STAGS: Nine students. Three blood sports. One deadly weekend.

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To give examples of how it could be done better, a poet who knew how to use allusion effectively could have brought in a different famous line from Vergil, copied later by Dante, "I recognize the tokens of the ancient flame," which would have connected the present situation with a classic story of an abandoned woman as well as setting up suggestions of working through a purgatorial emotional state, and maybe also ironically invoking an image of redemption through love. Or if such a poem wants to bring in a great woman novelist, the three syllables "badly done" would suggest to anyone familiar with Jane Austen's work a complex of reproach, regret, and emotional misstep which could resonate with the poem's situation. Such subtleties of allusion seem beyond this book. But given the current state of literacy in America, they would probably be beyond most of the book's audience too.

So let’s start my ranting by saying that if you’re looking for your next young adult thriller then get out of here as fast of you can because nothing about this book is thrilling and if you think you’re getting into a survival story with guts and stakes then well there’s survival arc alright but it’s so underwhelming and badly executed that if leaves nothing to be desired. I assure you you’ll have a greater time with books like We Were Liars, 13 Minutes and Little Monsters. These three boos are mysterious, atmospheric and disturbing in a way this book wasn’t.

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Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | August 2017 Debut of the MonthIt is the autumn term and Greer MacDonald is struggling to settle into the sixth form at the exclusive St. Aidan the Great boarding school, known to its privileged pupils as S.T.A.G.S. Just when she despairs of making friends Greer receives a mysterious invitation with three words embossed upon on it: huntin' shootin' fishin'. When Greer learns that the invitation is to spend the half term weekend at the country manor of Henry de Warlencourt, the most popular and wealthy boy at S.T.A.G.S., she is as surprised as she is flattered. But when Greer joins the other chosen few at the ancient and sprawling Longcross Hall, she realises that Henry's parents are not at home; the only adults present are a cohort of eerily compliant servants. The students are at the mercy of their capricious host, and, over the next three days, as the three bloodsports - hunting, shooting and fishing - become increasingly dark and twisted, Greer comes to the horrifying realisation that those being hunted are not wild game, but the very misfits Henry has brought with him from school... Greer’s boyfriend and some of her friends are POC, and express to her how they feel targeted by behaviours, but Greer TOTALLY dismisses them - the author even makes out like Shafeen is completely paranoid and ridiculous for having these feelings. Yes, that's the problem. The lifestyle is very attractive and so are many of the upper classes themselves. Charm is their great weapon. Everything was underdeveloped. And then I mean everything. The plot, the world building, the school, the main character, the side character, the romance. EVERYTHING! I can’t tell you a single thing about anything, besides what was directly related to the plot.

The author captured the tone of the voice of Greer absolutely perfectly and I found her a very likeable character. Her knowledge as a film buff was very entertaining and the inclusion of film trivia placed in the story at appropriate times was both very clever and interesting. My main point is you don't need to read S.T.A.G.S to be able to follow the book D.O.G.S S.T.A.G.S 2 as in my view it can simply be read as a standalone. M. A. Bennett's writing is absolutely splendid. A remarkable author that amazed me at how each line just flowed, being very easy to get into and follow. I will most certainly be reading more by this gifted author. So there was such a heavy ominous undertone throughout this and the emphasis here is heavily on the class divide and the over-privilege of the upper classes compared to there working class peers. There is an almost bigoted elitist bias towards what they see as lesser individuals as if the accident of there birth makes them somehow superior in some way.Our main character is wholly unlikable. She's supposed to be nice, but she refers to one of the house keepers at the manor as a ' miserable hag'. The poor woman hasn't even done anything wrong! The only reason Greer doesn't like her is because on the first night at the manor Greer called her husband, and now assumes the woman hates her for it. For a book so widely praised for its poetical accomplishment, the verse here at points actually seems startlingly sloppy, factually, stylistically, and even grammatically. For instance, grammatically: Greer is not a rich kid. She's won a scholarship to STAGS, this super prestigious school set in the beautiful Lake District. Greer is an outcast because she's not rich. I can get behind that. Then she receives an invitation to spend the half term at one of the rich kids houses. Not just any rich kid though, this is Henry de Walencourt. He's the leader of the 'Medievals' - the super snotty rich kids that hate everybody else. She's ecstatic, she thinks it means she's going to become one of them. She's also totally dizzy. I hate her. And speaking of the characters, I didn’t like any single one of them. Let’s start with the villains. They are not written in a way that makes them fascinating or interesting. They do all of these things that are evil but for what reasons, where’s the motivation that can convince me that these should be really considered great villains. For me, it was so ridiculous and weird and didn’t feel that well thought out. No doubt the morning and the evening came, but we may be sure the planets did not orbit each other.