finished reading

Maybe it's because I teach high school that I could relate as much to this book. I don't know if it's a book for everyone. It certainly captures the rhythm of high school life well. The lingo, the atmosphere, the attitude were all spot on. I could not put this book down. I stayed up reading this. There were a couple of implausible parts--like I can't imagine that the teens would party with their coach without word leaking out and that situation wouldn't blow up. Especially with the use of technology these days.

From the publisher:

Addy Hanlon has always been Beth Cassidy's best friend and trusted lieutenant. Beth calls the shots and Addy carries them out, a long-established order of things that has brought them to the pinnacle of their high-school careers. Now they're seniors who rule the intensely competitive cheer squad, feared and followed by the other girls — until the young new coach arrives.

Cool and commanding, an emissary from the adult world just beyond their reach, Coach Colette French draws Addy and the other cheerleaders into her life. Only Beth, unsettled by the new regime, remains outside Coach's golden circle, waging a subtle but vicious campaign to regain her position as "top girl" — both with the team and with Addy herself.

Then a suicide focuses a police investigation on Coach and her squad. After the first wave of shock and grief, Addy tries to uncover the truth behind the death — and learns that the boundary between loyalty and love can be dangerous terrain.