The Cheerleaders Book Summary: Kara Thomas YA Mystery
TL;DR: The Cheerleaders at a Glance
The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas opens in a town that has already buried five of its own.
Five years after two cheerleaders died in a car crash, two were murdered during a sleepover, and a fifth took her own life, sixteen-year-old Monica Rayburn finds hidden letters and her dead sister’s old phone.
The notes claim the police arrested the wrong man. Monica begins asking questions the adults around her have spent half a decade avoiding.
What it is: A YA mystery thriller about a town haunted by five cheerleader deaths and the younger sister who reinvestigates them.
The hook: Monica Rayburn discovers anonymous letters claiming the wrong man was blamed for two murders. The real killer may still be free.
The structure: Dual timeline. Present-day investigation alternates with flashbacks from five years ago.
Key themes: Grief, suburban secrets, predatory relationships, and the cost of silence.
Reading experience: Slow-burn investigative pacing that escalates into a fast thriller climax.
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The Cheerleaders Summary (Spoilers Ahead)
Spoiler Warning: This section reveals major plot points and the ending.
Five years before the main events, the Sunnybrook High cheerleading squad included sophomores Jennifer Rayburn, Juliana Ruiz, and Susan Berry, along with juniors Colleen Coughlin and Bethany Steiger.
A transfer student named Carly Amato befriended Juliana and introduced her to prescription pills. Jennifer grew distant from Juliana, while Susan became paranoid.
A bullied classmate named Ethan McCready exchanged a supportive note with Jennifer.
Susan reported him to the principal after he was caught writing a hit list of cheerleaders and football players.
Ethan was expelled from school.
Then the deaths began. Bethany drove into a tree with Colleen in the passenger seat, and both girls died.
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Two weeks later, Juliana and Susan were strangled during a sleepover at Susan’s house.
Sergeant Tom Carlino, Monica’s stepfather, shot and killed neighbor Jack Canning at the scene. Police closed the case. Two weeks after that, Jennifer died by suicide in her bedroom.
In the present day, Monica finds four envelopes hidden in Tom’s desk. They contain photos of the dead cheerleaders and typed notes saying “I know it wasn’t him. Connect the dots.” She also finds Jennifer’s old phone.
A text from an unknown sender warns her not to trust Tom. With help from Ginny Cordero, a quiet classmate, Monica uncovers holes in the police narrative.
Ethan McCready admits he sent the letters and saw Juliana arguing with a man in a black pickup truck the night she died.
Monica and Ginny identify the truck’s owner. Carly Amato reveals she bought Oxycontin from a college student who was friends with Coach Allie’s boyfriend.
That boyfriend was Brandon Michaelson, now the school’s cross-country coach and the man Monica had a secret summer fling with.
Brandon had a relationship with fifteen-year-old Juliana. When Juliana threatened to expose him and his friend’s drug dealing, Brandon went to Susan’s house. He strangled Juliana on the deck, then chased Susan out of the shower and killed her too.
Monica records Brandon confessing to the murders. He attacks her, but Ginny arrives and strikes him with a baseball bat. Police arrest Brandon and clear Jack Canning.
Monica quits the dance team, rebuilds her relationships, and begins dating her friend Jimmy Varney. A final flashback reveals that the car crash killing Bethany and Colleen was caused by Ginny’s drunk father, Phil Cordero, who swerved into their lane.
Ginny keeps the secret to let her town and family rest. Kara Thomas closes the novel with Monica reflecting that her story is tied to the dead cheerleaders forever.
Summary by Chapter
Spoiler Warning: This section contains detailed chapter-by-chapter spoilers. The book has 28 total sections: 22 numbered present-day chapters, 5 historical flashback chapters focused on Jennifer, and 1 concluding flashback from Ginny’s perspective.
Chapter 1: Monica returns home from dance tryouts with severe cramps. Her mother gives her naproxen and asks about her ex-boyfriend. The next morning, Monica rides to school with Rachel and Alexa and sees a memorial photo of Jennifer and four other dead cheerleaders.
Chapter 2: Dance team roster posting is delayed. Guidance counselor Mr. Demarco asks Monica to read a poem at the memorial, which she declines. Monica avoids new cross-country coach Brandon Michaelson, with whom she had a secret summer fling.
Chapter 3: Searching Tom’s desk for Vicodin, Monica finds four envelopes with photos of dead cheerleaders and notes reading “I know it wasn’t him. Connect the dots.” She researches news articles and notices discrepancies about Jack Canning’s shooting.
Chapter 4: Dance coach demands Rachel master a triple pirouette. Senior dancers mention seeing Brandon at the mall with his girlfriend. Monica confronts Brandon in his office, where he admits his girlfriend moved back from Boston.
Chapter 5: Monica receives a text on Jennifer’s old phone warning her not to trust Tom. She gives Ginny a ride to school and contacts journalist Daphne Furman, who points out that Canning had no blood on him despite Juliana fighting back.
Jennifer – Five Years Ago (August): Jennifer practices cheer stunts during summer camp. New transfer student Carly Amato acts suspiciously at the county fair. Susan expresses anxiety and jealousy over Juliana’s growing closeness with Carly.
Chapter 6: Monica helps Rachel practice dance routines. She sneaks into the basement and searches Jennifer’s stored items, discovering a copy of Wuthering Heights with a handwritten poem matching the typed messages.
Chapter 7: Monica shows the poem to Mr. Ward, who identifies the writer as Ethan McCready. Monica visits the library, where Ginny helps her find Ethan’s yearbook portrait and reveals her mother was a home nurse for Ethan’s family.
Chapter 8: Tom confronts Monica about her questions regarding Ethan. He explains police found no evidence Ethan could strangle two fit athletes. Officer Mike Mejia tells Monica he believed the hit list was a cry for attention.
Jennifer – Five Years Ago (September): Juliana becomes distant from Jennifer and Susan, spending time with Carly. Jennifer writes “I’m not okay” in her notebook and throws it away. Ethan retrieves the note and slips a response into her locker.
Chapter 9: Ginny shows Monica unreleased photos from the homecoming float prep folder. The photos show Juliana stepping away from the cheerleaders, looking upset and crying by a fence while on her cell phone.
Chapter 10: Monica speaks with Mrs. Ruiz, who confirms Juliana, Susan, and Jennifer were fighting before the murders. Monica spots a tall blonde cheerleader with a lip piercing in old photos and identifies her as Carly Amato.
Jennifer – Five Years Ago (October – Part 1): Jennifer slips a note saying “Yes” into Ethan’s locker. Panic erupts over rumors of a mass shooting targeting cheerleaders. Jennifer sees Juliana enter a black pickup truck with Carly to buy prescription pills.
Chapter 11: Monica meets Ethan at a diner. He claims Tom threatened him and admits he saw Juliana arguing on Susan’s deck with a man the night she was killed. Ethan sent the letters to force Tom to connect the car crash, murders, and pickup truck.
Chapter 12: Monica and Ginny plan to steal Mike Mejia’s keycard during a police department dinner. They discuss how to access closed case files on Tom’s office computer.
Chapter 13: Monica executes the plan by spilling a drink in Mike’s office and downloading crime scene reports onto a flash drive. They find a statement from a neighbor reporting a black pickup truck near the Berrys’ house.
Chapter 14: Monica confronts Ginny about her father, learning Phil Cordero owned a GMC Sierra pickup matching the vehicle seen near the crime scene. Monica suspects Ginny participated in the investigation to clear her father’s name.
Chapter 15: Coach subjects the dance team to an exhausting Saturday practice. Monica meets Ethan at Osprey Lake, where he admits he observed Juliana’s argument from the roof of Jennifer’s garage. Carly Amato blocks Monica on Facebook.
Jennifer – Five Years Ago (October – Part 2): Tom returns home sobbing from the car crash scene. A fight erupts between Carly and Coach Allie after Allie accuses Carly of sleeping with her boyfriend. Jennifer contracts strep throat and stays home while Juliana and Susan attend the sleepover.
Chapter 16: Mrs. Coughlin assigns Monica and Ginny detention. Ginny shows Monica an article about Newton East cheer coach Patrice Johnson, whom they recognize from Carly’s prom photo. Monica skips the balloon release memorial.
Chapter 17: Monica confronts boys harassing Ginny during detention. At the Newton vs. Shrewsbury football game, Patrice Johnson reveals Carly was kicked off the cheer squad after rumors she slept with Coach Allie’s boyfriend.
Chapter 18: Monica meets former coach Allie Lewandowski at a café. Allie denies Carly slept with her boyfriend and explains Carly quit the team on her own. Ginny creates a fake Facebook profile to trick Carly into meeting.
Chapter 19: Monica is named to the homecoming court. Monica and Ginny meet Carly Amato, who admits she bought Oxycontin from a college student who was best friends with Coach Allie’s boyfriend. Carly reveals Juliana discovered the drug dealing and threatened to expose them.
Jennifer – Five Years Ago (November): Jennifer attends Juliana’s wake in deep distress. Carly bitterly confronts Jennifer outside the funeral home. Ethan sneaks into Jennifer’s bedroom through the roof, and Jennifer confesses her depression and wish to die.
Chapter 20: Tom tearfully explains he kept Jennifer’s phone out of grief. Monica points out inconsistencies like Susan’s dog not attacking Jack Canning. At the homecoming parade, Monica spots Coach Allie standing alongside Brandon Michaelson.
Chapter 21: Ginny confirms Brandon attended Hamilton College and dated Allie during the murders. Brandon grabs Monica’s wrist outside a homecoming party, but she escapes. Monica realizes Brandon’s friend was the drug dealer.
Chapter 22: Brandon arrives at Monica’s house to intimidate her. Monica records him confessing to the murders. Brandon attacks her, but Ginny arrives and strikes him with a baseball bat. Police arrest Brandon for assault, statutory rape, and double murder.
Ginny – Five Years Ago (October): A flashback reveals Ginny’s intoxicated father, Phil Cordero, swerved into Bethany’s vehicle, causing the crash. Phil fled the scene, and Ginny kept the secret to protect her family. In the present, Ginny reflects on how her father got what he deserved.
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Characters in The Cheerleaders
| Character | Role |
|---|---|
| Monica Rayburn | Sixteen-year-old protagonist and younger sister of Jennifer Rayburn who investigates the cheerleader deaths. |
| Jennifer “Jen” Rayburn | Monica’s older sister, a cheerleader who died by suicide two months after her friends were murdered. |
| Ginny Cordero | A quiet junior on the dance team who becomes Monica’s investigative partner. |
| Brandon Michaelson | The new cross-country coach who had a summer fling with Monica and is revealed as the killer. |
| Tom Carlino | Monica’s stepfather and a police sergeant who shot Jack Canning five years ago. |
| Kate Rayburn Carlino | Monica and Jennifer’s mother who struggles with grief and emotional distance. |
| Peter “Petey” Carlino | Monica’s ten-year-old half-brother. |
| Juliana Ruiz | Jennifer’s best friend and cheerleader murdered after threatening to expose Brandon. |
| Susan Berry | Jennifer’s academically driven best friend and cheerleader murdered alongside Juliana. |
| Bethany Steiger | A cheerleader who died in a car accident five years ago. |
| Colleen Coughlin | A cheerleader and Bethany’s best friend who died in the same crash. |
| Carly Amato | A transfer student and former cheerleader who introduced Juliana to prescription drugs. |
| Ethan McCready | A social outcast expelled for writing a cheerleader hit list who sent letters to Tom. |
| Jack Canning | Susan Berry’s neighbor who was falsely blamed for the murders and shot by Tom. |
| Allie Lewandowski | The former cheerleading coach and Brandon Michaelson’s former girlfriend. |
| Mike Mejia | Tom’s police partner who participated in the Jack Canning shooting. |
| Rachel Santiago | Monica’s best friend and a perfectionist dancer. |
| Alexa Santiago | Rachel’s sister and Monica’s close friend on the dance team. |
| Jimmy Varney | A cross-country runner who shows romantic interest in Monica. |
| Mr. Ward | Jennifer and Monica’s honors English teacher. |
| Mrs. Coughlin | Colleen’s mother and a health teacher who organizes the memorial. |
| Daphne Furman | An investigative journalist who questioned the police department’s conclusions. |
| Phil Cordero | Ginny’s late father whose drunk driving caused the car crash. |
| Patrice Johnson | Newton East cheerleading coach and former Sunnybrook cheerleader. |
Book Snapshot: The Cheerleaders
- Genre & Subgenre: Young Adult Mystery / Psychological Thriller / Crime Fiction
- Core Narrative Tropes: Amateur sleuth sister, small-town dark secrets, dual timeline, unreliable authority figures, hidden past crime
- Tone & Atmosphere: Dark, somber, tense, claustrophobic, suspenseful
- Primary Conflict: Monica Rayburn versus the official police narrative and the unknown killer
- Pacing Style: Dual-timeline structure with slow-burn investigation escalating to fast-paced thriller climax
- ISBN: 978-1524718350
- Pages: 400
- Book Structure: 28 total sections: 22 present-day chapters, 5 Jennifer flashbacks, 1 Ginny flashback
- Author Background: Kara Thomas is a YA author known for psychological thrillers including The Darkest Corners and Little Monsters.
Is The Cheerleaders Right for You?
This book may appeal to readers who enjoy YA mysteries with dual timelines and amateur investigations. The story focuses on grief, small-town secrets, and predatory relationships rather than supernatural elements.
Readers who prefer fast-paced thrillers with immediate action may find the investigation unfolds gradually. Those who appreciate character-driven mysteries with emotional weight and social dynamics will find the narrative engaging.
The novel features themes of suicide, murder, and abuse. It is suited for mature young adult readers and adults who read YA suspense.
Books Like The Cheerleaders
One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus: A YA murder mystery set in a high school where five students enter detention and only four leave alive.
Sadie by Courtney Summers: A gritty YA thriller about a sister investigating her younger sister’s murder, told through alternating narrative and podcast format.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson: A YA mystery about a student reinvestigating a closed five-year-old murder case she believes was wrongly solved.
The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas: A psychological thriller about two former friends returning home to uncover the truth behind a past murder conviction.
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart: A suspenseful YA novel about a wealthy family, buried trauma, and a devastating past accident.
Little Monsters by Kara Thomas: A YA thriller about a girl investigating the disappearance of her step-sister in a small town with secrets.
