Handpicked by Dani Oden - 3 Stars!

Handpicked by Dani Oden

3 Huge Potential Filled Stars

Blurb - College freshman Jill Holloway takes one look at the stuck-up girls going through sorority rush and nearly returns her borrowed dress and heels. Against her best judgment, she ends up falling for the prestige and parties, and snagging a bid from a top house. After moving in, she quickly grows skeptical of her too-perfect sorority sisters. She tries to ask questions, though no one will take time from their busy social calendar to give her any real answers. 

Jill wastes no time digging for everything she’s not supposed to find, and soon comes face-to-face with a big and bloody secret hidden in her sorority’s basement. She knows she’s in over her head, but taking off so soon would raise the perfectly-plucked eyebrows of her suspicious new sisters. She’s stuck until she can make a smooth exit. 

But the closer she gets to leaving, the more it becomes clear that it won’t be as simple as she hoped. A tempting fraternity guy, a best friend who needs her, and new details about what has really been happening in the basement have her questioning what her next move should be, and whether or not it’ll be worth the risks. 

Handpicked is a novel by an author I wasn’t familiar with, I was given this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review so here goes....

I’m sure I won’t be the first to admit that as a brit I’m fascinated by the Greek system of frats and sororities, so when I read the blurb for this book it’s sounded great and defiantly worth a read.

This book is a real mixed bag some parts are brilliant and some bits are not so great.

I like Jill she’s a bit naive and daft but I kind of liked her inquisitive nature and that she couldn’t not go searching. She reminded me of a not quite so savvy Veronica Mars lol but I loved that show so hell it works for me.

I thought Jill, Lindy & Hannah together were hilarious and a bit of a cross between Charlie’s Angels and the three stooges lol.

There were some very glaring obvious problems with this book, the first being if you found a severed hand why wouldn’t you call the police!!!!! Now I can kind of forgive this idiocy as fear, but why once more weird things start to happen would you not call the police!!!!

Secondly if Bea the reporter was a legacy for Iota Beta why didn’t she get in???? If like the exec’s did for Jill’s rush class they got extensive background checks on everyone why would they not know this very important detail???

The way the author builds the suspense in this book is great and I waited for something really big to happen but I found the ending really anticlimactic. If you have gone to the effort of planting a severed human limb I would think you would have a better big finish!!!

I thought Tad & Jill were adorable together but the romance felt abit disconnected from the mystery elements.

What happened to Hannah why did she just leave and was basically never thought of again????

Why was Lindy upset about getting into Iota Beta was this not her first choice???

Although I actually quite enjoyed this book I found it a had a great start and then it felt like it was rushed at the end or perhaps the author just had some dodgy editing advise?

There is a hint in the epilogue that perhaps there might be a second book and to be honest I would read it as this just book just didn’t feel like it had a proper ending.

There have been some really awful reviews for this book but I feel like it has masses of potential I give it 3 solid stars.