Book Review: Black Chalk

 

Black Chalk

Christopher Yates

2/5

This book runs in the same circuit as The Secret History and If We Were Villains, tragic events motivated by irresponsible students at some sort of institution. AKA Dark Academia. Six students enter into a game with high stakes, all of them trying to win the large sum of money at the end of the line. But it's non-chronological, so you know that not all of them are going to make it out alive. 

Weak. That's the best word to describe the sequence of events in this book. Nothing really felt as significant as the author wanted it to feel. The worst dares to me were the ones completed at the beginning of the game, the stuff that got them out just didn't seem all that bad in the scheme of things. It also could be that the boundaries of the game were just poorly defined from the start. There wasn't enough characterization for me to feel bad for the students, I really had no preference between any of them because they all just seemed kind of stupid. 

The ending was especially disappointing. Are they friends? Are they enemies? Why did all of that stuff happen? The author was definitely going for something bigger than what he actually supported and he totally missed the mark. The person who died was easily identified, the betrayals were easily predicted, everything felt shallow and weak. You can't compare yourself to a modern classic like The Secret History that expect me to be impressed with you just trying to sound fancy. 

I'm giving it two stars because I guess there were some mysteries? I don't know, I finished it and didn't hate every minute of it it was just so predictable. Maybe I'm being too harsh, I just didn't think it was all that enjoyable.