Thank you to NetGalley, Gill Books, Bolinda Audio, Sam Blake, and Roisin Rankin (audio narrator) for the opportunity to read and listen to the audiobook of Something's About to Blow Up in exchange for an honest review.

Incident Investigation
When an explosion occurs in the chemistry lab at Raven's Hill School in Dublin, six girls are injured. The initial assumption is an experiment gone wrong. When the Gardaí (Irish police) determine a potential bomb attack, questions arise about the target and the motive, causing the event to be thought of with a premeditated purpose.

Student Detectives
The injured students - Ella, Becky, Maeve, Mackenzie, Frankie, and Sorcha - are rushed to the hospital. Jess, unharmed in the accident, teams up with the others to investigate what might have actually happened. Their findings reveal something more sinister than anyone could have anticipated. With an investigation into serious chemicals that can be detonated by air to serious online photo posting that may lead to thoughts of revenge, Jess and the girls have a great deal to investigate. They certainly can't come to the authorities until they are sure of who they may accuse.

Unraveling the Mystery
As the investigation progresses, the students discover the incident at Raven's Hill School was not just an accident, but a deliberate and calculated attack, the true nature of which remains to be fully unveiled.

Final Thoughts
This novel explores the dangers of chemical use in the classroom, social media posting, and double-timing a significant other. While the title in itself is rather comical along with the little haphazardly blown up warning signs, the messages being offered within this novel make for serious lessons and take-aways for teen and early college age readers. This novel also has an allure for mystery and thrill seekers when it comes to uncovering the truth about not one, but two explosions in the school chemistry lab.

The narrator makes the audiobook enjoyable, and the novel has real-world applications for readers of the age that might be in high school or college working with chemicals. It sheds a light on the importance of safety in science classrooms as well as keeping chemicals locked up and inaccessible by students. Older teen and new adult readers will have a literal BLAST reading this one.

Thanks to Netgalley I was able to listen this book as an audiobook in return for an honest review (no audiobook option on Goodreads so I'm reviewing it here instead).
The plot centres around the girls, and to a lesser extent, the boys at two private schools in Ireland and focuses in particular upon an explosion at the girls' school and why it happened. Alongside that we have other intrigues - who carried out an assault on one of the boys, and who has shared intimate images of a Ravenhill girl.
I have to admit that I am an adult - this definitely feels like an audiobook for teens though. It had a plot that I could completely see appealing to my teen daughter, characters that would similarly appeal to her, and there were elements of the audio book (texts buzzing etc) that made it feel very contemporary to the teen world. For me this was probably what I liked least about the book - the repetitive nature of some aspects - Saoirse develops a 'this is what we know' document to share her musings with her friends and this was read out numerous times - to the point where it became a bit annoying. But the story itself and the way it played out was generally very good - for me this is somewhere between a 3.5* and a 4*

I’m a few decades older than the target audience of this book but I absolutely loved it! And I really must give a huge shout out to the excellent narration. The story included text messages and journal entries with multiple characters and the narrator did a fantastic job which definitely added to my enjoyment of the book.

I loved the positive female relationships and there was a strong storyline which kept me hooked. The story covered some serious issues affecting young adults and I felt these were responsibly dealt with. I hadn’t realised this was the second book in a series until after I finished it and looked up the author to find more books of hers to read, but it was so well written it honestly didn’t make a jot of difference.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bolinda Audio for an ARC of this audiobook.

The writing of this book was very good. I appreciated the character development and the flow of the plot. I had access to the audio version and production was easy to listen to and flowed nicely. With that being said, the content of this book felt very heavy to me and made me a bit uncomfortable to listen to.

A nice easy listening audiobook - easy listening in that the voice of the narrator is a lovely Irish accent, and the pace of the story is slow. - or feels slow.

It does deal with some important topics- revenge, violence, abusive behaviour and revenge porn.

That makes it sound quite harrowing, but it’s a lovely story and it does deal with the topics in a good way.

Overall, this is a good audiobook dealing with difficult topics in a sensible way.

My thanks to Netgalley and Bolinda Audio for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

I am not typically inclined to read YA fiction, but I enjoyed this mystery-based high school drama, incorporating social media and all the emotions tied to friendships and relationships at that age. I especially loved the Irish accent by the narrator since the school is set in Ireland, gave the performance added flair.

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook for review.

The audiobook was really well narrated and I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook. The storyline was really enjoyable and I liked the characters.

Something's About to Blow Up is a YA novel by Sam Blake. It is the first YA book I have read by the author and although this book is a follow-on to Something Terrible Happened Last Night, it worked well as a stand-alone.

The audio production of this book was really great! I loved the addition of the phone notification sounds as it really gave life to the text message passages. The narrator did a great job with a multitude of accents and at certain points I forgot that it was one single narrator as opposed to a full cast.

The story itself is perfect thriller for young adults. It's a bit of a "who done it" but it's not scary or gory so would make a good first thriller for a young reader. The setting of the school and the fact it takes place over 24 hours was great for keeping the pace of the story up. I really think young readers would enjoy it! It dealt with some quite serious topics such as the sharing of, and threat to share, personal/intimate photographs in a really good way.

Although this book works really well as a stand-alone, there was a brief mention of the group having "form" for investigating/solving crimes previously, so I think it could be a good idea to read the books in sequence, in order to build a great relationship with the characters.

This book is a follow on from another book that I have not read but this book stands alone very well. I had no idea at any point this was a second book.

Book is loaded with trigger warnings which was a bit weird to me for kids as young as they are in the book. Book has child grooming, revenge porn and some pretty disturbing psychological issues.

It was a bit slow for me but all in all the story worked for me and it was a decent book.

3.5 rounded up

TW: Psychological issues, partner grooming of a minor towards abuse, revenge porn.

This was such a well done book. This book really highlighted the issues facing a younger generation of girls and women that are coming up in a mostly online world. All of the issues are shown through the lens of seven girls attending an all-girls high school. They interact with the all-boys school nearby, and some live at home with brothers while others board at the school. This story weaves together a glorious plot that highlights the ease with which the modern world allows for young people to be taken advantage of. It also shows the dark side of popularity online and off and the hubris that can bring.

Seven young women come together while recovering from various injuries after an explosion at school to try to figure out what happened. They are fun to follow and get to know better, and the twisting in this plot is fantastic. I enjoyed this book so much, and would highly recommend it. It had an agenda from page one, and the book stayed true to that and told these stories honestly and openly. It was such a good read.

I'd recommend this book to anyone over the age of 13 who likes mysteries, and it is an excellent book to read together with your 11-13 year old daughter to start conversations about any bullying or coercion they may be experiencing at school or in extra curriculars. This book is as much a conversation starter as it is a good read.

Thank you for the ARC!

The style of writing, from several peoples perspective and the clock counting down for something took me a little while to get into. Roisin Rankin’ excellent narration really gave life to Sam Blake’s book.
I wanted to know who posted the pictures, who beat Justin up and who caused the explosion in the science block. I loved that little clues were given along the way, to get you to feel included in the story and help to work it out.
A very enjoyable audiobook. Thank you

As an American school tragedies are normal. This was not written for our messed up jaded selves. I loved it though. I really felt for these kids. I was into the mysteries too. I absolutely loved the narration and the sound effects!

This novel takes a different twist on the revenge at school story. Raven’s Hill School's 11- —and 12-year-old students, Ella, Becky, Maeve, Mackenzie, Frankie, Sorcha, and Jess, are caught up in solving the puzzle of who blew up the chemistry lab at their English boarding school. Their teacher had been ready to show the power of chemicals, taking half into a second room to view a demonstration of chemicals for their first foray into chemistry when, suddenly, the lab exploded with two bangs. This novel did a great job explaining where everyone was and how that changed the injuries they sustained. Partially told through flashbacks, the mystery uncovers many other issues at play: abusive relationships, nude photos, inner struggles, and blackmail.

I enjoyed the pace of this story. The chapters were concise, and the reader could not help but be engaged with so many issues to solve. However, every once in a while, something seemed too advanced for a middle school student. For example, the team can hack into the hospital's CCTV at one point. While not impossible, this seems slightly more than the average United States middle schooler’s abilities.

This novel does not have any sexual scenes, although it discusses the nude online photos they are not described. The plot talks about the pressures the person was under when the images were taken and how they don’t appreciate their use. Sadly, this is a very believable issue for middle schoolers.

While some confusion may happen with it being set in England and the students' skills may be a little over the top, the book would be great in a middle school or high school. I think the middle schoolers would love a book about themselves that is so power-packed.

I hadn’t realise that this was a follow up to Something Terrible Happened Last Night, which I hadn’t read. Although this did not affect the read and it could be read as a standalone. I enjoyed the book although it wasn’t a favourite. The story flowed well and the characters were likeable.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. I loved the group of friends at the centre of the story and their relationships with their families and each other.

The hospital setting and the premise of how the girls use modern technology to investigate the cause of the explosion, from their hospital beds, was unique. It takes the expression “armchair detective” to a new level!

The book delicately covers a range of current and important topics that affect a lot of teenagers including bullying, anxiety and other complex issues.

Parts of the story were told through text messages, shared e-documents, journal entries and group chat/message boards which was interesting and realistic, and the narrator did a great job of flipping between these. She also managed the different accents really well and has such a lovely voice, it was a joy to listen to.

As it was set over 24 hours, the plot was fast paced, however, some parts of the mystery element were a bit predictable (the clues were just a little too obvious), and it took me a while to differentiate between all the characters, because there was a lot of them!

I hadn’t realised this was a sequel. It works well as a standalone story, but I do plan to read (or listen to) the previous book now as it was referred to a couple of times and I want to hear more about the girl’s adventures. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you to Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for this ALC.

3.5 stars

I really enjoyed the first book, so it was a delight to return to Frankie, her cousin Sorcha, Jess and Katie. This time around, the girls are caught up in a chemistry lab explosion at their school. With the clock thinking, the girls try to solve the mystery while being separated in different hospital wards.

Roisin Rankin is the perfect choice for a narrator with her calm and warm voice. Importantly, she sounds like she could be a teenager which is an issue I have with YA audiobooks – the narrators sound too old which I find jarring and takes me out of the story. She also is one of the few non-Australian actors who can do a pretty accurate Australian accent.

The strength of these books is the friendship between Frankie, her cousin Sorcha, Jess and Katie. I really loved their rapport and the way they all work together with their different talents. Supporting characters, such as Frankie's older brother Ollie and her new boyfriend Danny are back to also lend a hand.

At times, however, there was too much going on so it felt like there was enough time to fully develop. For instance, this book touches on misogyny with a girl dealing with her private photos being shared with other boys and a coercive control relationship, but the resolution doesn’t really pay off. I also found the unknown culprit chapters a bit too moustache twirly.

Overall a great series for your crime-loving teen.

Thanks to Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for the ALC.

Audiobook Review - Overall I enjoyed this audiobook as well as the narrator. However, I think if I had been reading this I wouldn't have finished. For me it was the narration that helped me stick with it until the end. The story started off great, but it seemed to slow down and stall about 3/4 of the way through. This one was just ok overall.

I enjoyed this to a point but it was a YA/early teens read. Although I do enjoy that genre this was too young for my taste. I did DNF it but I liked te narrator and the storyline would be great for a younger audience

DNF - I gave this one to 40% but unfortunately I just couldn't get into it. It felt slow paced with not much holding my attention. I wasn't endeared by any of the characters. I wasn't inclined to want to listen which isn't like me. So I decided to time to move on... You can't win them all and that's the beauty of books.

The premise of this book was great as was the plot, the characters complimented both well. Made me laugh and also stay interested. The cover made it look a little YA I thought, but overall a great listen, have reccomended to friends