Review: The Third Twin by CJ Omololu

Book Blurb:

Identical twins. Identical DNA. Identical suspects. It’s Pretty Little Liars meets Revenge in this edge-of-your-seat thriller with a shocking twist.

When they were little, Lexi and her identical twin, Ava, made up a third sister, Alicia. If something broke? Alicia did it. Cookies got eaten? Alicia’s guilty. Alicia was always to blame for everything.

The game is all grown up now that the girls are seniors. They use Alicia as their cover to go out with boys who are hot but not exactly dating material. Boys they’d never, ever be with in real life.

Now one of the guys Alicia went out with has turned up dead, and Lexi wants to stop the game for good. As coincidences start piling up, Ava insists that if they follow the rules for being Alicia, everything will be fine. But when another boy is killed, the DNA evidence and surveillance photos point to only one suspect—Alicia. The girl who doesn’t exist.

As she runs from the cops, Lexi has to find the truth before another boy is murdered. Because either Ava is a killer . . . or Alicia is real.

My Review:

3 Out Of 5 Stars

Genre: Mystery, Teen--

Lexi and her twin sister Ava created a “third twin” Alicia, one who they blamed all their bad behavior on when little and now use as a way to date inappropriate boys. When Ava forces Lexi to go on a date with a boy she had dated and grew tired of, things start to get complicated. Lexi and Ava have both broken the strict rules for being Alicia. When the boys they have dated start to become targets Lexi is not sure who she can trust, even her twin Ava has her suspicious. I would classify this book as a teen thriller. It was a suspenseful mystery full of suspicion and murder. I was instantly captivated with the story and read it within a day without cheating in the slightest as to who the killer really was.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to read the ending of a book first, but I held off this time because I didn’t wasn’t to ruin the building anticipation I felt. Unfortunately the ending was not at all what I was hoping for and I definitely felt let down. I had predicted so many different people in the book as the killer, even a psychological break was looking like a prime suspect. I will admit that I never suspected the actual killer in my top suspects, predominantly because it does not really make sense. There were literally five other people that I was equally convinced could be guilty and I had their motives mapped out. I guess on one hand the author did a good job since it was a surprise, but not a good one in my opinion.

Lexi talks about how close she and her sister are, how she does not know how she can live without her at college, yet completely jumps the “Ava is guilty” bandwagon. I was really surprised that Lexi automatically assumed her sister was the killer and other people had to defend Ava. It was a weird twist. The story was told from Lexi’s point of view so the reader gets to see who Lexi is as a person as well as the transformation of how she becomes Alicia, because honestly Alicia is completely different from both Lexi and Ava. The story also felt a little like Lexi coming to terms with who she was as a person outside of her high expectations and preconceived notions and learning what she wants from life. So this was a mystery thriller with some growing up in it as well. I kind of like Ava and the strange mix of innocence and promiscuity she had. And yes I know the two of those don’t seem to mesh since they are usually opposites, but Ava had an inherent sweetness and loyalty even while she was sleeping with boys and wearing short skirts. I though both the girls were interesting and I would have liked to have the story told from both perspectives, but I guess that would have taken away some of the suspense of not knowing the whole story.

Overall this was an ok thriller. I was not completely blown away by it, but it did have it’s twists and turn to keep me intrigued until the let down ending. I would recommend this for older teen (and adults!) who like murder, mayhem, and gore in their mystery tales. I would read another book by this author in the future.

I received this title form the publisher in exchange for my honest review.