Oh my gosh, this book was SO GOOD. First, I'm a sucker for any book set on a college campus, fictional or not. The nostalgia of college, dorms, parties, new friends, etc, is just brought back when I read any book about college where the campus is the setting, and man did Laurie Elizabeth Flynn knock this one out of the park with her perfect descriptions of the nerves, campus dining, parties, and roommates. The best part, for me, was that I went in to this one sort of blind, and I really recommend that readers do that as well. It's better to know less about the plot with this one. I will be recommending this to everyone who will listen! 4/5 stars

These girls are all sour except for F.lora. Even her name is sweet..Unfortunately for her, she ended up being Ambrosia (blech.... Ambs) Wellingtons's dorm mate first year of college. "Ambs" and her bosom buddy, Sloane Sullivan-aka Sully (double blech) terrorized their entire university as freshmen. Go into this book blind, it is filled with unlikeable characters. Unlikeable is actually putting it mildly. I loathed these girls. Anyway, if you can stomach the gossip and sex parties and the binge drinking I recommend the book. Are girls really this mean? It has been 30 years since I graduated from college and I don't recall the hardness "Ambs" and "Sully" display. The story unfolds quickly and the writing is fast paced. I gave it 4 stars because I loved the ending, many don't.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review.

What a tangled web! I was hooked from the first chapter! Unlikeable, flawed characters drive a dark tale of jealousy, deceit, lust and suicide...or is it murder? Atmospheric a and moody, with twists Hitchcock Would be proud of! Get your hands on this thriller, sure to be a best seller...or maybe a Lifetime movie?

Whew! What an incredible first read from Netgalley! This is a dark, gripping and twisted story of friendship, deception and learning who you really are.

Former friends, Ambrosia Wellington and Sloane "Sully" Sullivan return to college for their reunion to find someone is seeking revenge and wants the truth for something horrible they did 10 years ago.

Things have changed in the 10 years since college and Ambrosia isn't who she used to be. Returning to college she finds that things from the past do not necessarily stay there. She is consumed with guilt for the dreadful things she has done. She becomes attached to Sully again who is not the best of influences. They both receive messages and cryptic things start to happen. Ambrosia starts to realize the ramifications of her past and the effect they had on everyone.

This book is harsh and really gets deep down into your thoughts. I literally could not put it down. The character development is excellent. You really feel like you are in the head of Ambrosia. It depicts the cruel and damaging ways women are to one another and the depths of what bullying and "mean girls" can have on one's life even years later.

I really enjoyed this novel and will definetly be looking for more of Laurie Elizabeth Flynn's future work!

***Thank you to Net Galley and Simon and Schuster for providing me an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.***

WOW! Just WOW! This is Mean Girls, adult version! This story is splendidly written about all horrible things women can be. Brilliant & well-written!

Two former best friends return to their college reunion to find that they’re being circled by someone who wants revenge for what they did ten years before—and will stop at nothing to get it—in this shocking psychological thriller about ambition, toxic friendship, and deadly desire.

A lot has changed in the years since Ambrosia Wellington graduated from college, and she’s worked hard to create a new life for herself. But then an invitation to her ten-year reunion arrives in the mail, along with an anonymous note that reads “We need to talk about what we did that night.”

It seems that the secrets of Ambrosia’s past—and the people she thought she’d left there—aren’t as buried as she’d believed. Amb can’t stop fixating on what she did or who she did it with: larger-than-life Sloane “Sully” Sullivan, Amb’s former best friend, who could make anyone do anything.

At the reunion, Amb and Sully receive increasingly menacing messages, and it becomes clear that they’re being pursued by someone who wants more than just the truth of what happened that first semester. This person wants revenge for what they did and the damage they caused—the extent of which Amb is only now fully understanding. And it was all because of the game they played to get a boy who belonged to someone else, and the girl who paid the price.

Whoa. This book was crazy. I could not put it down. Initially I had been expecting more of a thriller, which it wasn’t. It was more like a young adult gossip girl type of story, which I don’t always like, but this one was so good at keeping my interest. I felt like I could predict much of what was happening, and I could, but that didn’t take away from the plot and there was more than I predicted. I hope to read more from this author!

It's difficult for me to imagine someone who doesn't see herself in one of these characters, but harder still for me to think of someone who would admit it. The ending didn't feel quite right.

Mean Girls Go to College. Yep, that's the premise and it's dark and disturbing--just the way I like my thrillers! When Ambrosia goes off to college she is paired with roommate Flora who seems a little pathetic to her. So she's elated when "cool girl" Sully befriends her and challenges her to be edgy and take risks that she never would have at home. So when Ambrosia meets Flora's gorgeous boyfriend, we know things are going to go south. Told in alternating chapters between past and present, we see the college years and the reunion that the women are invited to because, "We have to talk about that night." That's all you get so just be prepared for a healthy dose of bullying that is cringe-worthy!

Psychologically disturbing yet extremely captivating, this book delves into the minds of college educated women and whom is at fault for a tragedy that occurs during Ambrosia's freshman year. What saddened me is that both her and Sully saw everything as disposable as evidenced the most by how they treated others. They were simply a plaything to be thrown away when bored. Kevin and Flora fell victim as well as Adrian really actually not even knowing whom he married. It was chilling to hear all the emails came from a gmail account and I could not put the book down. The last chilling sentence said it all.

I didn’t hate this book but I didn’t love it either. All of the characters were highly irritating and I couldn’t get myself to like one. No super plot twist wow moments for me but entertaining like watching bad reality television. Thank you for the copy!

Set your alarm because you will be up all night reading this one! Crazy sex and drug filled nights mixed with the innocence of college freshmen. Really enjoyed this face paced book and the tales of demon filled, drug fueled frat parties.

“The Girls Are All So Nice Here!”

Spoiler alert – they aren’t!

So, I was a little bit of a mean girl in high school. We all were as the nuns at our school kind of fostered that behavior. When I graduated, I realized that I didn’t want to be that person and, happily, I wasn’t that way in college. And, oh my god, the girls in this book!

This is a well written, absolutely horrifying book – and it made me so grateful that I never, ever reached this point.

I’ll tell you straight out that this isn’t a feel good book. The mean girls just become…mean women. And, honestly, most of the guys in this book aren’t any better. There are times you’re going to want to maybe stop reading and look away for a bit. The author doesn’t flinch away from ugly.

An excellent read, but you may want to follow it up with something light and fluffy.

*ARC Provided via Net Galley

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC. This book started out promising. The emails inviting Amb to the reunion are a little creepy but not so much so that they are scary. As the story goes on, the emails become increasingly creepy! Warning, there is a lot of drinking, drugs, and sex throughout the book. A LOT. That got tedious. And mean girls, really men girls. As the story went on it was like they got meaner and that was a turnoff. So much so that it started to feel over-the-top. Maybe less of all those things would have made the book more enjoyable. Even though I didn't like any of the characters, they were well written.The story was also good. It took a while to find out why someone was after Amb and Sully and when it was revealed it was shocking and sad. The ending was exciting, but I disliked the "One year later" chapter. It didn't ring true for me. I'm not sure I would recommend this book to a friend, but I would read another book by this author because I think she has potential to knock it out of the park!

College is a new beginning. A chance to learn, to grow,and have new adventures. Amb is devastated after being dumped by her boyfriend. Instead of spending time with the nice girls, she becomes taken in by wild Sully. She craves Sully's approval. Drugs, promiscuity and booze. Her thoughts of acting ignored.

Amb has a roommate , Flora. Flora is sweet, kind, and considers Amb her best friend. She has a perfect boyfriend, Kevin. Amb meets him and decided she wants him. She and Sully work to make it happen. The outcome is a suicide . Or is it murder?

10years pass and a 10th reunion brings all the players together. Karma must be dealt.

This book goes back and forth between last and present. Twists and turns keep you guessing. Thank you Netgalley! Finished it in a day!

Wow! What did I just read? I absolutely loved The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn. I was totally gripped by this book of toxic-female friendship. The book was creepy, chilling and mind blowing! I read it in one sitting and was sad when it was over. Not only was the story riveting, but the writing was incredible. The book has it all and lives up to all of it's hype. Highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGally and Simon and Schuster for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. It was a privilege!

"Two former best friends return to their college reunion to find that they’re being circled by someone who wants revenge for what they did ten years before—and will stop at nothing to get it—in this shocking psychological thriller about ambition, toxic friendship, and deadly desire. . . . .At the reunion, Amb and Sully receive increasingly menacing messages, and it becomes clear that they’re being pursued by someone who wants more than just the truth of what happened that first semester. This person wants revenge for what they did and the damage they caused—the extent of which Amb is only now fully understanding. And it was all because of the game they played to get a boy who belonged to someone else, and the girl who paid the price.

Alternating between the reunion and Amb’s freshman year, The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a shocking novel about the brutal lengths girls can go to get what they think they’re owed, and what happens when the games we play in college become matters of life and death."

Phew - does this novel accurately portray the insecurities and resulting toxicity of female friendships in the teens/college years. The alternating chapters between Then and Now keep the tension ratcheted up throughout the entire novel. And, of course, the Now chapters show just how mistaken we often are about the motivations of our "friends" during our teen/college years.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

🌻 REVIEW 🌻 The Girls Are All So Nice Here

So I finished this one and I have some thoughts. First a synopsis since I did not post it before...

From the Publisher:

Two former best friends return to their college reunion to find that they’re being circled by someone who wants revenge for what they did ten years before—and will stop at nothing to get it—in this shocking psychological thriller about ambition, toxic friendship, and deadly desire.

Alternating between the reunion and Amb’s freshman year, The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a shocking novel about the brutal lengths girls can go to get what they think they’re owed, and what happens when the games we play in college become matters of life and death.

Review:

This book is the ✨ Perfect thriller ✨ this book though is completely in a class of its own. I loved every second of it. It’s dark, unsettling, twisted, and full of suspense. It’s a great mystery, opening with Amb receiving a letter stating “We need to talk about what we did that night.”

Already a great set up. Told in alternating chapters between college and the present, the mystery of what really happened that night is revealed. It’s certainly a slow burn with everything told in the perfect timing. This book kept me guessing and turning the pages and kept me up at night itching to get to the truth.

This is Flynn’s first novel, and I will be anxiously waiting to see what other twisty thrillers she has up her sleeve! A very talented author with a unique voice and style all of her own.

✨ Pub Day: March 9, 2021! ✨ This is a MUST read for thriller lovers!

Thank you @netgalley and @simonbooks for this #ARC

5/5 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

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I read this book every for Netgalley reviews. The content was quite explicit and often harsh language. Bullying...jealousy...teenage angst...seems to be more for the young adult set...the story going back to present is somewhat confusing. This is a character driven nove with no redeeming characters. The surprise will shock!

I knew I was going to love this from the very first page.

''There were boys whose names I forgot, boys I might have passed by and not known were ever inside me. When I did pick out a king, the crown was too heavy for his head.'

Alright, Past Amanda said as she snuggled into her pillow. This is it. This is exactly what I came here for.

The rest of the book doesn't disappoint.

An invitation arrives and it's one Ambrosia wishes she could just tap and send away into the abyss of the junk folder. Instead though, her loving and well meaning husband sees and inquires it and that my babies is the beginning of the end,,,er well begins.

And although I absolutely LIIIVE for the dramatics I am absolutely not being dramatic. Not even a little

Ambrosia goes as reluctant as anybody who has a dark past would. At the reunion we meet her ex college best friend Sully Sullivan and as the time passes it becomes clear that both girls are being pursued by somebody who wants to harm them.
Somebody who knows what they did those formative years ago. Their lives are in danger the secrets that they have buried are threatening to be exhumed.

This book shocked me. It was better than I imagined and so well written I found myself re-reading certain passages again and again. The characters were so well fleshed out and animated that they practically floated out of my kindle and danced. I knew Ambrosia. I knew Sully. And I knew Flora. I've been all 3 girls before and I've encountered all 3 girls before. They were lifelike and relatable, the good and the bad.

There are a lot of tough issues to tackle in The Girls Are All So Nice Here. Please be mindful of yourself and your mental mindset and be warned that there is rape.

There's also talk of mental health which I really appreciated even when it was slyly thrown in by one character. That too felt all the more realistic. As somebody who goes through it that one comment meant everything to me. It's all too familiar.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Girls Are All So Nice Here. The writing is stunning, the plot while overused felt fresh and revitalized, I was shocked at the twists and turn, numb at the end.

It's wild to me that this is Laurie Elizabeth' Flynn's debut novel. It's just so good. I'm really looking forward to what comes from her next.

And now more than ever I'm so glad I never even considered going to my high school reunion.

Oh sweetie. We were the mean girls.

Thank you very much to the publisher and Netgalley for this copy of my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Stay rad <3

When I saw that this was about mean girls in college, I knew I had to read it. I just love mean girl books. Throw in a death investigation and I’m hooked. I always love cattiness and drama in books. This book had it all. I read that the author was a former model, so I figure she knows cattiness! It also showed the different personality types you’ll meet in the dorms and how one can succumb to peer pressure through their loneliness and insecurities. This book was a bit psychological as well, but not on a deep complex level. It was easy to follow and a fun ride throughout.

“People thought girls’ bodies were our deadliest weapons. They had no idea about the mountains our imaginations could move.”

“Our reign was short and bloody. What came after it was worse.”

The Girls Are All So Nice here comes out 3/9.