Choker by Elizabeth Woods

Shelf Notes

Author: Elizabeth Woods

Published: Simon & Schuster, 2011
Series: -
Adaptation(s): -
Genre(s): YA, Psychological Thriller
Trigger Warnings: Teen drinking, drugs, animal cruelty, murder

📌 Bookmark This If...

• You like teen dramas with a twist
• You're new to psychological thrillers

🙄 Mood Map

The book was supposed to present an eerie, intense mood, but honestly just left me unsatisfied.
I would still recommend it be read on a dark rainy night with minimal light.

First Sip

The title is what pulled me in. Choker is sharp and kind of unsettling, and I wanted to know what it meant in the story. Especially paired with the soft, pastel pink cover, it created a contrast that suggested something eerie or subversive. As uninspired as the description was, I still held out hope for an engaging twist or at least a decent psychological hook. It had all the right ingredients, too: a quiet teen, the mysterious return of someone from her past, a classic high school setting, and to top it all off, girls turning up dead. Instead, what I found was a letdown—flat and underwhelming.

Let’s Talk Plot

The story starts with our protagonist, Cara, diving into a monologue about her loneliness and the pathetic state of her life—a common trope in YA fiction—and how she was much happier when she was with her best friend, Zoe. The narrative quickly undermines itself, though. As a high school athlete, part of a clearly cherished group, Cara’s self-pity feels more contrived than compelling. This then leads to how she earned the nickname, Choker. Apparently, choking on a carrot in the middle of the cafeteria will make you the laughing stock of the school. It's an absurd detail, and somehow, it's supposed to represent the isolating force of high school cruelty. But it feels almost satirical in its ridiculousness. Her yearning for Zoe’s support stronger than ever, she reaches home one day to find Zoe waiting for her in her bedroom. Having run away from home, Zoe needs a place to hideout. And Cara is more than happy to comply. Things start to really turn around for Cara with Zoe by her side — but not for long.

Where it Hit (or Missed)

One of Choker’s most persistent weaknesses lies in its writing. The prose is overly simplistic, lacking the kind of emotional depth or atmosphere that a psychological thriller demands. There's little in the way of imagery or internal reflection that might help us understand Cara’s mind, especially as the story starts to unravel.

SPOILERS AHEAD

But more disappointing than the prose, are the characters. The cast is built on tired tropes: the outcast protagonist, the catty mean girls, the distant parents, and the perfect love interest. But even within these familiar molds, the characters are inconsistent and frustratingly one-dimensional. Take Alexis, the designated “mean girl,” who is ironically the only person to have a normal reaction to Sydney’s death—a moment that unintentionally highlights how hollow the so-called “good” characters are, judging and making fun of Alexis for being upset. Even her own boyfriend, Evan—Cara’s supposed love interest—chooses this moment to lob sarcastic comments at her. Which would’ve been fine if he was supposed to be antagonistic. But no, he’s portrayed as the cookie-cutter nice guy, only to inexplicably turn cruel during a single scene. The shift is loosely explained away as him having anger issues, but it feels less like a deliberate choice and more like a lapse in authorial control. It's moments like this—when characters act out of line with their previously established personalities—that make the entire story feel unstable.

Zoe, arguably the heart of the novel’s psychological tension, is handled with the most disappointing lack of depth. From the moment she reappears, there’s an obvious sense that something is off—but rather than letting her develop gradually or peeling back her layers over time, the narrative flattens her into a hollow plot device. We learn almost nothing of her inner world, her past, or her motivations, beyond what is absolutely necessary to force the twist. Her character is treated like a means to an end, when she should have been the emotional core. With her strange charisma, her traumatic background, and her influence over Cara, Zoe had the potential to be complex, tragic, and terrifying all at once. Instead, she’s discarded just as the story should be reaching its emotional peak.

I’m tempted to attribute Cara’s apathy to her psychological issues—but that would be giving the author too much credit. The truth is, it reads more like lazy writing than a thoughtful character study.

And speaking of psychological issues—aren’t we all a little tired of writers who toss them in for shock value without doing even the most basic research?

Yes, it’s theoretically possible for someone to be influenced by hallucinations — say, an imaginary best friend — into doing things they wouldn’t normally do. But this story never actually builds that connection between Cara’s emotions and her actions. The supposed descent into psychosis hinges entirely on one incident—the choking—which, frankly, doesn’t feel serious or traumatic enough to justify the level of psychological fallout we’re shown.

Then there’s the backstory. We’re told Cara’s parents had her in psychiatric therapy before the story even begins. If that were true, wouldn’t she already have a diagnosis? Wouldn’t her parents be more involved in her life, especially given how serious her condition supposedly is? Their absence feels less like a narrative decision and more like a convenient plot device — one that doesn't hold up under the weight of its own premise.

Aftertaste

Ultimately, Choker reads like a draft of a much more interesting novel. One where the characters feel human, the psychology is nuanced, and the thriller elements are rooted in emotional truth. Instead, what we’re left with is a story that’s both too shallow and too messy to do justice to the weighty themes it pretends to engage with. What could have been a tense and poignant story about identity, friendship, and trauma turned out to be an underbaked thriller filled with missed opportunities and inconsistencies. The potential was there, but sadly, it choked under its own weight.

🫶🏼 Underlined & Poured Over

“Dreams disappeared when you woke up. The real thing was better anyway.”

🫖 Chai-o-Meter

Plot: ☕
Characters: ☕
Vibes: ☕
Spice: -

Overall: ⭐

🎧 Chai & Chapters Playlist

TBA:

• Bury a Friend – Billie Eilish
• Control – Halsey
• Gasoline – Halsey
• Lovely – Billie Eilish & Khalid
• Liability – Lorde
• Tennis Court – Lorde
• You Should See Me in a Crown – Billie Eilish
• The Archer – Taylor Swift
• Youth – Daughter
• Control – Zoe Wees
• Everybody Wants to Rule the World – Lorde
• Creep – Radiohead

💬 Tea-Time Talk

What did you think about the book? Do you agree with my thoughts? Is there something you think I missed? Let me know in the comments!