I don’t know why but I love books that take place in prep schools and boarding schools so this one was perfect for me. I loved the idea of The Players and the whole story woven around them as a major part of the school culture.
I did think the writing could be a bit juvenile at times (then again, this was an unedited copy) and that took away from the story at times.
I was able to figure out who did it but it took me until the last 80 pages or so to start connecting the dots and putting the whole story together.
All in all, I thought this was an entertaining and enjoyable read. Some triggers for phobias, sexual assault, so please be aware!

Fast paced read. It definitely kept me interest and I finished in a day. Murder, rich children from important families and lots of secrets. Jill attends a prep school. She is on scholarship. She is a a very exclusive club called the players. Her best friend was killed freshmen year and she still has nightmares about it. The killer is in jail, her loving boyfriend. Jill gets a message from his sister and things begin to unravel. I would definitely recommend this to
My friends.

Jessica Goodman's They Wish They Were Us is a thrilling and captivating debut that plunges readers into the cutthroat world of an elite prep school. The story follows Jill Newman, a senior at Gold Coast Prep, who is still grappling with the mysterious murder of her best friend three years earlier. As Jill delves deeper into the secrets and lies that shroud her school's prestigious Players club, she uncovers shocking truths that could change everything. Goodman masterfully combines suspense with a keen social commentary on privilege, ambition, and the pressures of adolescence. With its fast-paced plot and well-drawn characters, They Wish They Were Us is a gripping and thought-provoking read that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

A quick mystery read with realistic and interesting characters! Betrayal, love, and self discovery amidst a Gossip Girls x Oneof Us is Lying background.

I don’t know why but I just couldn’t get into this one. I think it may be that I’ve been struggling a bit as a reader finding books that hold my interest

It gave me Gossip Girl meets Pretty Little Liars and I just couldn't put it down it was so good. If you're a fan of either of these shows you need to pick this book up immediately

The book was ok, I didn’t hate it , but I also didn’t love it. I usually love murder in academic settings, but this one was just missing something. Maybe I just couldn’t connect with the characters enough to care about what they were doing.

I didn't finish this book, I didn't hate nor love it. I think you should give it a try but i didn't really read enough for form a solid opinion.

I remember I didn't finish this book because at the time no one had put a drug usage TW, so I read it and was disappointed.

I read an ARC of this book through NetGalley.

They Wish They Were Us is a high school murder mystery. Jill is a senior, and her best friend Shaila was murdered when they were freshmen when they were initiated into basically a(n open) secret society called the players. One of their classmates is in jail for the murder, but Jill gets a text about his innocence and becomes wrapped up in trying to figure out who the real killer was.

My absolute favorite trope is a group of people do something bad, it is not years later, and the past is back to haunt them. This book has that trope but does not really execute the things I love about it so much very well. There are secrets and lies and people having to face who they were in the past, but I really think having it be set at the school cuts down on a lot of the dissonance that typically is present in this game. I do think this kind of plot is much better suited as an adult book. If the flashback scenes had been with these characters as freshmen in college, they would have made much more sense; I think even if the flashbacks stayed as high school, it would have made more sense at a boarding school or if the future scenes had the characters in college or even after.

I do like 'unlikable' characters; reading through reviews of this book, a lot of them are annoyed that people who participated in a toxic bullying ring would dare to be kind of bad people. My only qualm is I don't like that Nikki's behavior is never really addressed. I wanted an actual conversation with her about her decisions, she is pretty much absolved when she does what she does at the end of the book, but I still wanted more about how she was justifying her own behavior earlier in the book.

I think this book also tried to do a really valid feminist critique of the power structure setup, but it felt odd because there was no mention of Nikki carrying on the exact same gross patriarchal stuff. Why not mention the way women are complicit in enacting that kind of violence on each other? It felt like a massive oversight. There were a few other times when it felt like the author was trying to make a social statement that she hadn't quite figured out how to make.

My biggest issues with this book were how incredibly predictable it was and the pacing. I knew who the killer was literally the first time their name was on the page. By the time we got to the first flashback with them, it was glaringly obvious. And by 14% of the way through this book, I was getting antsy for the characters to catch up with me.

The pacing suffered a lot because of how predictable the book was. The narrative dragged between clues and set up details; I just wanted to get to the end, please. I very rarely think a book is overly long. I am typically in the boat of wanting books to be longer. But I genuinely think this would have been a very nice to read novella. But there just wasn't enough content to sustain a full-length book for me. I was not surprised by any of the reveals; there were no twists, and there weren't really side plots going on. I just think this book dragged a lot and absolutely could have been much tighter.

I read this book because I really liked the cover, I don't typically read YA mystery, and this book has solidified that as a good choice in my brain. I am glad this book found people who love it, and I am sad I was not among them.

I think the author captures the feeling of what it is like to be a teen at a school like this, involved in an elite group like this. I felt it was too easy to figure out what was really going on, and in some places didn't love the writing style. I bet many teens will like this one though.

Very moody and creepy book! It reminds me of mean girls and pretty little liars
combined! I love how the characters can be annoying and also relatable
at the same time. I'm not really a fan of mean girls-esque books. But this
one just made the cut!

A murder mystery in a prep school? You know I'm going to read it. They Wish They Were Us is a super fast read although a bit predictable. I had it mostly figured out from the beginning but it was still fun to follow along as Goodman shows how the main character Jill pieces it all together. This also included an interesting look at friendships and the toxicity that comes with trying to be part of the "in crowd" at this school.

I think I preferred Goodman's newest, They'll Never Catch Us, but this was still worth the read. I will definitely be checking out The Counselors which comes out in May 2022.

Thanks to Penguin Teen for the gifted copy!

Wow! Loved this book, totally taken by surprise by how fast I flew through it. Such a great, well written, non cheesy YA Thriller.

I really enjoyed They Wish They Were Us more than I thought I would. I'm not usually into young adult mystery thrillers, but this hit the spot perfectly. Add that there's the prep school environment, and I'm completely sold!

One of the things I really liked about this book is that while the tradition of hazing is just that, a tradition, but the fact that Jill wants to change how it's done. She knows things have changed since Shaila's death and that it's time things change. I'll never understand colleges, etc. who do hazing traditions. Especially when there's been real incidents of severe harm and death from hazing.

There was so much drama in this story. Not only with Jill trying to overthrow how the Players do things, but with trying to prove Graham's innocence in the murder of Shaila, and Jill's insecurity -- for lack of a better word -- for being a scholarship kid while everyone else comes from money.

I also feel that each character was hashed out. There weren't any that felt blended in to fill the page. I wouldn't say they were multi dimensional, but they weren't flat either. Everyone had a different personality and purpose to the overall story.

Drama, murder, and secrets everywhere. What else could you really ask for?

Woah! This was such a fast paced YA mystery and I loved it! This is such a perfect rainy day read, or perfect for October! It’s a bit predictable (at least for me) but nonetheless enjoyable.

I love me a good YA mystery and I was really excited to read They Wish They Were Us by Jessica Goodman. Not only is it a solid mystery, but I also loved the setting at a prep school and that it is about a "secret" society at said school. This was a very addictive and quick read that I was able to finish in just a couple of sittings. I also thought it was a really great debut novel, and I was a huge fan of Goodman's writing style as well. The concept of the Players was pretty simple, and it was shocking how far some of these kids would go to remain in it. I loved the way we learn little by little what being one entails, and this book is chock-full of so much betrayal and a strong dose of lies. It also has some great twists and turns along the way and I don't think I was fully prepared for the way it was going to end.

The audiobook was really good as well and also a great way to go if you are going to read this. The narrator is Kristen Sieh who I have listened to before, and I always enjoy her narration. I don't know what it is about a book with mean girls, but I always seem to enjoy those types of reads, and They Wish They Were Us is full of them, along with some douchey guys as well. There were times that it was quite chilling and Goodman covers some very real and tough subjects. I loved the rawness to this one, and there are times it gets a little dark and gritty which I really liked. Jill is the viewpoint we have for the entire story, but it definitely took a while to find out what really makes her tick and what her motivations are. The jumps between past and present were great to give the reader a full picture of everything by the end and it was quite the ride to get there. I will be recommending this to anyone who likes a quick read, and fans of prep/private school settings!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Prep school group with mysterious rituals and secrets, a murder of one of their own, and the truth gradually comes out. This debut is amazingly well-written and told in intriguing past and present timelines effectively keeping me glued to the pages. The clues are revealed with a tantalizing slowness that reminded me of a Gothic mystery and the conclusion is oh so satisfying.

I received a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was an extremely captivating story! I managed to finish it in just a few hours and it helped me out of a pretty terrible reading slump. This is a perfect read for someone who enjoys shows such as Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl! I can't wait to see this brought to life in the upcoming show.

It took me a long time to read this book. I had to put it back in my shelf and come back to it months later. It was almost a DNF for me.

This book fell a little short for me.
The big mystery wasn’t much of a mystery if you ask me. I figured it out almost immediately. I also found the characters to be super annoying but I’m guessing that’s the point. Overall it wasn’t a bad book it was just missing something for me.

This is a mix of Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars. While I didn’t love it, I did like it and look forward to the show.