loved the little bits of RPG storytelling in between every few chapters or so. It was a nice way to break up the narrative without straying from the plot.

My only issue wa ...more

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Jun 28, 2020 Shelly Shaffer rated it really liked it

This book takes readers on an adventure where five friends go to a cabin in the woods to play an RPG game over one weekend. The RPG game they play has to do with solving murders in a magical world, but when the game turns real, the teens must figure out how to survive. The characters in the story have diverse identities: a nuerodiverse, ex-Lacrosse star; a trans boy and trans girl; a wealthy, popular girl; and a boy who wants to be wealthy and popular. Nijkamp addresses many of the struggles fac ...more

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Jun 18, 2020 Ashley rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, 2020

I received a free advanced reader’s copy from Net Galley. One of my favorite things about this author is her ability to change what her books are about so significantly. This book is unlike any other I have read by her or that I have read in general. I do not have a lot of knowledge about live action role play games, and learned a lot and gained a new respect through this reading. I appreciated the incredibly diverse and realistic group of characters. At its core, Even If We Break is a story of ...more

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Jun 29, 2020 Shannon Hollinger rated it really liked it

This was a fast-paced, interesting YA mystery thriller. Diverse characters and a suspenseful plot kept me turning the pages, but it was the mystery that kept me hooked. I enjoyed the way the characters' RPG roles intertwined and influenced their realities, but found the game itself a bit distracting (although I'm sure there are people who will love it).

The mysterious ghost story about the cabin was a nice touch - I would have liked to see a little more of this element, if only to keep the reade ...more

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Jul 11, 2020 Melanie Johnson rated it it was ok

The premise sounds amazing:woods,cabin,ghost stories and 5 friends. This is YA story that reads very YA, so there is nothing wrong with that per se, but I’ve read a lot of YA that was enjoyable to me as an older reader. There is a lot of angst and insecurity and several times I thought “geez, just tell them how you feel already!” Also, this wasn’t very scary because the story was really more about these kids inner turmoil instead of a “Halloween” type book. I think the cover and the blurb is a d ...more

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Jun 02, 2020 Theresa rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, thriller, young-adult

A group of friends is playing one last game, into their world of Gonfalon. The story is told from alternating viewpoints, and each friend has something to say about their friendships, and their friendships are fading. So, they know this may be their last game together at Liva's cabin in the mountain. There are some stories of murder in those mountains, and when things start to go wrong, the friends first thought is of those stories. As people get hurt and maybe even killed, the friends have to f ...more

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Jun 04, 2020 Amber Brooks Bowie rated it liked it

I am an avid reader of mystery, thriller, and suspense books, and Marieke Nijkamp never ceases to keep my stomach in knots when I read. I have 2 other books from this author, and they are able to capture and hold my students' (and my) interest. In "Even If We Break," readers learn about a group of friends who uses a cabin to "play a game". This book definitely brings the thrill, and sometimes loses my interest with extra information. Some elements were a little confusing, but overall, it was a g ...more

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Jul 03, 2020 Victoria Bunce rated it it was amazing

I received a copy of EVEN IF WE BREAK on NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to the author and publisher for this opportunity.

FIVE stars and here’s why:

Marieke Nijkamp does not disappoint! I’m a sucker for YA stories with a mystery and thriller thread to them. And the author did a fantastic job of weaving in a suspenseful plot about how far someone would go for a friend. If you love suspense stories with a diverse cast, fast-paced writing, and characters that lingered long afte ...more

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Jul 11, 2020 Ocean rated it really liked it

This was an incredible thriller that really had me spooked at times. I didn't spend much time thinking about who was behind the things that were happening until about 200 pages in, at which point I figured it out and then later found out I was right. The story was interesting and I really enjoyed it, the way the role play game fitted into the story was really fun. There was a lot of diversity in this small set of characters, which is what drew me into the book in the first place. There's trans r ...more

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About Marieke Nijkamp

Marieke Nijkamp

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Marieke Nijkamp a storyteller, dreamer, globe-trotter, geek.

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