Killing Mr. Griffin

Lois Duncan's book, Killing Mr. Griffin is a tremendously good read. I stumbled across it in my school's library and couldn't stop reading. It kept me awake at night because I wanted to find out the ending. The constant questioning of what will happen next keeps readers captivated by this book.

Susan McConnell, a straight A high school student, is dragged into an arrangement to fright Brian Griffin, a strict and tough English teacher at the local high school. Griffin is disliked by almost all of the students. She, with her new “friends” Mark, David, Jeff, and Betsy, kidnap Mr. Griffin and bring him up in the mountains to “play with him.” Their plan was meant to be only a joke, but they end up killing him due to medical troubles he has.

The students are horrified to find Mr. Griffin lifeless when Susan and Betsy go to check on him due to Susan being extremely concerned about his wellbeing. Mark, the mastermind of the operation, tries to keep tranquil and decides to bury Mr. Griffin as a way to conceal the body. Jeff and Betsy do almost anything Mark tells them. No matter how extreme. As for Dave, he decides that what Mark is doing is immoral, and at the same time starts to fall for Susan. For the next couple weeks, the troubled teens are stuck together, trying exceedingly hard to cloak all evidence of the murder.

This book is almost glued to your fingers as you read it because you cannot put it down. It makes you feel like you are in similar circumstances as Susan. You think about what decisions you would make. Lois Duncan does a tremendous job of keeping the reader questioning what will occur next.