This was such a fun read. The perfect mix of drama and thriller had me on the edge of my seat flipping through!

This was a fun read! It was filled with twists and turns nonstop. The swapping of POVs makes it clear all these friends have different secrets they are keeping. I really enjoyed the New Orleans setting and the debutante world. I was completely intrigued by what happened to Lily. This one was action from start to finish.

I have mixed feelings about this story. I felt absolutely nothing about any of the characters. I couldn’t find a connection with them and while I understand that everyone has their issues, I couldn’t find a way to feel sympathetic to these elite individuals and secret their secret and problematic clubs. That said I enjoyed the story itself and found myself curious as to how it would all end.

This book is being voluntarily reviewed after receiving a free copy courtesy of NetGalley, the Publisher, and Olivia Worley.

Alright guys, I'm a sucker for a good YA thriller and Olivia Worley really delivered with this one. Initially (why I requested it) I got Pretty Little Liars meets The Southern Belles from Hart of Dixie vibes but it was so much more than that and I'm glad I was able to read it. The pacing is excellent, the twists were intricately woven, the drama was top tier, and it was dark and twisty (my faveee). It was a fun and wild ride .

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review :)

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publishers, and Olivia Worley for an ARC of The Debutantes. This was a really fun YA thriller to read and I read her other book, People to Follow, and they have both been edge of your seat thrilling! I guessed one of the multiple twists. I felt like it was a domino one right after the other I had to pick my jaw up from the floor. The story is told from multiple perspectives and what I like about Olivias’s books is that it’s easy to follow whose chapter it is. Her books are described perfectly and it felt like watching a movie in my mind while reading it. I’ve been to New Orleans once and now I need to revisit asap lol!

Les Masques Ball is the event you want to be at every year. This year though they are hoping to make it through without another dead Queen. Debutante Margot Landry was found dead the next morning and unfortunately, no one was shocked. Margot had a wild streak and this years queen Lily LeBlanc is nothing like last years queen. Everyone is expecting a redemption this year until the Ball is hijacked by a Jester. Lily sends a text to 3 of the maids to meet the next morning because she found something out. Vivian, her best friend, is confused why her best friend is texting her this suspicious message. Piper, her boyfriend sister, and April, her frenemy, are just as confused as they aren’t close with Lily. They all receive the separate messages and meet — but Lily never shows up. These three maids have nothing in common except they all received the message from Lily and going to the same private school, and their connection to Les Masques. They start forming a plan to see what’s really going on and realize it’s much darker than anyone could’ve expected — and the reason why Lily is missing. The further they dig into what’s going on they soon realize that Margot’s death wasn’t an accident and Lily may be next. The girls go against all forces trying to stop them to ensure they uncover the monsters in the masks even with the Jester doing whatever it takes for them to stop investigating, even if it means getting their own secrets exposed.

DNF at 20%. Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I am not sure what it was, but I struggled to connect with the story and characters and then struggled to stay interested. There was nothing wrong with the book, it just wasn't for me.

This was a really solid YA mystery. I loved the New Orleans setting, and the debutante characters. I think this one will be popular amongst my girl mystery readers, and could be a solid book club pick for a high school club.

“One of Us Is Lying” meets “Gossip Girl” in this compelling new YA thriller from Olivia Worley. I really enjoyed Worley’s debut YA novel, “People to Follow,” so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book, and it did not disappoint. She delivered another gripping page-turner full of twists and turns. With its short chapters and multiple POVs, I couldn’t stop reading and binged it in one day. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, Worley threw in another jaw-dropping twist. She is quickly becoming a favorite of mine, and I can’t wait to see what she does next!

I really enjoyed this book! Full of twists and turns and intrigue. I loved the inside look at New Orleans Krewe / debutante culture, and the city was depicted so vividly. I felt like I could really visualize the city.

It wasn’t a 5 star read for me because the rotating first person POVs were really hard for me to follow. But I liked the characters, especially that they were each flawed in their own way, and the overall themes / feminist vibes.

Also, I (as a millennial) loved a lot of the references in the narration, but they felt dated for a modern YA novel.

Overall it was an interesting thriller and a love letter to New Orleans with hopes for cultural change.

This YA novel surprised me with it's cloak and dagger , who- dunnit plot : a fun twist in a genre that does not typically involve this type of seedy , hush-hush storyline. ( Lots of craziness happening in the "Big Easy" world of debutantes.) So, this I enjoyed.
I did ,however, find it hard to recall who's POV I was reading and some of the characters seemed to be lacking in the depth department so when their name was mentioned I had to thumb back through to recall their relevance.
I choose to give this one three stars for an original story, providing a new perspective on the ugly side of debutante life.
Thanks to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC.

The Debutantes centers around New Orleans' elite and their annual Les Masques Ball. Last year’s queen, Margot Landry, died from an overdose, and this year’s ball is disrupted when images of Margot and red paint are thrown at the new queen, Lily LeBlanc. After Lily goes missing the next morning, following a cryptic text about Margot, her friends April, Vivian, and Piper set out to find her. As they dig deeper, a mysterious figure known as the Jester threatens to expose their own secrets, forcing the girls to confront how far they’ll go to uncover the truth.

This fast-paced thriller explores the dark side of secret societies and the debutante world, full of twists and turns that lead to a surprising ending. A must-read for fans of young adult mystery thrillers.

The Debutantes releases on October 29th. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

A YA mystery set in the upper class society of New Orleans. Definitely entertaining although I figured part of it out, had not expected all the twists and turns of this one. New to me author but would look for her other books.

A murder set against the backdrop of the ultra wealthy in NOLA, what’s not to like? The culprit was pretty easy to guess and was hoping for a big shocking twist reveal but I pretty much had suspected the person from the start. But overall this was a great read! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

If not for the afterword, in which the author explains how she grew up in the environment in which the novel is set, I would have thought that it was all outrageously made up. This is a world of extreme wealth and traditions that have been observed for centuries. The action starts at a Debutante Ball, where the characters are introduced and their rites explained. It reads like an anthropological treatise about strange cultures, which is what this is. The Maids, the girls at the center of this curious ritual, are normal, young women with the same worries as any other teenager. College, boys and family life. Vivian, Piper and April get thrown into a world they don’t understand when the Queen of the Ball disappears the night of the party. She leaves clues for them to figure out what happened and the girls need to follow them, in an insane treasure hunt that will take them deeper into the New Orleans culture. I was fascinated at all the tidbits they share with the reader, and realized that, despite being way older and from a very different background, I was identifying with them. The plot is very fast-paced and the characters become more human as they follow the clues. There is a whole part with Eyes Wide Shut vibes that was insanely suspenseful. They make a lot of questionable decisions that had me screaming at my Kindle but they are extremely resourceful for sheltered teenagers. At times the plot required enormous suspension of disbelief but it was very entertaining.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books.

After one debutante Queen is found dead, and another goes missing, three Maids (think homecoming court) have to band together to find the missing girl before it's too late. Set in New Orleans and rife with mystery, Mardi Gras theming, and deeper themes, The Debutantes is perfect for people who want a simpler mystery that tiptoes into deeper territory.

I'll be honest, I didn't super connect with this book. I wanted to--I was excited for the setting because I work in a place that is Mardi Gras/New Orleans themed, and I was excited to see the "real" NOLA spirit. But the detective work, if you can call it that, was mostly handed to the girls. They each did have distinctive voices, but they all generally felt the same, in a sense. They each had like one defining personality trait. I think this could have been better with more of a focus on the deeper themes that are brought up towards the end, regarding pageantry, women's rights, and the expectation to uphold women's roles. It was still a good read, but not one that I could see myself rereading.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review!:)

As a girly girl who loves horror, a murder mystery involving debutantes is right up my alley. You get the creepiness and high stakes but you also get ballgowns and lavish masquerades, all with the backdrop of the old money upper class in New Orleans. You get jesters hiding behind Mardi Gras masks, one dead debutante, another missing debutante, and dark secrets surrounding the upper 1%. I really enjoyed this book so I hate to insult it by saying it reminds me of Gossip Girl mixed with Pretty Little Liars (the horrible show, not the books which I enjoyed!) because I enjoyed this book, but I did not like either of those two shows. Though, those shows are well liked amongst most people for some reason so most people wouldn’t take that statement as an insult as I would. It pains me to say it but it couldn’t help but come to mind because you’ve got these upper class country club bitches with multi million dollar mansions mixed in with a murder mystery and a masked mystery person tormenting them, so the comparison is right there. But, unlike those two shows (just my opinion) this book was actually well written and well plotted. Nor was it filled with unnecessary redundant drama or an absorbant confusing amount of red herrings. It got to the point and quickly, which I appreciated.

The opening scene is very Carrie, with Queen debutante Lily being assaulted with fake blood by masked jesters a video of the previous year’s now dead debutante plays in the background. From then on the book becomes so compulsively readable. I started this late at night intending to just start it, and then decided to stop once I was at the 50% mark, but then once I got past the 60% mark I decided I had to finish it. It was 2 AM at this point but I was up making tater tots and reading this book because I just couldn’t put it down.

I almost took away a star because the culprit was pretty easy to guess and was hoping for a big shocking twist reveal but I pretty much had suspected the person from the start. BUT, I put the star back because the story threw in a FANTASTIC ending even after the somewhat disappointing reveal. Plus, there is more to the mystery than just that one unmasking of the wolf at the end, so there are some other twists thrown in there that I didn’t guess. I love YA thrillers and this was a really good one. An easy read and super twisty!

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC! I really enjoyed this book and think it’s perfect for spooky season. The characters were great and the story hooked me right away. I did guess the twist towards the end, but it was still well-written! I’d recommend this for any fans of YA thrillers/mysteries!

The Debutantes is thriller set smack dab in the middle of Mardi Gras. The most important thing for the elite of the city is to parade their daughters around in the Les Masques Ball. But last year’s Queen is dead and this year’s is missing as three debutantes set out to find the missing Queen. The story is a dark tale of dangerous and dirty secrets among the rich and privileged. Told in alternating POVs, the girls each use unique perspectives to help uncover the truth in New Orleans’ upper class. The story twists and turns in a page turning suspense that will leave you wondering about all the real dirty secrets of high society. My voluntary, unbiased, and non-mandatory review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

The Debutantes by Olivia Worley is a thrilling mystery set in New Orleans’ elite debutante society. When current Queen Lily LeBlanc goes missing after the prestigious Les Masques Ball, her friends Vivian, Piper, and April must uncover dark secrets buried beneath the glittering surface. As they dig into the mysterious death of last year’s Queen, Margot Landry, they realize Lily’s disappearance may be linked—and that their own secrets are in danger of being exposed by a mysterious figure known as the Jester.

Worley blends suspense, high-society drama, and a Southern Gothic setting to craft an engaging, fast-paced read. With twists that keep you guessing, The Debutantes delivers the perfect mix of glitz, intrigue, and danger. A must-read for fans of Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl.

This was a fast-paced thriller that shows the dark and mysterious side of secret societies and the debutante world. I enjoyed the different points of views of the characters as they try to find Lily and what truly happened to Margot the night of the ball. I absolutely loved the New Orleans setting and it had me ready to head back to visit the Crescent City. This book had so many twists and turns that I was truly surprised by the ending. Such a fun YA read!