- i very rarely read mystery/thriller books so i can’t really compare this one to others but i really enjoyed this! maybe bc i don’t read this genre often but i couldn’t figure out the culprit 😥 (although i had a few suspicions) and i was kept on my toes until the end
- the story is really fast-paced and entertaining! it’s set in the summer which makes this a good summer read imo :3
- the frenemies to lovers subplot was so angsty and kinda messy but I’m here for it 😩🤭
- interesting side characters!
- overall i liked addie as a main character and her character development was good! the only thing that bothered me was the randomly thrown in fact that she counts prime numbers 😭 i don’t think it added anything to her character and it lowkey took me out of the story whenever it was brought up
- will definitely check out the author’s future works, I kinda wanna read more thrillers now too!

thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc!

This was a great YA mystery! I liked the complicated sibling relationships, Addie’s regret about Fiona and how overprotective she was of Davy. It definitely got tense at points, and tbh I liked how Addie kept getting turned around and had no idea who to trust. I didn’t guess who the killer was but it was totally fitting. Addie and Seth’s relationship was sweet, and I liked Addie being able to repair her old friendships as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for the digital ARC; these are my own unbiased opinions.

MK Pagano’s debut novel, “Girls Who Burn” is a fast paced mystery thriller that forces two childhood frenemies ...... to team up together to solve the murder of their loved ones. As they tackle corruption & family secrets through their investigation .... is also trying to figure out her feelings towards ..... and heal her abandonment issues.

At the beginning of the story .... is an insecure girl convinced that she is not worthy of love due to her mothers abandonment and that her assumptions are the only correct “facts” so it was nice to see her mature and grow as a character.

Girls who Burn was definitely a page turner for me & it was fun to try and figure out who was the murderer. As I read i kept changing my possible suspect and was surprised how wrong i was.

if you enjoy a fast pace murder mystery thriller I encourage you to pick up a copy!

Thank you again for allowing me to read the advance copy. (:

Absolutely fantastic from beginning to end!

I picked this one up on a whim, and it exceeded all my expectations. The story drew me in right away.

Addie is tormented by the fact that she said terrible things to her sister just hours before she died. Now, she's determined to uncover the truth about what really happened that night. Although it was ruled an accident, Addie is convinced there's more to the story.

A year later, the community is shaken by another death. Thatcher, the boy she believed was responsible for Fiona's death, is found dead in the same place.

Addie's life has unraveled over the past year. Her ex-boyfriend despises her, and even her best friend has turned against her. The only person who seems to understand is Seth, Thatcher's cousin. The story explores the history between Seth and Addie, as well as the dynamics of their entire group.

With multiple players involved in this deadly mystery, Addie is unsure who to trust. Everyone seems to be hiding secrets, and Addie is desperate to uncover the truth.

This is a fast-paced, well-written, and engaging YA thriller that I couldn't put down.

looking for a fun, fast paced ya thriller / mystery ??? THIS IS THE BOOK YOU NEED !!!!

The story revolves around Addie Blackwood, who lost her sister one year ago and believes she was killed by Thatcher Montgomery, a very rich friend, after witnessing a big fight between them. Despite the police ruling her sister's death an accident or suicide, Addie does everything in her power to convince them she was murdered. Going as far as to start writing on a crime forum under a nickname to raise awareness about her sister Fiona's case.

One thing about me is that I'm an absolute SUCKER for rivals-to-lovers romances, so giving me that where they then have t0 collaborate in order to solve murders??? im sat. (bonus points for the absolutely gorgeous cover)

the plot line was so fun, the writing done well and fast paced, while i did suspect the killer i wasn't quite sure about it until a few pages before they were revealed. The author wrote this in a way where the main character Addie finds herself suspecting EVERYONE - making the reader in turn also suspicious and not 100% sure if your hunch is correct or you've veered completely off course.

Loved it, Thank you to NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review

4/5 ⭐️
If The Summer I Turned Pretty and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder had a baby, it would be this book.
This was a fun, twisty thriller. I practically inhaled this story, it had me on the edge of my seat constantly guessing. At one point it even had me suspicious of a character I was loving. And the third act plot twist had me bolting upright. It was very entertaining. Although the “villain” speech was a tad dramatic and they really harped on the rich just use and abuse people. Like some of their points weren’t wrong. But I think jt could’ve been developed more.
Overall, I really enjoyed this and definitely would recommend. The thriller part was thrilling. The mystery kept me guessing. And the romance was cute and complicated.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

4 stars. I am such a sucker for YA mystery/thriller... especially when the MC is investigating a local murder. And with Girls Who Burn, we get 2 murders! The summer before her senior year, Addie's sister Fiona dies by falling in a ravine. But what looks like a suicide might in fact be murder. At least to Addie, who is convinced that the murderer has to be one of the rich boys next door, who is also coincidentally the cousin to the guy she make out with sometimes. But when that guy ends up dying as well, it becomes clear that 1) there's a murderer on the loose and 2) Fiona may have been hiding a lot about herself. So Addie decides to investigate the murders with Seth, aka the rich boy next door she sometimes makes out with. And oh yeah, he's still kind of pissed that she thought his cousin was a murderer. Sounds confusing? It's really not. But what it is, is a damn good and fast paced mystery thriller. I love those books where the main character has no idea who they can trust. EVERYONE is a potential suspect! And the closer that Addie comes to solving the crimes, the more she puts herself in danger. As far as YA mystery/thrillers go, this one was great. As I already said, it was really fast paced. The mystery was in no way obvious, and Pagano did a really great job building the suspense. For those that like the genre (think books by Maureen Johnson, Holly Jackson, or Karen McManus), I think you'll find a lot to enjoy about Girls Who Burn. My only warning is that while this is billed as YA, I would definitely classify it as upper YA. There is a lot of talk about sex, so that's just something to keep in mind when thinking about the audience for this one. Given that I'm in my 30s, clearly that didn't bug me. All in all, I thought this was a really solid read and I will 100% be reading more from Pagano in the future!

Thank you so much to Pagano, Penguin Teen, and Netgalley for an eARC and physical copy in exchange for my honest review.

I thought that this was overall a fairly good mystery. I wanted more of a wild twist, but i was still relatively shocked by who the killer was. I think that this is a great YA mystery, I've been reading so many adult thrillers lately, that i have to remember to look at it thought a different lens;. I appreciate that the main character wasn't a total idiot which is a common thing that tends to happen in mysteries. I do think that the overall story wrapped up way too nice and neat for me, but it was a nice, quick read.

🔪🔥𝔽𝕀ℝ𝕊𝕋 𝕃𝕀ℕ𝔼 𝔽ℝ𝕀𝔻𝔸𝕐🔥🔪

"𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓, 𝑨𝒅𝒅𝒊𝒆 𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓— 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔 𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓, 𝑭𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒆."

Special thanks to @penguinteen @mk_pagano and @netgalley for the #gifted eARC.

➡️ swipe for synopsis 👉🏼

𝙈𝙔 𝙍𝙀𝙑𝙄𝙀𝙒:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First off, WHAT A DEBUT!
This YA romantic thriller is great! It was filled with so many amazing reasons to read it, don't just take my word for it....

🔥Fast paced
🔥Young love
🔥Enemies to lovers
🔥Murder & mystery
🔥Smart characters
🔥Secrets
🔥Family first

How many more reasons do you need to grab this one asap and dive in?
I'm at a loss for more words, but trust me - this one is definitely worth the read!

𝙋𝙐𝘽 𝘿𝘼𝙔:
July 16, 2024


QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Do you prefer fast paced 🏃‍♀️ or slow burn 🔥?
Do you ever read YA books?

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#mysteryandthrills #thrillerlover #thrilleraddict #mkpagano #girlswhoburn #bookbuzz #upcomingthriller #yathriller
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Such a fast paced and exciting read. I don't usually reach for thrillers but this one caught my eye. The strong sense of love for family, compelling mysteries, and young love suck you in from the very beginning.
Addie is such a strong, passionate and smart character that you continue to root for throughout the story.
Uncovering so many secrets has you second guessing everyone in the story, you never know who to trust. I truly enjoyed every second of this story and I can't thank Penguin Teen, Net Galley and, especially, MK Pagano for letting me receive an ARC of this book.

Girls Who Burn is a perfect summer read. Addie and what's left of her family live in resort town. The summers are packed with wealthy tourists living in their summer estates. Her whole life has been shared with one of these wealthy families as the children from both families grew up together. Last summer Addie's sister died under mysterious circumstances, even Addie is a suspect. This summer a boy from the wealthy family dies under eerily similar circumstance. Again, Addie finds herself the suspect. However, as Addie investigates her sister's death, she uncovers many uncomfortable truths about her own family. This is a page turner that had me guessing until the very end.
Thank you MK Pagano, Penguin Publishing and NetGalley for the DRC.

Girls Who Burn perfectly entwines the danger and suspense of a thriller with the emotional, wonderfully angsty tension of an enemies-to-lovers romance. Pagano writes beautiful prose without sacrificing fast pacing, wrapping it all up in a twisty, thoroughly enjoyable mystery that’ll leave readers breathless to the very last page. Loved this book! Can't wait to read more from M.K. Pagano!

Thank you to Penguin Teen for a free advanced e-book of Girls Who Burn.

It's a fantastic read from start to finish, skillfully capturing the intricacies of youthful friendships and relationships, as well as the bond between family. I liked a lot about this book: the mystery, the characters, the town setting, the creepy forest. I think this book really shines with its characters, especially Addie. Overall, this book is a fast-paced, popcorn-worthy read.

Girls Who Burn

🌟 What a stellar debut!! I binged this in just a few sittings…it is a little bit second-chance (enemies to lovers) romance & a lot of secrets, privilege & murder!

🌟A year after her sister, Fiona, suspicious death Addie finds that her prime suspect is back! The police believe it was an accident but Addie believes it was Thatcher Montgomery. But when Thatcher is found dead the same was Fiona was killed…Addie & her summer friends work to find out who the killer really is!

🌟This was a fast-paced, twisty YA thriller! I loved the summertime friends group, having spent summers with my cousins, I really connected to that storyline. I found most everyone to be a little morally gray, which I always enjoy! This def gives Good Girls Guide to Murder vibes but with its own unique storyline. I love when the civilians try to solve the case! I love when an author crosses genres which I feel this one did great…some romance (I feel more 2nd chance vs. enemies to lovers) & a great thriller! Although I could see where the ending was headed it still had some good twists the surprised me! Enjoy my friends 🫶🏼

YA thrillers hit in just the right spot. This one wasn't any different.

Addie's sister Fiona died a year prior, and she hated herself for being drunk, and with a boy when her sister died, just hours after they had a huge fight.
The police think it was either a accident or suicide, but Addie doesn't believe that for one second.

The Montgomery's only are in town for the summer, and when they come back this time, another murder happens. Thatcher Montgomery was killed in the same area Fiona, was found a year earlier.

Addie is on a mission to prove something sinister is going on, and she's not sure who to trust.

This read was capturing from beginning to end.

I was pleasantly surprised by just how much I enjoyed this story! While I don't understand the correlation between the title and the story itself, I did think it was very well done. The story follows Addie who is trying to find out the truth about her sister's death, while many believe that it was an accident or suicide, Addie has never believed either option. When the person she was convinced killed her sister ends up dead in a similar matter, Addie is left with more questions than answers. So she turns to "frenemy" number one, Seth.
I loved the pacing of the book, it kept me turning page after page trying to piece it together. I can confidently say I had no clue who the true culprit was! I would love to read more by this author in the future.

Thank you Penguin Random House teen for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have rather complicated feelings about this book, and overall it wasn’t really my favorite. I never did get an understanding as to what the title was about, and that is a pet peeve of mine. I never really go into it, I didn’t find it the fast paced page turner that others did, I found it rather boring. I read a lot of YA thrillers and generally enjoy them, this one just didn’t do it for me, it isn’t a bad book, it just isn’t the book for me.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this e-arc.

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. Girls Who Burn is a fast paced, mystery that seriously threw me for a loop. I didn't know what to expect, which I really appreciated not being able to predict the twists. I will certainly be watching out for more books from the author going forward and will certainly be recommending it. 3.75 stars

woah, what a crazy page turner YA thriller!! i liked that it was fast paced and kept my attention. grab your popcorn and buckle up for this one.

Positives
Appropriate elements of the genre (corrupt police, plenty of suspects)
Keeps the reader guessing until the end.
Thrilling.

Areas to Improve
Title does not fit
Lots of repetition of information
Didn't like the Seth-Addie constant bickering
Too much narrow thinking and theories that don't make sense

In this YA novel, two murders are unsolved and countless theories surface as to who-done-it.

Good choice for readers who love thriller, mystery, and guessing until the end.