SUCH A PRETTY SMILE by Kristi DeMeester – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi DeMeester
Published by St. Martin's Press on January 18 2022
Genres: Adult, Horror, Psychological thriller
Pages: 320
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: An eerie, feminist coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of a series of grisly murders, Such A Pretty Smile is both horrific and empowering. 

Her eyes looked different. The pupil larger than the surrounding brown, and she blinked at her refection. It didn’t blink back, and she smiled. There were too many teeth for her mouth. She looked exciting. Dangerous. All of the things she’d never been but had always wanted to be.

One of my 2022 reading goals is to read new-to-me authors, especially those in the horror and thriller genres. I’m so glad I had the chance to check out Kristi DeMeester, whose latest book Such a Pretty Smile was exactly what I was looking for. DeMeester’s tale is strange and disturbing, full of unnerving imagery, a fever dream where the characters seem to be losing their grip on reality. This is the story of a serial killer and the girls he targets over several decades, a story that seems grounded in reality at first, but later introduces speculative elements that make readers wonder what’s real and what isn’t. And while the murders are chilling enough on their own, the author adds another layer that delves into toxic masculinity and its effects on women. Truly, this was an immersive reading experience that often made me question my own sanity.

The story is told through two different points of view and two different timelines. In the present day, 2019, we meet Lila, a thirteen-year-old girl who is struggling with the normal things girls her age struggle with. Lila is trying to fit in with the popular crowd at school, and so has made friends with a girl named Macie, who she also secretly has a crush on. Macie knows how to choose just the right makeup and outfit for Lila, and she’s pushing her to talk to a boy who seems to be interested in her. But weird things are happening to Lila. She feels as though something else is inside her skin, trying to break out. And then the body of a young girl is discovered, and everything changes.

Lila’s mother Caroline had something terrible happen to her when she was eleven years old, but she’s suppressed those memories behind her work, creating eerie and beautiful sculptures out of found materials from nature. She remembers being told that she disappeared from her front yard one day, and later was found injured and in shock. Caroline turned out to be one of the lucky ones. Other girls at the time were found dead, their inner thighs riddled with wounds that looked like animal bites. Police nicknamed the serial killer the Cur, because of the odd bite marks suffered by the girls, and the fact that they all claimed to have heard dogs barking before they disappeared.

Lila suspects that her own changes might have something to do with what happened to her mother. When she asks Caroline about that horrible time, she refuses to talk about it, except to utter a word: Jazzland. Armed with this clue, Lila sets out to discover the truth about her mother’s past, hoping it will shed some light on her own recent experiences.

In alternating chapters, we jump back to 2004 when Caroline was engaged to a man named Daniel and was just getting started as an artist. Caroline’s father is dying and lives in assisted living, and she spends every bit of spare time with him. In order to pay for the expensive facility, she teaches private art lessons to a young girl named Beth. But Beth is starting to act strangely and insists that Caroline take her to the amusement park called Jazzland. But once there, Caroline’s suppressed memories start to return. What actually happened to her as a child in Jazzland? Why are young girls still being murdered? And how does Caroline’s past connect to Lila’s experiences?

DeMeester’s writing is so good, spare but evocative, and it’s perfect for this psychological, twisty tale. The story moves between Lila’s and Caroline’s points of view, and little by little their stories begin to merge. The way the author weaves together the various threads was simply brilliant, and I felt off kilter as I was reading. Even though the chapter headings are clearly marked with the year that chapter takes place, I often found myself questioning which timeline I was in. Events seem to twist around each other and overlap in such a way that I couldn’t remember where I was or which iteration of Caroline I was reading about.

The murders themselves are shocking, but even more so is the way the women in this story are treated by men. First, Caroline is strongly encouraged (or in my opinion, forced) to go to therapy, after she starts hallucinating. Her fiancé Daniel sends her to an older male therapist who calls her “dear” and “sweetheart” and speaks in condescending tones. He shoves prescriptions at her without even taking the time to listen to what she has to say, convincing her that she is indeed crazy, as all women have the tendency to be, in his professional opinion. The therapist made me so mad I wanted to rip those pages out of the book!

Daniel isn’t much better. He’s also an artist, and instead of celebrating Caroline’s talent and accomplishments, he lies to her about showing her sculptures to an art dealer, because he knows how good they are, and he doesn’t want her to surpass him professionally. It’s horrifying to watch Caroline being treated this way, although luckily, she’s strong enough to fight back.

The mystery wraps up in a rather ambiguous way, and readers who love clear cut answers might be frustrated with DeMeester’s vague explanations at the end. We do learn why these particular murders keep occurring over the years, although whether it’s a satisfying enough explanation will depend on the reader, I think. For me, identifying and understanding the murderer wasn’t as important as the way the girls and women grew strength from the terrible things that happened to them.

I will definitely be reading more of Kristi DeMeester’s work! This is a treat for horror fans who appreciate dark mysteries and resourceful female characters.

Big thanks to the author for providing a review copy.