I was immediately drawn to this book based on the description and cover art however it was a huge swing and a miss for me. Firstly, the author uses an unnecessary amount of metaphors for the most mundane things such as describing the floor tiles as looking like squares of brownies. This went on endlessly on every page which completely distracted me from the story. Secondly, I expected the book to be more of a murder mystery but the actually murder didn’t take place until the last 20% or so of the book. All in all I found the book difficult to get through and the ending to be very odd. Thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an advance copy of this book.

I loved this book so much! I really didn’t know what it was about when I started reading it, but I quickly was obsessed! The characters are well developed, and I couldn’t help but love them all!

I DNFed this book, I think the book was well written, just not my cup of tea. I think the long descriptions and lack of excitement for the majority of the book did a disservice to the characters that I think were well developed.

Books set at boarding schools are my catnip (The Secret History, Harry Potter, The Ninth House) and I jumped at the chance to read this one. It's dark and twisty, with a heavy focus on mental illness - the main character is revealed to have bipolar disorder and a significant part of the novel is her inner monologue contending with it. Definitely a slow burn, largely because of the above-mentioned inner monologue and LOTS of description - my inner editor wanted to trim it by about a third. Overall: good but not great. Solidly empathetic, almost to a fault...murder is ok when someone REALLY REALLY deserves it, right? RIGHT?

TW also for bullying, statutory rape & lots of eating disorder content.

Thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Rounded up from 2.5 stars.

My feelings toward "The St. Ambrose School for Girls" are quite the rollercoaster. I started off entertained, then became frustrated by how overwritten much of the book is—the first half in particular would have become much more potent if it had been whittled by a third, or even a half. I also wasn't convinced by the depiction of narrator Sarah's bipolar disorder, or as it seems to be, ultra-rapid cycling bipolar disorder. Around the halfway point, though, there's a set piece between the Sarah and her mother that is lovely, definitely the zenith of the book, and if things had ended there, I'd have given it four stars.

But then the writer appears to remember that she promised a murder, so we abruptly switch gears. The eventual victim is never in doubt, and an array of potential killers are set up in mechanical fashion. And then... it's apparently okay to kill people if they really, really deserve it? Um...

Thank you, NetGalley and Gallery Books, for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sarah Taylor has been accepted into a prestigious boarding school. She's also been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and suffers from hallucinations. How is she able to tell what is real and what has been conjured in her mind? This book takes you inside her mind as you and Sarah experience her day to day life dealing with mental illness, bullying, friendship, and school. Trying to determine what is reality and hallucinations until the very end.

As I am absolute sucker for books set at boarding schools (from Harry Potter to Prep and everything I between), I thought The St. Ambrose SchoolF or Girls would be right up my alley. It’s definitely in the more serious, dark vein (see: “Heathers meets The Secret History” tagline) but it has enough moments of light through the tunnel to not make it feel like a slog.

Content warnings are necessary, though. The big ones for me—not an exhaustive list—were: eating disorders (bulimia), bullying (plot essential), suicidal ideation (ditto), suicide attempts/self-harm (offscreen), mental illness (bipolar), and statutory rape/grooming (offscreen/implied). All are either essential to the story or provide essential background with the exception of one section where one character gives Sarah a very explicit “newbie tip” on how to throw up—this did cross a line for me and should be toned down to be less triggering. The Acknowledgements refer to research and lived experience input on the mental health issue, which definitely comes across in Sarah’s experience with bipolar.

I feel like “murder at a boarding school” books are on their way to becoming a sub genre of YA and, while I’m not thrilled with the trend, this book was a decent example of the trend. The murder itself was pretty predictable, though there were some unreliable narrator plot twist moments to shake things up, there was nothing too shocking here. Where things really shone was the first half detailing Sarah’s early experiences at the school ad building the world and history—her relationship with Strots was particularly honest and well-drawn. The other characters, especially the Mean Girls (Greta, Stacia, and Francesca) seemed a little one-dimensional but overall accurate when we consider that the story is told entirely from Sarah’s POV.

Overall, I would put this in the “good but not great” pile—te story was absorbing and gave an empathetic perspective on bipolar experience, but the murder/statutory rape plot line at the end felt a bit rushed and predictable.

The St. Ambrose School for Girls follows Sarah, a 15-year-old girl with bipolar disorder who doesn't fit in. She arrives at St. Ambrose, an all girls boarding school, and quickly becomes the target of pranks. The clear perpetrator seems to be Greta, a popular girl who lives across the hall from Sarah. Although the official summary references that someone ends up dead, this doesn't happen until the last quarter of the book, making the plot very slow up until that point.

Unfortunately, this book was not what I had hoped it would be when I saw it described as a mix of "Heathers" and "The Secret History." I felt misled by the description when I was more than halfway through and no one had died yet (that sounds morbid, but it was what I was expecting!).

It was the slowest of slow burns. I found myself intrigued enough to keep reading, but had to skim extremely detailed descriptions and inner monologues that dragged on too long. I enjoyed the premise of this book, but I would have enjoyed it a lot more had an editor cut about a third of the pages.

So, I give it 2 stars because I was able to finish it and did care about the characters. However, due to the lengthy descriptions and slow plot, I would not recommend this book.

For those interested in reading, please check trigger warnings. A few include: mental illness, suicidal thoughts, death/murder, homophobia, adult/minor relationship, bullying. Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I started off enjoying this book, but it went downhill for me. It was so dark that it made me feel depressed. I also thought it was overwritten, like the author was trying too hard to make it literary. This was a DNF for me.

I really loved reading this! I was completely immersed in this world and found myself not even able to fall asleep until the last page. While this is YA and I'm not a YA reader or lover, I went into this apprehensively. No need! This was tense and dark - Ward took chances in the YA world I haven't seen in a long time.

Thank you a million times over to NetGalley and the publishers for this e-ARC. The St. Ambrose School for Girls was a great book, easy and thrilling to get through, read it in a couple of hours! Formal review will be available on GoodReads, socials & Amazon.

A beautiful fractured mind in the midst of the teenage hellscape that is St. Ambrose School for Girls. Sarah must manage what plays within her mind as well as those who plan to viciously toy with her in reality. A somber, and at times terrifying, look into the course of thought of a young girl with bipolar disorder. Ward has created a modern teenage classic with a gothic attitude, a compellingly sinister pecking order where money is no object, and and a family name can fix everything. And the rules? Well, those can be more than broken. If you have the right last name.
~Tanja

A new student arrives at an exclusive boarding school and soon secrets, lies, and a dead body happen. Sarah Taylor has just arrived at the exclusive St. Ambrose School. She’s not like other girls, she’s quiet, invisible, and has a lot of baggage. She wears all black and has a hidden bottle of lithium hidden in her desk. She becomes the instant target for the queen bee Greta Stanhope but Sarah thankfully has an ally in her roommate Ellen “Strots” Strotsberry who takes no bullshit. Then there is the Hot Residential Advisor, Nick Hollis, who despite being older, married, and off limits... has a lot of secrets of his own. Sarah soon finds herself discovering the secrets of her fellow students and her R.A. but can she keep her recent bipolar diagnosis under wraps while also dealing with Greta’s increasingly cruel pranks. Sarah is determined to not let Greta break her...but as scandal is revealed and a dead body appears, secrets will come undone and the true nature of these girls will reveal themselves. This was giving me a bit of Heathers vibes but also not. The story felt like it definitely dragged a lot and the story felt kind of eh most of the time. The drama and secrets were eh and honestly I just felt lukewarm about the entire book. The final twist and reveal was okay but overall, I just didn’t really care that much about the characters and the story. Overall, it sort of gave a dark academia/mystery vibe but it honestly just didn’t live up to the expectations that I had.

*Thanks Netgalley and Gallery Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This is a story about a young girl named Sarah that finds herself at a prestigious private school not by her choosing. The characters in this book are very well rounded and the author pulls you into the story. Overall I thought this was a good book.

The St. Ambrose School for Girls is a winner. The first person perspective of an obviously brilliant narrator immediately engages readers as we follow Sarah's navigation through the unfamiliar territory of an elite boarding school. Although the supporting characters are somewhat stereotypical (the affluent mean girl, the athlete, the attractive older man, the eccentric teacher), the twists and turns through Sarah's mind, coupled with the intrigue of a murder on campus, provide for a fast and exciting read.

I enjoy dark academia mysteries so had to read this. It is a slow burn, but worth the read if you enjoy young adult psychological suspense. It includes relevant issues such as mental illness, bullying, and suicide. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Sarah is new to the exclusive St. Ambrose boarding school. However, she immediately feels out of place. She does make friends and then scandal breaks out at the school, including a death.

I was missing the intrigue from the start. I think a more mysterious opening prologue or something like that would’ve drawn me in more.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Told from the perspective of Sarah, a young girl with bipolar disorder, this story resonates the thoughts she experiences daily. She is an outcast, dresses differently, but very intelligent in her thought process. It is amazing how the reader is “in her head” and wonders what really happened. The dynamics of all of the many personalities comes through in the dynamics of an all girl school with “mean girl” attitudes. The characters descriptions were such that I had a mental picture of each teacher and student. Very well written

A thrilling book that keeps you turning the pages until the shocking ending. Full of twists and turns and shocks. Brilliant!’ I rate this book four out of five stars.

I really wanted to like this book. But, alas, it tries too hard to be Heathers and never makes it. The writing is too overwrought and the plot development far too slow.
I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.