This book will stay with me for quite some time. It has Summers' usual gritty style and does not hold back punches. It's hard to read. It has a million trigger warnings and some really really unlikeable characters. I thought most of it, sadly, was believable. The only thing that really bothered me was how determined the main character was to put being beautiful and wanted over everything else, including her own safety. At some point, I just couldn't believe the choices she was making.

with gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

At its core this book is about how hard it is to be a young girl. Living under the constant weight of unrealistic and harmful expectations and in a world where enough hasn’t been done to keep them safe.

Courtney Summers brilliantly creates a captivating, thought provoking, thrilling and disturbing story that’s both hard to read but feels too important and relevant to put down.

I think one of two things will happen when people read this: 1) they’ll appreciate the nuance and skill it takes to tell a story like this without glorifying or minimizing how true to life these issues are; or 2) they’ll misunderstand, ignore or disagree with those things and (in a figurative sense) perpetuate the systems and behaviors that allow predatory behaviors to flourish.

I loved this book — it’s going to stick with me for a long time.

Thank you so much to Wednesday Books for approving my arc request.

Confession: I’ve never read a Courtney Summers book that I didn’t fan girl over. When I caught my first glance of I’m The Girl, I knew I had to have her…I mean it. After reading it, I have to say that my record with Courtney Summers remains unchallenged.
Aspera! It’s a lure, a promise, a curse. Aspera is a private retreat for the ultra-wealthy who are in search of privacy and a discreet place they can indulge in their most secret pursuits. For the locals though, Aspera is an opportunity to earn a good wage—especially for those elite chosen to be Aspera girls.
Georgia is drawn to Aspera despite her mother’s bad experience as a housekeeper there. One day, feeling the pull of Aspera, Georgia finds herself walking through a field toward the resort and comes across the body of thirteen-year-old Ashley James. The young girl was brutally raped and killed. Before Georgia can do anything, she’s hit by a car—was it the murderer?—and is left with injuries and large gaps in her memory. Soon she finds herself under the scrutiny of Ashley James’s sister and father (the local law enforcement) who both want answers about what she saw and who may have been responsible for the murder.
George also finds herself taken under the wing of Chloe and Matthew Hayes—the owners of Aspera. With a new job at Aspera, and new relationships that she never imagined, Georgia finds it harder to determine is a friend and who is a threat.
Courtney Summers has done it again. I’m The Girl is one of those dark, sad, soul-wrenching stories that you can’t put down. The pace is fast, and the danger palpable on every page. You’ll be suspicions of every character until the final, very satisfying, reveal.
I’m The Girl is scheduled to be released September 13, 2022.

*I received an ARC of I’m The Girl from Netgalley and Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review*

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm the Girl was so freaking good. Seriously, I couldn't put it down once. From the very first page, I was completely hooked and wanted to know more about Aspera. Then I instantly regretted asking for that because I can't unsee what I've read now.

In this, you will meet Georgia. Now she wants to be a privileged Asperan girl due to her mother's dying wish. She wants to feel things like love, adoration, and everything in between. So, it's a bit strange how she ends up getting into Aspera. Mostly because of what she finds before she wakes up in a strange new place.

Now there's tons of secrets lurking throughout Aspera. Seriously, my mind was blown no matter the size of the secret. So many to keep track of and so many to cringe at. But first, we have a murder to solve. Which, yes, we eventually get down to what happened but so many things have to happen first.

The romance, the mystery, and cringe-worthy moments made this a page turner. I was honestly suspicious of the Hayeses after we first met them. I hated how they used and abused Georgia. So, I was really happy when Nora came into the picture because it felt like Georgia was finally going to figure out what true love is. Or just love in general because she's not getting that in Aspera.

In the end, the truth comes out and I was in complete shock. I'm so happy we finally got the big reveals towards the end of the book. I'm also really happy that Georgia is away from that place and those horrible people. So happy that I got the chance to jump into this and can't wait for Courtney's next mystery thriller to fall into my lap.

aaaaaaaa

Per usj I love Courtney Summers's really sharp look at misogyny and rape culture and it was a new kind of wrenching to have a character here who hadn't yet learned about all the unfortunate ways the world works. Reading this had a horror movie kind of vibe where you're sitting there like "nooo don't go in there!!!" and then she totally goes in there!!! aaaa

Courtney Summers never fails to deliver an engaging story, with characters that will break your heart and have you breathless in worry for them. A dark story of the ways in which men view and use underage girls, this book was fast paced and utterly devastating as it uncovered the myriad of ways young girls are raised to want to become a man’s vision.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the eARC, these opinions are my own. I really enjoyed this book! I love a good mystery with lots of intrigue and this book had plenty! I enjoyed that it was fast paced, full of twists and turns, and kept me guessing! I enjoyed Georgia very much! Loved the ending! I couldn’t put it down and highly recommend it to mystery readers!

4/5 stars

Courtney Summers does it again in artfully creating a gripping and discomforting thriller novel that had me reeling while reading. It’s a rollercoaster of a ride from the beginning to the end.

I’m The Girl takes the cake in how uneasy of a novel it was compared to Summers' other novels. The entire novel had an incredibly eerie atmosphere that had me suspicious of almost everyone, other than George’ brother Tyler and her new friend Nora. Majority of these other characters were older and rich white men, powerful enough to make their problems disappear, so you can understand my suspicion.

Corruption and power is a theme the novel deeply delves into. Georgia knows what it’s like to have little in life - with her mother gone, her older brother has to provide for her and spends most of his life working - and wants so much more. She wants to be appreciated, and the place she thinks she can achieve that goal is working at Aspera - unfortunately for her, Aspera is not what it seems, and has links to the murder of Ashley James.

There were so many clues to Ashley's murder, and I felt so hopeless reading on as Georgia would sometimes overlook them as she focused on her own dream of making it. It was understandable, she was a teenage girl who wanted to make a life for herself, and made me so scared for her wellbeing, as well as adding to the tension in the novel.

It was overall a wonderful thriller novel, and I can't wait to read more of Summers' works.

This is my first book from Courtney Summers, her other books are of course on my tbr but Netgalley’s always take priority these days. And ohhhh my god, this was incredible! This completely had me hooked, it was such a gripping and honestly addicting read. I almost read it in one sitting I just couldn’t put it down. I never thought I was a fan of thrillers, but maybe because I couldn’t find the right ones, because this one is TOP TIER WORTHY!!

This mystery is vague and strangely paced with a rushed ending. Georgia has always wanted to be an Aspera girl, one of the elite hostesses that serves at the local resort for the very very wealthy. After Georgia stumbles upon the body of a local murdered girl, a series of events unfolds that gets her through the gates. It's obvious to the reader but not Georgia that this beatiful place covers something dark...but the exact details of the darkness never really get exposed and there is no satisfying ending for anyone.

I was so excited to read I’m the girl and I really wished it would have worked out for me. I am not entirely sure if it was the formatting of the book or what but I was confused for a good portion of what I read. Unfortunately, I DNFd it at like 15%

4/5 Stars!

This review is Spoiler Free.

This thriller was powerful, gut-wrenchingly hard to read, and so brilliantly executed. I'm The Girl was my first book by Courtney Summers, and I see what all the hype is about now! Excited to dive into her backlist.

When Georgia finds the dead body of a 13 year old girl and is hit by a car, everything changes.
Georgia's mother had always cautioned her about the Aspera club, telling her she wasn't good enough to be an Apera Girl there. But Georgia wants to prove herself, against the wishes of her brother, and finds herself embroiled in the culture of the resort. Nora James, the sister of Ashley, the murdered girl, seeks Georgia out, and together they try to figure out what could have happened.

This book was uncomfortable and hard to read. It was written so well, and the messages are extremely important. However readers should be cautioned that this book contains graphic descriptions of sexual assault. I honestly forgot several times that this book is categorized as young adult because the content was so graphic, so please use discretion in reading. The contents, while gratuitous, are definitely necessary to the story and the overall message examined by the book.

I absolutely recommend I'm The Girl, and look forward to reading more by Courtney Summers!

*I received an ARC from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and views in this review are my own.

I have devoured and loved every single book Courtney Summers has written. She absolutely does not disappoint. Her writing is raw and bleak she beautiful and her ability to write about hard women/girls who are "bitches" or "hard to love" but you root for and DO love, because that is the point... Is bar none. She is THE "sexual assault -victim- taking the power back but also not always fully winning in doing so" advocate and I love her for it. I'm the girl floored me just as much as all her other books have. I will always always read and recommend her books. Always amazing, always heartrending.

I really enjoyed this book! It hooked me from the very first chapter, and kept me hooked the entire time!

I was expecting the murder, and after that, nothing really went how I expected it to. Everything was unexpected, at. least for me, and some was good, some bad. There was a lot going on in the book, as in a lot of storylines, and sometimes it was a bit confusing, but, overall, I like the amount of detail put into the story. My other issue is with the ending, It cleared things up for me in the way that I know how the murder happened but also left me with a lot of questions regarding the why. Also, I was not expecting those spicy scenes in this book, and they felt out of place, considering the book was about a murder.

I swear with each Courtney Summers book I read, 10 years get added into my lifespan.

Now, if you haven't read a book by this author before, you need to know that they're not necessarily the "happy go lucky, happily ever after" type. But for that exact same reasons these books stand out amongst the endless releases that we're constantly hearing about. Courtney Summers has the ability to weave the darkness of reality into a fictional world in such a seamless way. We know the setting is fake, we know the characters are fake BUT the things they go through are so real. I'm not gonna lie, at times I wanted to scream at Georgia. I wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her and tell her to look around, to realize what was happening. But here's the thing, either we know someone like Georgia or we've been Georgia. We've been taken advantage of by powerful people who manipulated us, made us believe that the world could only be seen through rose colored glasses. So while I wanted to shake her so she'd wake up, I also understood her. And that complexity in her characters is what sets Courtney Summers apart from other writers.

I read in her newsletter that this book was inspired by Marilyn Monroe and the victims of people like Harvey Weinstein. Is it really a woman's fault for having certain features that are considered desirable? Is it really so bad that a woman wants to feel beautiful? And here's the thing, it's even more complex during adolescence. So I did shed a tear (or several) for Georgia. Because you've got characters with good intentions who end up making marginalized comments, and you've got people with bad intentions whose entire job is to make her feel good about herself. Georgia is a teenager who got sucked into a vicious world with promises of grandiose and a career and beauty. It wasn't her fault, it's never the victims fault. This review almost turned into an essay because I feel very passionately about this book but damn, I could write pages and pages about this. For now, I just highly recommend reading this book.

I really enjoyed this book - I found it compulsively readable although there weren't a ton of answers to be found. Much like Sadie, everything is a little bit hazy and out of reach. I really enjoy Courtney Summers' work though!

Courtney Summers knows how to hook readers and keep them turning pages! I'm the Girl is absolutely impossible to put down. This suspenseful story about a girl in trouble really is so realistic that it hurts. Like many small towns the one in this book is ran by powerful people who will do anything to keep their control no matter who they hurt. It was painful to read about the girls who are in the path of Aspera and see how badly they need help. These characters are brave, honest, and raw. This book skirts the line between YA and Adult and readers of Sadie will love it.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I always enjoy reading Courtney Summers’ books, but idk, I never feel like I fully GET them. It always feels like the author expects me to walk away with a big whoa idea in my head, and maybe I’m just not smart enough to get it. I expected a bigger reveal with Aspera. It was fine. I just wanted to like it more than I did. 3.5 stars.

I'm the Girl is my first Courtney Summers book. I've heard good things about this author, I like YA mysteries, and the synopsis sounded good, so I requested this. I had a few issues with this book. I'm 18, and this book was really hard for me to read. I don't know that it should be a young adult book. There's graphic sexual assault and rape in this book, and there's no trigger warnings. There needs to be. Secondly, I knew two years ago at sixteen about the model scam, I think most teenagers know about it. I could understand the main character wanting to belong, wanting to be powerful, to be seen like that, but she did come off a little stupid. I did like the sapphic romance in this book, it was the highlight in it, and watching George's character grow, what she learns about her mom. I also really liked Nora and Tyler's characters. Overall, this book tackles very important issues and ends on a hopeful note, but needs a trigger warning for it.