The twists are so good! Multiple POVs, social hierarchy and etiquette in play and it makes such a wonderful page turner. It reads like The Testimony by Anita Shrieve: you don't truly understand why certain parts are included until the very end. Great novel, I would definitely recommend it!

Unfortunately, this one was not for me and I did DNF it around 15% in, so you may take this review with a grain of salt. I was interested in the mystery and enjoyed how the parts I did read felt very faced paced, but sadly that wasn't enough to keep me interested enough to finish the book. I personally didn't enjoy the writing style, and felt that there was a lot of telling instead of showing, which made the book feel clunky at times and overall made it unenjoyable for me.

A new author to me, Anya Mora has written several books before The Glennmare Girls. And yet, to me, it reads like a debut novel. The cover and the setting will draw you in, but the largely one-dimensional characters may no hold your attention. And there are MANY characters, each telling little bits of information to ?? the reader? in alternating short chapters. The book would profit from much more showing and less telling. To me, the narratives taken together read like the outline or rough draft of the novel, not the finished product. 2.5 stars rounded up.

I read this book within 24 hours, because I was dying to know how it ended. About 75% of the way through, I figured out whodunit, and I have to say, I was disappointed. It seemed a bit unappealing to me, especially the reasoning. I was hoping for a big surprise that would have shocked me. I also found the chapters for The Girls to be really strange.
I'm glad everything was all wrapped up, and there were no loose ends. I always hate when thrillers leave you with questions. This book left me with none!

Would recommend

4 stars

3.25/5 stars! It is always disappointing when the cover is the best part of a story. I couldn't quite figure out if this book was supposed to be YA or Dark Academia. The themes seemed to wash together and it was confusing to follow at times. Overall, it felt too dark to be YA, so I guess it would be a dark academia mystery. It was ok and I didn't hate it, but it could have been so much better with editing to make the concept more clear.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

This was a very engaging read. The characters are all fun to dislike and the chapters are very short, keeping it very engaging. I liked how the different POVs helped to unfold the story. It gives culty, dark academia and there's nothing wrong with that!

The Glennmare Girls will sadly be shelved to my DNF. For me there was a missing hook in the first few chapters, which left me uninspired and uninterested. Perhaps it was how the multiple pov played out or the style of writing, I’m not entirely sure….
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The cover was so pretty and the summary was intriguing enough that I was excited to read this book. Unfortunately, I didn’t like it as much as expected. Each chapter changed POV, but felt disjointed. The writing was quite simplistic. I couldn’t connect with the characters, not enough depth.The storyline was interesting but didn’t deliver.

Was drawn to this one by the beautiful cover, but actual story doesn't quite live up to expectations. The premise and setting are appealing and this one will definitely find some eager readers, but I found the pacing and plotting to be a bit uneven, unfortunately.

I enjoyed the mystery aspect of this book. But frequently I felt confused by the multiple povs. I just don’t think it was written the best it could have been.

The mystery element is what saved this book. I thought the pacing was a bit slow in parts and there were several scenes I felt Mora could've really expanded on in order to create more substance to the story, but she didn't. Still an intriguing read, just the storytelling aspect could've been a little more compelling.

Thank you Netgalley for the digital ARC!

More people seem to be impressed by the book cover than by the book itself but it's definitely a very attractive cover. The story is told from multiple points of view including the girls, the cook, the detectives, the professor and his friends but I actually didn't have too much trouble keeping everybody straight. The story was a little on the slow side but I enjoyed reading it, made easier by the nice short chapters. For once I'm wishing that the book was a little longer as I would've liked some of the characters expanded upon. I'm interested in reading other works by this author. I'd rate this a 3.5 but I'm rounding up since I liked it more than some 3-star books I've read.

TW: Stepsibling relationship, possible grooming (but who's grooming whom?!), mentions of self-harm and suicide.

Thanks to Joffe Books via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Publication Date: December 18, 2023

The Glennmare Girls has a beautiful cover, and that alone teased me in to wanting this book.

The premise alone was interesting. Girls sent away to an all girl school that is completely off the grid in the PNW (the location also was a reason I requested this). The beginning grabbed me, then a majority of the book just seems to drag. A girl missing, a young male instructor who has lost his memory, but the events just seemed to drag on with no movement. Until the last 20% of this book. And that’s when things get really weird.
There are a lot of different twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, but feel like the end of the book was trying to make up for the rest.

Overall, I’ll give it 3⭐️, because I did finish it.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pub date: 18 Dec 2033

Love the cover of this book and the story was really good. With plot twists and different POVs from the characters in the story bringing all viewpoints to one conclusive ending. I would recommend this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Anya Mora for the ARC of Glennmare Girls.

First of Mora's books and I don't think it will be the last. Glennmare is a dark twisty tale of love, obsession with a little bit of folklore mixed in, It is a slow burn, starting with the strange disappearance of an 18 yr old girl from Glennmare school. To a Teacher, Wells, coming around in hospital with amnesia . A cook, who seems to know everyones secrets and a love triangle. There are some dark moments in this book, especially as the detectives who are investigating the case start to unravel what's going on.

The pace of the book is slow but gathers momentum as the story unfolds and it does grab you and make you want to read until the end. Glennmare Girls is a nice whodunit book, that isn't quite a cosy mystery but leans towards some darker elements.

3.5 stars

First and foremost, lets take a step back and just admire this stunning cover...

The Glennmare Girls

I requested this one based on just the cover alone but when I read the description, I knew right there, this was a must read.

There is nothing more dangerous than a cattle of school girls...

This book is all consuming. Clear your schedule, put up your feet and grab your coffee/wine, depending on the time.

Check out this teaser :

Kitty Calloway is a beautiful, sweet girl — she’s everyone’s favorite. Kitty Calloway is a dangerous manipulator. Kitty Calloway is gone.

At Glennmare Academy, an elite boarding school off the coast of Seattle, five girls develop an unhealthy infatuation. Their twenty-five-year-old literature professor, Wells Halifax, has changed their lives. And they will do anything for him.

Then one of the girls goes missing. And Wells Halifax is found unconscious on the beach after a riding accident. He remembers nothing of that fateful night.

But the four remaining girls remember everything. They have sworn to keep their friend’s secrets — even if it kills them.

But is Kitty Calloway worth protecting?

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this copy.

I didn’t like this. I DNFed it. I always struggle to DNF a book but I just couldn’t get in to this book. It was boring. I really did try to keep reading but couldn’t.

Thankyou NetGalley and Joffe Books for this eCopy to review

this was an OK gothic suspense novel. It was quite slow which made it hard to read along with lots and lots of different points of view. This meant it was hard to connect with any of the characters. A teenage private schoolgirl goes missing from her remote unconnected school (Kitty). On the same night her teacher (Wells) is found fallen from his horse with amnesia and cannot remember the last 6 months. What happened that night? What happened with his supposed best friends Tippy and Freddy during that time?

If this was the focus of the book then it might have been OK, but there was just too much incest, bestiality, teenage pregnancy, suicide, mental health problems that are glossed over, underage drinking and drugs for me to really like the story

Read from December 5th to December 14th, 2023. Written on December 19th, 2023.

What an interesting story! With great plot twists, multiple character POVs and really good writing with short chapters.

This book is great for the fans of suspense and thrilling stories, with its gripping pages and unusual characters. It was heartbreaking and shocking, addictive and insane. The plot was not what I expected and the details just surpassed the idea that I had of what this book would be.

I am amazed. The Glennmare Girls came out yesterday, December 18th.

Signing off,
B.

(Free ARC from NetGalley and Joffe Books that I chose to review after reading)

What a boring batch of overwrought and underdrawn psychopaths. There are things I like about the cover but that's all you're getting from me.