Girls Who Burn isn't my favorite of all the YA mystery/thrillers I've read but I can really see its appeal. It follows Addie who is still reeling a year after the murder of her sister a year ago and is absolutely shocked when the boy she believes is responsible comes back to town with his whole, rich family, only to wind up dead himself. Addie teams up with the cousin of the murdered boy to solve the crimes and clear their names, giving us a frenemies to lovers romance, and a twisty a look at years of complex friendships between the two families. I thought both Addie and her love interest were too stubborn for their own good, and got so frustrated with them at times, but really enjoyed reading a thriller with romance at the forefront like this. I also love rich family drama, so that hooked me in. What took me out of the story a tiny bit were the mentions of certain compelling plot points, like a lost treasure and several complicated love triangles that are barely explored. It's a very strange choice to mention treasure at abandoned estate over and over, and then never have it amount to anything.

That being said, I think some teens will like this. Karen M. McManus and Jessica Goodman readers should be recommended this immediately and will devour it. I'm intrigued to see what MK Pagano writes next.

This has become a fairly standard set-up - a girl and her estranged crush investigating a murder officials dismiss. We're playing with the standard elements, the wealthy and power struggles that sort of thing. There are some missed opportunities to go deeper, to explore gender and power or complex families. It's pretty surface and ultimately forgettable.

This book is yet another example of a book I think I would've loved if I had it as a teenager. The mystery was interesting and I enjoyed how invested in solving things the characters were but ultimately, the ending fell super flat for me. The big reveal and the things the characters were saying were so ridiculous that it almost completely ruined the ending for me. Overall, I had a pretty good time until that final climax. I did enjoy a lot of the other reveals and I enjoyed learning things alongside the main character!

Addie is an angry girl who lost her sister and what they deem as a freak accident. She believes that her sister was murdered, and she blames the rich boy who is obsessed with her sister. But things take a strange turn when the rich boy ends up dead in the same location as her sister. Now she has to work with her sworn enemy to solve what could’ve happened her her sister and the other boy. Will she be able to solve her sisters, murder and uncover the truth of what really happened to her?



I see enemies to lovers and I am instantly going to read the book. Boy, did it serve on that trope too! I really loved this book. I felt like it kept me on my toes the whole time. I was enthralled by the whole story. Immediately after finishing this book I looked up to see if the author had any previous books. I was shocked this was a debut and it was a solid debut. 4 stars out of 5. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Wasn't too sure what I was getting into with this book, BUT.... it was amazing.
Fast-paced, suspenseful and sooo much going on but in a good way. Such a good book. Loved it!
Lots of drama and family dynamics, very interesting and crazy how it all played out.
The twists will shock you, I am usually really good at being able to figure out a mystery but this one messed me up and I wasn't able to figure it out til too close to when the book told me, so that's a huge win in my book. lol. Good luck figuring out all the mysteries
This is a YA thriller, but it is def an adult read also. It will keep you hooked and entertained.
The main character- Addie, she is one deep in her head but also in real life, kinda hard to explain. she is a complex character but that is a big part of this story and makes it good. You will understand once you read the book and see into the life of Addie. She has a lot going on for such a young girl. Some things she did to herself and others def not.
There are some teen-type life issues plus relationship/friend issues in this book that you can relate to as an adult as well.
Went to see what other books this author wrote (because this was such a great book) and found out that it is a debut novel. I'm so excited to see what they come out with next.
Go read this book, I think you will enjoy it, def doesn't disappoint.

3.5/5 Stars

1 year ago, Addie and her sister Fiona got into a fight, and left each other saying some regrettable things. Addie was never able to apologize for what she said to Fiona as she was found that night, dead at the bottom of the ravine. The police deemed it an accident, but Addie knows something more sinister must have happened involving Thatcher Montgomery after she witnessed a fight between the two. One year later, Thatcher is found dead, in the same spot Fiona was found. Addie teams up with Thatcher's cousin, Seth to discover what happened to their family members and who was behind their deaths.

This was a fast-paced read with interesting dynamics between the characters. Everybody is cheating on everybody, and it is a messy, drama-filled ride. It was fun trying to figure out the mystery behind both Addie and Thatcher's deaths. I had my suspicion of who the killer was, and they do go on quite the long villain monologue at the end, but I still enjoyed my time reading. I don't think it will be anything I will pick up again, but it was fun while it lasted.

Thanks to Netgalley and Nancy Paulsen Books for an ARC of Girls who Burn. The atmosphere of the book was absolutely dark and grey, and I loved it! Addie's sister Fiona is found at the bottom of a ravine one summer night. Fast forward to a year later and Addie's world is still a wreck, the days leading up to Fiona's death they were fighting, Fiona was keeping secrets and now Addie is determined to find out what those secrets were. Together with Seth, a childhood friend who Addie was with that night of Fiona's death, the backdrop a mansion with woods a plenty surrounding it and secrets of its family's inhabitants already deep in place, will Addie and Seth uncover the truth or become victims of those dark harbored secrets of the rich and the not so rich. Pagano does such a wonderful job of describing Addie's world and feelings, you really feel the guilt she has pent up within her. The misdirection in this book is amazing, so many characters that could be involved in the event and the reveal was satisfying. I look forward to more from Pagano is the future I am absolutely ok with bleak and gray atmospheres.

I’m really sorry but this felt like so many other YA thrillers that I’ve read. Plus what is that title? There was so much cheating just to cheat in the book which is something I hate in books. All in all this book did not do anything for me.

Loved this book! Loved the plot and it kept me hooked highly recommended. Was a quick read for me and hoping to read more from this author.

The vibe of this book really works—full of angst and tension, especially between Addie and Seth. It’s got that YA flavor, but I didn’t mind at all. There were a few moments where you just have to roll with it, and I guessed the killer pretty early, but—but overall, it was a good read!

This was a decent read. 3.5 stars. It was a pretty good mystery and was well written, but I wish I liked the characters more. I didn’t care about them that much, so the storyline wasn’t as compelling to me.

This was a pretty run-of-the-mill YA mystery/thriller. It took a bit to really get going and seemed there was dragging dialogue in the first third of the story. It picks up and ends up being a satisfying who-dun-it. The main character was reasonably likeable and the romance was pretty well done. The villain was especially villainous- really someone with no conscience, which was fine, if maybe a little unrealistic. Anyone who really enjoys this genre will probably have a decent time reading this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for providing me access to this eARC for my honest opinion!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to review this book.

This book was fine. It wants to be a commentary on the wealthy and what they get away with, but for me, it falls short of the mark. It's supposed to be a mystery to discover who killed Addie's sister, but for me, I found the answer to be blindingly obvious from the first pages. It was a quick read but there wasn't enough substance to it to pack a punch.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @PenguinTeen for the ARC. Wow, this book left me speechless. I could not put it down. Addie is certain she knows who murdered her sister after a night at the town fair. After a year, Addie suspicion of who killed her sister is actually found dead in the same ravine as her sister, leaves her with no other suspect. Addie has to find out who killed her sister before she is next.

Overall, I thought this was a good book for a teen. I thought the characters were likeable and relatable. My only gripe is that I would have liked to see more of the story unfolding rather than reading a lot of dialogue about what happened from the antagonists POV. Thank you to #PenguinTeen, M.K. Pagano, & #NetGalley for the #EarlyARC copy!

I really wanted to like this. I just feel the writing was very amateur and the characters one dimensional. I felt it hopped all over the place and had a hard time focusing on anything. Thank you for the copy.

The mystery itself wasn't bad at all. For me, it wasn't that predictable. My guess for the bad guy was close to who it ended up being, but I am glad that I didn't figure it out. The plot made sense, but I didn't really get attached to any of the characters. They were quite bland to be honest. None of them had distinct personalities, or even a personality at all. Each of them had one thing that they liked but it was not in depth. For example, the main character, Addie, likes math so much that she plans to major in it, but she doesn't use math to help solve the mystery?? I don't know how math could have been used that much but I think that it would have been interesting to see her use math for forensics or something like that. Some of the characters didn't have any defining features besides their relationship to the main character and I didn't really like that

SPOILERS BELOW
Kendall did it all and that makes sense, my guess was Marion the entire book, but I don't like how she got away with everything because of money. It wasn't very interesting for the same way out to be used for every single plot point. The first time it was used it made sense, but I got bored of that being used all the time.

"Girls Who Burn" by M.K. Pagano is a standout choice for thriller fans of gripping young adult fiction. This is a great debut novel that shocks with its intense, page-turning suspense. The story follows a group of friends who find themselves entangled in a web of mystery, drama, danger, and, of course, murder! This book is packed with tension, and it delivers a rollercoaster of emotions and unexpected twists.

"Girls Who Burn" is a page-turner that doesn’t disappoint. Im behind on reviews, but thank you, @penguinteen, @mk_pagano, and @netgalley, for this eARC!

#thrillerbookrecommendations
#bookreview #yabookrecommendation
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Overall I thought this was a good. It has a mix of thriller and romance which I love. I would definitely recommend this to romance readers who are trying to get into the thriller genre.

Girls Who Burn is a YA mystery-thriller, and to be honest, I didn't care much for it.

I found the main characters annoying, and the plot to be a bit dull. If you like reading a spoiled rich kids and what they'll do to keep their inheritance, then maybe this one is for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for an advance copy in exchange for sharing my opinions. All opinions in this review are my own.