(3.5 rounded up) Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I don’t want my rating to discourage anyone from reading it. However, I do think I would have appreciated it much more if I had read it in my teens. The book is very much geared toward a young adult audience, which is great… for teens. The writing is strong, and the story has a philosophical edge. It’s like Gossip Girl with a thriller twist. If marketed properly, I think this book could do really well, especially as an introduction to dark academia for that age group.

The story follows Marin James, a teen who transfers to a private academy after discovering her cousin’s death. Driven by a desire for revenge, she sets out to track down the teens she believes are responsible for her cousin’s murder. Under the alias Jamie Vane, she befriends her suspected targets, only to discover that the situation is far more complicated than she expected. They’re wicked—but she’s worse. Have they met their match?

Thanks, Netgalley, and roaring book press for this ARC.

Jamie is clawing for revenge. In order to execute this she must disguise herself in a world of popularity and deception. Even though the suspects are captivating and beautiful, she will risk anything in order to hurt those who killed her cousin.

I'm not sure how to feel about this one. There was so much poetry in Howell's words that it felt Shakespearean. I enjoyed the mystery behind her characters but still wanted more explored. I love her writing style, but I do prefer a more concise and clear plot, so that I could understand what I am rooting for. Still, I was very drawn to her storytelling and give her major kudos for her characters. It was like Gossip Girl meets Interview with a Vampire, and I loved that. I just felt empty at the end, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing, just not what I wanted out of it.

Yeah so this has been marketed wrong I think. everyone is talking about it and it's not what they are saying, not queer, not romantic, and... not for me. I don't mind the no romance or queer part but this style is the kind of dark academia I don't like. It's a debut book and I know a good chunk of people will like it but it was not for me. Characters felt flat and the story was too slow to not have depth of character. By 80% I didn't really care about the ending.

As soon as I read the first page, I knew I was in for a incredible story. Jenni Howell's prose itself is beautiful and intoxicating, gripping the reader not only from chapter to chapter but also sentence to sentence. The story itself had me in its grip, unable to think about anything else, until I finished it. Jenni's characters, brought to life by her incredible writing, is raw and real and unlike anything I've read in quite a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Roaring Brook Press for a copy of this arc in exchange for an hones review.

Stunningly visual, at times dense and other times delectable, Boys with Sharp Teeth is a standout debut from Jenni Howell. A sibling to Maggie Stiefvater’s Raven Boys, mixed with a little bit of the cult classic The Covenant and popular Wednesday, Boys with Sharp Teeth is gorgeous, captivating, and spellbinding whodunnit that examines grief and culpability in new and curious ways.

The novel follows Marin James who seeks justice for her cousin Sam after he dies under mysterious circumstances at Huntsworth Academy. Posing as a student herself, Marin infiltrates the elusive community filled with opportunity and temptation. She befriends Adrian, Henry and Baz, three friends she knows have something to do with Sam’s death. They’re beautiful, but are they deadly? It’s not as simple as expected to seek and destroy, and before too long, Marin herself is pulled into their web.

I really enjoyed this one – all the vibes, all the pretty boys. Yet, I also at times found it difficult to read and had to re-read certain passages to make sure I understood what was happening. My own amateur reading aside, I felt fascinated and I felt moved.

Book finished, review currently a work in progress and will be updated here and posted on socials when it's finalised.

This book is a love letter. From the second it starts, it’s a love letter, but not to who you expect.

Everything is done through love. But maybe not in the way you expect or to who you expect.

And this is my love letter to this book.

I was drawn in from the very first page and it haunted my dreams when I wasn’t reading it.

The sections at the start of each part are by far my favorite. I read them multiple times because the feelings they inspired in me are feelings I haven’t felt from a book in a long, long time.

Is it horror? No. Is it gothic? Sort of. Is it dark academia? Yes.

The atmosphere of this book added so much to the story that would’ve been lacking without it.

During the middle of the book, I felt like it was lagging, but after reading the final act (wow by the way), everything made perfect sense and I knew exactly why the plot slowed in the middle.

For one of the plot twists, my mouth dropped open, and I stared at the wall for a little while trying to figure out how I missed it and where all the pieces collected. 10/10.

I greatly enjoyed this book. In time, I would absolutely read it again. I ordered the Owlcrate edition before reading this book, and boy oh boy am I glad that I will have a gorgeous edition of one of my favorite reads of the year.

Keep in mind, this book is all about the vibes.

Thank you so very much to Macmillan, Jenni Howell, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. It made my year when I saw the notification that I received this ARC. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by the manner in which I received this book.

This was one of my biggest anticipated releases for this year so when I saw I was given an ARC for it I was so so happy. But after finishing it I have to say it was disappointing, first off the whole story starts off very unbelievable, the main character somehow sneaks into an exclusive school by faking her name and no one questions it and she just so happens to become close with the exact group of people she’s trying to hunt down without even trying they’re supposed to be a secretive group of people but they instantly let her in. The main character was also just very unlikeable i’m all for a morally gray FMCs but she was just trying so hard to sound dark and depressed and for someone whose whole goal is to find her cousins killer she literally does nothing to find them. The whole time shes complaining about catching feelings for these guys that supposedly killed her cousin while also trying to get them to confess and it just makes no sense.

Thanks to the Publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I almost DNF'd a few times in the first 80% of the book. I started getting confused with the time-line because it really felt like Jamie was at the school months, when in reality it was a couple weeks. There was so much packed into the last 20%. I did highlight a few lines. The writing was beautiful at times but lacked in the storytelling department. I'm sad because I love the cover and I'm sure the hard copy is going to be gorgeous.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and Jenni Howell for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you love dark academia with angst and morally gray characters, Boys With Sharp Teeth is exactly what you’re looking for. Gothic horror and philosophy weave through the story as the characters grapple with questions of good and evil, humanity, and power.

Marin James isn’t just another student—she has a mission. After losing her cousin under suspicious circumstances, she infiltrates an elite academy determined to uncover the truth. But what she finds is far more sinister than she expected. Drawn into a web of toxic dynamics, dangerous games, and buried secrets, she quickly learns that no one here is innocent.

This book is filled with deeply flawed, utterly compelling characters. The atmosphere is haunting, the tension palpable, and the ending? Let’s just say I won’t be looking at mirrors the same way.

Jenni Howell’s writing is immersive, eerie, and impossible to put down. It’s exactly the kind of book that pulls you in and doesn’t let go. I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

This was a weird one, often feeling like a fever dream or that I had missed some context. I think this’ll be fairly divisive – if you like dark, moody vibes with lots of sexual tension and thriller aspects, then this might be for you. But if you need your books to make sense, I wouldn’t recommend this.

Marin’s goal is to infiltrate a prestigious boarding school to enact revenge on her cousin Sam’s killers, but the difficult parts of that plan breeze by so that she can get right to forging odd romantic but hateful but bff-style relationships with the killers. She seemed to lose the plot of figuring out what exactly happened to Sam multiple times, instead getting caught up in her conflicting sexual feelings of this group that just automatically took her in. Some aspects of this do get explained near the end, but between her pinings, long-winded inner monologues, and philosophy tangents, most of this book went so slow that I had checked out by the halfway point, after which I sped-read to get it done.

Generally, I just wanted more from this book. More spookiness, more thrills, more focus on Marin trying to get the evidence she needs. Things pick up in the last15% but I kept getting taken out of the story because of the sexual tension continuing to play out with the people who she knows for sure killed her cousin.

Extremely well written dark academia, YA murder mystery. I love the inner monologues, the mysterious characters, the dark feels. Following the FMC undercover in a dark feeling academy seeking answers to solve a murder is a read that feels interactive. I wanted to solve the murder with her. I highly recommend this read.

Spoiler-free review: Boys With Sharp Teeth
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

I mean this in a good way (I think?) but what did I just read? This read exactly like an A24 film and I don’t really know how else to describe it. I liked it… but I also feel like I didn’t know what was going on the whole time? It was deliciously WEIRD and incredibly unique. Would I ever read it again? No. Did I like any of the characters? No. Was it superrr unrealistic? Yes. But did I still like it? I think so. I’m confused but also satisfied if that makes any sense at all?

I absolutely loved all the quotes from different authors and philosophers throughout this novel. The thoughts on life and death and purpose were fascinating and added so much to the plot. The prose is gorgeous- I could read Howell’s writing every day.

But overall, I feel like this whole book was a fever dream.

Thank you SO very much to Jenni Howell and NetGalley for the eARC - The opinions in this review are left here honestly and voluntarily.

For some time after reading this book I was torn between rating it either four star or two. Four stars for surprising me with the twisty bits and the shocking conclusion - or two stars for practically the same reason. I didn't really want to settle on a three but after some chit-chat this is what I've begrudgingly decided, making Boys with Sharp Teeth unfortunately very middle-of-the-road despite the pretty words within that remind me of Kelly Andrew's and C.G. Drew's work - which craft such an eerie atmosphere that's just dripping with suspense and underlying horror.

I really wanted to give this book a higher rating but I feel that how easily it lends itself to suspending reality for pricey co-ed academies where checks for tuition can bounce for a semester, where teenage girls can go missing in a small town without anyone looking for her, and, ultimately, the supernatural makes for an odd end where real-world consequences are imposed. Maybe if the ending was a little more ambiguous, like most supernatural horrors, and didn't go on to cover the in-depth things it did then it might have secured that elusive fourth star.
It just felt odd to think that the reveal could be stomached by police and prosecutors without pushback mentioned when going to them was always otherwise refuted as an option.

I also wouldn't call this a romance because I don't necessarily think that kissing equals romance - even in YA books. It definitely plants itself solely in the horror / supernatural / suspense categories with perhaps a trope of a tangled-up love-triangle -- er.. square?? Speaking of, I also just can't believe that Baz, one of the main characters, is not mentioned in the blurb. She was as involved as every other character with just as much mystery but still it's marketed as mentioning just the boys and the roles they potentially play in the murder of Marin's cousin. There were times when I was equally as suspicious of her for reasons that were planted far more in reality than Adrian and Henry.

The Raven Boys is one of my most favourite series so I knew I had to request this and I'm so glad I did, the comparison was spot on, also reminded me a bit of Dorian Gray, fantastic plot and well written characters, absolutely loved this!

The description comparing this to the Raven Boys is what drew me in, and that comparison is spot on - imagine the Raven Boys meets The Secret History and you've got it. Engaging plot, intriguing characters, and a greatly paced story.

This book was incredibly well done. I loved every single moment of it and I’m so honored Netgalley decided to accept my request because again, it was just THIS good. From the plot to the characters and storylint, this book made me feel all the emotions. So so good.

I really wanted to like this book but it was a bit convoluted and messy.

For me, the troubled teens were at times incoherent with their half speeches. The subtext the reader is supposed to pick up on wasn't loud enough to understand what was being implied. Emotions were bouncing up and down on every page. It was exhausting and I couldn’t follow their motivations..

The ending could have been very climactic, but the paranormal plot device was under developed, so it just fell way short.

“Hauntings take more than mist and mountains. More than dark corridors and twisting paths, more than shuttered windows and creaking floors. Hauntings take greed. Pride. And brokenness.”

my ARC review of Boys With Sharp Teeth by Jenni Howell.

like Raven Boys, but make it more upper YA, dark, & add some psychopathic teenagers, murder mystery, & feminine rage.

half the time I read this I loved it, half the time I hated it. it’s almost more an experience than a book, & the writing style might just make this a new favorite. I think this is going to be a super divisive book but I ended up falling on the loving it side.

side note: this is NOT a romance & it isn’t queer either. I feel like, from what I’ve seen, people are getting the wrong idea about it so just FYI.

thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC 🫶

🪞 upper YA dark academia
🩸 first person, single POV
🪞standalone
🩸the writing style hooked me from the beginning
🪞almost dreamlike, feverish, but vivid writing style
🩸revenge & feminine rage
🪞forced proximity
🩸dark, gothic, spooky, & atmospheric
🪞& they were roommates
🩸elite rich kid academy
🪞very intense & melodramatic from page one
🩸mirror mirror on the wall, who’s the creepiest of them all
🪞supernatural elements
🩸twisty turny characters (who can you trust?)
🪞I haven’t read it but I feel like this would be great for fans of If We Were Villains
🩸philosophy
🪞the occult
🩸grief & loss
🪞how thin is the line between love & hate?
🩸often long winded
🪞the author really said Villain origin story ftw
🩸I definitely get the Raven Boys comparison. it’s like very dark Raven Boys if Blue went to Ravenwood & all the characters were morally gray & sus af

After reading the synopsis of this book, I was immediately intrigued by it as it sounded very interesting to me. It was pitched as We Were Liars meets The Raven Boys, which made me even more interested in reading it. The story centers around a 17 year old girl named Marin James whose cousin is found dead on the property of a mysterious and prestigious school called Huntsworth Academy. I love novels revolving around spooky schools so I thought this one would be right up my alley but I am sad to say that this book did not live up to my expectations. The premise itself was promising and sounded interesting but the actual execution of the novel was just okay. Marin ends up going to Huntsworth in order to find justice for her cousin, which I found to be intriguing. I liked the characters but the pacing of the novel was a bit slow for my taste. I found myself growing bored as I read the novel and it never really picked up for me. I definitely wish I liked this novel better than I did.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!