What Happened to Cass McBride?

Book: What Happened to Cass McBride?
Author: Gail Giles

Kyle Kirby has planned a cruel and unusual revenge on Cass McBride, the most popular girl in school, for the death of his brother David. He digs a hole. Drugs Cass. Kidnaps her. Puts her in a box-underground. He buries her alive. But Kyle makes a fatal error: Cass knows the power of words. She uses fear as her weapon to keep her nemesis talking - and to keep herself breathing during the most harrowing 48 hours of her life. -Goodreads
Review: After asking out Cass McBride, one of the most popular girls in school and being rejected, David Kirby kills himself. Seeking revenge, his brother Kyle kidnaps Cass and buries her alive. 

This book was a surprise. Told in alternating chapters, we follow both Cass and Kyle. Cass, while not an angel, is also not your typical "mean girl." She's goal oriented and has a life plan.When she finds herself buried alive, she has to use the only thing at her disposal, her ability to communicate with her captor, to try to stay alive. I liked her resilience. Where this book was a total surprise (for me) was Kyle. I was uncomfortable reading about Kyle's history (childhood and family dynamics), because it resonated with me. At times I felt like the author and I must have been raised in similar homes. It was eery. 

Grade: 4/5