Margot discovers that the perfect way to get access to all her suspects’ computers is by getting close to nice guy Avery Green (who seems to be friends with everyone and be a member of every club at Roosevelt High). When the case takes a shocking turn during the prom, Margot starts to question everything and takes drastic measures to make sure that the culprits are rightfully punished. Margot Mertz Takes It Down is the first book in the Margot Mertz series, and it is intended for teens and young adults. This book would be perfect for fans of mystery and/ or feminist novels such as Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene, One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus, and Enola Holmes by Nancy Springer. Margot Mertz would also be perfect for fans of detective/ investigative shows such as Magnum PI and Only Murders in the Building. Margot Mertz Takes It Down deals with themes and topics such as appearance versus reality, identity and growing up, friendship, love and heartbreak, family, power and corruption, technology, fear of failure, greed, mental health, feminism, as well as harassment and revenge porn. In the end, Margot learns that it’s okay to ask for help when it’s needed (especially when it comes to really taxing jobs/ tasks), that she needs to start treating her friends with more respect, and that she needs to question the morality of her internet clean-up business. This book also reinforces the fact that we need to be very careful about what we share/ post on the internet; inappropriate or embarrassing pictures/ videos/ information posted on the internet can be extremely damaging and very challenging (or seemingly impossible) to get rid of. First off, I felt that it was very unrealistic that so many people in Margot’s small town (including teachers and adults) had compromising content that they needed Margot to remove from the internet. I found it shocking that so many people at Margot’s high school had taken naked/ scandalous photos and sent them to their (then) boyfriends. I also found it absolutely disgusting that all these nude photos were then posted on a revenge porn site! Similarly, I was so frustrated with how long it took Margot to permanently delete the site; I really think that if underage pornography is posted online (and it is flagged as inappropriate by one of the viewers), the web domain or security agency should remove it immediately and not allow the website/ content to be reuploaded. Additionally, I would have liked it if Margot’s case had a more satisfying and complete resolution and I felt like there should have been way more consequences for everyone who ended up doing something illegal or morally wrong in this book. For me, a major downside was the footnotes (written in Margot’s voice) included throughout Margot Mertz Takes It Down because I found that these disrupted my reading experience and didn’t add any significant information/ insights to the plot. This book was also hard for me to get into and was slow to start; the first half of the book consists of Margot being hired to take down the revenge porn website and following false leads. But the book got a lot more engaging towards the end of the book when Margot gets a big break in the case! I also loved how this book focused on feminism and had a female heroine. Overall, I thought that this book was unique and interesting to read. In my opinion, Margot Mertz Takes It Down is ideally suited for teens who love mystery and feminist books. If you enjoyed Margot Mertz Takes It Down, the next book in the series is already listed on Goodreads (Margot Mertz for the Win is expected in 2022)! I gave this book a rating of 7 out of 10. This article was written for "The Nerd Daily". Click here to view this article on "The Nerd Daily's" website or copy & paste the following URL into your web browser: https://bit.ly/3CA1qIu
Will you be picking up a copy of Margot Mertz Takes It Down when it comes out on November 2nd?
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