Cracked Up To Be

3.7

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Author(s)

Courtney Summers

Publisher

Wednesday Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

14+

Release Date

February 04, 2020

ISBN

1250256976

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The high price of perfection is one 'Perfect' Parker Fadley always believed she was willing to pay until the devastating events at a party during junior year fractures the lives of her family and friends. A terrible thing has happened and only Parker knows it's her fault. If being a perfect daughter, student, friend and girlfriend couldn't keep her from making an unforgivable mistake, Parker hopes becoming a perfect mess will at least keep her loved ones from discovering the truth--until the arrival of a curious new student and the unexpected return of an old enemy threaten her tenuous grip on control. Parker will do anything to keep her secret from surfacing . . . but this time the cost might be more than she can afford. The book featuring the unforgettable character that started it all, now with a new foreword from the author.

The book featuring the unforgettable character that started it all, now with a new foreword from the author.

Editor reviews

2 reviews

Heavy, yet Riveting.

July 01, 2020 (Updated: June 04, 2026)

Overall rating

3.7

Plot

3.0

Characters

3.0

Writing Style

5.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Cracked up to be is an unsettling tale of a girl on the cusp of a mental breakdown for over 200 pages; for a reason, the reader won’t discover fully until the very last few chapters. From the onset, Parker is an unreliable narrator; in that, you never know what she’s going to do, though you don’t imagine it’s going to be anything good. She’s short-tempered while being completely mild-tempered. She’s snarky without a visual bite, and she’s pretty awful towards everyone she encounters; even the new kid, Jake, whom she knows for all of a second.

Parker is hard to grasp. On the one hand, you empathize with her because it’s clear something is rattling her, but on the other hand, you don’t understand how being crass and stand-offish helps her at all.

The secondary characters bring a sort of light to the story, and they’re integral in understanding Parker as a whole; which having completed the novel, still leaves this reader feeling a bit untethered.

Cracked Up to Be is an odd tale about an interesting girl with a spattering of romance that’s hard to appreciate with the clog of mental mush. Not going to be for everyone.