Breakaway Books

Authored by Rebecca Makkai; Published 2023; Mystery

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️

I Have Some Questions for You was a wild ride. The book is *thick,* frankly far thicker than I expected for the mystery that I believed I got for myself. 

I Have Some Questions for You follows Bodie, a professional podcaster and sometimes professor, as she returns to the boarding high school she attended to teach a short-term class. While she is there, she cannot escape reminders of the death of one of her classmates, a murder that has supposedly been solved but over which questions still loom. When one of her students takes on the crime as part of their final project, Bodie is torn about how to assist.

It is a delicious, intricate mystery. Clues strewn throughout the novel give you just enough so that at the end you look back and feel satisfied that you were just one step behind Bodie. It might not be pulse pounding—it’s mostly about a cold case after all—but I certainly felt invested. But it is also a commentary on the many, many ways that women get assaulted and somehow never seem to get their share of justice. That’s what makes this novel less than ideal for escapism purposes, as periodically the author takes care to remind you that this murder is one of so, so many crimes against women that we hear about on a daily basis. Depending on the news, the reminder just may be too much.

Rare is a book written in the second person, and I have to say I found the style for this particular narrative intriguing and enjoyable. It made me feel like I was truly in Bodie’s head, especially when combined with the rushed pace in some sections, beautifully portraying the panic she felt. I loved the writing of this novel, somehow managing these feats without seeming awkward.

There’s a lot of boarding school nostalgia here—take caution if that is a weakness of yours—but the coming of age content is neatly balanced with true crime investigation and a reckoning with cancel culture. The mix is unique, and supremely enjoyable. In spite of the fact that it feels like it is a product of the COVID era, it’s a light touch and won’t bring you back to those toilet paper hoarding days. 

Take a long weekend and sink into I Have Some Questions For You—you’ll need all the hours you can get.