Special thanks to Ruth Ware, Netgalley, and Simon & Schuster for Advanced Copy for honest review.

Ruth Ware does it again with a thriller set at the prestigious Oxford University - Pelham College. Hannah finds herself rooming with the well-to-do April Clarke-Cliveden. Hannah becomes fast friends with April and her friends from a former school. Quirky bunch, but they all get along. Even with their grueling schedule to keep up grades, they find the time to live up their college days. Lots of parties and pranks which are all fun and games until one evening, Hannah finds April dead.

10 years later, John Neville dies in prison fighting for his innocence. Hannah now questions if she had a hand in incarcerating the wrong person.

Love the boarding school genre. Love learning the history of Oxford. And love the twists! 5 Stars, highly recommend.

I love Ruth Ware and her new book, the It Girl, did not disappoint! Dark Academia, Oxford, and murder, what more could you want from a mystery?

I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the reveal (no spoilers!) was satisfying. A refreshing outcome that didn't vilify the victim.

This is definitely a book I will recommend and gift to friends and family.

After all that praise, I do have a small note of abrasion. And yes, abrasion is the right word because over time it became like sandpaper across my skin any time I reached the "after" chapters. The main focus of the "after" chapters was Hannah's pregnancy (not a spoiler, we know Hannah is pregnant from the beginning). And while its great Hannah was expecting and it was interesting to see her deal with it on a daily basis, at some point it becomes too much. It wasn't a driving plot point and it didn't have anything to do with the outcome of the mystery, so why was so much time/page space/reading energy spent on this? Its like baby Freya in The Lying Game, only not as bad. Every other sentence was about Freya in The Lying Game and she had no outcome to the story so why did she take up so much real estate? Same goes for Hannah's pregnancy. I think we could have had half as much and it would have aided in our sympathy/empathy toward Hannah and her experiences without beating us over the head with the fact, in case you forgot, that she was pregnant. If it weren't for this aspect, I would have rated the book higher.

Overall, great read though and I am very glad to have read it.

Hannah, a quiet girl goes off to college where she meets popular and lovable April. When April is murdered Hannah testifies and helps put the man behind bars. After years have passed, Hannah is now married and pregnant. When word comes that the man has died in jail, Hannah starts questioning if she convicted the wrong man.

Ware.. what happened?! I was so excited for this book as Ware is one of my favorite authors, but this is a dud. Ware has always been a hit or miss author, and her writing style is what keeps everyone coming back. Hannah was not likable, was dull, and all around boring. Her narrative was monotone throughout the whole book. Side characters were more interesting than her. I did like how the story jumped from before to after in the timeline. Ware has a way of writing, that while the narrative is boring, you’re still questioning every character and situation, which helps you continue to read.

Thank you to Net Galley for the advance reader copy of this new thriller by Ruth Ware. As always this book brings surprises throughout and I love the back and forth between times. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5

This may be my favorite Ruth Ware book I’ve read. What if you were told the person you sent to prison for the murder of your popular best friend ten years ago is possibly innocent? What would you do to find out the truth? Hannah is about to find out. The dual timelines kept me reading to see what happened next and made the book flow really well. It kept me guessing the whole time. While at one point I did guess who did it, I changed my mind about 5 times before I got to the end.

Good academic-setting mystery, told in flashbacks to a year at Oxford when captivating April Clarke-Cliveden is found dead in her dorm room. What REALLY happened that night? Did the wrong man spend the rest of his entire life in prison? It kept me reading and guessing right up to the end, the tension was good, just not the most memorable of Ware’s writing. It didn’t have the atmosphere of her others and most of the supporting characters were flat.

This book was fun to read. The pacing was a bit slow but very atmospheric and I didn't mind wading into the story. My only disappointment was how spineless and boring Hannah- the character was. It was hard to root for her and I mostly felt tired of the character. Overall, fun read even though I could tell who the murderer was in the early stages of the book as Hannah and November went through their process of elimination. Why did I still like it? Because of the writing, the past/present storyline, and the weird characters.

This book is a true who-done-it mystery. April and Hannah are roommates and best friends in a dorm in Oxford. The group they hang out with are Will, April's boyfriend, Ryan, Emily and Hugh. They call get on well until one evening April is found dead in her room. A porter from the school is charged and sent to prison, where he later dies, always claiming his innocence.
Years later Hannah is married to Will and expecting their first child. When they hear of the porter's death, the group start to question whether he really was as innocent as he claimed and then they start to question each other.
I love this author's books and this one certainly didn't disappoint.
I thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The It Girl by Ruth Ware takes into the lives of a close knit group of friends at Oxford during their first year of college and then a decade later. Hannah and April become fast friends due to sharing a common room between their bedrooms. April comes from money and knows some of the guys who had gone to a boarding school near hers. Hannah went to public schools and worked her butt off to get to Oxford. In other words, two girls who probably would not have become friends if they hadn't lived together. The group spends almost all their time together until he end of 2nd semester when April is killed.

Ten years later, when Hannah is expecting her first child with Will, who just happened to be dating April when she died, Hannah is stunned by the death of the man convicted of April's murder. Everyone tells her she should be relieved that he died in prison and that it's now really over, but a reporter visits her with what he claims is proof that the wrong man was convicted.

Hannah starts her own investigation and learns that she didn't really know her friends all that well; they all ghad secrets. And, one of them may have been a murderer.

The suspense and the way the story came together were well orchestrated, I just had a hard time connecting with Hannah. She does a lot to put her own life and the life of her unborn child in jeopardy and I didn't completely understand her motivation. Maybe it's just because I'm a wimp! I have always enjoyed a Ruth Ware mystery and The It Girl did not disappoint.

Ruth Ware's novel The It Girl is edgy and brilliant. Although it is a deeply disturbing murder mystery, it is the ripple effects after the murder that keeps the reader turning pages. With multiple layers of guilt and anxiety, Ruth Ware plays on her fans fear of the unknown. One gets a false sense of having figured out the plot when in reality you aren't even close.

Synopsis:
After meeting at Oxford College, Hannah and April quickly became best friends. The two girls come from different backgrounds, but enjoy socializing with their friends. The shocking murder of April in their dorm leaves Hannah traumatized and unable to complete college. Years later Hannah struggles to cope when she finds out that her testimony may have put the wrong person in prison. Hannah is determined to find the truth. Who killed April?

The It Girl is emotional and gripping. Ruth Ware brings intense realism and magic to the book. As a respected master of words, Ware's writing visually transports you into the story. This is one of the most intriguing psychological thrillers I've read this year.

The It Girl is available on July 12th. Don't miss this 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ novel!

Thank you, NetGalley and Gallery Books, for allowing me to review this mind-bending book. I love every page of it!

Ruth Ware is a master writer and this book is no exception. With brilliant storylines and compelling characters, this story drew me in from the first page. The group of students feels so relatable and you’ll be questioning “who dunnit” at every turn. I loved this book!

Ruth Ware is always a win, and this book was no exception. I felt it was a tad long, but she came through with excellent character development for that reason. I did feel there were some unfinished plot gaps I would have like to have filled in, but they were not critical to the story.

If this had been 150 pages shorter, I probably would have given it 4 stars. But ugh, it took way too long to get into the story. I found myself skimming in multiple parts waiting for things to finally pick up.

There’s some good twists and turns and it’s a fun premise for a thriller, but just way too long.

The It Girl by Ruth Ware

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received this ebook copy through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion about this book.

Though this wasn’t the spooky type of story that I love of Ruth Ware’s, it still had a mystery, and a good one at that!

This story follows Hannah back and forth between a pivotal time in her life: the death of her best friend. Switching between her and her group of friends’ time before the death and a decade after her death. The story of her friend’s death begins to fall apart as a journalist brings new evidence that leads Hannah to wonder if the man who died in prison for the death of her friend was truly innocent as he claimed.

This story had a few twists that kept me guessing at whodunit, and every time I thought I had it figured out, something else would come up that changed my mind. I really enjoyed this book and it deserves the 5 stars!

"The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the "claustrophobic spine-tingler" (People) One by One returns with an unputdownable mystery following a woman on the search for answers a decade after her friend’s murder.

April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford.

Vivacious, bright, occasionally vicious, and the ultimate It girl, she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit. Together, they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends - Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily - during their first term. By the end of the year, April was dead.

Now, a decade later, Hannah and Will are expecting their first child, and the man convicted of killing April, former Oxford porter John Neville, has died in prison. Relieved to have finally put the past behind her, Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent. As Hannah reconnects with old friends and delves deeper into the mystery of April's death, she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide…including a murder.

"The Agatha Christie of our generation" (David Baldacci, #1 New York Times bestselling author) proves once again that she is "as ingenious and indefatigable as the Queen of Crime" (The Washington Post) with this propulsive murder mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat."

The IT beach read of the summer is here!

I love Ruth Ware’s books and this one was no exception. It totally had me guessing until the very end. This story was told from the point of view of present day and the past. Because of that, it made it impossible to put down.

My most anticipated release of the year.. and it was a slow burn. A story about the death of the IT Girl. the one everyone wants to be, everyone wants to be with, and somehow amazingly is amazing at everything. Years later, Hannah is still living with the grief for the loss of her roomate. Finding her dead and the helping to put the killer behind the bars, Hannah keeps reliving the past. Especially when the journalists keep haunding her for interviews, etc. Now, the killer dies in prison, still professing he is innocent. Hannah's doubts about that night keep nagging her. She decides to question all the friends involved to see if she does remember the things the same as everyone else.

Let me say, this is a total character study. We're very much in Hannah's head, seeing and reliving her experience with her roommate April. Seeing the privelege that April lives with, the ease she charms everyone, the men that keep going after her.. Hannah feels like she is in the shadows of her friend. And then going on this amateur sleuth adventure to figure out if the killer is the one she pointed her finger at. It was slow, too slow for me. And the fact that I guessed who the culprit is right off the bat, this made just an OK read for me. I didnt feel the tension or the atmosphere that I loved in the author's previous books.

What I did like was the setting, and I wish I could go visit the campus and surrounding areas. Or drink champagne with April. Cheers to her. Will still read the next book from this author, because the writing is impeccable.

Thank you to the publisher for my review copy.

I'm probably going to be going against the trend here, but I wasn't very impressed with my first novel by Ruth Ware. After watching the highly enthusiastic reactions to her previous book I had expected more of....everything. Since the hyped up blurb said the book was "unputdownable" it was disappointing to find I could easily put the book aside and read three others before picking this one up again. For me the problem was that I was almost 100% sure I had figured the plot out much too early and I lost interest. Sure enough, I was right. I admit that I didn't figure out the "why" but even that proved to be unexceptional.

There isn't anything new in this novel; I've read it all before and often crafted better. I became irritated with the alternating time chapters and especially the gimmick used to let me know when I was back in the present. Ten years isn't very long when it comes to exploring a "past" so something had to be done to differentiate between the time periods. This was pretty much just an average read for me, certainly nothing to get excited about or to make me go on a book buying spree.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books, Gallery/Scout Press for an e-galley of this novel.

This novel did not disappoint! I have always felt that Ruth Ware novels move fairly slowly and I lose interest at times, but this book held me the whole time. I really enjoyed Hannah's story and was hooked from the beginning. I did not see the plot twist coming at all! Highly recommend this novel.

The book felt about 100 pages too long, and there were definitely pages in the foundational chapters that could have been trimmed a bit, but OMG was it worth it for the killer (pun intended) ending! As always, Ware manages to keep you guessing and never really gives any solid clues about the whodunnit. I thought I knew the answer so many times, but even up to the epilogue, she was keeping secrets. I haven't read a bad Ruth Ware book, but this one was especially un-put-down-able!