If Eureka knows one thing it's that she should never, ever cry. Not even when her mother died in a car accident, not when her heart gets broken, not when she's having a hard time. Never. Now her mother is gone, Eureka's having a very hard time living her life. Her stepmom sends her off on many appointments to go talk to someone but nothing really helps. It isn't until a boy comes around, Eureka starts to ask questions about what has happened the night of the car accident. Even more so, she discovers that they're coming for her. This is only my second book written by Lauren Kate. The first book I read by her was Unforgiven, and then I remember myself saying I really wanted to read some more of this author. I guess the time has finally arrived to make true to my promise!
First off, Eureka! Eureka gave a very stoic impression at first. She never really showed any emotion, she never cried. It was really weird to read those few pages where she explained everything that happened but there was never the part where she teared up on the fact that her mother died. It's from that moment on, I started to ask myself questions. Especially because the back of the book says she should never, ever cry. Alarm bells were ringing because, well why would she never cry?
Further more Eureka explains she needs to see doctors because she tried suicide after her mom left. Which does show us that her mother was a very important person to her and that's a thing I enjoyed reading about. Eureka would make us see her mother as she saw her by retelling old stories or give more information about her mother. This information is really important because it'll help us out later in the book with discoveries that we made.
The further we go into the book, the weirder it gets for Eureka and we can really notice that she's not feeling at ease. This is the first big change in this character after being really stoic. And many changes follow with this character until she grows to a very strong teenager that won't let the bad overthrow her again. These changes in this character are incredible because it shows her evolution in one big and fluent line.
As for the boy that came to tell her they're coming for her. He's all mystery! My niece and I really wanted to know more about him, especially because we know what he did when things went south for Eureka and her mother. But the author really wants us to be patience and makes Ander return only a couple of times in the book.
From the few times we see him, I did notice a difference with the people he grew up with. He will believe what he wants and he's determined that things can change. This character will really convince you that you don't need to follow the others but can stand for your own ideas and be okay with those. Other than that I also noticed that this character is really protective but has a very gentle and sweet side to him, even though most of the times I felt like he was a stalker and could be a potential bad guy. I really enjoyed his presence in the book but I really did miss him a lot. I wish we could have seen a bit more about this character, but not all might agree with this because him not being around a lot does create more mystery.
Now, we don't know much about Ander or his relatives but we do know a lot more about Eureka. Eureka has two friends that will be important in this book. First off, we have Cat! In the beginning I was not really fond of her, she was at times too enthusiastic and it felt like you couldn't trust her with a secret but as the story developed itself more you get to know her much better. Eventually, I can conclude she really grew on me. She's just very eccentric and she did prove herself to be this awesome best friend Eureka could count on. Next to being eccentric she's also a very supportive friend.
Another friend of Eureka is Brooks and oh my, I can say I was totally sold to him from the beginning. Brooks has a very mysterious air having around him and you just want to get close to him. So I agree with all the girls in the book that want Brooks close, he's absolutely amazing. Yet I began to doubt Brooks a lot and he'll also create a lot of mystery and suspense that has to do with the bigger story of the book. Eventually Eureka begins to doubt Brooks and that's the moment you know as a reader, your intuition might have been correct, or not?
Brooks is a very funny guy but also very protective when it comes to Eureka. He'll always support her and he knows how to handle her now she's so down after her mother died. I was really keen on that aspect of Brooks. Yet also he changes a lot in this book and grows to become hot and cold all the time. We don't know what's going on with Brooks, so this makes sure we have another mystery to solve together with Eureka!
Lastly her family, as I said, we will get to know her mother through many flashbacks and stories but her mom seems to have two faces nearing the middle of the book. I can't say much about it just mark my words. The flashbacks and the stories are an asset to the book and I'm also glad her mother is put into the book a lot because it creates more clues to a possible explanation.
As for her father... he's great! I absolutely adored him! He's also having a hard time, even though he was divorced you can really see he's suffering too. Eureka's dad also has a hard time with getting through Eureka. He really tries and that's what I absolutely appreciated in him but after all, it seems he doesn't have much luck.
Together with him comes Rhoda, the stepmother and can I say I absolutely hated her! I don't know what it is, but in each book the parents are so well written you just hate them! The power of a writer: writing it so well you can feel the same as the main character! Absolutely brilliant! She really pushes people to do what she wants and that's what really irritated me most with her. She doesn't know what's best for everyone but she does act as if she does. As I said I'm not fond of her at all but I do want to congratulate the author on writing her as brilliant as Lauren Kate has.
Lastly and also very briefly, the twins! Rhoda and Eureka's dad have twins and they're absolutely adorable, yet they won't be spared from all the danger that's coming. Not only Eureka has melted because of them but also Brooks. I really enjoyed the twins because they bring more life and more feels (such as worry, anxiety, love,...) to the story.
Now the plot. In the beginning, Eureka will give you a lot of information. This information only creates a lot of questions but not a lot of answers. If you read the back of the book really well, you even start with questions but by then nothing will be explained since even Eureka doesn't know anything about that... yet.
The plot will take major turns when Ander comes around and when Brooks starts to act strange and all hot and cold. This will create more mystery not only in the story but also with the characters. This is a great asset to Teardrop because it makes it so much more than it already was. Next to these plot twists there's also a lot that has to do with Eureka's mother and Eureka who's being followed by Ander.
As a reader you'll really start to question everything you come across because you don't have much to work with. You'll have to use your intuition to try and solve things because Eureka will have a moment of disbelieve and just go on with her life.
The mystery around who Ander is and what's going on with Brooks will also feed the question: who is Eureka really? And why does she never cry? It really takes a while before we get new answers and before Eureka will start to act but when she does, the story has a lot in store for you.
There will be betrayal, more questions, mystery, there will be funny moments and moments you don't trust people but there'll also be thrill and tension, anxiety and murder. I can't tell you how much this book will do to you. It really starts slow and you might have to wait long on some answers but this will only cause the book to go out with a bang and give you everything it has, that's what I was really keen on in Teardrop.
If that isn't enough there will be a big plot twist at the end but if I have to give one remark on this book, it'll be the ending. It was good, don't get me wrong but there were some details I didn't really find as spectacular as the big things that were happening. This is only a little remark, nothing big because the end battle still really surprised me!
Another thing I want to say is that the people who want to get Eureka, for whatever reason you will find out during your read, are only seen three times in the book. In the beginning, once in the middle and than at the end. I really missed that a lot because they are important to this story and its further developments. I hope they come around much more in the next book.
Still, I recommend this book to people who want a mysterious read and who want to investigate some things themselves. The book will make a slow start but will give so much more near the ending. Also the epilogue will clear a lot of things for you which is a great thing and this will also make you want to read the following book. The characters are great and each very different from each other. You get background information to events form the past that will guide you in the future which is again a great asset. I think we can conclude that Teardrop is really a good book that's really worth to look into further if you're interested! "Can everything you love be washed away?"
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