I love books about schools so this was right up my alley! Jess is a "scholarship" student at an elite boarding school and her best friend, Clem makes being around the rich kids bearable. But then fellow student, Hugh is found dead on the grounds. Unfortunately, Jess and her writing partner, Summer have just submitted a story that's eerily similar to the manner in which he was murdered so suspicion naturally falls on them. But there may be external forces at work as the Regia Club is a famous group on campus, inviting only those deemed "worthy" to join. And when anonymous messages find their way to students threatening lives as they've each done "something terrible and deserve to die," Jess is terrified and now worried she may be next!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

This Book Kills is an outstanding murder mystery set at a boarding school. As soon as I read the book's synopsis, I knew I had to read it as soon as possible! And this book didn't disappoint me!

The characters are well-written, and the plot is so executed so well that even as it twists and turns, you are never confused. The investigation and the clues were well-planned, and I was unable to guess who killed the person.

And, speaking of characters, Jess was my absolute favorite. She had intriguing ideas and perspectives through which to see the narrative, and she was also humorous and self-aware. It was satisfying to witness Jess, the protagonist, gain self-assurance throughout the narrative, which led to more sincere friendships and an enjoyable conclusion.

The eerie, historic boarding school atmosphere was excellent! This created a somewhat dark academic vibe, especially with the Regia Club involved. This atmosphere contributed significantly to the mystery.

I really enjoyed reading this book, and I want to read more works by this author in the future. I wholeheartedly endorse, particularly for readers who enjoy the works of authors such as Holly Jackson.

Officially convinced that if it has a little flame on the cover, I’m going to be obsessed with it! This was so fun!

Ever tried to start a book and then you find you couldn't get into it at the time and it ended up being a DNF? Then maybe months later or often in my case, it can be a year or more later. You pick up that book again and decide to give it another go, sometimes I have found that even if I give it a second chance - it still ends up being a DNF. However, sometimes it works the other way and I end up enjoying the book and finishing it. This is what happened with Ravena Guron's book "This Book Kills". I recently got a new Kindle and I have been busy downloading all my books back onto it and I saw this one, the cover, and title grabbed me. As I started reading it, it felt familiar and I checked Goodreads and I had tried to read it back in September 2023. This time around though, It had kept my attention and as someone who loves writing and mysteries, I loved the premise of this book. A short story that Jess used for her Gifted and Talented class has been used as the inspiration for the murder of one of the most popular boys in their school Hugh. The thing though is that Jess didn't kill him, but who else had access or knew about her short story, and why was Hugh killed? This was another fun YA whodunnit boarding school mystery and I have to admit when the killer was revealed, it shocked me as I didn't see this one coming, but I did love all the little connections that the author used in solving the mystery. If you love wealthy boarding schools, secret societies, murder mysteries, and stories where the students solve them before the teachers or police - then take a deep breath and open this book and PS - remember if you aren't careful enough, "This Book Kills" and a small takeaway for you as a reader - sometimes it pays to give books like romance a second chance.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc. I love young adult thrillers, and this did not disappoint. Very quick read, and mid book, I did have an idea of who the murderer was. Great writing. Nothing like secrets and scandals at school!

Absolutely enjoyed this novel! Suspenseful and fun, I enjoyed all the twists and the characters throughout. Would definitely recommend for anyone who enjoys mysteries and thrillers!

A engaging YA mystery. Set in a boarding school, there is both a mysterious death and a very secret society which does random pranks that are possibly becoming more dangerous. An unlikely sleuth works on solving the crime. There are a lot of layers in this story and the author does a good job of making sure it doesn't get confusing, just gets more intriguing. I can see this book really appealing to the YA audience.

Thank you Sourcebooks for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of this novel. This is a good entry into the YA mystery/thriller/dark academia genre. It takes place at a very upper crust English boarding school, and the protagonist is a scholarship student. Excuse the pun, but the execution was a little bit textbook. I could not connect with the characters emotionally, but maybe I was in an off mood. The perpetrator also becomes obvious about midway through but the why does not. Looking forward to the author's future novels.

Thank you to Usborne, the author, and NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a mystery that even I couldn’t solve, which is very exciting because I guess the plot to everything. The writing is very straightforward, and the book is told from the point of view of our main character writing it after the fact. I can see it as realistically being written by a gifted high school student. I loved that although there does end up being a love interest, it doesn’t have a huge role in the overarching story being told. It’s just for funsies. Although there were many characters over the course of the story, unlike in some books, it was relatively easy to keep track of who was who. They all felt very real and fleshed out, each with their own motives and personalities. I also love the underlying theme of wealth leading to entitlement and more greed. Overall, this was a really fun and interesting read. I would definitely recommend it to someone looking for a more lighthearted YA mystery.

I thoroughly enjoyed this compulsive YA thriller! I found myself staying up late on multiple occasions! I just couldn’t put it down!

This book has a lot of characters and at some point I thought nearly everyone was the killer! I enjoyed the old, creepy boarding school setting! It really added to the mystery, especially when there were cloaked figures in the basement.

If you enjoy dark academia and YA thrillers, then I recommend checking this book out!

Ok yas coming from a book tock girly here I loved the plot behind this book. It was very well thought out and written well. I loved how fitting in with school , which is challenging for everyone. was a huge issue at the beginning then the murder happened. I actually didnt want the book to end and I'm debating reading it again when its published so that I can experience it again. As a person of color I loved that the FMC was of indian descent it kind of made it even that much more relatable for me personally.

Okay but can you imagine writing a short story and a day later one of your classmates turns up dead in the same manner? That’s such a good premise.

So, I loved this book. It’s a little slow start and some moments are a stretch, but it’s about teenagers and is written in first person, so that didn’t really bother me.

Honestly didn’t see the killer being that person till the very end and I was surprised to see they pulled it all off.

It’s a fun twisty read, that’s going to keep you company for the beginning of spooky season.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for providing me an eARC 💖

Thanks to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for the pre-release copy! I can honestly say that i absolutely adored this book. If you were into ‘A Good Girls Guide To Murder” then this YA mystery might just be for you. This book as fast paced and an enjoyable read. The characters were done well and you could really feel all of their emotions. The mystery was a little too predictable for me, but i also am a thriller fanatic.

Jess just wants to get through school without being noticed. She already knows she has a mark on her back because she is a scholarship student among the rich and elite. Yet when a fellow student dies the spotlight finds her because they end up dead the same way a main character of a short story, she writes dies. Jess is a spunky character. Her voice is vibrant and jumps off the page at the reader. Her strong voice truly carries the story. There are some spots where the story lags, but overall, I enjoyed the mystery. I also enjoyed that Jess grows as a person and finds other people to connect with in the school outside of her best friend.
Thank you to Sourcebook Fire and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

This Book Kills. What a great title. This YA mystery has great twists and turns. Books set in an elite boarding school are generally not for me. I was so intrigued by the title and the description, I had to give it a try. I am so glad I did. Jess is a scholarship student among the rich and entitled. You get the trope, right? She does have one good friend, Clem, and she loves creative writing. Her interest in writing stories might justbe what will get her into trouble, even though she tries to keep her head down and blend in. It's hard to do when you are the only student of Indian descent. ( this was the one detail that didn't quite make sense to me. ) A YA mystery that is well done. I didn't solve the mystery ahead of the main character. I count that as a win. Go ahead and pick this one up. I was able to read an ARC from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire. I appreciate that. This is the first book I have read by this author but if she keeps writing YA mystery, it definitely won't be my last.

Thanks to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for the pre-release copy! Below is my honest review.

This book was just FUN. The school setting was well done, the characters were entertaining and had depth, and the mystery unfurled over the course of the novel with really good pacing. I really enjoyed the development of relationships between characters throughout the story, which felt natural to me, and I very much enjoyed the diverse main character's perspective.

My only real gripe with this one is that, if you are a big mystery reader, you're probably going to guess the ending like I did. But that being said, it didn't really detract from the FUN of the novel, so I still chose to rate this one high.

Four stars, definitely recommend to mystery/YA fans. Give it a shot, and I think you'll enjoy it.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the copy of This Book Kills by Ravena Kaur Guron. I loved how well-drawn the characters were, and how they evoked memories of being a teen. The mystery was good and intriguing, but I was disappointed that in the end the perpetrator ended up explaining why and how they did things instead of us being able to see what went on. I have read plenty of books where we see things from the killer’s POV so I could try to figure out the red herrings and who the killer was, so I would have preferred that format to just being told. If you love a school story, especially one set in a boarding school, this is the book for you. I guarantee it will keep you reading.

I love mysteries set in prep schools, and the premise of This Book Kills sounded perfect for a cozy afternoon. However, it fell very flat for me. First, I have an incredibly hard time buying into diaries as a form of narration. It never feels plausible, as I can't believe someone would verbatim write down entire scenes from their life, including backstory and description.

I tried to remain open-minded, but the characters themselves were too overblown. Granted, this is for a YA audience, but I think it might be too junior for even a 14-18 range. And that's disappointing because I feel like this book could have been fantastic.

Ultimately, it was a DNF for me, but I hope other readers enjoy it more!

I would say that this was a solid light-hearted (as far as murder can be light-hearted) YA mystery for me. If you can suspend belief that a secluded private boarding school does not immediately shut down and send everyone home after a high-profile student is murdered with the perpetrator still on the loose and threatening other students, then you can probably get into this one.

What I Loved: I was honestly surprised and satisfied with the solution. I wasn't thinking too hard about it, but I was slowly narrowing down suspects and at a total loss when the big reveal came. Guron is officially queen of the red herring. I was also a Jess fan - she was a solid narrator and I was rooting for her the whole time.

What Could Have Been Better: The Regia Club stuff got really messy, especially at the end. I kind of lost sight or didn't fully understand the motivations and intentions of several key players. Also, these are several really cruel, really psycho high school students. I mean it when you kind of have to suspend belief on the scenario a little bit.

All in all, it was an enjoyable summer read. Don't overthink it. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the e-ARC.

I found the character development in the book to be quite engaging, particularly with the main character Jess. The story was set in a captivating Prep School environment with a plot that was straightforward to follow. Although I was able to foresee the ending, I still found the book enjoyable and had a pleasant time reading it. I would definitely recommend it though — in fact I already have.

Thank you to netgalley and sourcebooks fire for providing me with an arc of this book.