ALA Booklist

Erin is "that girl," the one who survived as a toddler in a house only occupied by her murdered mother's body. Raised by her mom's best friend, Erin has questions. Who was her father? Why did someone kill her mother? Why did the killer let her live? An avid follower of her uncle Victor's FBI career and books, she is determined to follow in his footsteps, which is why she is excited when her biology teacher, Miss Peters, wants to create a crime lab for their small town. When Erin stumbles on Miss Peters' murdered body, she finds herself in the spotlight again. Miss Peters was looking into the identity of Erin's father. Could the murders be connected? Scarborough has written an intense, engrossing debut. Readers will root for Erin to find answers, laugh at her friends' antics as they play detective, and struggle to identify the killer in a plot full of red herrings and multiple suspects. This solid mystery will easily grab the attention of fans of the genre.

Horn Book

Fourteen years after her mother was murdered, Erin, an aspiring forensic scientist, discovers her beloved biology teacher's body. With help from her fellow crime-solving friends--and a cute boy who might be implicated in the crime--Erin uncovers evidence that links the two murders together. Detailed descriptions of forensic procedures may interest CSI-loving readers, but they ultimately slow down this generic mystery.

Kirkus Reviews

Scarborough's debut mystery novel follows a teenager on a journey to find her mother's killer.The only memories Erin (who is white) has of her mother can be found in the police reports detailing the circumstances of her death. When Erin was 2, her mother was murdered and the killer got away. Now 16, Erin has been studying forensics with the goal of one day solving the murder. She finds an ally in her biology teacher, Miss P, but when Erin discovers her teacher's dead body, she suspects this may be the work of her mother's killer. Things are further complicated when Erin's crush, Journey (also white), becomes tangled up in the case as a possible suspect. Realizing the bond between them, the two team up to investigate the case with help from Erin's resourceful friends, Spam and Lysa. Cue the clunky murder attempts on Erin's life, suspicious adults, and convenient clues. While Erin is a character that readers can easily sympathize with as she struggles to grapple with her dark past, some of the novel's other characters are not fully fleshed out. Spam and Lysa have the potential to be spunky sidekicks but come off as two-dimensional, the former possibly Latina and a funky dresser and the latter flawlessly golden-skinned and dressed to the nines. The plot has the potential to be gripping but doesn't deliver any surprises—not even the killer's identity. Despite its interesting premise, this debut falls short of its potential. (Mystery. 14-18)

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-Teenager Erin Blake is a novice forensic enthusiast and an orphan. Ever since her mother's murder 14 years earlier, Erin has tried to live a normal life with her legal guardian, Rachel, who had been her mother's best friend. Erin doesn't know her father's identity. When Erin discovers the dead body of her biology teacher, her life is thrown into chaos. As Erin and her friends Lysa and Spam follow clues to track down the killer, it becomes apparent that their teacher's murder is directly linked to the death of Erin's mother. Against her friends' wishes, Erin enlists the help of her longtime crush and fellow classmate, Journey Michaels. As Erin and Journey delve deeper into the unsolved cases, it seems that all the evidence points straight to them. Desperate to prove their innocence, they decide to catch the killer themselves. Unfortunately, the closer they get to the truth, the more danger they find themselves in. Erin and Journey need to track down the murderer fastbefore they become the next victims. Scarborough's debut YA novel contains stilted language, static imagery, and underdeveloped characters, but the fast-paced plot and Veronica Marsesque protagonist make this book a good fit for avid mystery readers. VERDICT While this title may appeal to mystery fans, it is most suitable as a secondary purchase.— Ariel Birdoff, New York Public Library

Voice of Youth Advocates

In this thrilling mystery, Erin finds herself in the middle of the second murder investigation of her life. The first was her mother’s murder, which gave her the notoriety of being a toddler found with a three-day-old body. The second is her discovery of her biology/forensic buddy teacher’s body, which brings her front and center of the investigation. Luckily, Erin and her friends have made a hobby of forensics and are investigating on their own. Does the new murder have anything to do with her mother’s unsolved murder, about which Erin has been looking for the truth her whole life? The answers are coming—if she can stay alive long enough to get them. Secondary characters are not as fleshed out as they could be, but Scarborough brings Erin to life as a teenager with a damaged past. Her passion to solve her mother’s cold case through forensics is believable, though some clues are a little far-fetched (like every male mentioned in the book wears the exact same shoe size and model as every other male mentioned in the book). Close readers will most likely figure out the identity of the murderer early on, but there are enough red herrings and forensic activity to keep everyone entertained all the way through the climatic end.—Kristin Fletcher-Spear.