From the bestselling author of The End of Everything, a searing new novel about the dark heart of adolescence.
Dare Me
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more. |
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
Review
'Deliciously compelling' Heat
'Megan Abbott is an extraordinary writer' Nick Hornby, The Believer
'Mesmerising . . . A truly nerve-shredding crime plot . . . exemplary writing.' Independent on Sunday
'A taut, twisted tale . . . Dare Me shimmers with dark sexual tension' Marie Claire
'A tense, fast-paced psychological thriller' The Times
'Megan Abbott is an extraordinary writer' Nick Hornby, The Believer
'Mesmerising . . . A truly nerve-shredding crime plot . . . exemplary writing.' Independent on Sunday
'A taut, twisted tale . . . Dare Me shimmers with dark sexual tension' Marie Claire
'A tense, fast-paced psychological thriller' The Times
Book Description
Beth and me wedged tight, jeaned legs pressed against each other. The sound of our own breathing. Before we all stopped believing a tornado, or anything, could touch us, ever. Addy Hanlon and Beth Cassidy are tough, inseparable, invincible. No pair more charismatic or sophisticated. No pair more dangerous. But with the fall term, their new coach arrives and things begin to change. She has plans for the cheer squad: all sleek poise and cool command, the girls are soon entirely in her thrall. Faster, harder, higher, thinner, the stakes raised, their world contracting, they compete to risk – everything. She, meantime, has been crossing a line of her own. From the brilliant author of The End of Everything, Dare Me is a searing novel about the allure of adulthood and the dark heart of adolescence: the fierce bonds between girls, their bitter rivalries, and their power to transform one another.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
By Roman Clodia
TOP 50 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
Like Megan Abbott's The End of Everything, this is another dark and unsettling read centred on the edgy instability of female adolescence.
Our narrator, Addy, is sixteen and is one of the high school's sassy cheer-leading team, along with her best friend Beth. A new female coach arrives and disturbs the status quo, soon inviting the team to her house where they drink, obsess over her and misunderstand her relationship with her quiet, seemingly dull husband. Only Beth refuses to succumb to Coach French's charms, and takes it upon herself to reveal what only she can see...
I loved this book which is more subtle and nuanced than The End of Everything. There's a dangerous edge to everything that happens but it's subliminal and oblique rather than obvious. Abbott is particularly good at charting the shifting tides of power and powerlessness, knowledge and innocence in these girls, as they experience an adult world which they think they understand but which overwhelms them.
The world of cheer-leading is an alien one to UK readers and it takes a bit of time for us to catch-up, but it fits well with the overall atmosphere of danger and unease as the girls push themselves physically and psychologically towards a kind of perfection. The hints of anorexia, dysmorphia, competition and physical danger blend well with the unsettling depiction of nascent sexuality.
So overall this is a gripping and atmospheric read with some important things to say about the modern female psyche - highly recommended.
Our narrator, Addy, is sixteen and is one of the high school's sassy cheer-leading team, along with her best friend Beth. A new female coach arrives and disturbs the status quo, soon inviting the team to her house where they drink, obsess over her and misunderstand her relationship with her quiet, seemingly dull husband. Only Beth refuses to succumb to Coach French's charms, and takes it upon herself to reveal what only she can see...
I loved this book which is more subtle and nuanced than The End of Everything. There's a dangerous edge to everything that happens but it's subliminal and oblique rather than obvious. Abbott is particularly good at charting the shifting tides of power and powerlessness, knowledge and innocence in these girls, as they experience an adult world which they think they understand but which overwhelms them.
The world of cheer-leading is an alien one to UK readers and it takes a bit of time for us to catch-up, but it fits well with the overall atmosphere of danger and unease as the girls push themselves physically and psychologically towards a kind of perfection. The hints of anorexia, dysmorphia, competition and physical danger blend well with the unsettling depiction of nascent sexuality.
So overall this is a gripping and atmospheric read with some important things to say about the modern female psyche - highly recommended.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This is the second novel by Abbott that I have read. In many ways it is similar to her previous book, THE END OF EVERYTHING, but there are important differences. Once again, Abbott examines the darkness that can lie in the hearts of female adolescents. However, DARE ME feels more sustantial than THE END OF EVERYTHING.
The story follows sixteen-yesr-old Addy Hanlon and her cheerleading friends. Of all the girls on the squad, Beth is her closest friend. At the very beginning of the book, the cheerleading squad have a new coach, Coach French. It is upon her arrival that everything seems to change. She pushed them further, makes them aim higher, but it is her budding 'friendship' with Addy that really sets things into motion.
That is all of the synopsis I will give away. DARE ME is a novel which has many layers to it. Ultimately, it is the examination of adolescent sexuality, friendship, obsession and loyalty which binds this novel all together. Abbott uses cheerleading as a backdrop to Addy's, providing a metaphor for how the girls view themselves, each other and the world around them. The result is a dark, edgy book which is, in some ways, more subtle than THE END OF EVERYTHING, but perhaps more developed and engaging.
I would definitely recommend this novel. If you like dark and compelling literature, then this is for you.
The story follows sixteen-yesr-old Addy Hanlon and her cheerleading friends. Of all the girls on the squad, Beth is her closest friend. At the very beginning of the book, the cheerleading squad have a new coach, Coach French. It is upon her arrival that everything seems to change. She pushed them further, makes them aim higher, but it is her budding 'friendship' with Addy that really sets things into motion.
That is all of the synopsis I will give away. DARE ME is a novel which has many layers to it. Ultimately, it is the examination of adolescent sexuality, friendship, obsession and loyalty which binds this novel all together. Abbott uses cheerleading as a backdrop to Addy's, providing a metaphor for how the girls view themselves, each other and the world around them. The result is a dark, edgy book which is, in some ways, more subtle than THE END OF EVERYTHING, but perhaps more developed and engaging.
I would definitely recommend this novel. If you like dark and compelling literature, then this is for you.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Mike Gerrard
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've been a fan of Megan Abbott since her first book, and think she's the best woman crime novelist writing today. This one didn't disappoint. She seems to get better with each book, where most crime writers seem content to write the same book over and over and just change the names of the characters. The crime took quite a while coming, and when it came it wasn't the person I expected it to be. It's sinister and creepy and also says a lot about contemporary America, but in a very roundabout way.
My only complaint is I paid full-price for the Kindle version as I couldn't wait to read it, and now it's on sale for less. Oh well, that's the way it is in the digital world! If you like the author you won't be disappointed, and if you've never read her before you've a treat in store.
My only complaint is I paid full-price for the Kindle version as I couldn't wait to read it, and now it's on sale for less. Oh well, that's the way it is in the digital world! If you like the author you won't be disappointed, and if you've never read her before you've a treat in store.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 128 reviews
3.3 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
An interesting story
Who thought the world of cheer leading could be so vicious. A great title describes the book well. The story of a group of cheerleaders in an unknown American state who are... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Reading flower
3.0 out of 5 stars
it's ok
Not a particularly remarkable book, but entertaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Published 2 months ago by dandradea
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing
A review from a friend - 'I am a person who devours books, and after reading a few of the reviews I was really looking forward to a good read. Read more
Published 2 months ago by M. O. HAYNES
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very little to distinguish it
I found this on a blog-post listing 2012's best crime thrillers/murder mysteries and so was looking forward to a page-turning head-scratcher. Read more
Published 2 months ago by R. Lyons
1.0 out of 5 stars
Zzzzzzzz
Ive given up on this book a third of the way in as its so boring! Would not normally give up on a book but just couldnt read anymore. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Kazimodo
2.0 out of 5 stars
Chick Lit
This is definitely 'ChickLit' about cheerleaders and the viciousness and manipulation of teenage girls, unless this is your thing it's not worth the read
Published 3 months ago by Smoyle
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dare to reveal
I didn't think I would enjoy a book about cheerleading, something which might, in real life, briefly stimulate the enjoyment pulses but then is all forgotten as the girls troop... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Michael Watson
1.0 out of 5 stars
So boring
Couldn't be bothered to finish it. One of those books that you can't remember and don't care what is happening from one page to the next.
Published 4 months ago by Kathryn Llewellyn-Jones
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hard read
I read so many good reviews about this book, but I found it quite a difficult read. It's very 'bitty', and doesn't flow particularly well. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Natasha Bibi
3.0 out of 5 stars
Cheerleading?? Not a UK thing.
Maybe it's because I'm not American but a living the cheerleading terms were lost in me and I wasn't able to fully understand and connect with the story as the culture was... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Ife Akano-Williams
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
