I should have written this review immediately upon finishing because I truly cannot remember a single thing that took place throughout this story. That probably speaks more towards my thoughts than anything else.

I enjoyed listening to this one. Very typical YA thriller. I remember it feeling slow at times and wanting more information in some places while others felt like the same thing being explained over and over.

The concept was interesting though and I loved the lore of the goddess.

The Bad Ones is a slow-burn YA horror.
This wasn’t my favorite of Melissa Albert’s books. The pacing was all over the place. The beginning was painfully slow, and about halfway in or so, it picks up to slow down over and over. There was a great deal of the book spent rehashing the same information.
The magic system was not explained well (or at all, really) and the ending was underwhelming.
While the characters’ personalities were believably adolescent, they weren’t particularly well-developed. I didn’t feel that I knew any of them well enough to be invested in their journey. All in all, the story was pretty interesting but underdeveloped.

This was very much a typical YA thriller. The plot was fine, the twists were at least believable, but nothing had me sitting on the edge of my seat dying to know more.

The Bad Ones was such a fun story to get me through the end of February!
This is an excellent story about friendships; especially friendships that change as we change. We all had those friends when we were younger, that we started to drift from.. but when you called for help, they were there to answer the phone.

I loved the first 3/4 of this book! The ending lost me a little bit, I won’t lie. But still a solid book, and I had so much fun listening to it.
I cannot wait to read more from Melissa Albert.
Emma Galvin is also an amazing narrator. I’ve listened to Emma narrate a few books, and they are always instant hits for me.

Thank you Macmillan Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen and review. Ily

I truly enjoyed this book. I thought it was the perfect amount of suspense without being over the top. The story felt so real life, but with just a touch of fantasy that I could picture it all playing out in real life. The narration was fantastic. Definitely add this to your TBR list!

I recieved an advanced copy from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.

This novel had a lot going for it, the storyline pulled me in, we had creepy stuff, mystery, and a splash of romance. As the novel went on it was interesting and kept me captivated....then, the last few chapters. I liked when we got to see some things she had forgotten, however, after that it just seemed like a very confusing happily ever after ending that left me with so many damn questions! If the novel had explained more about the ending, rather than giving me that awful abrupt, nonsensical ending then I would have rated it higher. This is one of those unfortunate novels that is so good....until the end.

Truly a new take on the supernatural! So refreshing. And I wasn't expecting the twist (I never see those coming so nothing new there!).

And I just have to say, the descriptions of damaged friendship and the loss of good friends is breathtakingly real. I was in a toxic friendship in grade school-high school and finally broke free in grade 10 and the descriptions were like I had written them. Very moving. Well done.

The Bad Ones was coming-of-age mixed with Dark Academia. Complete with the eccentric teacher harboring lots of secrets, and dark, brooding love interest.

I loved the narration! I was able to fully immerse into Melissa Albert’s world of urban legend. Becca and Nora’s friendship was truly unique, but at the same time I could relate.

Goddess, Goddess count to five….the urban legend of the Goddess and the Goddess game was my favorite part. I felt like I was researching right along with Nora as she tried to piece together how this all started.

Definitely recommend for horror fans and fans of dark academia.

The book was good but I kinda struggled with it being in audible form (apparently if my eyes aren't reading words then it's easier to fall asleep). LOL However, this was an intriguing book however in audible form it was a bit confusing in the prologue because too many characters were introduced at once. Overall, I enjoyed the story although the toxic friendship part was a bit tiring at times.

This is a complicated beautiful story about the way girls are so often ignored when they go missing and the way they are blamed. I've always been curious by this unattainable idea of a perfect victim. That none of us are valid until we are that but we will also never be that. I think this captures that.

This book ended up not being for me, and I did not finish it. I knew I was taking a chance, as horror is not a genre I typically read, so I won't be reviewing this title. I did spotlight it as part of the blog tour, and here was the intro of my post:

Today on the blog, I’m featuring The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert. This is the latest release from The Hazel Wood author, and while that series may have some light horror vibes, this one jumps right into the genre. The tone of this book reminds me of a cross between The Wicker King and Carrie. If either of those titles resonated with you, I think this one will be right up your alley. I would be interested to know if you’ve read this author before, and if you have plans to pick The Bad Ones up!

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review.

This book was almost a did not finish for me. The plot seemed to be all over the place and the ending really didn't make any sense. I was hoping this was going to be more of thriller then ended up being more supernatural with a vigilante complex. There was like 3 storylines happening which got confusing on which was which and the time jumps were out of place.

The audiobook narrator did an ok job but really didn't change her voice for different characters so I got lost a few times.

Rating: 3.14 leaves out of 5
-Characters: 2.5/5
-Cover: 5/5
-Story: 2.75/5
-Writing: 4/5
Genre: Fantasy, Gothic, Mystery, Thriller, YA
-Fantasy: 3/5
-Gothic: 1/5
-Mystery: 3/5
-Thriller: 2/5
-YA: 5/5
Type: Audiobook
Worth?: Eh

Want to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.

What happens when you start a book and completely forget you started the book? LOL. Would you consider that bad? Honestly it wasn't BAD but it wasn't grand either. I forgot that I had even started this book and the more I listened the more curious I got but main girl wasn't it for me. I think she could have been better.

I read Our Crooked Hearts by Melissa but I liked this book more.

Melissa Albert combines small towns weird myths with girlhood to make the perfect book combo. I was on the edge of my seat the whole ride never truly knowing where we were gonna go!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC Audio Copy!

I enjoyed this for a YA horror story. Our FMC is believable as a teenager that is not really an outcast but also not considered one of the popular kids, she and her best friend Becca lived their lives kind of on the outskirts in the town, where they didn't really need anyone but each other.

The story takes us through the traumas that guide the girls into connecting with Goddesses of their own creation as well as one who is a part of a local game that is known by everyone in town as a local lore.

After Becca disappears Nora is not convinced that she is in danger, but the more time that passes its harder to believe that nothing is amiss. Nora struggles with missing her friend and losses in her own life while also following the clues that were left behind by Nora.

For a horror this book is definitely mild, I would consider it more of a thriller. but I have also not read a lot of YA horror so I may be mistaken.

This was a great book. I thought the pacing was great and how Nora and Becca's "friendship" developed around the games of their childhood was an interesting way to discover the fantasy past and present. If you enjoyed Our Crooked Hearts, you'll definitely love this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for this copy!

Goddess, goddess, count to five.
In the morning, who’s alive?

My first impression was that of a chuckle, as this reads like your typical YA novel with all the high school antics and clicks. Sleepovers, mysterious woods, teachers, and faculty you hate or think are creepy. Teens are filled with the need to individualize but also be counted in.

What is the Goddess Game? Even after reading the book, I still can’t determine what this is, but I gather that it’s part urban legend, part true story. Everyone has played it at some point. Some form of pagan magic. Who wouldn’t want a Goddess to exact revenge on your enemies at the high school stage? Seems petty, but it gives the story the context we need.

The story begins with Nora looking for Becca as four people go missing simultaneously, all in one night without a trace. Nora (our protagonist) can’t find Becca (one of the missing), with whom she’s estranged at the time. Nora is determined to find out what happened.

I found myself midway through this audiobook before gathering some placement. (but that could be just me) At first, the premise was confusing as the goddess entity would not surface until the end of the story, but now that the goddess has been awakened, it must feed.

I love the book cover; the audiobook is a great listen, some horror, some fantasy, but it definitely would appeal to the YA crowd.

Thank you so much to Macmillan and NetGalley, who provided an advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. 


The Bad Ones is a moody and mysterious book that follows the main character, Nora, as she pieces together the supernatural and wicked happenings in her town that have led to the disapearances of multiple people, one being her estranged best friend Becca. Nora relives memories of her friendship with Becca to better understand and try and figure out why she is missing and what the clues she left for her mean.


I found this audiobook to be a unique and captivating story, with a good mixture of paranormal elements and mystery combined with horrors of the real world. Together, the story was fresh and interesting, and it was hard to pin down how the story would end. 


I can't say the narrator was my favorite voice for the main character, as they gave the MC a younger feeling than her age. I also found I had to really pay close attention to this audiobook so as not to miss important information and understand when there were some time jumps. 


Overall, I think this book may be a better experience read vs. listened to (for me), so I plan on getting a physical copy as well. I really enjoyed the book and highly reccoemnd it.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and Flatiron Books in exchange for my honest review.

A spooky little thriller with some fun supernatural elements. I think this would have been more successful if it weren’t so long, it definitely dragged in the middle and the pacing was a little off. The way this book was laid out made it challenging for me to invest in the protagonist, even though there were elements of the dynamic between Nora and Becca that I found really compelling. The climatic scene and the big “reveal” did work for me, I just wish there was a bit more cohesion in the way we got there.

Thank you to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio & Melissa Albert for an audio galley of The Bad Ones in exchange for an honest review.

I did not realize at the time of my request that this book was by the same author who wrote The Hazelwood and Night Country. If I had, I would have refrained from requesting - as I did not care for either of those books or the author's writing style.

It was only after I began the book and was quickly bored out of my mind that I realized it was the same author. That's not great that I recognized the author based on what I DIDN'T like. In fact, I think that's the first time that's ever happened to me.

I do realize that I am an adult and this is a YA book, however, I read a TON of YA as well & this one just wasn't good.

The synopsis sounded great & I felt like I should have been on the edge of my seat and completely enthralled with this story, but I just wasn't. It took a bit too long to get into the "meat" of the story and I just didn't feel like it was as interesting or as good as I anticipated it would be or that it could have been. I am pretty sure that most of my reasoning for not enjoying it is, as I will state below, the author's writing style not being a good fit for me.

I do realize that I am in the minority as many others love this author and this book. I will say that the author has a real talent for imagery, but her storylines and writing style just aren't for me.

I do not feel it is fair for my the bring down the authors ratings based on my person preference, so I'm going to rate this 4 Stars, but this is the only place I am rating it and I do not plan to share any information about this book - good or bad - to any social media. I will be sure to steer clear of this author in the future, given my history of not being a fan.