TELL ME EVERYTHING :: Cambria Brockman

A version of this review previously appeared in Shelf Awareness and is republished here with permission.

"Pretend." Malin Ahlberg's father whispers this instruction in her ear as her parents drop her at Hawthorne College, a small liberal arts school in the Maine backwoods. For the next four years, from that first day through the tragedies that befall her friends on Senior Day in 2011, Malin takes his directive to heart.

Cambria Brockman's debut, Tell Me Everything, ultimately does tell all; yet, in line with psychologically twisted college clique tales, not before putting the reader through a maddeningly enjoyable wringer. Malin is patently unreliable, but in a wonderfully fresh, clear-headed way. She is not influenced by drugs or alcohol; quite the opposite, in fact. Malin is about control, with an unknown but definite method to her madness.

Coming from Texas, as something of a fish-out-of-water, Malin surprisingly finds herself part of an intimate yet disparate group of six friends. Living together in a house purchased by one set of wealthy parents gives Malin constant access to and insights into their secrets, changing dynamics and intimacies.

Weaving through three main timelines--Malin's childhood, freshman year and senior year--Brockman slowly exposes the meaning behind Malin's father's whispered instruction and her ongoing manipulations. Some minor plot points and discrepancies in the character depth of the six friends create minor hiccups in the flow, but Brockman has turned in a compelling slow burn with focus justly on its furtive protagonist. Malin's retelling of each period in her life is fraught with competing control and unease that make for a dynamite combination.

STREET SENSE:  I went into this one blind and really kind of dug it. If you're a sucker for multiple timelines and manipulative narrators with shady pasts, you might find it in your wheelhouse as well.

A FAVORITE PASSAGE:  My father saw potential in me, so he taught me how to be normal. I don’t think he realized it made me more dangerous, to know how to appear like I cared.

(But really, this is the best one: "Responding to people was so taxing." Man, I feel you, sister.)

COVER NERD SAYS: I like this cover. It's a bit "bright" for a book that is really more dark, but the pool has symbolism that I like and the ripples are a pretty cool effect and somewhat metaphorical. Clean, uncluttered, nice palette, good balance, no distracting blurbs or extraneous writing. This would catch my eye on a shelf for sure.