Ruth Ware's talent for writing a compelling, riveting novel will have you convinced after reading The It Girl. The book centers around a mismatched clique of Oxford Uni students. With St Elmo's Fire vibes, the story comes in waves of past and present from finding their own identities to later adult responsibilities. Not everyone will graduate and someone will die.

Hannah and April become inseparable as roommates. Raised from different backgrounds, April is the "It" girl with her flamboyant, ritzy, plush lifestyle and is the opposite of Hannah's more reserved, practical behavior. Yet, their friendship with Emily, Will, Hugh and Ryan all meshed politely and socially....at first. As couples paired, trouble surfaced. Will and April appeared as the couple to strive to be like...until April leaves a pub one night alone and found dead in her dorm room.

The porter in their school, John Neville, considered to be socially awkward and sketchy was tried for her murder and sentenced to prison pleading for his innocence. When he died in prison ten years later, a young journalist sets out to find the truth as new evidence surfaces. When he reconnects with April's classmates, he finds Hannah married to Will. Hannah was the leading witness that sealed Neville's fate when she saw him leaving their dorm stairwell.

Memories are clouded by what Hannah believes she saw, but begins to question the other friends and the journalist. There is danger in finding the truth. They each have a different version of the real April and all are questionable in her death. This is hard to put down and frustrating when time was not on my side. The truth is right in front of you, but I couldn't figure it out. A definite twist that left me shocked and dumbfounded. I highly recommend for your TBR list as well as all of Ruth Ware's books.

Thanks NetGalley and Gallery Books for this title in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance for an early read!

Ruth Ware always delivers such blockbuster thrills. When I first heard about this I was sold based on the college friends vibe, academic friend fiction is my favorite.

Combine that with murder, twisted friendships, English major drama, and flashbacks galore? A fun read indeed.

I will say I think the before scenes are more fun, but I can see where she went with building the present time thickness of drama.

I have always loved Ruth Ware, and this book was no exception! Hannah Jones attends her dream school, Oxford, where she meets April. As roommates, her and April not only bond but become the best of friends. When Hannah comes home one night to find April dead, her world is turned upside down. This book follows Hannah ten years later as she comes to terms with what really happened that night and finds out if she sent an innocent mail to prison.

Thanks to @netgalley and @scoutpressbooks for this early copy of @ruthwarewriter’s upcoming novel, “The It Girl.”

I love me some Ruth Ware, and this was no exception. She produces utterly readable mysteries and thrillers that keep the suspense level high and the reader guessing. And this one is in my favorite setting: “dark academia.”

This book alternates back and forth being “before” and “after,” with the latter occurring in present day where our protagonist, Hannah, is pregnant with the child of her almost-college-sweetheart, Will’s, baby. The story surrounds the murder of Hannah’s college roommate, April, and a cast of suspicious characters who all may have a motive for murder. A college official, John Neville, was found guilty of the murder, but died in prison while waiting an appeal. Did he really do it?

I’m not going to lie, I read so many thrillers that I had a pretty good sense of part of the ending early on - but, of course, not all the details. And honestly, who cares? The adventure is in the reading. I couldn’t have imagined the way it would play out even if I had an inkling, and I enjoyed every suspenseful page. Ruth Ware is a gifted storyteller and her writing kept me fully engaged throughout.

From the first to the last page, this was a great novel and kept me on my toes. Definitely a must-read when it drops this July!

Another compelling mystery from Ruth Ware. The characters were interesting and I liked the plot line switching between two different time frames.

Ruth Ware is one of my favorite mystery writers. Her latest suspense tale, The It Girl, set at Oxford and in Edinburgh, was quite enjoyable to read. It kept me turning the pages and trying to gather clues like an amateur detective. The Death of Mrs. Westaway is a standout thriller, yet this campus novel of friendship, class, and privilege is another solid psychological crime novel.

This is my favorite mystery from this author. It takes place with a dual time line. Hannah and April are suitemates at Oxford. A murder occurs and on the present time, Hannah sepnds a lot of time second guessing g just what happened at Oxford. It kept me guessing and entertained throughout. A wonderful read!

Great mystery, Ruth Ware certainly earns the Agatha Christie comparisons. The red herrings were set up so expertly that I was thoroughly distracted from the real killer and enjoyed piecing it together with the protagonist.

A beautiful, irreverent, slightly cruel but fabulously wealthy girl is murdered at Oxford? This is so far up my alley I could hear my brain rats scrabbling for the pages as soon as I read the description. And it does not disappoint - hands down my favorite Ruth Ware yet. Particular highlights include a deeply convincing feint and a seamless possible impossibility. Impeccable.

Ruth Ware has done it again! The twists and turns in The It Gil kept me guessing until the end. I would think I had it figured out, but then another twist in the story would keep me thinking. Loved this high paced thrilled that had more to the story than most thrillers. Highly recommend!
Thank you to net galley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

A clever and twisty tale by the talented Ruth Ware that will keep you guessing.

April is the beautiful and popular IT girl at college, Surrounded by friends including roommate and best friend Hannah. When April is found dead in their dorm, Hannah is sure she knows who did and a man is tried and put in jail. Several years later, the convicted man dies and there are questions about his innocence. Hannah begins to wonder if she put an innocent man in jail, As Hannah begins to question their friends about what really happened, things don't add up.

The story is told in past and present and with several characters. It is hard to know just who did it as everyone seems to have had a motive and perhaps April was not everything she seemed. Good characters and pacing keep the reader engaged and guessing.

I enjoyed this book and while it isnt appropriate for my younger students, I would recommend it for older readers. I loved the historic, college setting and all that descriptive language of that setting. A real page turner!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-ARC of this new Ruth Ware thriller. In general, I liked the premise of this story, the negative for me was that it was a little longer than it needed to be, particularly in the beginning's "Before" chapters. All in all, it was still a quick and engaging read.

In true Ruth aware fashion, this page turner will keep you invested until the very end. It twists and it turns and you’re not quite sure where you’re going to end up but you know you want to be there. Characters that you believe in, storylines that you can see happening, all done with a twist like only Ruth Ware can do! If you loved her previous books, this one will keep you just as captivated…

Ruth Ware's books always satisfy--The It Girl is no exception. A group of people become friends when they all begin their studies at Pelham College. Their lives are changed forever when the sparkling and enigmatic April is murdered. Her roommate Hannah is devastated, not only by the murder of her best friend, but also by her part in the conviction of the man who committed it. When he dies in prison a decade later, Hannah begins to question her memories, and the group of friends. What secrets are each of them hiding? What dangers does Hannah face as she seeks to find the truth of that night?
The characters are richly developed so that the reader comes to know each one. Just as Hannah uncovers the layers of secrecy surrounding her friends, the reader also discovers reasons that each of them knows more than they are telling.
Compelling and riveting as only Ruth Ware's books can be. Ware fans will not be disappointed. Five stars!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read this pre-publication manuscript in exchange for my review.

Wow Ruth Ware!!! The It Girl is going to be the up and coming thriller summer book that everyone must have! It hooked me in from the beginning and could not stop. Thank you so much to NetGalley, Ruth Ware and Scout Press for this advanced copy!

Hannah meets her best friend/roommate April at Oxford. April is beautiful, outgoing and smart. Hannah is more reserved. Together they develop a close friends group- Will, Ryan, and Emily by the end of the first term. But by the end of the second term April is dead.

Ruth Ware has created a well crafted mystery centering around the death of Oxford student April Clarke- Cleveden. Her roommate Hannah who had discovered her April's body is certain that the culprit was a porter at the school who had stalker tendencies. In fact, she had seen John Neville in the hallway right before discovering April's body. Now, year's later, John Neville's death in prison has triggered a series of events that leads Hannah to wonder if John really was the killer. The deeper Hannah delves the more she realizes that not only had she possibly helped put an innocent man in prison, but perhaps one of her friends or even or husband is the real killer. One of the things I really enjoyed about the novel was how unlikeable the victim was. There were so many people who had reason to dislike April but who had enough reason to actually commit the murder? And of course... how was the murder actually committed? This book definitely kept me engaged and I definitely recommend it to anyone who likes a good who done it!!!!

Ruth Ware has done it again.

In the past, Hannah and April become best friends at Oxford as unlikely a pair as chalk and cheese. From there their circle expands to a group of inseparable friends until April's death. Now, grown and married and pregnant, Hannah begins to wonder if her testimony about that night put the wrong man in prison.

Told in a way that makes you want to devour the book, Ruth Ware has created another masterpiece of suspense.
I read this book in basically one sitting and was delighted by not only the twists, but by how much I like the main characters. I would totally recommend this book.

Thanks to NetGalley.com, the author and publisher for my advance copy!

I do love Ruth Ware’s books. Her tight plotting and psychological complexity always make for a ripping tale. This book in particular has fully-fleshed our relationship dynamics among six people that feels real and very much like I remember college (minus the murder, of course). She remains at the top of her game and I already can’t wait for the next one.

Ruth Ware is incapable of writing a bad book. As always, this is an automatic first purchase for adult fiction collections.