This was my first J.T. Ellison book, and I was thrilled to read and review it. I could hardly put this book down - I loved all the secrets and lies that were continually being revealed. I predict that this book will receive a lot of hype when it's released very soon - praise it thoroughly deserves. Well done, Ms. Ellison - this book is a success and I'm definitely going to read more from you. Thanks, Netgalley, for this arc.

This is a tight thriller set at an exclusive boarding school. Bursting with secrets, hazing, sexual surprises, murder and some really creepy stairs this one was really tough to set down. Good Girls Lie is my third book by J. T. Ellison and I am once again fully satisfied with this sinister mystery/thriller read. This was a quick read for me and I was glued to its pages from the start. I enjoyed the alternating points of view and the clever way the author created the tension throughout the book.

The Goode School is an elite all-girls high school that only accepts the brightest, and most privileged girls. Steeped in its own history including secret societies and the hazing they invoke.
Ash Carlisle isn’t your typical Goode student, being from Oxford for starters, but the storyline seta her even further apart than that, with dire consequences along the way.
Overall I enjoyed this book, although I did struggle at times with the author’s writing style. It was filled with twists and turns and I definitely didn’t see all of them coming, which is what you want in a decent thriller.
There are some interesting characters and the author creates what feels like authentic friendship/relationship types that I would assume happen in such a location.
Definitely worth a read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Books for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review.

After the sudden deaths of her parents, Ashlyn "Ash" Carr makes her way from England to the the highly exclusive Goode School in Virginia, as a scholarship student.
An all girls boarding school for the most accomplished of high society.
Ash becomes immersed in the schools traditions and secret societies. Where the honor code means only appearing to tell the truth and hazing is prevalent.
When several deaths occur, the police begin to investigate. Were they accidents, suicides, or something more sinister?!
This atmospheric, gothic thriller had a menacing and creepy vibe.
JT Ellison is a favorite author, but there were a few reasons this one did not completely work for me.
The characters were disagreeable and a bit annoying. I just couldn't relate to any of them.
And I felt the story went on too long and the twists were not as surprising as I'd hoped.
But I've seen great reviews for this one, don't skip it on my account.
Thank you to MIRA Books for the e-ARC via NetGalley.
3.5 stars, rounded down to 3 stars.

Good Girls Lie, or more accurately, GOODE girls lie. JT Ellison's new book takes place at The Goode School, an exclusive, all girls boarding school in northern Virginia. Only the finest and most wealthy girls are accepted into the school, and the headmistress, Dean Westhaven is there to ensure that tradition and exclusivity remains. The story starts off with a new student, sent abroad from England, with plenty of secrets and lies of her own. She’s in Goode company, as all of the students seem quite unlikeable, with lies of their own.

If you enjoyed Pretty Little Liars, this story is in the same category. It has a solid mystery at the beginning with the apparent suicide of one of the most popular girls. This is a GOODE thriller at 3.5 stars.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy via NetGalley.

The Goode School is considered the Ivy League prep school known as the Silent Ivy. Its elite status, long-held traditions and honor code are ideal for preparing exceptional young women for brilliant futures at Ivy League universities and beyond. In a world where appearances are everything, as long as students pretend to follow the rules, no one questions the cruelties of the secret societies or the dubious behavior of the privileged young women who expect to get away with murder. But when a popular student is found dead, the truth cannot be ignored. Rumors suggest she was struggling with a secret that drove her to suicide.

Look closely…because there are truths and there are lies, and then there is everything that really happened.

It's been a while since I've read one of Ellison's book and I forgot how much I like her writing as well as her ability to build suspense. There is a reason why she is such a successful writer in the genre. Good Girls Lie is a tautly written tale of girls, rich elitist girls, sequestered away at a remote boarding school. When new "Ash" is admitted, she appears to be the perfect "Goode Girl." She is tall, tanned, has perfect hair and the smile of an innocent but she also has a lifetime full of secrets. Her smile is practiced and her motives are impure but is it she who drove a fellow student to commit suicide or are there more secrets to reveal. The answers to these questions are what make this heart-pounding thriller so good!

Good Girls Lie is set to be published December 30 and should be on every suspense lovers 2020 TBR.

When I received an advanced copy of this thriller, I was excited to read something that was in a school setting. Most thrillers don’t involve schools so I couldn’t wait to read this one.

This was such an interesting story with many intriguing twists. The Goode school is a private school for girls, with secret societies and a code of honor. What could go wrong? When a student is found dead, questions start arising. Was it suicide? Or murder?

This thriller has it all, including family drama and teenage jealousy. Ellison does a fantastic job writing such tension that kept me intrigued throughout the entire book. It took me a little while to get into the story and trying to keep characters straight, but once I got it, I couldn’t put it down.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin-MIRA for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

A special thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Goode girls don’t lie…or do they?

The Goode School is a prestigious all girls prep school nestled in the picturesque town of Marchburg, Virginia. Known as Silent Ivy, the school only accept the very best and brightest girls, the daughters of the rich and influential. But when a stranger comes to Goode, the ivy turns poisonous.

Appearances are everything, especially at Goode where the girls are being groomed for Ivy League educations. As long as you follow the strict honour code and stick to the rules, you will succeed. In fact, people will even turn a blind eye to the cruel and calculating hazings of the secret societies and the unsavoury attitudes of the spoiled and privileged rich girls to keep the school's reputation and its students' reputations in tact.

Ash Carlisle is an import from England. After witnessing both of her parents dying, she is trying to reinvent herself as a Goode girl. Only it isn't that easy. Ash is not only struggling to fit in—especially with being targeted by popular senior, Becca Curtis—but also with trying to keep her past hidden, as well as the many other secrets and lies that seem to be piling up.

When a popular student is found dead, the truth can't be ignored. Rumours are suggesting that the girl had a secret that drove her to commit suicide. But was it suicide, or was it murder? You see, there are truths, lies, and what actually happened in between.

This propulsive character driven novel is well-sculpted and sublimely atmospheric—the setting was absolute perfection! What is it about boarding schools that is so intriguing? Can't you just picture the stone walls, ornate wood, climbing ivy, and secret tunnels?

Ellison's writing is hypnotic, detailed, and consuming. The solid narrative is framed by equally strong characters. Told from multiple perspectives, the majority of the story is told from Ash's point of view, with a few other perspectives in the mix. This works exceptionally well, the reader experiences a lot of what Ash is as a newcomer.

Good Girls Lie is devious and delightful. There is plenty of back-stabbing, double-crossing, and plot twists. J. T. Ellison will have her readers engaged until the very last page.

Good Girls Lie by JT Ellison is beyond fantastic. A boarding school psychological thriller.

The story takes place at The Goode School (great play on the title), which is a unique all girls school.
The book is tautly paced with unbelievably complex fleshed out characters which may or may not be reliable. I can't give it all away!

The book is written in alternating perspectives which is one of my favorite writing styles and the author nails it!

Prepare to not be able to put this book down, because I could not if I tried.

Did I mention secret societies? 5 stars from Miss W ! If you are not reading JT Ellison, you should be!

This psychological thriller by J. T. Ellison is not short on surprises, as well as having more than its fair share of suspense and tension!

In Good Girls Lie, my second foray into the depths of J. T. Ellison’s explosive writing, the author uses an effective style of storytelling to unveil the narrative. Told from multiple viewpoints and with a whirlwind speed, pivotal anecdotes about the leading characters are revealed.

The narrative delves into the psyche of Ash Carr, who the reader learns, is a tortured young woman having witnessed the death of both of her parents and is now on a scholarship at the elite Goode Academy where each girl is almost certainly guaranteed a place. Set in Marchburg, Virginia, secret societies exist enabling the girls to bond, though what lies beneath the surface is a nightmare of bullying as the hierarchy of students is clear from the outset. Dean Ford Julianne Westhaven turns a blind eye as she believes she is keeping old traditions alive.

Ghost stories of murders, eerie passageways, locked hallways, and a deadly staircase all have their place, giving the school a really creepy vibe.

Good Girls Lie will delight if you like your thrillers menacing and fast-paced. This was a fabulous, dramatic and twisty story, and I can't wait to see what J. T. Ellison does next!

From my blog: Always With a Book:

I have been a fan of J.T. Ellison's stand-alone books for quite a while now. She manages to create such wickedly addictive reads and this one is no exception.

There is just something so fun about a story dealing with a girls' boarding school, especially one that has secret societies and girls that are brimming with secrets. Add in an unknown narrator and a completely atmospheric setting and it just totally amps up the tension and suspense. I could not flip the pages fast enough, trying to work out just what was going on and which characters were trustworthy and which were not.

I loved this book. It is twisted and dark and just when you think you have it all worked out, that you know where things are headed, a new twist pops up to throw a wrench in the works and I loved every minute of it. Nothing is as it seems with these characters and that is what makes this book so good. There's manipulation, deviousness and that mean-girls vibe running through this book, with a double-crossing revenge angle that hooks you and never lets up.

J.T. Ellison is an author that never lets me down and I'm so grateful for that. This is one psychological thriller you do not want to miss - it's such a binge-worthy read and one that will keep you hooked from start to finish. Pick it up, you won't be sorry!

Those who follow my blog know that I’m always on the lookout for a good thriller. I love reads that are filled with suspense and intrigue and that keep me guessing from start to finish. I had never read one of J.T. Ellison’s thrillers and was primarily drawn to Good Girls Lie because it’s set in my home state of Virginia, but after flying through the pages of this novel, I can say without hesitation that J.T. Ellison has joined the ranks of Ruth Ware, Riley Sager, and the legendary Agatha Christie as one of my favorite thriller authors.

It’s always hard to talk about a thriller without giving away spoilers, so I just want to touch on a few highlights that made this read such a win for me.

If you enjoy reads that are set in boarding schools, Good Girls Lie is your book. It’s set in an elite all girls’ boarding school called Goode Academy nestled in the hills of Central Virginia, and I just loved how atmospheric this setting is. The school itself has an illustrious past – a student was murdered there years ago and rumors abound that the school grounds are haunted. Supernatural elements aside, the school also has secret societies with bizarre initiation rituals, as well as its fair share of mean girls and hazing. The girls at this school are destined for the Ivy Leagues and greatness, if they can survive their time at Goode Academy.

I love a story that captivates my attention from the very first page and Good Girls Lie definitely fits the bill. The opening scene of the novel features a dead student hanging from the school’s front gates, which of course immediately caught my attention and started an internal barrage of questions: Who is she? How did she get up there? Is it suicide or something more sinister? If she was murdered, who would do such a thing and why? Death is tragic enough, but when it’s the death of a young person, a promising life cut short, it just pulls at my heartstrings all the more. I was completely engaged from this opening scene because I just had to know what happened to lead up to such a devastating moment.

I’m always drawn to characters who are flawed and complicated and J.T. Ellison has a cast of them in this book, my favorite of which is Ash Carlisle, a new student at the school who is struggling to find her place and fit in. She has come to Virginia from England and we soon learn that both of Ash’s parents recently died unexpectedly and that she has no other family. It’s easy to feel sympathetic toward Ash because she’s all alone in the world and trying to find herself while maintaining some semblance of privacy. Ash becomes an even more interesting character, however, as we realize that not everything is as it seems.

“Not everything is as it seems” is actually a recurring theme with Good Girls Lie and it’s what really kept the suspense ramped up and had me turning pages well into the night because I wanted answers and kept getting more and more twists and turns instead. Everyone in this book seems to have something they’re hiding and it was just such an entertaining read to watch the story unfold and all of their secrets unravel.
I will say that I ultimately wasn’t too surprised by the novel’s final reveal. Even though the reveal itself didn’t have huge shock value, the journey to get to it was well worth it. I loved how intricately plotted the entire story was and how each piece gradually slipped into place to lead to the reveal. Ellison’s ability to weave together the many tangled threads of this story and its characters into a cohesive and engaging read is on point.

If you’re looking for a dark and twisty mystery to keep you on the edge of your seat, J.T. Ellison’s Good Girls Lie is a must read. Be sure to check it out when it hits bookshelves on December 30th!

This book was everything I was hoping for and a little more than I had bargained for. It was creepy and had the sort of Gothic vibe to the boarding school that I was hoping for. However I got very tired of the cattiness between all the girls very early on and found it tiresome midway through the book. I also felt that some of the story lines weren't really necessary that the book could have been more focused on the students, instead of telling me all about the head mistresses life and desires. I can see how it was used as a plot device but I didn't enjoy those parts. Overall though this was a good thriller, it wasn't too gruesome but it definitely had some more graphic descriptions than I was expecting.

I fell so hard into the lives at the Goode School and for Ash and Becca. But, I was torn about my feelings for Ash throughout the book, trying to reason with what I was reading in the alternating chapters with the girl I was becoming to know in the other chapters. Needless to say, I didn't catch on and didn't see this one coming. That just added to the suspense for me, though, and I truly felt for Ash as she was thrust into the crazy world where everyone around her is dying.

These characters were so well put together and so likeable. It would be hard not to give this 5 stars. Everything about the Goode School and the ways in which it operated was so well thought out and described that I honestly feel like I can see the school, as if I were there. The secret tunnels, cabins, and secret societies were so cool. I loved this book so much and wish I could have more of the girls.

I want to know what happened after it all settled down. This book definitely left me wanting more and I can't wait to read more by J.T. Ellison in the future!

Good Girls Lie, by J.T. Ellison, was a very quick read for me. It definitely captured my attention and kept me wanting to read. This was a story about a girl who gets accepted to an elite, all-girls, boarding school, shortly before her parents' double suicide. After moving to the school, she's grappling with trying to fit in, while dealing with her complicated past. Ellison did a wonderful job portraying what life was like within the boarding school, and made me feel like I was a part of it. I was invested in most of the characters, particularly Dean Westhaven, and I loved the insight we got into their different perspectives. While I enjoyed parts of this book, I would have liked to see a few more unexpected twists and turns. I feel like before the surprising twists, there was always some sort of clue or heads up to help you guess what was coming. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a light thriller who is interested in boarding school culture.

I LOVE J.T. Ellison books and this one did not disappoint! I already can’t wait to read her next book! The story kept my attention and I couldn't wait to finish reading it. It's one of those books you're going to recommend to everyone and think about way after you're done reading it! Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read this!

5 Stars for Good Girls Lie by J.T. Ellison! Being a fan of J.T. Ellison, I've been looking forward to reading this one since I caught wind that it was coming out months and months ago. Knowing the release date was 12/30, I wanted to make sure I could fit it in as one of my last books of the year and J.T. Ellison didn't disappoint!

Set in the Blue Ridge Mountains, I could easily see the imagery and understood the pros and cons of attending Goode School. Landlocked, tucked away, sheltered, trapped...all characteristics of the school as well as the main characters. Ellison uses her skill to build one mystery after another, making Good Girls Lie impossible to put down.

Goode School is elite, private, and the girls who graduate from there are the cream of the crop, on a path to any Ivy League School of their choice. Traditions and alliances run deep and a lot rides on being tapped and belonging. Ellison lays a foundation with the setting, the hormones, and peer pressure. Ghost stories, rumors, and secrets are part of the mortar that Ellison uses as she throws in one twist after another. When a student is found dead, the scramble begins to find out if she committed suicide or if she was pushed. One mystery builds upon another in a race to save the school's reputation, and to get to the bottom of multiple suspenseful and shocking elements, all tied to one student.

Whether you are looking for a quick read to end 2019 with, or your first read of 2020, Good Girls Lie needs to be added to your TBR list. Also, kudos to J.T. Ellison, providing the Suicide Prevention Lifeline number at the end of her book and telling readers they aren't alone. Since I didn't have a cover with this egalley, I thought that would be the best "cover," to share.

Thank you to @netgalley and @harlequinbooks for providing this book in exchange for an honest review. @thrillerchick, this was worth the wait and anticipation. I loved it! #thriller #GoodGirlsLie #NetGalley #tbrlist #booksof2019 #booksof2020 #bookworm #booknerd #sendmebooks #bookreview #readnext #ivyleague #allgirlsschool #suspense #readgoodbooks #5stars

Good Girls Lie


A psychological thriller about the extreme some girls will go to to get what they want.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

SUMMARY

Goode girls don’t lie. Or do they? The Goode School is a prestigious prep school in Marchburg, Virginia. It’s the top choice for boarding schools of daughters of the rich and influential. The school only accepts the best and the brightest. It’s elite status and Honor Code is ideal for preparing young women for brilliant futures at Ivy League universities and beyond.

Students at Goode pretend to follow the rules. The honor code requires absolute honesty in both their work and personal relationships. But no one really questions the cruelties of the secret societies, or the dubious behavior of the privileged young women who expect to get away with murder. When a popular student is found dead the truth cannot be ignored. Rumors suggest she was struggling with a secret that drove her to suicide.

But look closely, because there is the truth and there are lies, and then there is everything that really happened.


REVIEW
GOOD GIRLS LIE is a psychological thriller about the extreme and desperate lengths some girls will go to get what they want. It is full of teenage angst and well as sex, drugs and death. Within days of Ash Carlisle arriving at Goode, the beloved piano teacher is dead. Within weeks after her arrival a student commits suicide. Could Ash be responsible for these deaths? Will she stop at nothing to get what she wants.

It’s really hard to like or even trust Ash. It’s impossible to tell when she is telling the truth and when she is lying. But then, everyone seems to be lying at Goode, from the headmistress, Ford Westhaven to the head girl, Becca Curtis to Ash, the newest member of the sophomore class.

J. T. ELLISON’s story is clever with a slow build to the reveal. There is a continuous flow of staccato suspense on every page. My main concern is that the story is a little to incredible to be believed. This book would probably be enjoyed most by a young adult audience.

J. T. Ellison has written twenty novels and is an award winning New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She lives in Nashville. Thanks to Netgalley, J. T. Ellison and MIRA for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher Harlequin-MIRA
Published December 30, 2019
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

The Goode School will be the perfect place to leave her old life behind. Ash Carlisle has just lost both her parents and is now happy to flee to Marchburg, Virginia, to concentrate on school and forget what happened in Oxford. However, her fellow schoolmates do not like secrets and eye her suspiciously, it is obvious that the newcomer has some interesting things to tell them and this exclusive all-girls school has its own rules that have to be followed. When Ash is exposed and her roommate found dead, her carefully set up facade is threatened to crumble and reveal the real person she so hard tried to hide.

J.T. Ellison has chosen the perfect setting for a mysterious story where everybody has some well-hidden secrets: the old buildings of the élite private school provide the characters with tunnels and undisclosed rooms, a history of secret societies with old passed down hazings and rules that bind the girls, rumours about suspicious deaths and a headmistress with her very own agenda. It all adds up to a thrilling atmosphere where the protagonist herself offers only shady bits and pieces of her own story so that you are well alert not to trust any of them.

I really adored J.T. Ellison’s style of writing, the author brilliantly creates suspense by only hinting at what happened back in England and by insinuating that there is much more to know about Ash. It only takes a couple of pages to dive into the atmosphere of this elite school and its very own rules that seem to have a long history and make the girls bond immediately.

Admittedly, there were some aspects I found not totally convincing, e.g. 16-year-olds acting and plotting like adults, the detective providing the girls with core information about one of the deceased, another detective investigating such a delicate case even though she has been suspended or the headmistress’s behaviour which equals much more the girls’ than would be considered adequate for her position. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the read and the mystery surrounding the characters.

An interesting start to this book! This is my first book I read by this author. It’s different than the thrillers I typically read.