Alice Ogilvie, one of the glamorous Main kids of Castle Cove, was dumped by her boyfriend Steve last summer. Steve promptly starts dating Alice's best friend Brooke, and Alice responds by disappearing for five days in a move that would make Agatha Christie proud. When Alice gets back, though, she is punished for her stunt with a school-appointed tutor, Iris. The two girls get tangled together in a web of truth and lies, though, when Brooke disappears after a very public fight with Steve. Unlike Alice, it looks like Brooke's not coming back. When Steve is arrested, Alice and Iris are convinced he is innocent, and decide to take a leaf out of Agatha Christie's book and prove it themselves.

This book is a lot more complex than your straightforward mystery. It deals with issues of corruption, sexism, negligence, abuse, and the power of leaning on friends. As a result, it was a riveting read that kept me on the edge of my seat, and the plot twists were so well-executed that I couldn't guess the ending. A lot of mysteries are either predictable or don't make any sense in the end, but in this novel, the breadcrumbs were there all along, but buried so deeply you don't realize it until everything comes together. Alice and Iris were really complex and well-developed characters, and I love that this book focuses on a strong female friendship instead of a romantic relationship. Romances are wonderful, but this was a breath of fresh air that I don't see very often.

I highly recommend this book for fans of young adult mysteries! Thank you so much to Random House Children's Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alice's best friend, ok ex best friend since Brooke stole Alice's boyfriend, is murdered, and who doesn't believe that it's the boyfriend that did it? Alice and Iris, 2 teens thrown together by fate, and both decide using their little grey cells a la Poirot will be the way to solve this mystery since the local cops are really messing everything up.

I’m a huge fan of Kathleen Glasgow (You’d Be Home Now was one of my favorite books of last year) and really enjoyed Liz Lawson’s debut The Lucky One’s so I was really excited to read The Agathas. I quite enjoyed this book, and reading from both of the authors. I read a lot of YA thrillers so I can usually predict but I was actually surprised at the end of this one.

Review to be posted to goodreads closer to publication date

This was such a fun read. If I had more time, I probably would have read it in one day. It got hard to put down. I did figure out the killer early on, but it didn't matter. It was fun reading about Alice and Iris investigating.

Alice is a rich kid. She used to be best friends with the "mains". But her bff, Brooke, started dating Steve when Alice was gone for awhile during the summer. Steve and Alice were together before that and she was upset. So upset that she left without telling anyone. She was considered missing and the police were involved. But Alice came back on her own. It made her popular, but not in a good way. Everyone still talked about her and her need for attention. Alice goes to a party one night to talk to her old friends. She gets in an argument with Brooke. Steve walks Alice back to her car, but that causes Steve and Brooke to fight.

Iris isn't rich. She's trying to get enough money to move away with her mom. Her dad is abusive and they have a restraining order. He just ignores it and she's terrified. Iris starts tutoring Alice. She was offered $3000 and she couldn't pass it up. She and Alice have never been friends. They're super different. Iris is out walking the night of the party. She sees Alice drive away. Then she watched Steve and Brooke fighting. Brooke took off and Iris decided to follow her shortly after. But she never found Brooke.

The following day, people notice that Brooke isn't at school. She never went home, but her step dad didn't seem worried. He thought she was staying at Kennedy's house. But Kennedy said Brooke never showed up. Brooke's step dad is a coach at the school and well liked. He thinks that Brooke just went off, maybe even copying what Alice did. But Alice knows Brooke and knows she would never just leave without her stuff. Alice and Iris start talking about things. Alice got into Agatha Christie books and she decides she wants to find Brooke. Even though the police are involved, they don't seem to be doing much. Iris is friends with a few kids that study forensics and they get involved too. When out searching, they find Brooke dead below the cliffs. The police focus on Steve. After all, he disappeared that night and doesn't remember what happened. But Alice is sure Steve would never hurt Brooke. So the kids all work together along with Steve's attorney that used to babysit Iris. They start unraveling things that no one knew about different people. Both from that night and from the past.

The pacing was good and I really liked how Alice and Iris grew to be friends even though they didn't quite realize it. Alice doesn't really have anyone besides her nanny, Brenda. Iris doesn't want to get close to people because she's leaving. I would love another book with this friend group trying to solve more crimes. It's hinted at, so I hope it happens.

I gave this book 5 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.

Warnings for abuse (multiple kinds), neglect, drinking, drugs, death. The authors note does have resources included for people that might need help.

The Agathas promises more than it delivers. Perhaps it set my expectations too high with its title, comparing it to any Agatha Christie novel, but I found that, while the concept is compelling, the plot itself fell a bit flat. For one thing, a lot of the speech patterns were awkward, and it was very clear that there were two adults who were trying (and failing) to pass as teenagers.
I also found that as the story went on and Alice and Iris became more involved in each others' lives, it was hard to differentiate between the two of them. By that I mean that there was almost no stylistic differences between the two characters' points of view.
The plot and mystery itself I think was well done, although the entire time, one of the only things I could think of the entire time was why so many people were just handing these teenage girls so much information, Ricky especially. Alice and Iris being the ones who solved the mystery just didn't make sense to me.
Overall, the story itself fell flat, especially with the random side characters who were kind of there but kind of not and the Agatha Christie mentions that weren't in it enough to be a theme but in it too much that it was awkward.
(2.5 stars rounded up)

The Agatha’s is such a fun read about two teen detectives, while it does have some scenes that may trouble some readers. I loved the entire book and literally cheered at some points ! I hope this series continues because you just want to continue with iris and Alice. What new adventures can they find and of course if your a fan of Agatha Christie then this is a must read for any of her fans !

A fun romp of a novel full of Agatha Christie Easter Eggs tucked away in a fast-paced YA mystery/thriller.

This was an interesting read, but I felt like THE AGATHAS promised a lot more than it gave. Based on a character's love for Agatha Christie mysteries, and the comp to Veronica Mars, I expected a lot more intrigue and mystery and just generally MORE of everything. It felt a little shallow. Plus, I didn't feel like the characters were fully developed -- I wanted more of them and Iris' friend group, especially. I expected to be blown away by the intrigue and mystery, and to be totally immersed in the story of two girls playing detective -- and sadly, I wasn't.

While not my favorite read of 2022, overall I still enjoyed THE AGATHAS (even if it left me wanting.)

A thank you to Delacorte and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

I'm between a 3 and 3.5 star, so per my review policy for ARCs, I'm deferring to a 3.5 star
This wasn't quite what I was expecting, but it ended up being pretty entertaining! This strikes an interesting tone of sort of snarky Scooby Doo. There's a kind of flatness to the characters, but I felt like it served the kind of hijinks-y vibe that the story was going for, so that actually worked pretty well for me. I really enjoyed all the Christie Easter eggs, and thought this ended up having a fun, girl gang kind of vibe to the plot that was very readable and fun. This hints at being the beginning of a series, and if so, I'd check out more in this world

The Agathas is a delightful, campy romp of a mystery. With so many Ya mysteries becoming popular (Good Girl's Guide to Murder, Truly Devious, Karen M. McManus, etc...) is seems like it would be difficult to stand out in a sea of popular favorites. However, this book's connection to source material (Agatha Christie) and its memorable cast of characters makes this book a stand out, fun time.

There are two kinds of people at Castle Cove High School - the Mains who are rich and popular and everyone else. Alice Ogilvie used to be one of the Mains. Then her boyfriend broke up with her and started dating her best friend. Then Alice disappeared for five days causing an all-out manhunt and then quietly reappeared. After a period of house arrest and immersing herself in the works of Agatha Christie, she is back in school and needs a tutor.

Iris Adams is one of the others at CCHS. She's bright but poor and determined to get through school without making waves - or friends. The pay for tutoring Alice would go a long way to building up her getting out of Castle Cove fund - and getting out is what Iris really wants to do.

Alice attends a Halloween party at Levy Castle where she has an argument with her former boyfriend Steve and ex-best friend Brooke. Then Alice storms off for home. Iris, who is out walking, sees Brooke and Steve arguing and Brooke running off. She follows but doesn't find Brooke.

When Brooke doesn't come home from the party, only Alice seems to be worried. Her adopted father Matt Donovan who coaches basketball and teaches history at CCHS doesn't seem concerned. And Brooke's friends don't seem concerned either. It isn't until Alice calls Brooke's very rich grandmother that things start to happen.

When Steve is arrested for the murder, Alice recruits Iris to help her prove that he's innocent. At first, Iris is in it for the $50,000 reward. She wasn't close to Brooke or any of the other Mains. But the two girls find lots of secrets as they begin their investigations. They discover all sorts of things from illicit relationships, planted evidence, drugs and bribery. Luckily, Alice has a secret contact who provides her with information and Iris has the rest of her group of friends who are into forensics, because the police are either corrupt or clueless and reluctant to look at anyone but Steve for the crime.

I enjoyed this story very much. I really liked both Iris and Alice who were both intriguing characters. Alice was a neglected, poor little rich girl whose parents were way too busy and absent to pay any attention to her. She was deeply lonely. Iris had a loving and supportive mother who worked as a bartender, but she also had an abusive father that she was terribly afraid of and who didn't pay enough attention to the restraining order. The side characters from Iris's Zoner friends to Steve's lawyer were also positive characters with the Mains being negative characters.

Fans of mysteries will enjoy this excellent story.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: May 3, 2022

An entertaining YA whodunnit is a thinly veiled tribute to Agatha Christie (and Murder She Wrote). This was an fun and fast read but I found some of the themes and storylines problematic for a YA book. They used tactics from Christie’s books as a justification to bully and drug others in the name of solving the mystery and it left a sour taste in my mouth. I also had a difficult time reconciling Alice’s character—she goes between wildly poignant to wildly immature and whiny and I found her distracting. Figured out who it was quite early in the book but there were enough twists and turns to make me keep guessing until the end!

Excellent mystery with well-developed characters, intriguing twists, and best of all, Agatha Christie references!

When I was younger there were few things I liked better than Nancy Drew mysteries. I had my mom's old copies. And then in the 80s, there were these lovely updates: The Nancy Drew Files. Just Google the covers for a fun look at the 80s! The point being is that I love a book about teen detectives! The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson is an amazing teen detective YA novel that I think will definitely appeal to teens who love Karen McManus books.

The Agathas is a dual POV story that looks into the death of a young teen girl in a wealthy coastal California Community called Castle Cove. Our two young Agathas are Alice Ogilvie, a wealthy girl most known for her five-day disappearance last summer, and Iris Adams, who is not known at all. Iris is hired by Alice's wealthy parents to tutor her. They had just met when a wealthy heiress classmate, Brooke Donovan, goes missing.

What I loved the most about this story was the pairing of Iris and Alice. I love a reluctant pairing, an odd couple story. This had it in spades. Having Iris and Alice come from different sides of the tracks was important for both their character growth and their ability to work together as a team. The associated secondary characters that satellite the main two were a wonderful addition to this mystery. I quite enjoyed their crew of gumshoes and the work they put in.

I'm definitely adding this to our school library. I have a feeling that students who like One of Us is Lying will also like this novel.

Bonus love for that Agatha Christie references and quotes throughout! And I am hoping that Castle Cove is a nod to Cabot Cove of Murder, She Wrote. Or maybe a Christie reference that I don't understand.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson for review.

A YA murder mystery with high school drama, complicated hook-ups, parental drama, a nosy reporter, a helpful lawyer, anonymous messages, a bit of romance, and an Agatha Christie twist! What more could one ask for!

When Alice and Iris team up to find out what happened to Alice's best friend they begin an unlikely friendship that pulls several suspects, friends, and enemies into their sphere.

This novel has realistic dialogue for teenagers, handles trigger warning situations with nuance and caution, and never feels over the top.

If Alice and Iris decide to solve another murder together - sign me up!

Wow! I was not expecting that ending. I loved reading this book. I really thought it was two different people who did the murder. But I was completely off in who I thought it was.

4.5 stars

In a delightful tribute to Dame Christie herself, Glasgow and Lawson's The Agathas is a wonderfully twisty YA thriller that definitely had me on the edge of my seat. Featuring a pair of teen sleuths from opposite sides of the affluent town of Castle Cove, this book has so many classic tropes that readers will love - corrupt cops, secret identities, people getting framed - along with a great story of female friendship. Honestly, the only thing that knocked the half star for me was a few brief moments where the editing made it hard to follow the logic.

I've been really on the fence with YA lately, but I'm so glad that I decided to pick this one up. There is a lot of potential for a series to continue after this book and I am crossing my fingers that it gets picked up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

These characters were interesting, and the premise was unputdownable! My students are constantly looking for murder mysteries. This novel fits the bill! I highly recommend.

What a fun, well-developed YA mystery told from the POV of two teenage girls. Alice is a former popular girl who is shunned after her boyfriend dumped her and she disappeared for 5 days, a la Agatha Christie. Iris is a studious girl assigned to tutor Alice to bring up her grades. Alice's former best friend is Brooke, who her boyfriend dumped her for, and who is murdered, Iris may have been the last person to see Brooke alive. Alice and Iris become friends as their tutoring sessions turn into sleuthing sessions. Alice is a devotee of Agatha Christie and utilizes techniques and suggestions from her novels. Iris has some serious stuff going on in her life. I wish Iris's chapters were a bit more developed. All in all, I enjoyed the interplay between the two girls and the mystery was twisty enough to keep my interested.

A really fun YA detective story, which kept me guessing about "whodunnit" until the very end! The improbably allyship--and then friendship--of the two strong female MCs was very welcome, too. I also appreciated the issues of class that came into play in the plot. A keeper to recommend in my Young Adult Literature course!