This is W.A.R.

Name: This is W.A.R.
Author: Lisa Leighton
ISBN: 9781616954215

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Lisa Leighton

Reading Level 4-5 IT · Intense · Thematic Ages 9-12 Heads Up

The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content is intense and may include graphic or distressing scenes. Its HootRating code, IT, means intense content, mostly thematic.

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About This Book

Everyone at Hawthorne Lake Country Club saw Willa Ames-Rowan climb into a boat with James Gregory, and everyone saw him come back alone. The real shocker? Not one of them will say a word about what they all know he did. So four girls make a plan with only one rule: bring down the Gregory family at any cost, but that's only the beginning.

Themes

Mystery Friendship Family

Quick Assessment

Four girls band together after their best friend Willa Ames-Rowan is killed, and they set out to destroy the powerful Gregory family rather than let the truth stay buried. Expect a murder mystery centered on revenge, with the characters' schemes raising real questions about justice, right and wrong, and whether vengeance can ever be fair. The murder is largely implied rather than shown, but the moral weight and dark tone make it best for readers who can talk through the characters' choices with a grown-up.

Why we rated This is W.A.R. IT (Intense)

This is W.A.R. is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 276 pages. Reading-wise, most kids in grade 6 and up can manage This is W.A.R. on their own.

We rate This is W.A.R. as IT (Intense, mostly thematic) because the content sits in the "Intense" range — intense conflict including peril, frightening scenes, or emotionally heavy themes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, physical peril, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

Specific content flags noted by reviewers: Murder (implied, off-page), Revenge and vigilante justice, Moral ambiguity, Dark subject matter.

Thematically, This is W.A.R. explores mystery, friendship, and family — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.

Good fit for

✓ Children in the Ages 9-12 range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about mystery, friendship, family.

Maybe not for

! Sensitive readers who get overwhelmed by intense conflict or scary scenes.
! Children younger than 9 — the content intensity is above what most younger kids can process comfortably.

For Parents

Content Intensity

IT · Intense · Thematic

Emotional

Moderate

Physical

Moderate

Social

Mild

Thematic

Intense ←

Reading the HootRating code: the first letter is the content intensity (C = Gentle · L = Mild · M = Moderate · I = Intense · V = Very Intense); the second, when there is one, is the kind of content that drives it (E = Emotional · P = Physical · S = Social · T = Thematic). Reading level and age range are rated separately. How we rate

Heavy themes explored in depth. War, death, abuse addressed directly.