Pretty Dead Queens was an excellent thriller novel. I’ve never read a book like this and I absolutely enjoyed the mystery and thriller aspects of the novel. Cecelia’s journey and the shocking parts of the novel kept me invested. Thanks for the review copy!

Great book and enjoyed the characters . loved the slight romance and the how well the group worked together. Overall a great book . I would read this author again.

I *liked* Donne's first two books but the protagonist in this one was just too wretched for me. I know teenagers do tend to act foolishly but generally they have real reasons and aren't completely thoughtless. Or at least, the ones we like to read about are. I tried so hard but the choices the main character kept making just completely turned me off of this story.

Love the cover but the book is just ok. I was getting some serious vintage Fearstreet vibes from this cover so I really excited to try it out. I started off really liking the story and the seaside setting with our relatable main character Cecilia but in the end there were some issues. I figured out the killer<spoiler>s,(whenever there are two love interests one is always suspect and Ben had a big motive, plus the grandma was super shady)</spoiler>, like in the first couple chapters. Another big problem for me was Cecilia just gets away with everything and no one ever gets mad at her! Every time she does something stupid for the "investigation" her friends are like "oh well shucks, your my friend so its ok". I didn't get that. Also, <spoiler>as someone else mentioned in their review, there is no talk about trauma from finding out your boyfriend and grandmother are murders! Cecilia just goes on to date Gabe like nothing happened. That would fuck most people up a little I would think</spoiler>. Could have been a bit better but I appreciated it for what it was.

This book wasn't for me. I couldn't get into it and in fact ended up DNFing this book. Which was sad because I really really wanted to like it. I will try to go back and read this book in the future. Maybe trying to revisit it will make me be able to get into it more.

When Cecelia's mother dies, she is whisked away to live with her estranged grandmother, the bestselling murder mystery author Maura Weston. Cecelia has only just become interested in the real-life murder that inspired Maura's first novel when one of her new friends is murdered in almost the exact same way. With zealous Maura Weston fans lurking around and townie drama that goes back decades, Cecelia tries to figure out if it's the same murderer striking again, or one of her new friends who killed the would-be homecoming queen.

This has a large cast of characters, which has the potential for confusion but also makes it hard to narrow down the list of suspects. There are red herrings and "accidents" and lies upon lies, blackmail, and so much more. The mystery aspect was a lot of fun, especially with the hoopla around the original murder that spawned a book series and a movie, but that part did taper off a bit toward the end, which unfortunately meant less screen time for Maura, who is such a great character. I would have loved more interactions between her and Cecelia, or even Maura and her fans, rather than so much romance between Cecelia and Ben. But there were so many great dramatic scenes to distract me and keep me on the edge of my seat. A fun read for mystery buffs.

Moving to a new town to live with her estranged grandmother is not the senior year Cecelia Ellis had in mind. Her mother’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent passing have forced Cecelia on a new path, but her plan is to graduate and get out of town just like her mom did. In the meantime, she’s living at the top of creepy Victorian mansion with Maura Weston, her famous mystery writing grandmother. Though a small California coastal town, Seaview was put on the map years ago with Maura’s first book, a fictionalized version about the of death of one of Maura’s classmates. Later turned into a movie which was filmed in Seaview, the town now has its own unique traditions, like a murder tour given by two of Cecelia’s classmates and Weston-Con, a weekend retreat for fans of Maura’s thriller books. When one of Cecelia’s classmates is found dead under eerily similar circumstances to one of Maura’s books, Cecelia distracts herself from her grief by trying to solve the murder and determine if a copycat killer is loose in Seaview – or if someone was wrongly convicted years ago. As Cecelia learns about the history of Seaview and about animosity among her new friends, she’s convinced there’s more to the story. Will Cecelia make a connection before the police solve the case, or will she be the killer’s next victim?

THOUGHTS: Knowing all that Cecelia has overcome, readers will root for her to uncover the truth behind two crimes that are decades apart. Fans of fast-paced mystery/thrillers (like Donne’s The Ivies and Henry’s Two Truths and a Lie) will enjoy this whodunit.

4.75 rounding up to 5 for GoodReads. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. After reading and very much enjoying The Ivies by Alexa Donne, I knew I needed to get my hands on her new release. There are of course flaws with this book. Like any young adult thriller, not everything is going to make sense in the context of the real world. Teenagers don't solve crimes faster than the police. But for the sake of a compelling novel for teens, of course, they do. Cecelia is a relatable character to follow for younger readers and she felt like a seventeen-year-old while I was reading. It did not feel like an older person was trying to write from the mind of a child which often is the case when writing books with younger main characters in first person. This story has a ton of red herrings. So many that while reading I had no idea what the twist could possibly be. I did end up guessing it before the reveals at the end but they still felt authentic to the story and it didn't take away from my enjoyment. I had a major sense of tension and my heart was beating rapidly as the end of the novel came together. Alexa Donne's writing has improved since her last novel and I think these young adult thrillers are definitely something she is fantastic at writing. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good young-adult thriller. It seems perfect for younger high-school students looking to jump into the genre of thriller.

This is the perfect YA thriller, just in time for spooky season! Perfect for fans of Pretty Little Liars! Having lost her mother, MC Cecelia Ellis arrives at her grandmother’s Maura’s mansion. She remembers visiting the California coastal town, but along the way her mother had a falling out with Maura. Cecelia is navigating a new school, a sweet romance, and finds a group of friends each with parents of high society. Seaview High’s new homecoming Queen is murdered! There’s a copycat killer on the loose and Cecelia is determined to find out who & why! Thank you TBR and Beyond for a copy.

First off, I want to thank Alexa Donne and Crown Books for Young Readers (imprint Penguin Random House) for the ARC (e-book)! Although I feel it’s an amazing honor to be part of her streetteam, this doesn’t affect my opinion of the book.
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If the blurb of Pretty Dead Queen doesn’t convince you to pick up this book, maybe the gorgeous cover will! It immediately gave me some Insatiable (serie on Netflix) vibes, although it turned out the story is nothing like it. The story is set in a rather small town where most people (kinda) know each other – especially Moira, a renowned author of thrillers and grandmother of Cecelia (the main character). This immediately sets this cozy small town mood.

But just like small towns can be relaxed, yet seemingly slow at times, so does the pacing of the story. Which is either a love-it or hate-it case. Turns out, I’m more into fast-paced stories, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy the story. Donne does have a way to keep things interesting and make you want to read more with her fun and sometimes dark analogies and descriptions. Her writing style is sophisticated, to say the least. Made me doubt, more than a few times, how well my English is actually developed. I would not recommend it to readers who have a bit of trouble reading in English. It even made me wonder if the writing style works for YA specifically, but I’ll let native speakers/readers decide for that themselves. But! – on the bright side – I did learn a lot of new words, so… cheers for expanding my vocabulary!

Nonetheless, Donne’s vivid descriptions of the mansion, town and people did make the story come alive. Almost as if watching a movie, I could picture everything very well. I was also impressed with the way Donne ended chapters, giving us a little cliffhanger that just screamed to turn the page and dive into the next chapter.
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The main thing that bugged me, however, was Cecelia, the main character herself. I had lots of trouble connecting with her, felt pretty flat at times. The only thing I know is that her mother died, that she didn’t know her grandma who she has to live with now, and that she’s – obviously – still in grieving mode. She only read one book her grandma wrote before she came there, doesn’t look particularly interested in reading – or anything else, really. Also doesn’t seem to have hobbies or friends. The only thing that drives her (more like, severely obsessed), is solving the new murder. Quite a shame, because characters are what drive a story, and because of it, I had trouble enjoying the story to the fullest.

*** small spoiler ahead ***

I also hated the cliché’s and overly used tropes in fiction, like guessing someone’s password (laptop) within a few times and breaks of a car that got cut. Everytime I read or watch a scene like that, I can’t help but roll my eyes. It really feels like a cheap, overdone device in stories (thrillers in particular).
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Reading mystery thrillers, I always feel like kind of a detective. I pay close attention to signs and small hints, and in the end, my hunch about who the killer was, was mostly right. Yet, Donne managed to surprise me, and me – being the great detective I think I am – guessing right, doesn’t mean that it was predictable. Not at all. So you’re definitely in for a fun surprise.

Overall it was a fun read and if you like cozy town thrillers with a surprising plot twist (!) in the climax, definitely pick up this book.

I really enjoyed “Pretty Dead Queens.” It was a good,fun, and solid mystery. It took place in a high school where now multiple queen bees have ended up murdered and Cecilia can’t just leave these mysteries alone. This book kept my interest and was a fun ride throughout. I did not guess the killer at the end and was pleasantly surprised by the unforeseeable nature of it. 4 stars ⭐️. Give me more Alexa Donne if all her books are like this one!

Absolutely yes! I really enjoyed reading this novel. The characters were fun, it held my interest, and provided an escape from reality. I would definitely recommend!

I enjoyed this book. A solid YA thriller that was a little slow to start for me. Mostly because I was like is this a thriller or about grief? And then the murder happened and things started to happen! The ending was great! I definitely recommend this book!

This was a great YA thriller, has lots of twists and turns to keep you intrigued. Was a little predictable in some parts, but still a great read.

A little slow at the beginning but it picked up once the murder happened. It was quiet in its drama and I wish it was a little more dramatic. I really liked the twist but I wish we spent more time on it. It felt like it ended too quickly.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!

This was like a thriller version of Mean Girls! I had a few suspects but I was a little surprised how it all played out. I really enjoy a mystery in a high school setting so this was an entertaining one for me.

🥰really liked
🤟high school setting, murdered homecoming queens, Nancy Drew vibes
📚Karen McManus

I’ve been struggling to write my review for Pretty Dead Queens by Alexa Donne as, weeks after I’ve finished the book, I still struggle to pin down exactly why I ultimately did not like this book. In theory, it should be one of my favorite reads this year. There are so many (like, seriously, SO MANY which I’ll get into) parallels between this book and the CW’s Nancy Drew, which is one of my favorite shows. It has fun tropes I enjoy like the new girl blowing in and fucking shit up, messy friend groups, and spooks that you cannot be quite sure are paranormal or thriller until the big reveal. Despite this, I did not like this book.

Perhaps it’s because I found this book so similar to the CW’s Nancy Drew that I couldn’t help but judge it a little harsher. Like Nancy, Cecelia Ellis has just lost her mother to cancer, who she shared an incredibly close relationship with. They both live in a small coastal town that just gives you mysterious fog as a side character energy (Seaview, California for Cecelia, Horseshoe Bay, Maine for Nancy). Both have numerous love interests, including a main boyfriend and the boy they can’t quite kick to the side. Both have a friend group made up of varying identities. Oh- and both are going to be solve two murders split across several decades that are totally but not really connected. Where I found issue with the similarities is that what makes Nancy Drew a successful characterization and Cecelia not is that Nancy is realistic. She makes a lot of mistakes, some of which she can own up to and some that haunt her. Cecelia Ellis, however, is too perfectly imperfect. She’s well connected and hot enough to automatically be accepted into the popular crowd, she’s high functioning despite her grief (which we don’t really see her processing beyond two out of place scenes), moves on from traumatic events with little to no scarring (physical and emotional), and lastly, just feels so cliche I couldn’t see anything original to her.

Then there’s the twist to the book which I predicted early on. Unlike other books that successfully bait-and-switch your expectations, making you question the original guess, Pretty Dead Queens is easy to figure out if you’ve so much as read one similar thriller before. I was truly hoping somehow Alexa Donne would surprise me but not disappointed when she did not.

At the end of the day, all I can really tell other readers is that if you liked her other thriller, The Ivies, then you’ll like Pretty Dead Queens. If, like me, you didn’t care for the first book but wanted to give her another chance, don’t bother. The two are similar in terms of plot structure and characterization.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️.5/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 0.25/🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶 (single vague, PG-13 sex scene)

**I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Well, I am a huuuge lover of Murder, She Wrote and just about any mystery set in a seaside town, so of course I loved Pretty Dead Queens, which is inspired by the Lansbury show but takes place in coastal CA. The town is almost as much a character as new girl Cecilia or her mystery writer grandma, Maura.

If you like YA thrillers, books with two parallel murders in different time periods, and surprising twists, this one is for you. You'll grow to love every character -- except when you suspect them of murder.

I really enjoyed my time reading this one. I’ve been a long time reader and watcher of all things mystery/thriller, and I found this one to be very well done.

The story itself was well plotted and the finale was extremely satisfying.