Kirkus Style Review: The Spite Game by Anna Snoekstra

A girl seeks ruthless revenge on her high school bullies to somehow avenge her personal trauma, but in reality she just aims to make them miserable to paint herself as less insufferable. She succeeds in her first goal while failing miserably with the second.

The Spite Game witnesses Ava's schemes to harm her high school bullies in a way that will cause them the maximum amount of suffering. Throughout high school, three girls – Saanvi, Cass, and Mel – embarrass and humiliate Ava within inches of her life, forcing her to be the target of their heartless pranks and games. Ava then decides to play a game of her own with them as an adult so that they know what it feels like to be tormented, and she makes this game her only focus. The twists and turns within the book are innumerable while the past and present are intermingled without any explanation. As a result, the reader is thrown into both twisted timelines repeatedly without being able to adequately distinguish between the two, which takes a potentially great book and ensures that it completely misses the mark while confusing the reader to no end. Additionally, aside from Ava, there is also a subplot with her sister Bea, who starts dating the neighbor’s dad and ends up having a child with him randomly towards the end of the book, and Ava and Bea’s mother should win an award for being the most uninvolved parent in history. As the book comes to a close, the reader comes to fully understand the undertones of psychopathy within the pages, but that understanding still does nothing to advocate for Ava as she seeks justice by irrevocably damaging everyone’s lives, including her own.

If you or anyone you know has ever been bullied, skip this book. You’ll keep your blood from boiling and sleep better at night as a result.