Pride Or Die , by CL Montblanc
.5-1/5⭐️

TRIGGER WARNINGS-
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Violence, drinking, attempted murder, bullying, homophobia

This book just wasn’t for me. I think it’s more for a younger audience like middle/high school. With that being said I had a few issues that made it difficult to push though to finish.
-Unbelievable that at 17 they don’t know that they shouldn’t be questioned as minors alone. But later on she says shouldn’t they have a lawyer present when they are questioned again. Not one of them said let me call my adult???? Even though Tyler is wanting to get into law school…
-How the principal gets away with calling them “blt” and then gets mad at “sloppy joe” but none of the kids stand up for themselves or tells their parent’s. The email was proof that the principal calls them “slurs/names”.
-That the school/cops jump right past them as suspects and to them as being the ones who did it with next to no evidence and everyone, even the parent’s just roll with it…
-Adults weren’t notified about the assault and the kids were just sent home without a parent knowing they were leaving school grounds.
-Adults weren’t notified cops showed up and took them in for questioning.
-Throughout the whole book it goes on about a murderer/killer on the loose but she wasn’t killed and is not dead. “That everyone has to watch out for a violent person”, when it was just one isolated incident…
-Very overly descriptive and overly done. Felt like a child trying to write a creative writing assignment and use all the big, new fancy words that they just learned.
-Let the principal interfere with the investigation/do his own, like talk to the kids without an adult, interject into an active case and talk to suspects????
-Academic probation?!?! Again where’s the parents…are they not to be informed of anything…
-Teachers not standing up for the kids…it’s like she’s just throwing characters in that really don’t serve a purpose, just might be needed for some reason later on…
-Seemed to make a bigger deal than the situation that was actually presented in the books, over doing it?
-Kenley’s Injuries were so sever but no one heard or saw anything?
-Arrested as a minor but no parents contacted…
-The guidance counsellor is OK giving out information about her coworkers to a student trying to solve a crime instead of reporting everything to the parents and the police. And then fleas when there’s danger instead of staying and getting help.
-Her mom jokes about her solving the case yet. Not even the parents take it seriously. Not going to the school or police to confront them about the treatment of their children.
-All of this was not done right, no basis for the book…No research was done at all in prep for this book.
-I don’t understand how Eleanors’s point about how Sal could’ve done it based off of Kenley’s statement equated to her being racist. I don’t get how it has anything to do with him being a Muslim and why that was even brought up? Felt like they were trying to tackle to many diff subject matters and narratives and out them in places where they didn’t quite fit.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, for giving me an E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Pride or Die is a YA thriller/mystery where a LGBTQ+ club in a high school gets framed for a crime then sets out to clear their own name.

It’s a fun, fast paced thriller that acknowledges the difficulties that students have truly being themselves. The club suffers a lot of bullying and even hate from the administration and cops due to their respective sexualities / gender identities. This is a prominent plot point that impacts both the investigation and the characters personal lives.

Mental health issues are well written and the author is clearly interested in intersectionality within the LGBTQ+ community and the impacts that has on its members.

I loved that all of the characters have secrets and there were plenty of twists. I also appreciated that sometimes the characters made really questionable decisions, they are high schoolers after all, so it felt more realistic.

I enjoyed this campy teen mystery! It wasn't what I expected (I had expected it to be a lot darker), but the LGBTQIA+ representation was spot on, and the main cast of characters was lovable and fun. The most of the adult characters were a bit cartoonish, but I think that's the vibe the author was going for.

I'd recommend this to anyone who is in the mood for a low-stakes mystery with a whole lot of silliness -- think Scooby Doo, but super queer!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to review this ARC!

With a title like ‘Pride or Die,’ I was expecting something slightly more hard-hitting. At no time during the story did there feel like any real danger happening. I did enjoy the storytelling and characters. Also, without going into any spoilers, the ending felt very Kumbaya. I was hoping for more suspense and mystery.

This book was camp. Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for letting me read this early!

Sometimes I feel envious of this generation and all of the inclusion they seem to have - when I came out a million years ago, I didn’t think twice about it, but I also got treated like sh*t by A LOT of people… strangers, friends, and family alike. This book definitely made me realize it’s still not “easy” for queer youth, just because there’s more visibility and social norms these days - especially in states like Texas.
As in a lot of YA, the angst level is high, and I didn’t always connect with Eleanora’s extreme need to help everyone. As a people-pleaser myself, I thought she was a bit much, but I did appreciate her and her band of misfits. Though I do think some of the stunts they pulled to solve the mystery were borderline jailable. And I could see two love stories coming from a mile away.
This is cute, deep, and a sad reality for way too many youths who just want to be themselves. I hate that things have progressed enough to make being out easier and this book definitely emphasizes some important changes that should be made for our queer youth in this country. It’s a great read for any YA readers especially.

yes, i believe in the holy trinity! (gays, chaos, and attempted murder)

in all seriousness, this is an incredibly hilarious and refreshing mystery novel! i truly fell in love with it and hope it gets all the hype it deserves!!

okay i absolutely LOVED this book. genuinely such amazing writing and great characters and plot. i lovee eleanora and i absolutely loved how her and kenley got together in the end! super funny and wholesome book with some crazy things to keep you on your toes!! make sure to give this a read! also salim is literally my son i love him

ABSOLUTELY LOVED!!!!!! I loved that I wasn't able to figure out who did it till the characters did, I never would have guess that person would have been the one to do it, but once I read the reasoning it clicked. I loved that there was so much representation of the LGBT+ community, I felt so bad for the characters in the club because they did nothing wrong but try to be themselves and that's hard enough in high school. The fact that there was bullying, racism, bigotry and other social issues was very important to read about because I feel like these are things that happen daily but never really get addressed.

I loved the characters, the plot, the overall message of this book and would 100% recommend it to any teenager who felt like they didn't belong, were being bullied or were just questioning who they were, because I feel like they would come out of reading this feeling like they had been heard.

I'm not sure why, but I was under the impression that this book was a horror and it very much is not. This one is definitely a murder (ish) mystery/thriller with a cast of lovely characters and an engaging story, though it did start to drag there a bit in the middle. The plot twist caught me by surprise- that doesn't happen often. All in all a fun mystery with enjoyable characters.

First of all, I LOVE THE title. Like 10/10 obsessed, so it pains me that I didn't love the book as much as the title. I think I was hoping for more queer horror rather than queer mystery solving, but if you're looking for that, this will hit the spot.

I really liked this one. It achieves the tone of a dark comedy with the main characters flaws and shortcomings often landing her in hot water. The premise pays appropriate attention to the difficulties that these teens are facing and the perceived burden of protecting not only herself and the current students but future students who would need community as well. I thought the mystery was pretty well done and the suspense builds well.

This book was so freaking good!

I went into this book expecting mystery, suspense, and unexpected twists—and wow, did it deliver! But what truly blew me away was how much heart and humor were packed into this story. The characters felt so real, like I could turn the page and find them sitting right next to me, bickering, laughing, and trying (poorly) to solve a murder.

When the tiny four-member LGBTQIA+ club finds themselves accused of an attempted murder, they have no choice but to investigate the crime themselves. What follows is a fast-paced, darkly funny, and wildly entertaining high school mystery with just the right balance of tension and hilarity. The friendships, the banter, and the awkward yet adorable romantic tension had me hooked from start to finish.

I adored Noah and his chaotic, loudmouth humor—the Mario and Luigi moment? I was CACKLING. And Eleanora? A stressed-out, anxious, reluctant detective with a crochet hook instead of a weapon? Absolute perfection!

This book completely scratched my itch for a sharp, clever high school dark comedy. If you love queer found family, witty dialogue, and murder mysteries with a side of heart, you need to read this. Not exactly a thriller, but 100% thrilling. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Pride or Die is about an LGBTQ+ group who are framed for an attempted murder at their school and forced to solve the mystery to clear their names, despite the bigotry and discrimination they face by students and administration. I disagree with the characterization that it's a comedy -- while there are many humorous parts, overall I would consider it a mystery or drama, not comedy. Certainly there's nothing humorous about how hateful people are towards these students. I really appreciated that the author created important nuance -- each character had depth, including the would-be villains--and even the "good" people had flaws and things to work on. The author also included important conversations about racism and intersectionality. I loved the diverse characters and the representation in the book. The plot twists were fun and kept me guessing. I think this would appeal to so many types of readers: certainly those who like mystery, teens solving crime, or suspense would enjoy it but there are also elements of realistic fiction, humor, and romance as well. This would be a great addition to any secondary school or public library collection. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

This was really well written and well done, just not really my cup of tea. However, I would fully recommend this though!

Thank you to St.Martin's Press for an early electronic copy via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

A murder (almost) on a high school campus is investigated by a group of harassed members of a LGBTQ+ school club. This seems to be book one of a future series. Young Adult in genre with some laughs and serious moments along the way, it had lgbtq+ vibes of the group of investigators featured in Scooby Doo. Each character has a distinct personality and brings their talents, or lack thereof, to the investigation.
When a popular cheerleader is seemingly attacked from behind and quickly blamed on the club, leader, Seventeen-year-old Eleanora Finke, rallies her group to prove their innocence. Her motivation beyond the obvious, is to keep the club going in hopes of providing a safe haven for future students.

The things I enjoyed about this book are: the lack of serious violence and the cozy-ish nature of the plot albeit with a serious statement to be made. The adults are from all walks of life and allies have a distinguished place among the characters. The guidance counselor was a breath of fresh air.

I enjoyed this read by Montblanc and the representation in the story. It was a nice mystery and had some good twists and turns. I think it is one that will be well received by my 9th graders.

I loved this book! PRIDE OR DIE was a funny debut about a high school's LGBTQ+ club trying to clear their names in a case of an attempted murder. The characters were all great and the voice felt authentic to today's teens. Highly recommend!

Well, this book is so good I can’t even realise that is a debut! Wow! This is more noticeable. The book is funny, the style is so light that, even when the story darkened, it’s never completely dark. I like that.
The characters are pretty solid (even if the adults are a little flat) and the plot is really well built. The mystery is solid. I like this book a lot and can’t say to discover what her this author can do!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

I was so happy to get a free kindle copy of this book from NetGalley. It sounded so good, and I really wanted to read this! So many books that sound good end up falling short, but this one exceeded all of my expectations. Loved it so much!

There were so many great passages from the book that I wanted to share on my feed, things that were so funny or emotional. With getting an advanced reader copy, I can't share any of them, though. I am sure other readers will share them later. There are moments that are so funny, but others that are very heavy, with the topics being dealt with.

At first, I had no idea who the murderer was. Then, I was 99.9% sure I knew who it was. I was 100% wrong. Didn't even suspect the person. Not a single clue.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the free kindle book. My review is voluntarily given and my opinions are my own.

Triggers: homophobia, bullying, Islamophobia