This book didn't draw me in as much as other Ellison titles. The premise was interesting, and I was surprised at the end, but I wasn't drawn to any of the characters. But if you like the psychological thriller genre set in an all-girl's school, you will probably enjoy this one.

MIRA and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Good Girls Lie. It was my choice to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

The Goode School is a prestigious prep school known as a Silent Ivy, as it helps to prepare young women to successfully be chosen for Ivy League college education. When Ash Carlisle arrives from England, after suffering a tragic loss, she soon realizes that she is woefully prepared for the fast paced instruction and classwork. Not seeming to fit in with her peers, Ash finds an unexpected ally. Will Ash be able to keep her past a secret and navigate the unfamiliar waters of prep school, or will her secrets come back to haunt her?

Good Girls Lie was a big disappointment, as the book had familiar undertones to several others in the genre. The elite prep school, hazing rituals, and rule breaking behavior is nothing new and added nothing to the plot. Telling the story from the perspectives of Ash and the Dean of Students (Ford Julianne Westhaven) did the book a disservice, as the reader is constantly being taken away from the action. The dean's personal life had no true bearing on the story as a whole and seemed to be there only to distract the reader from the obvious. Overall, I was not that thrilled with Good Girls Lie and I would be hesitant to recommend it for the above reasons.

When Ash Carlisle starts school at the prestigious Goode School, after both of her parents were found dead in England, tragedy seems to follow her. Deaths start occurring at the boarding school, along with many secrets and lies. This is a fascinating read for both YA and adults. It is fast twisted thriller that keeps you guessing until the end.

I was really excited about the premise of this book but found it dragged a lot through the middle. It wasn't my favorite but I did enjoy the prep school setting.

Thrilling. I was captured from the very first chapter! I was intrigued why she wanted to keep who she was a secret and reinvent herself. This is like mean girls with a chilling twist!

I love Ellison's book! This one caught my attention just like all of his others! The twist and turns kept me reading. The story line was amazing and would for sure recommend this book to other readers!

<b>You can read my review here: https://devouringbooks2017.wordpress.com/2019/12/06/good-girls-lie-by-j-t-ellison-arc-review/

Review: 4 Stars </b>

When I first saw this book I knew that I was going to want to read it. I absolutely love books that are set at elite boarding schools. It’s one of my favorite settings and I am always looking for books like this one. I had expected this to be a fluff read full of girl drama, but it was really more of a psychological thriller. While I had expected to enjoy this book I hadn’t expected it to really surprise me like it did.

This book was truly a roller-coaster. It took me a little bit to really sink into this tory, but once i did I found myself pretty invested in it. I have always been fascinated by secret societies and the one in this book felt so real. I loved how the book followed the school’s staff’s lives and the students’ as well because the story wasn’t minimized down to teenage drama, but rather the events at the school as a whole. It felt like everyone was hiding something and curiosity kept me flipping pages to find out what was going on.

The plot really shocked me with its twists. I did not expect the book to go the way it did at all. The murder mystery was only the half of it, there was so much more to this story than just murder. The ending was also absolutely perfect. I loved all the lies and scheming and just could not get enough. I am thrilled to find out that J.T. Ellison has written many novels because her plot blew my mind.

Overall I’m pretty impressed. I had expected this book to be a fun, light and dramatic read, but instead I got an intense psychological thriller. This was really well done and will be a book that I will recommend to all of my friends.

This book plays up its title with an excellent play on words. For the girls at the Goode School, lying is a function to make it every day in this elite, all-girls, boarding school. When I read that, I was all in! What a great premise at this day an age. As a former teacher, I can vouch for how catty not just girls, but also women, can be. Good Girls Lie has all the things that we expect, hazing, lies, bullying... and even murder. This is a wonderful read from an author who proves her talent again and again. Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Surprising, addictive, mysterious and twisted! This book is all of that and more, and I loved it! I don't want to reveal a lot to avoid spoilers but what I can say is that the story is so well developed you'll be turning pages like crazy, expecting to discover all the secrets hidden in the book.

The setting, the characters, the premise and the vertiginous rythmn of the narration were both overwhelming and exciting. The clues left by the author, every little detail leading you in the right (and also in the wrong direction) turned me into a detective wannabe, and that was so much fun!

Teenagers and mysteries... what a wonderful mix. Can't wait to read more books by this author.

RATING 3.5 STARS

There are truths, and there are lies, and then there is everything that really happened, which is where you and I will meet. My truth is your lie, and my lie is your truth, and there is a vast expanse between them both .

Ash Carlisle has now arrived from Oxford England to an elite girls boarding school in the United States. She comes with a full scholarship and full of secrets. She is careful who she speaks to and what she tells. She will not reveal herself to much but enough to get thru education. She is desperate. Maybe because her parents death that she left behind. The dean of Goode School where Good Girls live by the honor code, sees Ash as a way to put the girls school up front and center. She has much to prove since her mother's mistakes of being Dean of Goode school that lead to the death of a student. However, the dean has a few secrets of her own.

The secrets start to come out when Ash's room mate commits suicide. She is hiding a secret of her own. With young girls insecurities, and girls trying to up one on each other, there is no one you can trust.

Lies and more lies and mean girls is enough to make any reader go crazy. It's hard keeping up with the lies, who do you trust, and what just happened is what keeps the pages turning.

Ash is one those complex characters that is a train wreck. When living a lie means life and death, you have to always be one step ahead. With a multi layer plot, the plot only thickens to the very end.

A Special Thank you to Harlequin and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

I've seen so many good reviews on Ellison's past novels and can see here why. The characters, they all give you the feeling that they're hiding something. Which makes you not want to stop reading this. I'm a sucker of novels with unreliable narrators and having this one set in a boarding school was the cherry on top! A lot of gossip, mystery and juicy backstories are also in here.
I don't want to spoil anything plot wise but I can assure you that this novel checks all the marks and I will be moving her other novels on top of my list!

An enjoyable read. Well-written. Good characters, great setting, good plot all the elements for a great book. Recommended.

I didn't really get along with this book, I struggles to get to the very ending.
The plot, at some point, became really predictable.
And I just... HATED the protagonist! I didn't like how she narrated what was happening and that's just it. If the narrative isn't appealing, there isn't much to say.

This was a solid 4 star read for me. I loved the setting of a prestigious all girls boarding school in Virginia, and all the secrecy and intrigue that we know comes along with that. I enjoyed the mystery for the most part, and I think the plot keeps you on your toes so that it keeps the book moving. I found the shifting viewpoints to be confusing at times, since it didn't identify whose viewpoint we were listening to (for a reason). I also felt that the overall mystery was predictable, as I figured it out about halfway through. However, I still enjoyed reading it and would recommend it to others as well.

A boarding school for the daughters of the wealthy and elite, secret societies that can make or break your future, and a new girl that seems to be catching everyone's attention. Good Girls Lie takes readers into The Goode School, a private prep school shrouded in mystery that offers its all female student body a path to success. The girls follow a strict honor code, but that doesn't mean secrets and lies aren't spilling from their sugary-sweet smiles. This school year is unlike any other year, there's some rumors that can't be ignored and there's the truth simmering under the surface, just waiting to bubble up.

Good Girls Lie had everything I could want in a thriller; secret societies, murder, and a seductive storyline. The setting, a school known as a Silent Ivy in the small, forested town of Marchburg, Virginia, promised haunting tales and the perfect location for secret societies to run amok. More than the gothic setting, the novel opens with death, a student has been found dead and the rumors behind her death have nothing on the truth. The sweet Goode girls have grown up with wealth, privilege, and have plenty of experience in lying; it creates a culture, one that the younger and new students have no power against.

Like all teenage girls, the Goode girls have dreams, but unlike your normal teens, these girls will cheat, lie, steal, and push you until you'll consider what your life is worth. With one main character to follow, our narrator Ash, J.T. Ellison takes readers on a journey into The Goode School, a place where even the Dean has secrets she'd do anything to keep buried. Ash is the sort of character you can't spoil for other readers, you'll just have to meet her for yourself. Good Girls Lie is a complex tale filled with intriguing characters and a fast-paced storyline that'll have you turning the pages as quickly as you can. The cult-like atmosphere and twisted events makes for one fantastic, sinister thriller.

Even though I didn't really find this as unique as I would have liked and wasn't surprised by any of the plot, I did still enjoy reading this book. I really like the author's writing style and plot build-up.

The best thriller I’ve read in a long time. I didn’t want to put this book down. I especially loved the epilogue. The setting (an all girls boarding school) felt very sneaky and definitely worked for this thriller. Definitely recommend.

This book was just okay for me! I found all the characters unlikeable, and the twist near the end was overdone since I read so many thrillers. I loved the school setting and it reminded me of Pretty little liars!

I got a bit behind on my ARCs, but I finally made it through this one! I didn't really remember the premise by the time I jumped into it, which I'm glad I didn't. I didn't know what I was getting into, but I'm not sure you would know what you're getting into even if you did know the premise! I read some reviews that said they thought it started off slow, but I loved the first half of the book. But I am a lover of character-driven stories and this has that! I would actually love to read more about the characters. I want whole side stories for some of them. Everyone is flawed and human and I love that in characters. I love a bunch of morally gray humans in stories!

It is also a very atmospheric story. I loved the old boarding school in the south vibe and Ellison did a nice job setting up that atmosphere, in my opinion! I wasn't really a fan of the twist or how it played out. I think it honestly could have ended in a more interesting way and at times the ending felt rushed and just thrown out there given how much the first half built up, but that is probably why the ending was rushing a bit to wrap up.

However, I really did enjoy Ellison's writing style. This was my first book of hers and I can see myself picking up others by her. She has a style that's easy to read and holds my interest. So, I am interested in seeing what else she has to offer.

This was a solid 3-star read for me. I enjoyed it and it held my interest and sometimes that's all you can ask for from a thriller!


**Thank you to J.T. Ellison, Harlequin, and NetGalley for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

I can't believe it took so long for me to read this book! What a chilling story.

Ash wanted nothing more then to be accepted to the Goode school. She was accepted and got herself to the school. Her parents are dead and she's on her own. There are clicks on clicks in this school and a head mistress has more plans for herself. Don't want as long as I did to read this!! Read it now!