CALLING ALL GOSSIP GIRL FANS! This one is for you!

I cannot stress this more-this book is PERFECT for GG fans. Becca was Serena van der Woodsen, Ash was little J, Dean Westhaven was Rose Byrne (okay not Gossip Girl) and Rumi was Penn Badgely.

This book is almost 500 pages, but don't be deterred- it will go by F A S T! The story took me about 150 pages to get addicted to, but seriously page 151 had me hooked and wouldn't let go.

These girls are forces of nature. They are scheming, secretive, manipulative, capricious, two-faced, clever and oh so charming.

While creepy, I LOVED the setting! The buildings are old, have numerous scary stories, are crawling with secrets, tunnels and history.

As I said before the characters were basically all Gossip Girl characters for me. Becca is the quintessential queen bee with the power to crush not only you, but herself.

Ash- I knew something was off with her, I just couldn't put my finger on it.

The other characters were minor, but layered, critical to the plot and really . key to the theme of this book.

Speaking of the plot, have I mentioned it's like Gossip Girl?! Throw in some Pretty Little Liars, The Parent Trap, Dead Poets Society and maybe a dash of Ninth House and you've got this book.</p>

If I had to be SUPER picky, I'd say that the plot twist wasn't that great or twisted enough for my messed up mind.

Good Girls Lie is a dark psychological study of the seemingly honor bound Goode girls. It's full of hazing, mean girls, secrets and of course murder.

You may never trust teenage girls again after reading this book. The Goode School is a very prestigious all-girls school. Its graduates are guaranteed entrance into only the best colleges. There is a strict Honor Code at Goode School but these are pampered, privileged girls with all their deceits, manipulations, and lies. Behind the closed gates of Goode School one encounters secret societies and scandals. Dean Ford Westhaven has run the school ever since her mother had to step aside in the aftermath of the murder of a student at the school. Is history now repeating itself?

New student Ash Carr, 16 years old, is the catalyst for the newest scandal to beset the school. I found myself feeling sorry for the bullying and hazing she encountered, but also wondered about her role in the mysterious events that occur only after she arrives. Instigator…or victim?

The setting for this book is perfect – a school atop a hill, hidden doors, tunnels underneath the school, a legacy of a murder, a cemetery. It reminded me of the old Victoria Holt books.

This book is action-packed and sure to keep you up past your bedtime, muttering the mantra “Just one more chapter, just one more.” You are kept guessing to the very end.

Thank you to Harlequin-MIRA for a digital copy of this amazing new thriller. Opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

The Goode School is a prestigious all-girls prep school in Virginia. It is a boarding school for the daughters of politicians, diplomats, and the rich and famous. With decades-old traditions, a strict honor code, and its elite atmosphere, it is ideal for girls with aspirations to attend ivy league universities.

When the school year begins, a new student appears. Ash Carlisle is different. She’s from England. She’s an orphan. And, Ash Carlisle has secrets. With secret societies, the stomp, and cliques. Good Girls Lie is a suspenseful and twisty story of jealousy, lies, and deceptions. The story unfolds with flashbacks that reveal the lives of several of the characters.

While many of the characters are less than appealing, the setting is interesting and compelling and the storytelling is well-done. At times I felt that the story was a bit slow, but overall it is fairly fast-paced and I found it difficult to put down.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Good Girls Lie takes place at the Goode School, a prestigious all-girls boarding school in Virginia. The school is known for its strict honor code, and it demands both the best in academics and telling the truth. The story begins with a death as a student's body is discovered at the school. The book then goes back in time to explain how the story got to here. This includes the arrival of Ash, a British student. With Ash's arrival, she learns of the secret societies, hierarchy, and rules (both written and unwritten) that govern the school.

Much of the story is about the dynamics of different students at the school. While there is a strict honor code, there are secrets and lies bubbling below the surface. As the story moves towards the death where things began, suspense builds as to what happened and who might be responsible. What is great about this suspense is how the author plays with emotion to build it. You can see there is some evil and scheming going on, but you can't quite figure out who is responsible. And the person responsible shifts, so one moment you could feel sympathy for one character, and the next, you feel it for another. It was this plot device that kept me guessing throughout. I knew things weren't just happening, but I couldn't quite figure out why. I also found I wanted to believe characters, but because of the way the story was told, I always held onto some suspicions about who was really good and telling the truth.

The twists in this one are so good, and they go until the very last pages. Again, much of this is you don't know who you can trust as a truth-teller. In the school, there is a strong want to fit in, so you have to wonder what lengths people will go to in order to make this happen. Ash also is a character with secrets. She is recently orphaned after the death of her parents, and she comes to the school having changed her name to escape this tragedy. As she finds her place at the school, she interacts with a variety of students finding both friends and enemies.

With this review, I realize I haven't given a ton of plot details, and that is quite intentional. To walk you through too much gives away the feels you get as each secret and lie is unwound! This is the type of book that makes you gasp when the twists come to fruition. And then just as you think you've got it figured out, there is another curveball that comes into the mix. This is a thriller driven by characters and their secrets, and I just could not get enough. If you want something that embodies a page-turning thriller, look no further than right here!

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley, Mira Books and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this free copy.

This was my first book from Ellison, and I don’t know if all of her books are like this, but the writing style was very interesting. The entire premise of this novel was pretty interesting when I think back on this. I believe it was the narration in the beginning that had me intrigued the most part, because it starts off with someone being found dead on the front gates of The Goode School. Now, this all-girls school is very small, very elite, so clearly it wouldn’t take very long to figure out who it was, which I can’t believe it would start off like that.

Then when that third person narrator tells us who it is, we end up going back in time in the POV of the victim, and wow. Ash Carlisle is an interesting sixteen year old girl. Sometimes when I was reading it, I would forget that she was supposed to be sixteen. Actually, all the time, I kept forgetting that she was only sixteen. She gets accepted into The Goode School as a sophomore, and yet when I hear her voice throughout the novel, I felt like I was listening to a young 20 year old woman. Maybe it was her upbringing in Oxford, I mean she did come from a very rich family after all. Her father, really. Her mother just married into it. Her vocabulary had me highlighting all these words to get the definitions, and then feeling stupid for not knowing them right away. Her mannerisms were something I wouldn’t have pegged for a girl like her, and yet she was one of the most interesting characters in this entire novel.

I was a little bummed at how one of the few brown girls that we know of in this novel is hostile towards Ash over something that wasn’t even her doing? At first we think Vanessa – the brown girl – is going to be a friend and ally to Ash, but then when Ash gets an invitation to “the attics” for something that’s supposed to be prestigious or whatever, Vanessa gets all bitchy. Then her suite-mates as well – mostly Camille – starts treating Ash like the enemy and that just didn’t sit well with me. I know girls are supposed to be catty or whatever, but the girl on girl hate gets me every single time, and not in the good way. I get that drama has to happen somehow, but I mean the deaths could have been drama enough. No need for girls to randomly hate on one another for no reason. They are already in a league of their own. It would be better if they were supportive of one another when they are already isolated from the rest of the world, in a sense.

Other than that, I was intrigued by the mystery that surrounded this novel. The mystery surrounding Ash, her reasoning for keeping her true identity a secret, for trying to stay under the radar. She was an interesting character and while I wasn’t necessarily rooting for her to survive by any means, I couldn’t help but respect her for everything that she went through. Dean Ford was also an interesting character, whenever we would get to see from her point of view. Well, not really since whenever it was her chapters, it was a third person POV. But you know what I mean.

Good Girls Lie by J.T. Ellison is a riveting novel of suspense. The Good School is a prestigious prep for young ladies that resides in Marchburg, Virginia. This boarding school is for the intelligent daughters of the rich and powerful. They will receive a superior education that will get them into an Ivy league school and prepare them for a brilliant and influential future. But not everything is at it seems at this school. A new student arrives from Oxford, England who causes quite a stir. One student ends up dead and the truth must be uncovered. J.T. Ellison’s writing drew me into this engaging story. I enjoyed the author’s descriptive writing which allowed me to visualize the scenes. Virginia sounded beautiful in the fall. I thought the characters were thought out and developed. There are alternate points-of-view which I liked (Ash, Becca Curtis, and Dean Westhaven for example). It allows readers to view the events from different perspectives plus it keeps the tension up. Details are revealed a little at a time to keep readers guessing. Good Girls Lie is packed with secrets and deceptions. I kept trying to guess what is true and what is false. I just loved the fabulous twist. I thought the creepy aspects enhanced the story. There is a great ending where all the loose ends are wrapped up. Good Girls Lie has tradition, secret societies, hazing, deceits, clandestine relationships, jealousy and murder. As you can tell, I enjoyed reading this thrilling suspense tale. Good Girls Lie is a book that will keep you riveted until you finish the very last word.

The Goode School is a private all-girls prep school for children of the town's elite community. Born from the world's most powerful parents, these girls are no strangers to secret societies, dark secrets, and juicy drama. On the outside, the students, like their equally despicable parents, are picture-perfect, hiding layer after layer of all things that make an unputdownable suspense novel. These girls are elegant, intelligent, and successful in their endeavors, but when a new student enrolls, the dark side of this prestigious academy is slowly unveiled, and what unfolds is a delicious thriller that explores sinister secrets and the truth behind this famous school. GOOD GIRLS LIE is my first Ellison novel, and it certainly won't be my last.

My full review is on my blog knitsandtales.com

I really enjoyed this book. My final rating was 4.5 stars and the desire to read it again for pleasure.

J.T. Ellison never lets me down! Good Girls Lie kept me guessing until the end. I've been recommending this title to our library partons before it was even available to the public.

This was a really well done and different thriller/mystery book. It focuses on teenage girls, but the writing style is distinctly adult. There's a lot of heavy themes, including abuse, toxic friendships, secret relationships, hazing/bullying, and death. The book features really compelling characters, but at times, the jumps between perspectives can be a little disorienting. Once it gets going, the story moves at a brisk pace and concludes in a satisfying way.

I enjoyed the premise of a boarding school, because it’s not one I read about often. This was written in a way that made things seem eerie and a little off-kilter (you just know something isn’t right).

I liked the different points of view - it worked well for this book. And it was pretty fast paced, too!

I saw the plot twists coming a mile away, and guessed the ending early on, but it was a fun read!

Thank you @harlequinbooks @netgalley and MIRA for a copy of Good Girls Lie by J.T. Ellison for an honest review.

Good Girls Lie is set in an elite all-girl’s school called the Goode School. Ash arrives from England when both her parents die and struggles to fit in. With Secret Societies, power struggles, and everyday girls gossip, Ash has a lot to learn all at once. But when a student is found dead, all the secrets start to come out.

I will be honest and say I started this one amongst the crazy Christmas prep and that may have affected my opinion of it a lot. I did think the first 40% of it was really slow and I had a lot of trouble getting into the story. I put it down for a week or so and came back to it recently and the second half was much more fast paced. A lot more action and storylines that interested me. The ending is definitely worth sticking around for.

“Goode perches like a gargoyle above the city’s small downtown…It is quiet, dignified, isolated. As are the girls who attend the school; serious, studious. Good. Goode girls are always good. They go on to great things.”

After the unexpected deaths of her scion father and mother, Ash Carr arrives at Goode – a private college preparatory school for teenage daughters of the elite. Goode breeds exceptional ladies who go on to top schools, and who become leaders in their industries. As a sophomore, Ash is quickly thrust into the strange dynamics of these powerful and privileged girls. Keeping up with the honor code of the school and high intensity academics is one thing, but navigating the ways of her classmates is an entirely different game. But things for Ash have never been easy, so why should her time at Goode be any different. After the sudden death of her roommate turns Goode upside down, Ash fights to keep her name cleared of any involvement. But things are beginning to unravel, and no secret is safe, not even hers.

I love a good murder mystery/thriller, but a murder mystery in a private school of privileged girls? Psh. Cancel my evening and clear my schedule, because I am THERE! One series that has been a personal favorite of mine for years is Private by Kate Brian. It’s a YA drama-fest of secrets, lies, murder, backstabbing, secret societies and boatloads of privilege. Needless to say, when I came across Good Girls Lie, I needed it in my hands immediately.

And it was all I could have asked for…

and then some.

This book is oozing with secrets made of manipulation that have been dipped in lies, doused in deception, coated with blindsides, and sprinkled with levels upon levels of twists. Think you know where this is going? Think again. Think it’s over? THINK AGAIN! J.T. Ellison keeps the reader drowning in psychological torment until the very last page. So much so, that you’ll even find yourself reading the acknowledgments just to get a deeper look inside the head of this author.

I was unimaginably hooked on this story and the character of Ash. I needed to know her deep dark secrets, and the secrets of all these strange girls at Goode. Because they aren’t just rich girls thrust into a top school because their daddy knows a guy. Oh no. These girls are brilliant, border-line geniuses in their fields. Whether it is art, business, computers or writing – these girls excel in every subject. They are cunning and devious, sure, but also surprisingly honest and mostly decent to one another. And yeah, they’re a little crazy, but that’s to be expected.

“It’s a bit like entering a prison, only here, the inmates are upstanding teens with daddy issues.”

Goode is the typical private bordering school that we have seen and read about. There are the popular head girls who rule over the school, secret societies and hazing, and a whole lot of sneaky things going on in the shadows. But the real star of this story is Ash Carr and her journey to Goode. Before her father suddenly dies of a drug overdose, and her mother commits suicide shortly after finding his body, Ash is told that she will be attending Goode in two months time. But after the death of her parents, and with her inheritance tied up until her twenty-fifth birthday, Ash is granted a scholarship into Goode by the dean of the school.

But naturally, Ash’s past is much more complex than one could ever guess.

“They say her name, an unbroken chain of accusation and misery.”

Ash.

Ash.

Ash.

Ash is such an interesting character to have tell this story. My initial reaction upon learning that she is harboring a dark secret made me watch her closely, but her character is so intricately created that you forget to look at her as anything but a teenager. She keeps to herself at school, doesn’t make any quick and strong relationships with any of the other girls, and simply focuses on her studies and staying under the radar. She is the embodiment of a girl who has seen tragedy and hurt throughout her life, and I felt such a sense of sadness for her. But naturally, there are instances throughout this story that makes you question her and the motives of every single girl around her.

“Lies will flow from my lips, but there may perhaps be some truth mixed up with them; it is for you to decide whether any part of it is worth keeping.” – Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own

I have been reading a TON of thrillers lately, so I had a pretty good idea of where this was going. But NOT AT ALL to the extent that it went! Every time I made a conclusion on how this book would end, something would happen that would force me to rethink everything. And even when I finally got all the answers, ANOTHER blindside was waiting for me! This is the kind of thriller I have been needing. One that makes my face hurt while giving me a weird sense of envy that I was never shipped off to a boarding school and tapped into a secret society.

Woe is me.

As a whole, I loved Good Girls Lie. Why yes, there were a bit of unnecessary PG-13 (R?) rated scenes that I didn’t see any point to. And yes, the constant drastic age differences in these romantic relationships did make me slightly uncomfortable. But, what is life, right? All in all, this is a really addicting story about secrets and the need for freedom. It’s sad, it’s dark and it is even a bit sweet…sort of. My only true qualm is that this is a stand-alone, when all I really want is about ten more of these books.

“Mmm. Death tastes so good.”

Rating: 4.5 Stars out of 5

I am loving the format of this book, and how quick of a read this was. I am not surprised though as J.T. Ellison writes some incredibly paced stories. I am digging the prep school, pretty little liars vibe that this book was giving off.

What I like most about Ellisons books is that they are not predictable, and every time I think I've gotten it figured out, I am wrong. That takes incredible talent. I cannot wait for more, as I am a die-hard fan of her writing.

3.5 stars

This was an entertaining mystery/thriller. It's set in a prestigious all-girls boarding school in Virginia. It includes entitled girls, cliques, frenemies, secret societies, taboo relationships and a lot of the usual tropes. Despite all of that, the book is a quick read with plenty of twists and turns.

The book opens with a girl hanging from the front gates. The girls gather in stunned silence, wondering who it is. We then flash back to the first day of school and work our way forward. There are a lot of characters that don't really add much to the story and I had a hard time remembering who they were and what their importance was. The book was uneven in parts, but not enough to detract too much from my enjoyment.

The main story, however, was engaging and kept me wondering. I figured the mystery out before it was revealed, but it was still interesting to see how the author got there. This is the second book I've read from this author and I enjoy her writing. I will definitely read more of her books in the future.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Good Girls Lie has a lot of elements that had me really excited for the story - elite boarding school, suspicious death, secret societies, rumors of haunted areas. All these things were calling to me!

Unfortunately, the execution was a bit of a miss for me. There were some twists and turns but I wasn’t ever able to fully get caught in the story. I was interested enough to keep reading because I wanted to learn the ending but I don’t think this is one that will stick with me.

Thank you very much to Harlequin MIRA and Netgalley for the advance reading copies.

I am a fan of J.T. Ellison, reading her books as soon as they come out. Good Girls Don’t Lie is my favorite so far. I started the book and finished the book within 24 hours and was sad that it was over but I loved each and every word of the book! It is at the top of my favorites of 2019.

The story is of a girl who has lost both her parents and is now in the US at an all-girls elite boarding school. She is watching her step, keeping her story to herself, and just trying to get the education she really wants. But as with any school, there is a set of unwritten rules that she has to be careful of. I loved how real it was watching her maneuver the hierarchy of the student population, knowing which students are really her friends and which she should watch out for. And then, of course, there is the secret she must keep. Gossip spreads, odd events start happening, and I knew the twists and turns were just starting.

J.T. Ellison is phenomenal as a thriller author. She is a must-read and a guaranteed winner with each book. The stories are all unique and not easy to forget. Each time I pick up one of her books I wonder what wonderful, twisted story I will get pulled into this time and am never disappointed with where she takes me.

J.T. Ellison has created a suspenseful drama with great characters and a great setting. The old school buildings become as much a part of the story as the characters themselves. Ellison is a master at blending characters to keep you guessing until the very end. I like J.T. Ellison a lot. This is one of the better suspense books I’ve read.

Set in an elite girls-only boarding school in a quiet Virginia town, the major protagonist is a student at the school, but this is definitely not a YA novel… and that’s where I think it goes a little bit wrong. The teenagers come off as far too adult; they don’t talk like teenagers, even wealthy and well-educated ones. The twists and turns are interesting, but we know from the beginning that at least one of the major protags is an unreliable narrator, so I was constantly critical, examining everything for inconsistencies.

Nothing is as it seems at The Goode School, and new girl Ash has secrets she must hide. Her fellow students are supposedly chosen for their character, but every single one of them would fit right in with the meanest girls in any clique anywhere. It was very hard to care about the deaths of two of the girls because frankly, they’d been absolutely appalling to Ash, the character whose PoV we spend the most time with. Bullying, hazing, prying, spreading of gossip, you name it, Ash has to put up with it, and every time it looks as though she might be just about to get a break, something else terrible happens, plummeting her to the depths of despair yet again.

Readers should be aware of triggers for suicide, suicide ideation, parental violence, death of a child, and a couple of fairly graphic death scenes. While overall this was a good read, I feel like it was a bit too long and needed some stern editing to both cut down extraneous descriptions and make the teenagers read more like actual teenagers. I’m giving it four stars.

This book was so good! It had me hooked from the beginning and kept me guessing! There was a lot going on in the story but it all came together in the end. I found the ending to be really satisfying. I will definitely be reading other books by this author. If you're looking for a good suspense story with some crazy twists look no further and pick up a copy of this book!
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.