This was a very intriguing book. Murder happens on campus. Kid thinks he can solve the murder, and you know, not get killed in the process. Sounds familiar right? This story had a little more than your normal, who dunit High School tales. There is an entire cast of characters, any of which could be the killer. Most of them seem normal enough, but you really just never know who it could be.

Luke and Oscar are roommates and best friends at their boarding school. One night they decide to sneak out to meet up with some girls. While hanging out they overhear a confrontation between a man and a woman but don’t know who they are.

The next morning they find out that a woman was murdered in the exact spot they were at the night before. After Oscar becomes the prime suspect in the murder it up to Luke to play detective and find out who committed the murder.

This was a fun and fast read that I finished in just over 24 hours. I was hooked into the story pretty quickly and couldn’t put it down. Luke had so many potential suspects and different clues lead him various directions. I keep guessing at who the murderer was and was surprised by who it turned out to be. I would definitely recommend this to everyone

This was a book that I Really enjoyed this read and I would recommend to others easily, I will be looking out for other titles by this author.

I thought this was going to be a super fun read! But it wasn't entirely what I thought it was going to be!
This was a good mystery just didn't feel like it held up to the title or the premise of the story!

This book was okay, I personally did not like the characters. The story line was decent and it was easy to read, but I just hated the characters so much I cannot say that I enjoyed the book. I wish there had been more development to the characters so I would care more about them.

Ok, so overall I really enjoyed that book. I love boarding schools mysteries so this was perfect for me.
The characters are fairly well developped, the plot is more or less solid. I know these sounds like a quite lukewarm compliments, and I would agree, but the writing was compelling which to me is the most inportant. If the writing is smooth then the rest is fine and I dont pay attention to the minor drawbacks.

The ending indicates another book so Im quite pleased about that.

There were few things that bothered me though.

I dont really get the cover. Like, whats up with the tally marks? There is literally one victim. It's nowhere near 13.

The Daily Mirror article about Pippa.
If it was to be an article from a British newspaper then words like anesthetist (when it obviously should be anaesthetist) or neigbor (when the proper spelling is neighbour) should not be there. It's shows zero research is actually quite lazy.

Dark Academia meets YA thriller in this tedious read.

It's a boarding school. Someone dies. Some kids may have been accidental witnesses. One of the kids is accused of being the murderer. Scandalous.

The Murder Game really had all of the makings of a cool book, and if I didn't have so many better books waiting in the wings I may have powered through it. I love YA thrillers and I was hoping that one with a heavier focus on DA would have been what I needed, but it just isn't written well. The dialogue is awkward. The POV observations are telling and not showing. The characters are all spiritually empty stereotypes. In so many ways it feels like reading an alien's idea of what a thriller should be. It didn't help that I was actually reading a good thriller while I was reading this one as well.

I was pretty jarred by the blend of modern and early 2000's references. I have no idea if this is a period piece because there were modern references, but also a kid mentions they were watching videos on Newgrounds (?) so not sure what to do about that.

The Murder Game was chaotic and bland in all of the wrong places, and the writing just wasn't strong enough to save it. If there was some life sprinkled into the characters, I think we would have had a salvageable book. When you are writing a thriller that isn't non-stop mystery-solving, having genuine and interesting characters can be the difference between a bomb and a classic. Carrie Doyle could take some notes from Karen Mcmanus on the value of a character-driven YA thriller. If you aren't going to go 100% into murder and twists, you are going to need more than empty husks as leads so we can care about their everyday life.

A twisty, fast-paved thriller.. The Murder Game is set in an elite boarding school. Can you guess the killer? I didn’t.

Luke and his friends were reading the rules when they broke curfew to meet in the woods. But while they were out there they overhear a murder taking place. Now Luke’s best friend and room mate is the main suspect for the murderer and it’s up to Luke to find the real killer.

But there is more to Luke than meets the eye. He is famous for being the kidnapped boy who escaped - and the survival instincts and perseverance he showed in his past is just what he needs now to find a killer.

The Murder Game has such a beautiful cover!! Though, I do think the title is a bit misleading, I personally didn't feel like it matched the story well. This was a good YA mystery. I read adult mysteries more often than YA so I didn't enjoy this as much as the target audience would. It is predictable, I guessed the who the killer would be in the beginning and was correct-I left the book feeling neutral because of that. I think Luke's kidnapping didn't fit well into the novel, it didn't add anything. The characters were bland expect for Luke and Pippa but even then, they weren't very interesting to read about. The killer wasn't interesting and did not play a big enough role as I wanted them to.

Overall, the book does have some weak points but is still interesting. I think younger readers and fans of YA will enjoy The Murder Game!

Thank you to Netgalley for an eARC copy of The Murder Game!

The cover and title of this book were what originally drew me in, but much like the other reviewers I'm not really seeing the correlation. The story overall is a well written but very predictable thriller!

Talk about déjà vu.

“The Murder Game” finds Luke Chase sneaking out of his dorm and breaking the rules for the first time only to find himself caught up in an investigation into the murder of the wife of the Dean and with too many suspects and not enough time he races ahead to uncover the truth before the wrong man goes down for the crime.

So the entire time I’m reading this book I kept feeling like I’ve read it before and it was only when I finished that I looked up the book it reminded me of and found that it’s the exact same story just marketed with a new title, author and a few teaks for the plot and not for the better.

Looking at my review back in 2018 for ‘Sneaking Out’ I had a much better reaction the story as a whole which remains pretty basic for a mystery in a boarding school like setting only they turned the main character into a kid who kind of flawed into someone who is a golden boy which is a weird choice because the investigative beats are the exact same only the initial sneaking out plot point was reluctance rather than of his own free will.

I don’t really know what to say because on one hand I already knew this story so to say it was predicable is my own fault I guess but at the same time I wonder why it’s being rebranded as new when it’s almost 3 years old with the same tease of a series when no other book has clearly been put together to do just that.

This is an odd sort of feeling but I think if I had to choose between The Murder Game or its original Sneaking Out I’d pick the latter.

**special thanks (again) to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

A few of the reviews of this book mention the cover and title, describing how they do not seem to fit with the story. I will agree. I am not sure how the title plays into the story, or how the tally marks do as well.

I did some digging and found out that this book was originally published in 2018 under the title of Sneaking Out (a much more suitable title) and the author published it under the pseudonym of Chuck Vance. It is described as the first in the Chased series (named for the main character of Luke Chase). I do not know if any of the book has been changed since its original publication, but it does read as though there is a series planned. I hope there is as I still have some questions concerning the main character's background and the events he went through three years prior to the setting of this story.

I enjoyed the novel, although it was predictable at times. There are some standard YA character tropes used but overall it was a fast-paced mystery. Readers of the Truly Devious series by Maureen Johnson would probably enjoy this, especially if it continues with more books.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Murder Game in exchange for an honest review.

I genuinely think the wrong title and cover got slapped onto this book. I've been racking my brain and I have absolutely no idea how the title The Murder Game or the 13 tallies had literally anything to do with the plot here. It's extremely misleading and I can't see it not hurting this book's marketing.

The thing is, this is a pretty okay book. The characters are a bit archetypical and the teen speak is a bit off, but it's a fast boarding school murder mystery if you're looking for a quick mystery read. That's not the type of story I was looking for though so I was really let down here. I honestly think this book would need to completely rebrand to reach the right audience because as is, I can see a lot of people getting really mad at this.

A good premise, but lacked development. Characters felt rushed and the subplots just didn’t blend well in my opinion. It’s not there were red herrings, it just felt like there wasn’t enough information until they were finally like, “here’s your murderer and here’s a half-baked reason of why.”

A well written, fast paced thriller. A bit predictable but a solid 4 star YA novel. An easy read that keeps you intrigued.

Thank you netgalley for this arc

It was another solid, fast paced, easy to read, YA mystery/ thriller. If it would be only for this beautiful cover, I could give five stars without thinking any further.

But the book is a little predictable whodunnit murder mystery at school campus with plot holes, not so crafted characterization.

Oscar: the problematic bad boy who is presumed killer of his teacher and his roommate Luke who is A-grader, clean cut, great student, athlete, student rep., president of Outdoors Club is polar opposite of him, trying to prove his friend’s innocence by conducting his own investigation.

His loyalty depends on Oscar’s support when Luke transferred to the school after his abduction and his traumatic experience in the woods. When the other students observe him like a germ in microscope, Oscar treats him as if nothing terrifying happened to him which helped him to heal from his trauma with his friendship.

Now it’s time for him to pay him back. Their young and beautiful teacher Mrs. Heckler who recently married with Dean Heckler is killed by being choked with a scarf reminds the people of the strangler serial killer case of the town which is unsolved!

But instead of Oscar, there are so many suspects at this case including Dean’s old wife who can be jealous of her and her ex husband who ended their marriage and of course Dean is still at the suspect list because Luke, Oscar, Kelly and Pippa were the ones who heard Mrs. Heckler talked to some man in the woods before she’s been killed and they presumed she was having relationship with someone mysterious but who? Is the mysterious man the killer?

Even Pippa, Luke has a secret crush on may be a suspect because she’s also transferred to the boarding school to get away from a vicious scandal about her involvement to the murder of her close girlfriend.

Well, this was not complex or not so confusing or earth shattering, it is simple story like middle grade mystery reads. The adult characters are not developed enough. Only Oscar, Pippa and Luke were remarkable and connectable characters. Rest of them are full of cliches, one dimensional.

Overall: it was okay reading. I didn’t like too much but it was still engaging and quickly wrapped. It never bores me even you may guess the perpetrator so easily.

I still want to read more works of the author. I’m giving three solid, Switzerland: not lovable but also not so hatable, mystery takes place in location, whodunnit stars!

Special thanks to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS FIRE for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

The Murder Game follows Luke, a student at a boarding school, as he tries to figure out who murdered one of the staff members and to clear his roommate’s name.
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This book was fine. It wasn’t groundbreaking, but it wasn’t bad either. I liked the premise, and the title intrigued me, but the title was also very misleading. There is murder, but there is no game whatsoever. I did like the creepy atmosphere, and Pippa was a nice multi-dimensional character. Luke, however, got on my nerves.
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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I was really looking forward to reading this book.

I was disappointed. I was worried after I read the first chapter and the book just did not get any better.

I love this type of thriller book, but there was nothing interesting. Characters did not feel defined and I admit, I could not get through this one.

It is a shame.

3.5 stars.

Okay, so this book is literally a cross between <i>A study in Charlotte meets any boarding school book ever.</i> I thought the premise was really interesting and Carrie captured boarding school life how I would expect. I felt like the story’s ending was satisfying enough and I can see this book being a potential series.

- I liked the entire concept of this book and how the story played out. The reveals/twists felt realistic and I could understand the direction Luke’s character followed.
- I liked that this was not a romance heavy book which is typical for a lot of YA mysteries. I liked Pippa’s role but she wasn’t the centre part of the investigation and this was nice to read.
- Carrie’s writing was good but the pacing was off. It took me a while for the book to get going but once it did, it was good. I would say the first half of the book dragged which was frustrating as the latter half really was good.
- I also thought Luke’s backstory was interesting but I either think it should have been scrapped all together or more should have been explored with it because it was kind of mentioned a few times and didn’t really add anything to the book and I found myself wanting more from this.

Overall, a decently written YA mystery with a unique voice.
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. See the end of my review for educator-specific feedback.

I feel the need to note that murder mysteries aren’t my typical preferred reading material, but every year I have scores of students who love them, so I dip my toe in the water to look for new offerings.

Not being a connoisseur of the genre, I found this book to be what I imagine is typical fare. Boarding school, sneaking around at night, heart-pounding suspense, and swaths of likely suspects that keep your head spinning until the end. If you’re looking for a run-of-the-mill murder mystery, this one fits the bill, but I can’t say it offered anything mind-blowing or genre-bending. It didn’t stand out.

That being said, this book is obviously the first in a series, and I was definitely intrigued by some of the loose ends and plot threads that will clearly be addressed in subsequent books.

The main character and his side kicks were pretty typical teens, and at the end of the day they all felt somewhat trope-like. There were hints at characterization beyond trope, but nothing ever really seemed to come of it, and the teen characters all played neatly into the roles it was clear they would from the beginning. The plot was well-paced and kept me turning the page, but I wasn’t shocked or awed by any of the twists. I did not accurately guess who the murder was before the end, as there was an 11th-hour clue that of course pointed to someone who hadn’t even previously been on the suspect list. I still can’t decide how I feel about that. I imagine it’s incredibly hard to point fingers and drop hints without giving it all away in advance, but it can be a little frustrating to get to the big reveal and have someone so entirely unexpected waiting behind the curtain.

All in all, if you love classic murder mysteries, give it a read. This is a book that is pretty much exactly what it says on the tin, so if that’s your thing, I think you’ll be satisfied.

And now the teachery bits: No sex happens on screen in this book, but it is heavily and frequently alluded to. Lots of talk about married teachers/ staff having affairs with other teachers/ staff, which is all heavily wrapped up in the main plot. There is also conjecture throughout the book that an adult staff member may have been having an affair with a student, though nothing really ever comes of this beyond rumors. Again, none of this is explicitly described, and is often referred to in euphemism. There is some violence, but it is not explicit; a character accidentally cuts their arm and bleeds, requiring stitches; there is a physical altercation at the end that is not super explicitly violent; there is a subplot involving flashbacks to a prior kidnapping that similarly involved violent physical altercation where someone dies, but again, the description is not explicit. There is little-to-no explicit language, though some more mature terms like “cougar” make an occasional appearance. I would say this book could be an independent reading option for 8th graders, but I wouldn’t offer it as book club option for anyone under grade 9.