Difficult Girls
By (Author) Veronica Bane
Random House USA Inc
Delacorte Press
6th August 2025
United States
Young Adult
Fiction
Hardback
336
Width 140mm, Height 210mm
A teen girls attempt at social reinvention takes a deadly turn when a co-worker disappearsand she learns she may have been the last person to see the missing girlin this razor-sharp, murderously funny thriller debut.
After the incident last year, Greta Riley Green is looking for reinvention, a fresh start, a chance to run away from the many secrets shes suddenly hiding. A job at Hyper Kid Magic Land, the local amusement park, seems like the perfect way to forge a new path . . . no matter what it takes.
When fate pulls Greta into the orbit of Mercy Goodwin, star of the parks most popular show, it feels like things are looking up. Beautiful and confident, Mercy dazzles audiences daily. And at the first party of the summer, she picks Greta to confide in. Mercy has a secret to share, if Greta will just meet her the next day. Its a sign that Gretas truly fitting in.
Only, when the time comes, Mercy is a no-showas she is everyday after that. She just stops coming to work. Greta knows somethings wrong. She cant help thinking back to the night of the party. Did Mercy seem upset Terrified, even Could she be in trouble It wouldnt be the first time a talented young performer came to a sinister end at Hyper Kid. . . .
Of course, Greta has her own issues with the past, and the more she uncovers Hyper Kids secrets, the more her own threaten to surface. This job was meant to be a reboot, a summer without trouble. But trouble, it seems, finds Greta, and her pastand the bloody past of Hyper Kidis about to catch up with her.
Veronica Bane has a rare gift. Amber Benson, actress and author of the Echo Park Coven series
Twisty, bitingly funny, and fresh. Veronica Bane masterfully keeps you guessing as the bodies begin to drop. Trish Lundy, author of The One That Got Away with Murder
Deeply heartfelt, laugh-out-loud funny, and filled with unexpected twists. Perfect for fans of Jessica Goodman and Karen M. McManus! Liz Lawson, New York Times bestselling author of the Agathas series and Murder Between Friends
Sharp, witty, and oh so compelling, Difficult Girls cements Veronica Bane as an author to watch. Jessica Goodman, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Meadowbrook Murders and The Legacies
Expertly weaves past and present mysteries in a humorous YA thriller. Megan Davidhizar, author of Silent Sister
A thrilling debut. I dare you not to read it in one sitting. Cynthia Murphy, author of Win Lose Kill Die
Veronica Bane has no apparent desire to leave high school, having been an English teacher in Lincoln Heights for several years. She graduated from Chapman University with a B.F.A. in Creative Writing. When shes not writing, shes exploring Los Angeles with her husband and beloved dog, Bodhi.