***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of THE LEGACIES by Jessica Goodman in exchange for my honest review.***

4.5 STARS

Six seniors from the prestigious Excelsior school are tapped to join THE LEGACIES. The best, brightest and most talented. Future leaders, judges, politicians, award winning artists. Many of their hotshot parents belong. Bernie, her best friend Isobel, their boyfriends and scholarship student Tori are among the new members. THE LEGACIES have secrets. Their parents have bigger ones.

Jessica Goodman is a writer whose books I preorder and eagerly anticipate because her stories live up to their blurbs. She creates interesting, unique characters set in plots unlike other mysteries and thrillers in YA lit. Goodman’s word building keeps me glued to her books, which I often read in one setting.

Told in the points of view of Bernie, Isobel, Tori and the police investigation, THE LEGACIES is unputdownable. Though a number of characters are horrid, Bernie and Tori gave me characters to embrace through their imperfections.

The beginning was a bit slow, but once the secrets started spilling I my heart was pounding. I can’t wait to see what Goodman writes next.

Pretty solid YA thriller, as always from this author. Definitely my favorite from Goodman so far. Recommended to both young and adult audiences.

Do you remember that movie from the 90's where a guy doesn't have money to tip his server so he promises her half of his lottery winnings if he hits it big? So, but, he wins and they go off on an epic adventure of, like, sharing their newfound wealth and falling for one another while the guy's wife starts buying everything she can think of? And, like, it's cute and everything, but the amount of money they won would have been gone in hours with the way they were spending so the whole movie just seems kinda ridiculous? Yeah, well, this book was like that.

A elite society, secrets, betrayal, and more. You can only get a membership at the Legacy Club in New York City if you are invited and nominated.... it gives you a lifetime access to power, wealth, connections and so much more. Every year new members are picked at the Legacy Ball and the winner receives money, not that they need it.... but this year’s ball ends with a dead body... time to figure out what happened. Students at Excelsior Prep are nominated as Legacies, their families pedigree assuring their membership since birth.... but these students: Bernie Kaplan, Isobel Rothcroft and Skyler Hawkins all have their own secrets that could destroy everything. Another nominee is the scholarship student Tori Tasso.... and she’s the surprise one, because no one from her “world” has been picked before and now she is dropped into a world of wealth and secrets. Each of these students has a secret, and each of them will be connected to one another and the dead body by the time the Legacy Ball is over... but who died and was it an accident or a murder? This was a fun read! I liked the mystery and I liked the cut from past and present. I really liked Bernie the most out of all the characters. Her main concern throughout the book is finding out where her mother disappeared and what happened to her, but her friends are all hiding secrets and everything she knew about her mother might be wrong. Overall, a really fun read if you like mysteries with an elite school/society setting!

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, Razorbill for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Joining the exclusive Legacy Club in New York City is nearly impossible, but those who make it gain unparalleled power and wealth. The club only inducts students in their senior year of high school, following a grueling week of events. Berine, Isobel, and Skyler are not surprised as they come from families with ties to the club, but they're shocked to learn that a scholarship student they don't know has also been nominated. As the week draws to a close with a lavish black tie ball, lives are about to change forever, and tragedy is looming.

This story is a thrilling ride, a cross between Gossip Girl and The Thousandth Floor. The glamorous and treacherous world it depicts is the perfect summer read, complete with glittering events where wealth is a game, and the elite keep their secrets close. The unexpected twists and juicy scandals that unfold are like little bombs that explode within the reader. The multiple points of view and the palpable tension that runs throughout the book, combined with the sense that time is running out, make it impossible to put down. I had no idea who the victim would be, or what motivated the killer, and was completely hooked until the very end. I only wish a few of the details were a little more fleshed out.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Scoring an invitation for membership to the exclusive Legacy Club in New York City is almost unheard of. But membership gives you a lifetime of power and wealth beyond your imagination. People can only be inducted going into their senior year of high school and only after a rigorous week of events. It's no surprise when Berine, Isobel, and Skyler are nominated. Their families have a history with the club and they've been a shoe-in since birth. What they aren't expecting is that a student they've never heard of on scholarship will also be nominated. As the week culminates with a black tie ball, everyone's lives are about to change and someone isn't going to make it out alive.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for letting me read this early!


This is hands down one of my favorite YA thrillers now. Each chapter keeps you guessing and you don’t know which characters are telling the truth. Goodman teases you with secrets as you read and the ending will leave you completely suprised.

This is hands down my favorite thriller from Goodman! What wild ride this was. Gossip Girl meets The Thousandth Floor, everything about this glamorous, dangerous, twisted world is exactly what summer is all about. Complete with a glittering ball at the end where wealth is a game and the elite carry their secrets in gold, this is so full of unexpected plotlines and some very juicy scandals! I loved every secret that was revealed, like little bombs that go off inside you, and the different POVs. The whole book was laced with tension and the feeling that time was running out, especially because every few chapters were interspersed with what was going on after. I had no idea who was the dead body, or what the motive might be and I simply could not put it down.