Book Review: Wickedpedia by Chris Van Etten

Wickedpedia is wicked. Just pick your definition of wicked, and the statement will be true. Honestly though. Whatever interpretation you have of that first sentence, it’s true. For that reason, whether or not you’ll enjoy reading Wickedpedia is directly correlated to whether or not you’ll like mysteries, whether or not you enjoy horror stories, and whether or not it’s summer. I’m only half kidding about the last one…

Holy shiz. Yup, still not gonna type a swear word online, but that’s not the point. The point is, Wickedpedia is SCARY. Don’t believe me? Well, I guess you’ll just have to read the summary to realize the true wrath of it. Cole and Greg have a vice- they like rewriting Wikipedia pages. So when a jock steal’s Cole’s girlfriend, their choice of retaliation is Wikipedia. Cole write’s the jock a Wikipedia page, also adding in a date of death. So when the jock DOES die, along with many others, how is Cole going to save himself and his friends? And most of all, how will he catch the murderer?

I think my favorite element of the story is the writing. Chris Van Etten’s third-person writing is pretty phenomenal, if I do say so myself. It’s edgy, descriptive, and informative, all while interesting the reader. His third-person style works well for any character, and it truly is enjoyable to read his book. What I love is that he isn’t boring- many writers complete the job but end up boring the reader in the process.

The plot, however, could use some work. Overall, Wickedpedia’s plot is pretty commendable. The actual murderer was completely unexpected! I nearly jumped a mile when I reached the climax. That part was incredibly thought out. However, in order to get to actually exciting events such as the climax, I had to read through a lengthy introduction. Wickedpedia’s action unfortunately does not start on the first page. It starts just when you’re about to put the book down because it was getting closer and closer to a chick-lit. I’m just sayin’, other than the murders and all, the whole being ditched for someone more popular is totally a chick-lit premise.

Wickedpedia isn’t just wicked. It’s fresh. I love how Chris Van Etten used the idea of technology to create a novel. It truly speaks of today’s world and possibly even tomorrow’s world. So if you’re looking for a great summer read, go out and buy Wickedpedia when it comes out on the 24th of June!

Rating: 6 out of 10

Publisher: Scholastic (June 24, 2014)

Source: Netgalley

ISBN #: 9780545415873

Genre: YA, Mystery, Horror

Valerie Zhang

Valerie is sixteen. She attends a boarding school near Boston, where she writes, reads, and attempts to be a studious student. She's too lazy to write the rest of this bio, so follow her on Twitter @torquoiseworld because shameless self-promotion is alive and thriving!