“Kill the Boy Band” is Darkly Comical and Touches on Realism

This book is morbid, inappropriate, and completely hilarious.

The four main characters are a band of strong young women. They also happen to be fangirls. It was so fun to read about their awesome and totally insane personalities as they obsessed over their favorite boy band, The Rupters. Things get a bit out of hand when they kidnap one of the boys and tie him up in a hotel.

These girls acted totally crazy, from stalking the boys online to writing fanficiton about them. And yet, I could understand their side of things. The boys made them excited and gave them something to look forward to each day.

“Did I love them because they were the only boys in my life who consistently told me I was beautiful? Probably.
I loved The Ruperts for who they were, sure, but I mostly loved them for how they made me feel. Which was happy.”

I could also sympathize with the girls and even relate to them because I’ve been there. I’ve never been obsessed with a boy band, but with books, oh yes . . . I used to write Percy Jackson fanfiction, look up fan art, and obsessively check the internet for new updates on the latest book. So when it came to the girls’ crazy antics, I could understand their motives.

The writing was brilliant and I really look forward to reading more by this author. I think she articulately stated exactly what it’s like to be a teenager:

“The joy you find as a teen, however frivolous and dumb, is pure, and meaningful. It doesn’t matter that it might ferment and taste different when you’re older. That’s the whole point of being a teenager.”

It may sound like a light topic—I mean, fangirls and boy bands?—but it all felt so very important and dark at times. The author showed the power the media, celebrities, and the music industry have on people, especially teens.

I mean, why do we all obsess over celebrities anyway? Movie stars, singers, models—they’re made to look glittery and attractive under bright lights, meant to dazzle people. But really they’re no different from any of us. They’re people, too.

“They were just boys. Take away the band, the lights, the fame, and the screaming girls, and they were just boys, chosen for us to obsess over.”

I think if you’ve ever fangirled over anything before you will be able to relate with this story and its characters. Or at the very least you should find it highly entertaining.