I figured since I'm a bit of a scaredy cat, maybe YA Horror would be more appropriate for me. This was....okay? Honestly, I think a big issue with this book is that in describing it in the synopsis as "Squid Game with a sprinkling of The Bachelor" this basically tells you exactly what to expect from this story. Thus, nothing really unexpected happened. There was one plot twist that I found mildly interesting, but many of the things that should have been surprising or shocking felt like par for the course with how this story is set up. Perhaps it was a bit too formulaic.

Furthermore, with this kind of story you expect to become at least a bit invested in the characters, but this never happened for me. It's odd because this story is told in the first-person and yet, there always seems to be this distance between the reader and the narrator. In terms of the other characters, there is only a small number that gets some development. Again though, there's not a real attachment that I felt towards any of them. In fact, for many of the characters I would have liked more development or some explanation of their motivations. The motivations for some of the characters are explained and made sense, but others felt out of place and we don't get enough development to understand the intensity of their feelings and desires. There were some themes explored within these characters such as privilege, marginalization, complicated/toxic friendships, and classism that I found interesting. The characters made for good vehicles for storytelling, yet they didn't feel as fully dynamic as I wanted them to be.

The silver lining in all of this is that I did feel like this book had a strong ending. It was satisfying without feeling like everything was wrapped up in a bow. The pacing of the novel was slow for around the first 40%, but then it started building up more tension and there was more action starting. The ending of the novel was very fast-paced and kept a good momentum which is surprising that after such a long book, I still felt invested in the conclusion. Overall, it was a book where I enjoyed some of the themes explored with nuance and I enjoyed the actual writing style of the author, but found the story itself to present nothing really shocking.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Their Vicious Games

Author: Joelle Wellington

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 5/5

Diversity: Black MC and characters

Recommended For...: young adult readers, mystery, thriller, psychological horror

Publication Date: July 25, 2023

Genre: YA Mystery Thriller

Age Relevance: 14+ (language, racism, slight sexual lingo, alcohol consumption, death, panic attack, religion, slight blood gore)

Explanation of Above: There are a few sentences with strong language used. One of the themes of the book is racism and that is shown throughout the book. There are a couple of instances where there is some slight sexual lingo such as in “who’s d--- did you suck”, but this is nothing that they shouldn’t be hearing at school. There are a couple of scenes of underage alcohol consumption shown and mentioned. Death and slight blood gore are shown in the book. There is a panic attack shown in the book. There is slight talk about Christianity in the book.

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Pages: 416

Synopsis: A Black teen desperate to regain her Ivy League acceptance enters an elite competition only to discover the stakes aren’t just high, they’re deadly, in this searing thriller that’s Ace of Spades meets Squid Game with a sprinkling of The Bachelor. You must work twice as hard to get half as much. Adina Walker has known this the entire time she’s been on scholarship at the prestigious Edgewater Academy—a school for the rich (and mostly white) upper class of New England. It’s why she works so hard to be perfect and above reproach, no matter what she must force beneath the surface. Even one slip can cost you everything. And it does. One fight, one moment of lost control, leaves Adina blacklisted from her top choice Ivy League college and any other. Her only chance to regain the future she’s sacrificed everything for is the Finish, a high-stakes contest sponsored by Edgewater’s founding family in which twelve young, ambitious women with exceptional promise are selected to compete in three mysterious events: the Ride, the Raid, and the Royale. The winner will be granted entry into the fold of the Remington family, whose wealth and power can open any door. But when she arrives at the Finish, Adina quickly gets the feeling that something isn’t quite right with both the Remingtons and her competition, and soon it becomes clear that this larger-than-life prize can only come at an even greater cost. Because the Finish’s stakes aren’t just make or break… they’re life and death. Adina knows the deck is stacked against her—it always has been—so maybe the only way to survive their vicious games is for her to change the rules.

Review: I really liked this book overall. I thought that the book reminded me a lot of Ready or Not in terms of how kinda evil the whole family was with the exception of maybe a couple of them, but further in how cult-like some family traditions are and can be and how hard it can be for an outsider to enter into the family. This is further exuberated by the racism that persists by this family in the book, which I thought could open up a lot of discussion among teens about how to best dismantle old, racist practices not only in families but in societal structures as well. The book also had a dark evil-er The Selection feel to it in how this “competition” was to select someone to be brought into the family. In short, I think this book is a psychological horror YA masterpiece. I think the book has so many undertones that I don’t think I can even begin to fathom or properly discuss and I think the book is one of those that can be a great aide in discussion on societal issues that should be taught in school.

The only issue I had with the book is that it was a bit of a quick pace in a few places, but other than that I absolutely loved this book.

Verdict: A bloody competition to win a scholarship but also to be brought into a family? I’m in. Highly recommend!

This was an entertaining read for me! I felt it was unpredictable and kept me engatged throughout the entire story. I went in thinking it would be more of an intense thriller but it is more of a Satire, which I do not typically go for. But I felt this was a fun wild read!

Genre: YA Thriller

Format: Audio

4.25🌟 - I enjoyed it!

The Selection meets the Bachelor meets The Hunger Games meets Ace of Spades meets The Inheritance Games in this entertaining and dark YA thriller. This was such a fun and fast-paced plot with depth drawing attention to larger themes to academia, racism, social class, and privilege.

There were some fun twists, and this was overall a poignant and entertaining read!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a finished copy!

Their Vicious Games was thrilling debut that managed to be engaging with the brutality of the Finish and I liked the social commentary aling with it. It was clear who the bad guys were but we would be on the edge pf our seats to see how far wil lthey really go. The story pace faltered a bit in the middle but it picked up in the last quarter of the book. While the ending was unexpected, it did leave me satisfied at how everything turned out.

I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I wasn't really sure what to expect but I'm glad I took a chance on this book.

I’m not sure what I was expecting going into this book, but I love watching the downfall of rich white people.

I love stories that are "competition/game" style and this one was no exception. I was absolutely hooked and captivated by the writing and the plot. What a thrill!

I enjoyed this one. I kept me guessing and I did not expect the ending at all! This would be a good one for anyone wanting a YA thriller

The beauty of this covered had me wanting to read this book.

The first sentence pulled me in and I was hooked.
--WHEN MY MOM PULLS ME close in my cap and gown and whispers into my ear, "I'm so proud of you, Adina," that's when I know-I've lost.--

I'm not one to give away a story, but you have to read this book. You will not be disappointed especially if you love reading thriller/horror novels.

Great story line and character development. The ending was worth it all.

I would love to see this made in a movie or TV series.

Unfortunately I was having a difficult time getting into this book. I think this is more due to my personal reading tastes changing as I am losing interest in young adult titles, though I appreciate the publisher for granting me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

@jowellington you ATE THE GIRLS UP WITH THIS ONE 👏🏾🖤 I mean, how do you come out swinging with a 5⭐️ read like this that had me fully 100% captivated from the second I started reading. I’m gonna keep this spoiler free which means I can’t say too much so let’s just jump straight into ⁣
⁣
𝗥𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:⁣
⁣
• first things first, s/o to my girl @iyanagoestothelibrary for posting the most interactive and interesting stories about books that make you seriously drop everything to read. This was the case when she had me cracking up at her commentary on this one 😂💖
⁣
• second of all I WILL WHOOP ESMES ASS! Idc, how the whole book you had me ready to square up. Like not once did I feel bad/ think of she’s a great person 😂⁣
⁣
• “𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙛 𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝.” * story of my life⁣
⁣
• This is the book of my dreams, like a black final girl YESSSSSS 🖤 I will say that Penthesilea was my overall
•
• favorite though. Something about a totally unapologetic, unhinged, badass that makes me obsessed.⁣
⁣
• Saint and Adina’s friendship was so sweet and special and I didn’t see it coming but I loved every second 🫶🏾✨⁣
⁣
• The little queer moments were 🥹 I need a whole book about Hawthorne at this point.⁣
⁣
• THE CHEESE SLID OFF THE FUCKING CRACKER BY LIKE 60% AND IM TYPING IN ALL CAPS BC I WAS STRESSED 😰⁣
⁣
• “𝘏𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦.”⁣
* damn man 😔💔⁣
⁣
Overall yall, I wish I could say more but I don’t wanna ruin it so yeah RUN and read this. I promise you won’t regret it.⁣
⁣
And thank you @simonteen for sending me the arc I read and this finished copy. Y’all the 🐐

I really enjoyed this thriller. It was a Bachelorette meet the Hunger Games situation. I think teens will really enjoy this fast-paced novel.

💎BOOK REVIEW💎

Their Vicious Games - Joelle Wellington
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️

“A Black teen desperate to regain her Ivy League acceptance enters an elite competition only to discover the stakes aren’t just high, they’re deadly, in this searing thriller that’s Ace of Spades meets Squid Game with a sprinkling of The Bachelor.”

After losing her Yale scholarship for an out-of-character moment of violence, Adina is feeling helpless and like she’s wasted all of her hard work. Enter The Finish, a secretive, elite competition hosted by the wealthiest family in town to give a local girl all the connections and money she would need to get ahead. Adina has heard the rumors about how successful the winners are and sees this as her only way out. Only she doesn’t know just how dangerous and deadly the competition is going to get!

I was immediately pulled into the story and loved the no holds barred ruthlessness of the competition. I loved the backstory of how each girl found herself there, willing to gain OR LOSE, everything. This is an over the top thriller and I was here for it.

Recommend if you like:
- YA thrillers
- Strong friendships
- Deadly competition
- Dark satire
- Eat the rich vibes

Thank you to @simonteen and @netgalley for my copy!

I gave up at the 65% mark. There were so many plot holes in the book. How they kept what was really going on so quiet for so long is anyone's guess. Also, why? What was the motive? The main character comes from an upper middle class family. Her parents have excellent jobs as teachers in an elite private school. They aren't poor. Yet all she does is complain. Not for me.

This book.... WOW!

Just wow!

It was so intense, riveting, and I highlighted so many amazing quotes.

The story was gut wrenching, powerful, and so thrilling. Every new chapter was a surprise and I am just in awe of how crazy this book was.

All of the characters had such a deeply flawed and powerful story that no one (welllll.... Except 3rd and 4th) was truly the villain. Everyone had a perspective and a story and a reason to do the things they did and I just loved it.

This book was gold and I can’t wait to see what else this author has in store because SIGN ME UP!

This book was so great. I loved the satire. It reminded me so much of Get Out. I was horrified by most of the characters but I understood what the author was trying to do here.

Their Vicious Games was so good I started pitching it to anyone that sounded halfway interested in a recommendation aligned with it.