Twists and turns throughout the book! Suspenseful, fast read, with twists and turns that make for a book that you can't put down. Students that enjoy a good mystery and thriller will definitely enjoy The Dare.

Natasha Preston is a popular thriller author in my library, and this will be a solid pick to add to the collection.

I'll be honest, at this point The Dare is a DNF for me, BUT I may go back and finish it at some point. I've started reading it two different times, get to a point, and then I'm drawn out of the story. I will blame this on being immersed in adult thrillers for the last year or so. Compared to my preferred reads, The Dare is more predictable and includes WAY more teenage drama.

However, I'm a school librarian and I know that my students absolutely love this type of book. I think Natasha Preston writes in a way that will keep teenage readers engaged. I think that the story itself is interesting, particularly the dare game that the characters are wrapped up in. I think the characters are a great mix of relatable and unlikeable. I'm giving this book a 4 star review, despite my ability to finish it right now, because I DO think that it will appeal to the intended audience and I'm confident that they will enjoy it.

The Dare was my first novel by YA author Natasha Preston and I am pleased to say that it won't be my last! I'm eager to check out more of her YA suspense novels from my library.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):
As senior year comes to an end, senior pranks are just beginning. It all starts innocently enough. Marley and her friends—Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse—egg houses, set chickens free on the quad, and fill the principal’s office with glitter-filled balloons. But when Jesse accepts a dare to drive danger alley, a ten-mile stretch of winding road that’s notorious for car wrecks, with no headlights, things take a turn for the worst. Now, the four friends are bound by a tragic accident—and a dark secret that threatens their bright futures.

My Thoughts:
This was a pleasant change from some recent YA thrillers that I have picked up. I really enjoyed the fact that this one was suspenseful and kept me turning the pages, while still being clean (without any spice/steam or language). While it was extrememly farfetched, and I did guess a couple of things, there were some twists and surprises in the last 20% of the book that I wasn't expecting. I found myself rooting for Marley and was surprised at how irritating her friends became and how quickly they turned on her. Like I said, this was pretty out there in terms of being super believeable, but it was such a great escape and a quick read that I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a suspense book with twists and turns. My tween really loves listening to MrBallen and other similar true crime podcasts and is always looking for more thrilling books to read and I'm excited to share this one with him in the near future.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Natasha Preston never fails in being the queen of plot twists that are nearly impossible to see coming. As a fan of “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” I was very excited to see her take on the classic horror storyline, and she did not disappoint. Seeing Marley’s change throughout the book of an unwilling participant to a ringleader in her own right taking everyone down around her made my jaw DROP, especially in the last few pages of the book. Ultimately, a satisfying ending that I think even the biggest thriller fans would enjoy.

This was my first book from this author, even though I’ve seen her work everywhere on Facebook and TikTok! I was excited to dive in! This was a great popcorn thriller. It was very fast paced and kept my attention the whole time. However I was not the biggest fan of the ending. I still had a lot of questions and would have liked some closure. After doing more research I realized she’s known for these types of endings. Either way I still enjoyed it!

Thank you so much @delacortepress and @netgalley for the copy of this eARC!

QOTD: Do you trust your friends, or are they keeping secrets from you?

I had an incredible time reading this YA thriller—it was a thrilling rollercoaster from start to finish! The plot twists kept coming, and the way everything intertwined completely blew me away. The protagonist was fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing this journey alongside her. And that ending? Absolutely Satisfying!

The story begins with a seemingly harmless senior dare that spirals out of control, leaving Marley and her friends facing murder charges. When those closest to her turn their backs, Marley is left to navigate the chaos alone.

This book has suspense, rich character development, and plenty of drama. The twists kept me on the edge of my seat, and the pacing was so fast and intense, I couldn’t stop reading to find out what would happen next.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4

YA thrillers are usually hit or miss with me. I did enjoy this one but I was expecting more of a jaw dropping twist. It did have me interested enough to keep reading. There were a few times when I thought I knew what was happening but I was wrong. I will read another book by this author because I have heard such good things and I did enjoy this book.

This book was fun to read. I want to thank those involved in giving me a chance to read it.

However some of the book was unbelievable. The characters kept going around and talking about a crime every chance they got. How did no one over hear them. I loved the ending and how it all worked out.

Feeling just a bit conflicted about the ending.

The story itself was pretty fun to read, however, once I sat down and truly started to think about the story, it all kinda just fell apart. 2 stars from me.

Natasha Preston did it again I loved this book honestly a 10/10 for me I love her writing and can’t wait for her next book !!!

This book kept me guessing. It was very thrilling and I loved the dare concept. First time I’ve read this author but I plan to read more!

I enjoyed reading The Dare by Natasha Preston. I have never read a book by her before.
It was a good book. I definitely felt it was written geared towards young adults as the main characters were graduating high school. That is not the author's fault, I should have checked into it further as I am in my 40s.
Most of the book was a little predictable until the reader got to the end. There was a decent size twist toward the end. It was an enjoyable, quick read.

WHAT DID I JUST READ! I really liked this one! I wasn't really expecting much out of this one, because like how far can a prank really go, but I was invested in this story! It was thrilling and had me guessing!

Thank you for an arc of this book. Oh I absolutely love anything and everything by Natasha Preston and this was no different!

I found the description of The Dare to be very interesting - I loved the idea of high school gets getting dared to do something dangerous and having it go very wrong. It's not the first book I've read with a similar concept and I've always enjoyed those types of books. However, this book took the storyline in a way I've read and I thought that was great.

Preston did an amazing job with the character work in The Dare. The feelings you have for the characters are strong and will cause you to root for their demise or their success. There were so many unlikeable characters in this book and Preston made it fun to hate them.

The best part of The Dare though, had to be the end. I did not see some of it going down the way it did and it was jaw dropping. I loved every last minute of it. If you are looking for a fun thriller, this book definitely fits the bill.

3⭐️

Natasha Preston is an author that I stumbled upon about 4 years ago. My first book was The Fear and I HAD SSSOOO MUCH FUN READING IT!!! I even convinced my mom to read it so I could have someone to vent to and discuss my thoughts with. THAT IS HOW GOOD IT WAS!!! My second book was The Island and I ended up DNFing it. Though I have nothing against influencers, I just don’t think a whole book should be written about them. My third book was The Haunting and, like The Fear, I convinced a friend to Buddy Read it with me. Unfortunately, I rated it 2 stars. I did an audiobook and physical book read along and I don’t know if it was the narrator of the audiobook or the story as a whole but, I just couldn’t get behind the whole premise of the story. And now we have The Dare. While the premise surrounds one of my favorite scary movies “I Know What You Did Last Summer”, the characters really ruined the vibe. I honestly believe that it is an amazing talent when an author can write an amazing story but develop very annoying and unlikeable characters. Seriously, true talent!!!

Premise: So. What’s The Dare about exactly??? We have an unknown town (name of town not included throughout the story) where every Senior Class participates in pranks or “dares.” What started out as a very fun and interesting yearly tradition turned into lives lost, seniors losing their college education, and people dying. This once very fun and interesting yearly tradition was high jacked by The Wilder Brothers (Everett, Emmett, Rhett, Garrett, and Truett), the richest family in this town and the boys who can afford to get away with any and everything. This year, Rhett is the brother in charge of the “dares” and he decides to focus all of his attention on Marley, Atlas, Jesse, & Lucia. While Rhett allows other classmates to get away with small dares (i.e., dying Mac & Cheese; releasing chickens in the hall; extinguishing the fire extinguishers), Marley & her friends are required to participate in “felony” & “misdemeanor” dares. And like everything that equals danger and death, their final dare goes horribly wrong. Their final dare leads to murder, a cover up, and friends turning on each other. Everything between these four friends goes haywire and results in Marley having to look out for herself in the best way she knows how.

Sounds interesting, right??? Well, this book was interesting. I absolutely loved the premise and the final chapters (chapters 28-34) made this whole book worth reading. The characters (i.e., Marley, Atlas, Jesse, Lucia, Ruthie, & Rhett), on the other hand, were just too much to handle. I understand that this book is YA, so the behavior of a lot of these characters was expected but to constantly be reminded that Marley doesn’t like Rhett over & over again was annoying. To have to read about Marley whine about her past with Rhett was too much. To watch these friendships fall apart was a headache, especially between Marley & Lucia. This book marks the second book that Natasha has written were a female friendship falls a part because of one friend is being honest and trying to protect both of them. I am just ready for something new. Honestly, I keep waiting for Natasha to deliver a book that makes me feel the same way that The Fear did. I am waiting for a book where not only the premise keeps me turning the pages but I can fall in love with, at least, two of the characters. I am just waiting for a book of hers to be fun from beginning to end. On December, 3rd of this year, her new novel, The Party, is going to be released and I am TRULY hoping for the best.

Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for granting my request for an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for my honest and personal opinion!!!

Natasha Preston is a must read author for me. This book is no different. This is a YA mystery thriller with lots of twists. I found the main character very likable. I didn’t see the ending twist coming.

4 best friends are finishing out their final week of high school, by pranking and daring each other to do silly and/or somewhat dangerous things. They are given a dare that goes horribly wrong. What will they do, will their friendship survive?


This book was good. It wasn’t gripping or nail biting. You knew what happened fairly early on and how it changed the friend dynamic. There wasn’t anything too crazy about this book that gave me a gasp moment. The ending I didn’t really see. But that lasted a paragraph then the book ended. I felt a little skimped out on!

Overall, I think this was a good book and I would recommend!

Wow!! This book was fantastic!!!
So it starts out all nice and happy, a group of friends who are seniors getting ready to do their end-of-the-year Senior Dares.
Then it gets dark, sinister and crazy. These dares cause some massive issues, ones that each of these friends will have to live with for the rest of their lives. These events are the ones that really change a person.
Not knowing who you can trust anyone and who really has your back or is just using you.

This is the first book that I have read from the author; Natasha Preston and from this book alone I am enjoying her writing style. She keeps you stuck in the books, the events, attached to the characters and wanting to know more. Oh and the twists and turns, yeah those were crazy and fun to read as well. I enjoyed the book a ton and am so happy that I read this book.

Main characters: Marley and her friends—Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse plus a few other important ones

The ending was crazy, was not expecting that at all.
Go read this book, I really think you will enjoy it.