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WORK TITLE: Murder on a Summer Break
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WEBSITE: https://www.katewestonauthor.com/
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PERSONAL
Female.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and comedian. Former and occasional stand-up comic; has worked as a bookseller.
AWARDS:Comedy Women in Print (CWIP) Prize longlist and Carnegie Medal nomination, both for Diary of a Confused Feminist.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
[open new]Having honed her sense of humor as a stand-up comic, British author Kate Weston turned to writing comedic and mystery fiction for young adults. She has also written an adult mystery. Weston made her debut with Diary of a Confused Feminist, which was published in England in 2020 and in the United States four years later.
Weston’s first novel finds fifteen-year-old Kat Evans inclined toward feminism, like best friends actress Millie and artist Sam. Watching the Golden Globes in 2018 prompts an attempt at a spray-painted, #MeToo-allied protest on school grounds, but they get caught three letters into #TimesUp (giving creepy Tim Matthews the wrong idea). Otherwise Kat finds more questions than answers as she crushes on new student “Hot Josh,” a model, but gets laughably nowhere even as Millie and Sam get wrapped up in new boyfriends. A dropped menstrual cup, a lamentable ghosting, mendacious rumors, and a mean prank propel Kat along a downward spiral. Fortunately support promises to come in several forms, including family, a therapist, and Kat’s call to activism.
Diary of a Confused Feminist was hailed by a Publishers Weekly reviewer as a “winsome” comedy, with the protagonist reminiscent of a teenage Bridget Jones of fictive diary-keeping fame. The reviewer appreciated how Weston treats “sensitive issues of anxiety, compulsive behaviors, and depression with clarity and tact through intricate and deftly timed comedic scenarios.” A Kirkus Reviews writer admired how Kat “poses authentic questions that interrogate the tenets of feminism in a thought-provoking, accessible way,” helping make the book a “raucously entertaining examination of feminist principles.” In Booklist, Donna Scanlon called Kat “wickedly funny … and an engaging, sympathetic character” and hailed Diary of a Confused Feminist as a “laugh-out-loud novel about a witty and wonderful young woman.”
After writing a sequel to her debut, Weston turned to young-adult mystery with Murder on a School Night, narrated by high-school senior Kerry. In the English village of Barbourough, aspiring journalist Kerry and amateur sleuth Annie are both fans of Agatha Christie, avowed feminists, and, in their own estimation, profoundly unpopular. Change may be on the horizon when Heather, leader of the superior clique Les Populaires and heir to a period-product fortune, asks for their help dealing with Instagram threats. When Heather throws a party, fellow clique member Selena turns up dead, having choked on a menstrual cup, and Annie and Kerry must upgrade their efforts to a murder investigation. While Kerry starts flirting with newcomer Scott, two more murders happen—and signs start pointing to someone too close for comfort.
A Publishers Weekly reviewer remarked that Weston “flaunts cozy English charm and puerile slapstick comedy” in this “propulsive mystery,” which signals its heritage in classic clique film Heathers. The reviewer added that “refreshing attention to sex positivity and period politics” contribute to the “laugh-out-loud romp.” Chelsey Masterson observed in School Library Journal that a “solid plus is the friendship displayed between Kerry and Annie.” Suggesting that the novel’s “goofy capers and over-the-top scheming” are elevated by the friends’ intimate bond, a Kirkus Reviews writer called Murder on a School Night a “nuanced, hilarious page-turning romantic mystery” that provides an “insightful parody of teenage life.”
Asked by Cherokee Crum of YA Books Central about her inspiration for the social-media-centered plot of the sequel, Murder on a Summer Break, Weston related: “My interest in the hold that social media has over us and the way we view content was piqued during the pandemic when I, like most people, couldn’t stop scrolling TikTok. I couldn’t work out why I was wasting so much time watching other people doing their day-to-day stuff. It wasn’t making me feel good because I found myself constantly comparing myself to other people, yet I couldn’t stop watching. It also made my cat angry because he could hear that I was watching videos of other cats, and he was furious. Our relationship took a while to heal.” Another aspect of her personal life that she drew on in writing this novel was her experience with panic attacks. She expressed to Crum that fictional representations of such attacks “are important scenes because they might help people who also get panic attacks to feel like they’re not alone. I hope they help people. I used to get them a lot when I was younger and felt like I was dying, so to see someone else experiencing it in a book would have definitely helped me!” Also coping with OCD, Weston mentioned to Crum that mental health as well as period health are important causes to her, as decades of struggling with her period eventually led up to a diagnosis of Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), a condition that correlates with mental-health crises. Mentioning to Crum many people’s reluctance to acknowledge such issues, Weston affirmed it important to “erase this shame” by talking about them more.
Murder on a Summer Break takes place at an influencer festival, where Kerry and Annie are trying to parlay the local esteem they garnered by solving the period-product murders into broader fame. Annie has dubbed them the “Tampon Two”; so far on the hit ReelLife platform, she has two followers. Hoping to cross paths with savvy feminist influencer Winona Philips at the festival, Kerry and Annie end up confronted with another series of murders, starting with the death of sexist prankster Timmy Eaton apparently via suffocation with a well-stretched condom. A Kirkus Reviews writer found that this novel’s “absurd, over-the-top” scenarios help Weston deliver an “effective, scathing indictment of influencer culture.” The reviewer affirmed that the “zany influencer antics” are entertaining, “clever plot twists abound,” and Murder on a Summer Break proves a “clever, laugh-out-loud parody offering spot-on social commentary.”[close new]
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, December 1, 2023, Donna Scanlon, review of Diary of a Confused Feminist, p. 121.
Kirkus Reviews, May 15, 2023, review of Murder on a School Night; October 15, 2023, review of Diary of a Confused Feminist; April 15, 2024, review of You May Now Kill the Bride; August 1, 2024, review of Murder on a Summer Break.
Publishers Weekly, May 15, 2023, review of Murder on a School Night, p. 127; October 30, 2023, review of Diary of a Confused Feminist, p. 100.
School Library Journal, September, 2023, Chelsey Masterson, review of Murder on a School Night, p. 113.
ONLINE
Bots Bookshelf, https://botsbookshelf.com/ (September 4, 2024), author interview.
Kate Weston website, https://www.katewestonauthor.com (March 10, 2025).
Nerd Daily, https://thenerddaily.com/ (July 2, 2024), “Q&A: Kate Weston, Author of ‘Murder on a Summer Break.’”
YA Books Central, https://yabookscentral.com/ (September 13, 2024), Cherokee Crum, “Interview with Kate Weston (Murder on a Summer Break).”
Q&A: Kate Weston, Author of ‘Murder on a Summer Break’
Emily M·Writers Corner·July 2, 2024·5 min read
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We chat with Kate Weston, author and ex-stand-up comic about her latest YA mystery, Murder on a Summer Break. This follows Kerry and Annie after their sleuthing hijinks in Murder on a School Night as they gatecrash the influencer section of a summer festival, which soon turns deadly. The series blends feminist messaging that empowers readers with hilarious moments, great characterisation and of course plots that will keep you reading through the night.
Hi Kate, thank you for joining us today! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and your latest book Murder on a Summer Break?
Hi! Thank you for inviting me to do this! I’m an ex-stand-up comedian (I still gig from time to time but not often) who writes funny (I hope) books. My first book Diary of a Confused Feminist published in 2020 with a sequel in 2022. Murder on a School Night published in 2023 and Murder on a Summer Break is the sequel to that! I also published my first book for adults this year called You May Now Kill the Bride.
At the start of Murder on a Summer Break, we’re almost a year on from when Annie and Kerry first had to turn detective to solve the Menstrual Murders in their little village of Barbourough. Now they’re known as The Tampon Two (Mostly only by Annie, who’s trying hard to make the nickname stick!), and they’re at an influencer festival called The Festival of Fame on their friend Heather’s farm. Annie’s decided she wants to be an influencer so she’s very excited about meeting and mixing with everyone – Kerry’s maybe slightly less excited – but the whole experience is thwarted when one of the influencers turns up dead. Then the Tampon Two have to get on the case and stop the killer from striking again!
I loved being back with Kerry and Annie! Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring further in this sequel?
There is a character called Timmy who’s one of the influencers. Timmy is so awful that I absolutely relished in writing him. No matter what situation came up, it felt like Timmy was naturally able to do something terrible. The influencer characters provided me with a lot of good opportunities to play about– which is one of my favourite things to do. I also enjoyed exploring Annie’s character a bit more, especially giving her a romance of her own. I liked giving her a bit more space to grow as a character in her own right, separately from Kerry.
Social media and influencing are key themes in the book – what drew you to writing about these topics and what message would you like readers to come away with?
Honestly, I went through a phase of spending a lot of time on TikTok in the mornings especially around 2020/2021. I would somehow find myself staring at videos of other people’s lives and day to day routines, trying to get the dopamine hit I was searching for. I needed the motivation to try and make my own life feel better to me, and watching other people live happily (at least to the viewer) sort of filled a gap at first. But it soon wore off and had the opposite effect, yet I still couldn’t look away or stop comparing myself to them. And when I really drilled down into it, I realised that people in those videos might be just as miserable as I am. We’re only seeing a tiny snapshot that’s been edited and curated and although we feel like we’re watching these people’s lives in great detail and we end up having a kind of para-social relationship with them, we actually don’t know anything about them at all, especially not about how happy they are.
I think I’d like readers to come away knowing that things you see online aren’t always an accurate representation of a person’s life. That comparing yourself to a small snapshot of someone’s day isn’t helpful and that you can never really make assumptions or pre-conceived ideas about who a person is until you get to know them.
Across your books, you have a wickedly funny and distinctive sense of humour. Where does this come from and how do you keep that balance between comedy and mystery?
Ah thank you, that’s so kind! I think a lot of keeping the balance it is down to having a good and very patient editor who can gently say to me “While that joke’s very funny Kate, maybe you should take it out to keep some tension here?” I am never offended…not much anyway. As for where the sense of humour comes from, I think stand-up comedy helped. As does having friends and family who are funny. It’s good to have people to bounce off of in your life. I think when you’re writing and you get really into things though, sometimes you can forget what’s funny. You just sort of lose perspective and that’s where again, you need an editor to come in and say “Yes that’s funny. What do you mean you were going to delete it?!” and also kindly tell you when it’s not working.
What songs would you consider to be the soundtrack for the series?
I think both Annie and Kerry would love Taylor Swift. Annie would also be in her BRAT Charli XCX era this summer too though. Whereas Kerry would be listening to all of the Tortured Poets Department on loop over and over again. I think she’d have a few different versions of the LP. Scott probably gave her at least one of them. In the first book I also had some classics in there too: Push it by Salt-N-Pepa, China in Your Hand by T’Pau, Watermelon Sugar by Harry Styles and of course, Rihanna’s Umbrella-ella-ella. So those would have to be in there for sure.
Do you have any dream castings for a film or TV adaptation of Murder on a Summer Break?
I couldn’t even imagine! There are so many great YA adaptions at the moment, I’d probably just end up suggesting a mash up of the casts of Heartstopper, A Good Girls Guide to Murder and Geek Girl. I feel like those casts are all so spot on.
What books have you enjoyed so far this year and are there any that you can’t wait to get your hands on?
I have just read Last Seen Online by Lauren James which was INCREDIBLE. I love, love, loved it. Read it very fast. The same for Annie LeBlanc is Not Dead Yet by Molly Morris, which I’m probably talking about far too much now, because I keep answering this question with this book. But, honestly it was such a good read. Such a unique story and the friendship in it was just *chef’s kiss*.
See also
Q&A: Pascale Lacelle, Author of ‘Stranger Skies’
I think the book I’m most excited about (I can barely contain myself) is Jaqueline Wilson’s Think Again. I’m going to read all the Girls books again for the millionth time in preparation for it, and I will most likely turn my phone off and lock myself away somewhere the moment that book lands in my thirsty little paws.
If possible, can you share a little about what you are currently working on or any upcoming projects you have?
I am working on a couple of things that I’m actually not allowed to talk about yet. I feel so top secret. But hopefully more will be revealed…soon.
Finally, if you could only describe Murder on a Summer Break in five words, what would they be?
Silly, murderous, dangerous, ridiculous, and content (as in the stuff people make for social media…not content the feeling…I don’t think I’ve made any of the characters in this book feel content…).
Will you be picking up Murder on a Summer Break? Tell us in the comments below!
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Kate Weston is an ex-stand up comedian and the author of YA books Murder on a School Night, Diary of a Confused Feminist, and Must Do Better. Her debut adult novel, You May Now Kill the Bride is publishing in May 2024
Interview with Kate Weston
September 4, 2024 | No Comments
1. What is your most recent book about?
Murder on a Summer Break is the sequel to Murder on a School Night, a comedy murder mystery where friends Annie and Kerry had to solve murders involving menstrual products. In Murder on a Summer Break, they’re back and Annie’s given them the nickname The Tampon Two! After Annie decides that she wants to be an influencer, The Tampon Two end up at Heather’s Festival of Fame – a festival for influencers that she’s holding on her farm. Unfortunately, all is not as it seems at the festival, and soon one of the most popular influencers at the festival is found dead.
2. What is the weirdest or most interesting thing you had to research for your book?
For this book I HAD to watch a lot of TikTok, which was obviously incredibly difficult (It wasn’t) and I really struggled (…to tear myself away from it. Why is scrolling so addictive?) So that was fun. I also had to do some googling about some things to do with some of the deaths and the murder weapons… I’m keeping it vague here because I don’t want to go into too much detail and spoil it for anyone that hasn’t read the book.
3. You write both adult and young adult books; do you prefer writing one? What do you change (aside from the obvious) when writing for these different ages?
I honestly love writing for both. I think there’s far more that’s similar in writing for adults and young adults than people realise and I’m so grateful that I’m lucky enough to get to do both. It’s really mostly the character’s ages that change and obviously some of the more adult themes! But for the most part…there’s not as many differences as people might think!
4. Which one of your characters was the hardest to write?
Ethan the male feminist was probably the worst character I’ve ever written. I spent the entire time I was writing him with my face screwed up into a wince, hating myself for even thinking of the things he was saying. He is truly awful and went against everything I believe in.
5. If you were stranded on a desert island what 2 books, 2 movies and 2 animals would you bring?
2 books: Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging by Louise Rennison and Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married by Marian Keyes. Both of them are my ultimate comfort reads.
2 movies: Booksmart and 10 Things I hate about You.
2 animals: My cat Angus (Of course) and probably my friend’s dog, Barney. The most stoic and adorable of little border terriers.
Bonus question:
1. Can you tell me about your cat? He’s so cute.
Of course! An excellent question! Angus is a Scottish Fold cat. He’s about 5 years old and he loves treats, me sitting still so that he can sit on me, lying on his back and pretending to want tummy tickles so that he can attack hands (although he never claws or bites!) and waking me up in the morning by trying to lick my nose. I know I may be biased but he is the best cat in the world.
Interview With Kate Weston (Murder on a Summer Break)
September 13, 2024No Comments
Written by Cherokee Crum, Staff Reviewer
Posted in Authors, Interviews, News & Updates
Today we are very excited to share an interview with Author Kate Weston (Murder on a Summer Break)!
Meet the Author: Kate Weston
Kate Weston is an ex-stand-up comedian (never won any awards) and a bookseller (never won any awards at that either). She now writes books for teenagers. Her first book, Diary of a Confused Feminist, was longlisted for the CWIP Prize and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. This is her third book for teens.
Website * Instagram * X
About the Book: Murder on a Summer Break
Amateur sleuths and wannabe influencers Kerry and Annie are back on the case when a social media festival inspires some killer content—and several on-camera influencer deaths—in this page-turning and sidesplitting sequel to Murder on a School Night from author and comedian Kate Weston.
After catching the menstrual murderer red-handed, Annie and Kerry are now the Tampon Two, Barbourough’s most famous—well, only—detective duo. So Annie (and decidedly not Kerry) is enjoying her five minutes of fame.
Except life in the spotlight seems to be a magnet for death these days. After a famous prankster is found dead with a condom stretched over his entire head, the Tampon Two are on the scene at their small village’s Festival of Fame to catch another killer.
Honestly, Kerry doesn’t know how she ended up here again, but this might be her one chance to prove to the folks at the local paper that she has what it takes to be a reporter—and to prove to herself that she doesn’t need her boyfriend, Scott, to save the day. Or even Annie, who definitely has stars and hearts in her eyes investigating all these influencers.
With Annie distracted, Kerry has to work quickly, before one more live stream can be cut off by yet another grisly death. And this time, the murderer might be following her—and not just on social media—in their quest to create some truly killer content.
Amazon
~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?
The inspiration really came when I was writing Murder on a School Night. I’d already started toying with some of the realities (or not) of social media and the pitfalls of craving popularity. But my interest in the hold that social media has over us and the way we view content was piqued during the pandemic when I, like most people, couldn’t stop scrolling TikTok. I couldn’t work out why I was wasting so much time watching other people doing their day-to-day stuff. It wasn’t making me feel good because I found myself constantly comparing myself to other people, yet I couldn’t stop watching. It also made my cat angry because he could hear that I was watching videos of other cats, and he was furious. Our relationship took a while to heal.
YABC: Who is your favorite character in the book?
Annie and Kerry are always going to be my favourite characters in the Murder on a… books, because each of them is a small part of me. Annie is my more outgoing side and Kerry is my more introverted side. So, I have a lot of affection for both characters! But aside from those two, I would say that my favourite character in this one was more the one that I had the most fun writing rather than them being a good character. I really enjoyed writing Ethan, he’s a terrible person but it felt cathartic to send up a lot of things that I’d experienced or seen in real life…
YABC: What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?
I don’t want to spoil anything but there is a scene with a séance which I really enjoyed writing (I’ve always wanted to write one, I’m a huge fan of The Craft). There are some other scenes I’m really proud of but I don’t want to spoil anything and I also worry that it’s slightly unhinged of me to say that I enjoyed the murder scenes?
YABC: Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you’ve learned as a writer from then to now?
Keep writing. You have to keep going through self-doubt. Even when you’re convinced something’s terrible, keep writing it because you’ll come out the other side and you can always fix things that you don’t like. Re-writing isn’t a failure, it’s just experimenting, and I’ve often got to know characters the best in some of my ‘deleted scenes’ where I’m just playing around with them. The words always serve a purpose, even if they’re deleted. But also, not all writing is actually writing. Sometimes the big writing stuff happens when you’re out for a walk or doing something else, and your brain’s still whirring away on a problem or a plot point.
YABC: What do you like most about the cover of the book?
The illustrator for both Murder on a Summer Break and Murder on a School Night was Eleanor Laleu. I love her work and she did an incredible job of bringing Annie and Kerry to life. It’s always so thrilling to see your characters actually drawn out like that. I was also very lucky to have David DeWitt designing both covers. The two of them together are a dream team.
YABC: What new release book are you looking most forward to in 2024?
I can’t wait for people in the US to read This Book Kills by Ravena Guron, which I think is publishing this month for you guys. It’s an incredible book that I read in basically one sitting. Also a book that’s actually publishing in 2025 but that I’m very excited about is Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven. I figure there’s not too much of 2024 left so maybe I can sneak that in under the radar?
YABC: What’s a book you’ve recently read and loved?
Last Seen Online by Lauren James. I read most of it in the space of an afternoon. I love the combination of blog and present day, and I the mystery is so compelling.
YABC: Which was the most difficult or emotional scene to narrate?
There’s a scene where Kerry has a panic attack which was hard for me to write because I also get panic attacks. It’s very hard to write something that’s so unpleasant for you, you have to go back and revisit horrible memories. But I think those are important scenes because they might help people who also get panic attacks to feel like they’re not alone. I hope they help people. I used to get them a lot when I was younger and felt like I was dying, so to see someone else experiencing it in a book would have definitely helped me!
YABC: What is the main message or lesson you would like your reader to remember from this book?
Not everything that you see online is true or exactly as it’s presented. You’re seeing a small snippet out of context. It’s easy to show snippets of your life and make them perfect with a filter, cropping out the mess and the stress. It’s not easy to show life with all its ups and downs and nuance in a tiny square or reel. The majority of the time you’re not seeing people’s complicated feelings or the worst part of their day. I’ve started to view most videos on social media like a story being told by an unreliable narrator.
YABC: Is there an organization or cause that is close to your heart?
Mental health and period health are two things close to my heart. They’re both discussions that still seem to carry a lot of shame and I think if we talk about them more we can erase this shame. I have OCD and was recently diagnosed with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder and Adenomyosis. I’ve been going to the doctor struggling with my periods and mental health for nearly 20 years now but have only just been diagnosed. PMDD especially seems to be something that not enough people are aware of, so it isn’t being picked up quick enough despite current stats that 72% of people with PMDD report thoughts of suicide at some point in their lives and 34% have made a suicide attempt at some point in their lives. With stats like that I really believe it should be something that people are aware of when they start menstruating so that they can look out for themselves and their friends. There are things that can be done to ease conditions like PCOS and PMDD, and if we erase the shame around them hopefully more people can access help more quickly and easily. People don’t need to suffer for as long as they currently are with these conditions. The same applies to OCD, which can make you feel completely on your own, but talking about it can help you realise that you’re not.
YABC: What advice do you have for new writers?
Just keep going. Don’t stop. Your writing gets better the more you do it and everyone has days where what they’re writing is absolute rubbish. No words are wasted. Not even the deleted ones. They’re all a stepping stone to get where you’re going. Also read, read books like yours, read books that aren’t like yours, read as much as varied as you can.
Title: Murder on a Summer Break
Author: Kate Weston
Release Date: 9/10/24
Publisher: HarperCollins
Genre: YA mystery
Age Range: 13-17
Tags: Harpercollins, Interview, Kate Weston, Murder on a Summer Break
WESTON, Kate. Murder on a School Night. 384p. HarperCollins/Katherine Te gen. Jul. 2023. Tr $19.99. ISBN 9780063260276.
Gr 7-10--Kerry and Annie have always been outcasts, but when Annie offers to help Heather, the most popular girl in school, discover who's been threatening her over Instagram, they find themselves invited to their first-ever party. A party that ends when Kerry stumbles upon Selena, Heather's best friend, dead after choking on a menstrual cup. The police insist the death was accidental, but Annie is determined to prove otherwise, enlisting Kerry in her scheme to discover who killed Selena. But when the deaths continue to pile up and the evidence starts pointing to Kerry's boyfriend as the murderer, they'll really need to employ all their detective skills to solve the case. This purports to be a murder mystery rom-com, and while it does feature all of those elements, most of them fall a bit flat. Annie's quips initiate some chuckles, but most of the comedie elements border on the ridiculous. The romance itself is only mildly developed, though Kerry's awkwardness will be amusing and relatable to younger audiences. Most disappointing, though, is the mystery's denouement, which features a villain who acts more like a cartoon than a fully realized character. One solid plus is the friendship displayed between Kerry and Annie, and it's fun to watch them discover that the popular crowd are more down-to-earth than initially expected. VERDICT Younger teens may enjoy this whodunit but more mature audiences will likely find it too simplistic. --Chelsey Masterson
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
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Masterson, Chelsey. "WESTON, Kate. Murder on a School Night." School Library Journal, vol. 69, no. 9, Sept. 2023, p. 113. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A762831910/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=b79053fc. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Murder on a School Night
Kate Weston. HarperCollins/Tegen, $19.99 (384p) ISBN 978-0-0632-6027-6
Channeling the 1980s cult classic Heathers right down to the croquet set, Weston (Diary of a Confused Feminist) flaunts cozy English charm and puerile slapstick comedy in this propulsive mystery. Unpopular aspiring journalist Kerry would rather be enjoying a peaceful rom-com movie marathon at home than attending the party where she finds that fellow high school senior Selena, a member of the Les Populaires clique, has been suffocated with a menstrual cup. Desperate to clear her name, classmate and party host Heather Stevens -- leader of Les Populaires and heir to her family's V-Lyte period product fortune--hires Kerry and her equally unpopular best friend Annie, an amateur sleuth, to investigate Selena's death. While Annie is convinced this is their ticket into the popular crowd, Kerry worries after her friend's increasingly risky maneuvers around solving the crime. When two more deaths occur, the friends debate whether their investigation is worth their own safety. Though the banter sometimes feels outdated ("kills my lady boner"), the girls' chemistry as best friends and partners-in-crime-solving is energizing. Refreshing attention to sex positivity and period politics combined with Weston's timing--both comedic and plot driven--ensure a laugh-out-loud romp. Most characters read as white. Ages 14-up. (July)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
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"Murder on a School Night." Publishers Weekly, vol. 270, no. 20, 15 May 2023, p. 127. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A752768034/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=711abc5c. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Weston, Kate MURDER ON A SCHOOL NIGHT Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins (Teen None) $18.99 7, 4 ISBN: 9780063260276
Mean Girls meets Midsomer Murders with a dash of Louise Rennison in this genre-blending story that centers girls' friendships and two ambitious best friends.
Amateur detective Annie and aspiring journalist Kerry are feminist teens living in the sleepy English village of Barbourough. When Selena, their bullying classmate, is found murdered at a party with a menstrual cup in her mouth, Heather, party host and foremost among the clique self-styled Les Populaires, recruits the two Agatha Christie enthusiasts to clear her name as a suspect. Kerry and Annie are self-absorbed friends whose obsession over their lack of popularity results in hysterically funny dialogue and a lighthearted tone. As the story progresses, two more murders occur. Kerry's crush on newcomer Scott and the pair's subsequent romantic exploits offer sweet diversions from the intensity of the additional gruesome, period-product-related murders. However, what really elevates the goofy capers and over-the-top scheming is how well Kerry and Annie know both themselves and each other. Despite struggling with anxiety, first-person narrator Kerry deftly analyzes the cases and supports her brilliant best friend as she sleuths her way through the murderous local chaos. The cast largely reads White; brown-skinned twins Colin and Audrey play begrudging roles in Heather's friend group, and their individual secrets add depth and complexity to this insightful parody of teenage life.
A nuanced, hilarious page-turning romantic mystery. (Mystery. 14-18)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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"Weston, Kate: MURDER ON A SCHOOL NIGHT." Kirkus Reviews, 15 May 2023. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A748974249/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=48008b7c. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Diary of a Confused Feminist
Kate Weston. Simon & Schuster, $21.99 (384p) ISBN 978-1-6659-3794-8; $12.99 paper ISBN 978-1-6659-3793-1
In this winsome comedy told via diary entries spanning four months by British author Weston (Murder on a School Night), Kat Evans, 15 and cued white, balances her desire to be an "excellent feminist" with her crush on popular new student and model Hot Josh, who reads as white. Kat relates her yearning to advocate for the #MeToo movement following the 2018 Golden Globes as well as awkward happenings experienced by her and her best friends Millie, of Greek heritage, and Sam, of Trinidadian descent, such as Kat accidently flinging her menstrual cup onto the school playground. When Millie and Sam acquire boyfriends, and Kat's white-coded neighbor Matt ghosts her, her confidence is shaken; subsequent lies and a hurtful prank from a school bully prompt Kat to turn further inward and withdraw from her friends, dramatically affecting her mental health. Though some romantic tropes wear thin, Kat's struggle to balance her personal life with her call to activism is affecting. Weston addresses sensitive issues of anxiety, compulsive behaviors, and depression with clarity and tact through intricate and deftly timed comedic scenarios, as well as Kat's engaging voice, which evokes Bridget Jones by way of a self-deprecating adolescent. Ages 14-up. (Jan.)
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"Diary of a Confused Feminist." Publishers Weekly, vol. 270, no. 44, 30 Oct. 2023, p. 100. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A773381026/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=a686d440. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Diary of a Confused Feminist.
By Kate Weston.
Jan. 2024. 384p. Simon & Schuster, $21.99
(9781665937948). Gr. 9-12.
Kat Evans, 15, not only records events and observations in her diary, she takes notes on her progress as a feminist, including her "unfeminist" thoughts. Some of her efforts are less than successful, such as trying to paint #TIMESUP on the asphalt in the schoolyard (she only gets as far as #TIM before she is apprehended). She constantly compares herself to her best friends and fellow feminists, Sam and Millie, especially after they acquire boyfriends. She has a wistful and unrequited eye on a boy she calls "Hot Josh," and any effort to gain his attention ends disastrously Kat experiences multiple humiliations, but with the assistance of a therapist who is also helping her with crippling panic attacks, in addition to the support of her friends and family, she rallies triumphantly. Kat is wickedly funny, even when describing her mishaps, and an engaging, sympathetic character. She is surrounded by loving and loyal friends and family, even at her lowest. Overall, this is a laugh-out-loud novel about a witty and wonderful young woman.--Donna Scanlon
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 American Library Association
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Scanlon, Donna. "Diary of a Confused Feminist." Booklist, vol. 120, no. 7-8, 1 Dec. 2023, p. 121. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A777512552/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=69dfbf15. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Weston, Kate DIARY OF A CONFUSED FEMINIST Simon & Schuster (Teen None) $21.99 1, 2 ISBN: 9781665937948
Activism and laugh-out-loud hijinks abound in this diary-format novel about an aspiring teen journalist with anxiety.
Kat Evans, nearly 16, lives in a quiet English town and worries a great deal, especially about being left behind by her friends, who are pairing up with romantic partners. Kat's three best friends work hard to support her: Millie is an actress who's determined to be cast as Juliet in the school play, Sam is a talented artist, and Matt is Kat's neighbor and a popular out gay classmate. The story opens in early September. After learning more about feminism from Kat's and Matt's mums, Kat, Millie, and Sam decide to spray-paint "#TimesUp" on the tarmac at school to commemorate the 2018 Golden Globes #MeToo protest. Unfortunately, they're caught by the principal after only having completed "#Tim," giving their creepy classmate Tim Matthews the wrong idea. Mishaps and feminist acts of rebellion continue throughout. The humor is well done, featuring over-the-top yet believable scenarios and Kat's relatable and detailed inner-monologue responses. Kat's family is warm and supportive, especially once it becomes clear that she needs mental health intervention. Her diary poses authentic questions that interrogate the tenets of feminism in a thought-provoking, accessible way that never feels preachy or overwrought. Sam is Black; other major characters read white.
A raucously entertaining examination of feminist principles. (Fiction. 14-18)
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"Weston, Kate: DIARY OF A CONFUSED FEMINIST." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Oct. 2023. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A768633734/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=8b3dff65. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Weston, Kate YOU MAY NOW KILL THE BRIDE Random House (Fiction None) $18.00 5, 14 ISBN: 9780593731536
A death at a bachelorette party makes a group of childhood friends question what they know in this adult debut.
Tansy, Lauren, Farah, Saskia, and Dominica have been friends since elementary school. Thick as thieves since Dominica saved the rest from a bully on the playground, they are now in their mid-30s and in very different places in life: Saskia married rich and lords it over the others. Dominica is a hotshot divorce lawyer, always on her phone. Lauren makes do at a makeup company while mooning over her ex-boyfriend (and Farah's brother), Joss. Farah's long-awaited wedding is coming up but has been overshadowed by Tansy's last-minute whirlwind marriage to a man she barely knows. At Tansy's bachelorette party, emotions are simmering when what seems to be a tragic accident leaves one of them dead. But as the accident starts looking like murder and the friends try to carry on with Farah's wedding preparations, each begins to wonder if one of them may be more than she seems. The book is full of twists and turns, swiftly pushing forward while dropping in short flashbacks of the girls' growing-up years to flesh out their relationships, and it's hard not to want to know exactly what's going on. It can be hard to follow, however, as the point of view changes between paragraphs, sometimes within the same sentence. Though the characters are drawn with real depth, they spend their time showing their disgust with each other while telling the reader how close they are. The only thing that seems to connect them is the duration of their relationships, not the quality. Their friendship can be hard to believe.
An interesting but hard-to-follow thriller.
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"Weston, Kate: YOU MAY NOW KILL THE BRIDE." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Apr. 2024. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A789814874/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=c339d161. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Weston, Kate MURDER ON A SUMMER BREAK Harper/HarperCollins (Teen None) $19.99 9, 10 ISBN: 9780063260320
Two feminist detective best friends are back to solve a string of killings at an influencer festival.
Kerry and Annie achieved minor notoriety following the events of 2023'sMurder on a School Night. Annie named them the "Tampon Two" after they found the perpetrator of a series of murders involving period products in their small English village of Barbourough. In the year since, both girls have landed internships: Kerry at the local newspaper and Annie at the Ministry of Justice in London. Annie is desperate for more fame, however. She wants to be like the feminist influencer they both admire, Winona Philips: "Smart! Political! Worshipped by all!" Although Annie so far has only two followers on the popular ReelLife platform, the girls are attending the local Festival of Fame, during which influencers will have the chance to connect with their fans. Soon, however, sexist "prankfluencer" Timmy Eaton is found dead with a condom covering his face ("proving that it really does fit all sizes. #Ad"), though the inept local police characterize it as an accident. The absurd, over-the-top scenarios elevate this mystery into an effective, scathing indictment of influencer culture. As Kerry and Annie begin their investigation in earnest, two more influencer murders take place. Clever plot twists abound, and zany influencer antics keep the story entertaining. Most characters read white.
A clever, laugh-out-loud parody offering spot-on social commentary.(Mystery. 14-18)
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"Weston, Kate: MURDER ON A SUMMER BREAK." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Aug. 2024. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A802865074/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=102f348d. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.