Book Review of They Never Learn by Layne Fargo

Title: They Never Learn

Author: Layne Fargo

Genre: Thriller

Publication Date: October 13, 2020

Rating: 4 Stars

Purchase at AMAZON /  BARNES & NOBLE

 

About The Book

Scarlett Clark is an exceptional English professor. But she’s even better at getting away with murder.

Every year, she searches for the worst man at Gorman University and plots his well-deserved demise. Thanks to her meticulous planning, she’s avoided drawing attention to herself—but as she’s preparing for her biggest kill yet, the school starts probing into the growing body count on campus. Determined to keep her enemies close, Scarlett insinuates herself into the investigation and charms the woman in charge, Dr. Mina Pierce. Everything’s going according to her master plan…until she loses control with her latest victim, putting her secret life at risk of exposure.

Meanwhile, Gorman student Carly Schiller is just trying to survive her freshman year. Finally free of her emotionally abusive father, all Carly wants is to focus on her studies and fade into the background. Her new roommate has other ideas. Allison Hadley is cool and confident—everything Carly wishes she could be—and the two girls quickly form an intense friendship. So when Allison is sexually assaulted at a party, Carly becomes obsessed with making the attacker pay…and turning her fantasies about revenge into a reality.

My Thoughts

Scarlett is a English Professor by day and a killer after hours. This makes the story interesting. Is she killing for fun or for a purpose? I figured it’s for a purpose because she picks the worst men on campus to take out. She is an intriguing character.

Carly is a student who seems naive, not confident in her sexuality and is an introvert. Her roommate Allison is more outgoing and is trying to get her out of her comfort zone. While attending a party Allison is raped. Carly’s personality changes after this and a new Carly emerges.

They attend a typical college where the sport teams are everything and are not held responsible. I do believe the killings were spread out too far apart. It is believable to hold a grudge for a long time and want revenge. Kinnear was horrible and deserved to be punished.

I will say I didn’t care for the way the story is set up. You get Scarlett’s chapter which seem to be an older version of Carly. Carly’s chapters are from when she was in college and her friend was raped, but no one paid for it. In the story I could tell Scarlett was getting revenge on a professor from her college days while making guys pay for their wrong doings at Gorman College where she works and had attended school. This in turn made me believe she was also Carly.

For me this would have been better if Scarlett told the story and then revealed toward the end of the midpoint what happened to her and Allison in college. I also wanted more when she finally confronted Kinnear about what he did to her 16 years ago. I understand why Allison didn’t want to say anything about her rape because she knew the school security wasn’t going to do anything about it and the cops either.

The tension between Carly and Allison and also Scarlett and Jasper was interesting yet confusing as well as Mina and Scarlett. Scarlett’s a very complex character and I wanted more of her dark side. However I did like the way her secret was revealed within the story.

I look forward to reading more of this author’s work.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐