The Thousand Dollar Tan Line (Veronica Mars #1) by Rob Thomas {Book Review}

As a super fan of the Veronica Mars television series, I knew that I had to get my hands on this book ASAP. While I didn't start watching Veronica Mars until after the Kickstarter series happened, I still consider myself a marshmallow. I was pumped for the movie to come out and rented it off of iTunes on its release date. I watched it once, loved it and wished that I had bought it instead of just renting it, but I have this thing with actually owning tangible DVDs. I watched the movie again on my way back from Europe (instead of sleeping on that 14-hour flight, mind you), and it sparked my excitement for the books all over again.
Rob Thomas is seriously a genius for not only coming up with the idea behind the Veronica Mars series, but also being able to make a movie a decade later and still make it as awesome as the series was. And then to continue it in the form of a book...seriously, a man after my own heart.

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The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line picks up right where the movie left off. Keith is still recovering from his injuries from the car accident, Veronica is living at home and picking up what little cases she can while Logan is off at sea. Mac is now using her computer hacking skills for good rather than evil. Though "good" is a relative term in this case. Wallace is still awesome. 

This show seriously has the best cast.
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The book takes place during spring break and college students are running amok in Neptune. When a spring breaker disappears, Veronica is called in to both find the girl and help save face for the city. She's quickly pulled into a world of parties, booze, drugs, and crazy, and then something happens that hits a little too close home. 
If you're already a fan of Veronica Mars, then you will love this book even more than the TV series. I know I did. As thrilling as it is to watch Veronica in action, it's even more exciting to watch the mystery unfold on paper. This is one of those books that will keep you up at night and cause you to lose sleep because you just have to know what happens next. It includes all of the fun tidbits for loyal Veronica Mars fans as well as some new things to get excited about. This book is a lot darker and more intense than most of the mysteries Veronica had to solve in her high school and college days, but that just made it much more exciting and perfect for those who have been fans for many years, after all, we've all grown up a bit, including Veronica. While I have to admit, I was hoping for a little more LoVe, the absence of it didn't take away from my own love for the book.
For those that haven't gotten sucked into the amazing world of Veronica Mars, what the heck are you waiting for??!! I still recommend this book to you, especially if you enjoy a good mystery novel. This book is fast-paced and unfolds in the most unexpected ways. Like I said before, Rob Thomas is a genius. 

I give this book a 5 out of 5. It kept me at the edge of my seat and the conclusion, as well as many other elements of the book, were completely unexpected. 

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