A great read. I loved the characters and how they developed throughout the book Did see the ending coming! Wow! I thought the killer was someone completely different. Overall, story line was a strong one filled with different plot twits continuously throughout the book. Characters were likable except for maybe Maya. I liked her, but thought she could have treated her sister a little better. This would be a great book for a book club to discuss.

first of all, for a debut book, WOW! Society of Lies by Lauren Ling Brown was such a thrilling read for me. I think having it take place at Princeton made me fall in love with the book as I spent my college years around Princeton (town not college - not smart enough for that lol). And of course, a story all about rich people drama which was another aspect of the book I just absolutely ate up. I thought the story was so enthralling & it was hard to put the book down (even though it was kinda predictable unfortunately). I hope to read more by this author in the future!

many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/ Ballantine/ Bantam for sharing this advanced reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest review!

This book gives a glimpse into the dark side of one of America's most prestigious ivy League schools.
The story switches between two characters who story is so similar it was sometimes hard to remember which character I was with.
However, this thriller kept adding new layers to the mystery that had me hooked.

This is an amazing debut. I loved the setting and different POV. I hope to read more from this author.

I was stoked to read this thriller! This book was faced paced and unraveling. I did not see the ending coming and I love that. Definitely recommend picking this up to read for an exciting thriller.

Lauren Ling Brown's Society of Lies follows two sisters in their own respective college timelines, navigating Princeton's elite "eating club" network. Overall this was a fan read, with a really compelling and interesting story. The setting was fascinating and really brought to life this world I was completely unfamiliar with. I found it a bit difficult to follow the dual timelines, particularly with so many characters to keep track of in each. I found myself getting mixed up, particularly since many characters crossed timelines. It was a bit slow to pick up, but really picked up about halfway through. Overall I would recommend this to anyone who likes campus mysteries/thrillers,

The concept of Society of Lies hooked me instantly. I'm a fan of dark academia, and Ivy League + Secret Society + a body was compelling for me. The novel itself was an engaging read, especially the sister angle, but I would've preferred more *secret society* suspense throughout and less *Bachelor-esque* drama. That said, I suspect I may have aged out of the target reader demographic.

Thank you, Net Galley and Bantam, for the ARC.

2.5 stars.

Read if you like: dark academia, secret societies, rich people behaving badly, multiple POVs

I have such mixed thoughts on this book. It has all the makings to be a great thriller, but with all the similar POVs and timelines I found it a little hard to follow at times.

I appreciated the diversity of the characters in this book and the way it discussed privilege but the pacing was too slow for me and I found it hard to keep reading. I feel like this could also be categorized as more of a YA thriller which isn’t my preference as I’m older.

This is a debut novel so I think I would try this author again in the future. It has a lot going for it but just elements were a bit off for it to be an enjoyable read.

I enjoy a good YA/New Adult thriller about secret societies and privileged people behaving badly, and Lauren Ling Brown nailed it pretty well! I often quibble about pacing, and I will say this one had some pacing issues: Maya Banks (née Mason) and her younger sister Naomi are Princeton coeds, ten years apart in age. Ten years ago, Lila Jones, one of Maya's classmates and acquaintances, was found dead in the woods after a ski trip. Now, in a sick version of deja vu, Maya learns that Naomi has been mysteriously murdered the day before her Princeton graduation. And Maya strongly (and rightfully) suspects the incidents are linked. While it was cool that Maya and Naomi followed parallel paths in the novel — it alternates between their POVs, ten years apart — that also made a lot of the information and discoveries redundant. I also think Ling included a lot of superfluous details, especially because then the big reveal wrapped up quickly in the last 10% of the book. Still, I appreciate that Ling incorporated a lot of her own experience as a multiracial Princeton student (she's part Asian, part Black) into the novel and that she used the book to lightly explore the underbelly of privilege. Overall, I'd say this was solid but not necessarily treading new ground — and it needed to pick up the pace a little more!

I found the transitions between sisters and timelines got a bit muddied at times, but several twists and an enjoyable book.

I really liked this book and then also really didn’t. I absolutely love the premise while giving us an underground society in college that also isn’t a frat house and typical setting we are used to. But it also got incredibly boring to me and really lost a lot of the thriller aspects that these books rely on to continue their story telling. I’m not sure if it would’ve been better slice of life mixed with true crime aspects cause it didn’t really give me thriller like I expected.

This was such a good book! I loved the characters, and their story. The dialogue was realistic and enjoyable. I was very surprised by the ending!

I loved this book. I inhaled it. I haven't read anything like it, plot was very original and interesting. I find it to be the mash up between college admissions scandal and murder mystery.
I am huge fan of non-linear timeline and multiple points of view - the author executes it perfectly. You never stop guessing "who did it" and the moment you think you have it figured out it flips, and you find yourself guessing again.
Chapters were straight to the point and concise. Characters were very well developed. Great book. One of the best I have read in a while.

i absolutely love this ! i love murder mysteries, secret societies, prestigious troupes! i enjoyed the multi pov and time jumps backward to see both FMC's days before their tragic accidents. i love love love! i have recommended to many already

Fun romp through fancy
school, secret societies,
bit implausible.
⭐️⭐️⭐️

I write haiku reviews for Instagram but am happy to provide more feedback.

Maya is looking forward to going back to her alma mater, Princeton, for Reunions and to see her sister, Naomi, graduate.

But the dream is interrupted by a phone call from the police. A body has been found and her sister is dead. The police are telling her it is an accident but Maya is not convinced and will dig into her sister’s life to get to the truth.

Maya may have been way too upbeat about her own college experience and she is aware that Naomi isn’t the first girl found dead. Maya has her own secrets.

As she digs into her sister’s life, she finds out she wasn’t the only one keeping secrets. Her sister had joined a secret society. The same one Maya belonged to and warned her against. Even worse, she may have joined the secret in a secret society!

Is that what led to her death?

Told in two voices, the story could have been shorter, as it really did drag in places.

Netgalley/ RHPG/Ballentine/Bantam August 13, 2024

I love an ivy league college setting. It was a great plot with good details on the dark side of ivy league college life. I especially appreciated the diversity in the book, it is important to represent all. The different POV from the sisters was easy for me to follow. The sisters had similar experiences at college and their stories intertwined. Maya's younger sister is found dead, outside of Princeton campus. Maya attended the same university 10 years ago. Maya investigates her sisters death due to a similar incident when she was at the university. The ending had a twist and this book kept me hooked.

Society of Lies is a captivating dark academia thriller with an intriguing setting of a secret society at Princeton. I always love a dual POV and this one was especially well done since there were two mysteries being solved at the same time, one past and one present. I also love to see a BIPOC author and characters!! The mystery/thriller genre is extremely white-dominated, so it was very refreshing to see representation here. The theme of race and institutionalized racism were also addressed very well in this novel and bring truths to light that we largely miss in the thriller genre without bipoc voices.

As for the plot itself, it felt like the author tried to cram too much into one story. While I applaud the effort to discuss important topics (death of family members, grief, the foster system, relationship trauma, drug and alcohol abuse, admissions scandal/university corruption, etc), it felt like too much to tackle and was a bit draining to keep up with every societal issue brought up. I wish the author had chosen one or two and gone into more depth with them instead of surface-level addressing all of them.

I also felt overwhelmed with the actual mysteries, which I think mostly revolved around this book being longer than necessary. Both mysteries dragged and felt like forever to reveal what actually happened and who was the culprit of the deaths — if it had been 50-75 pages shorter with the reveal coming sooner, I think it would’ve been more satisfying.

I also wish there was more detail on the societies themselves. Based on the novel’s summary, it seems like the Sterling society is the main setting/focus of the novel, yet it is addressed minimally and mostly serves as a catalyst for discussing privilege, which is also discussed at a surface level and does not do much for the plot/characters. Nixing the feature of the secret society might also have made this book better in my opinion, or emphasizing the society in greater detail.

Overall, I did enjoy this story and would read future books by this author! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for the arc!

AMAZING! I really enjoyed this debut from Lauren. Her story telling is so captivating & constantly has you wondering what's going to happen next. I love a book with dual POV so this was right up my alley.

Maya is a Princeton graduate, quite the achievement for someone raised by a single mother in a very limited income. She has worked hard and wants more than anything to see her little sister graduate Princeton too. But days before graduation her sister is found dead, and the police are basically passing it off as a partying accident. Maya knows this can’t be true but she also fears her sister’s death was the direct result of a tragic mistake she made during her own undergraduate years.

Society Of Lies is well written with believable characters that you want to root for. The story is told from multi points of view in different times but is easy to follow. Society Of Lies is a winner and I recommend it wholeheartedly!