Unfortunately, this one did not hit for me like I had hoped. I expected some drama but not to the extent that I read. Some topics were also a big triggering for me and I just couldn’t get past it. Other than that, everything is written in a nice flow and I think so many readers will enjoy it. Like the synopsis says, it gives magnolia parks and gossip girl vibes for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this opportunity to read this novel early. I’m very grateful.

This one’s for the og fans of the Gossip Girl / One Tree Hill universes with the Maxton Hall vibes! My cup of tea 👑

I used to be a huge fan of college romance a few years ago, but this trope didn’t hit as hard for me as I grew older… Astor Hill though, is in another league 🏆

The characters are surprisingly mature even through all the drama (love that). Real and sensitive topics like grief and mental health weave the story altogether and it was beautifully done! ❤️‍🩹

For the romance addicts here on booksta, this one’s main tropes are boyfriend’s stepbrother (hello one tree hill) and a bit of sports romance (hello one tree hill🏀). I would have loved if there was a bit more spice, but the tension between the characters was still unreal 🔥

Astor Hill is projected to be the first book in a series of interconnected stand-alones and I just can’t wait to see what the authors have in store!! 🫶✨

2 stars ✰
ꕀ this was not my cup of tea.. unfortunately.

tbh. im not going to fault the author for why I could not entirely connect with this—it’s more so a me problem, and my personal taste. the tropes were not for me, I don’t like cheating or lying, or lack of communication between characters. and that’s literally all this was.

🤎 my thoughts 🤎

🍂in general. obviously, when I heard it was going to be similar to ‘gossip girl’ and ‘one tree hill’ I know I was gonna deal with some controversial complex characters, but i expected them to have a redeeming quality. something to make them likeable or make me root for the couple and see that they’re meant to be, but i genuinely had no hope. they were just horrible people, and I did not want to see them happy 😭

💔the cheating. okay so there wasn’t any actual cheating, in terms of physically, but olivia knew she had feelings for ben, but whenever will (her literal BOYFRIEND) called her out on it, she would gaslight him into thinking he was crazy for even thinking that and would LIE, LIE, LIEEE. also ben is not the best brother considering he was literally pining over his bro’s gf with no shame. flirting endlessly, trying to get close to her.. what is wrong with them ohmygosh.

🩰 the romance. im not gonna lie, the cheating wasn’t even worth it. like sometimes you’ll see it in a show or something, and they cheat but they’re so clearly made for eachother, im just like they’re clearly soulmates and while they shouldn’t have done that i still want them to be together. but I didn’t even see the love between ben and liv. IT WAS SO DEAD. atleast give us a good couple if you’re gonna make them shitty human beings 😭😭 idk it definitely lacked.

📚writing & world building. this was the only good part of the book. for 200 pages, there was a lot of story. I don’t wanna spoil but I just expected the depth of the story to be very-surface level and shallow, but in that aspect the author really excelled. the writing also wasn’t cringe at all, I think it was really done well for a debut (??) author. I just didn’t like the characters, the couples, or anything really LMAO or I would’ve appreciated it a bit more bc I think she has potential. so if u like the premise of the book definitely go for it!

🫂 conclusion 🫂

i really don’t like being a hater, and i hate writing negative reviews they make me feel so guilty. but in the end, i said I would give an honest review and i definitely did! im not opposed to checking out this author’s other future works bc i did like the writing, but this book was not for me sadly ❤️‍🩹

thank you to netgalley and PS published for this arc in exchange for an honest review!!

"Astor Hill" captured the beauty of personal growth, struggles, grief, friendship, and toxic relationships so perfectly that it had me crying every other page. This REALLY put a lot of things into perspective for me when looking back onto my personal experiences with love and friendship. Olivia's thoughts were so relatable sometimes, especially her grief and her trauma.
The writing style was so beautifully done and I enjoyed both Olivia and Ben so so so much. Although I did feel like their relationship happened quite quickly in the second half of the book, but that mgiht just be me because I did read the second half all in one night (oopsies). I could not for the life of me put it down and once I got to the 60ish% mark, I was so done for. The tension between these two was so good, and I actually didn't mind the closed-door spice for once.
The breaking, the healing, the grieving... wow, I felt this book in the very core of my soul and half the time I was either flabbergasted or screaming "omg this is so me!!".
The first half was a bit slow, whereas the second half really took things to a different level for me. Lilly's and Will's story was so heartbreaking and devastating, but I feel that the friendship between Olivia and her best friend truly represents so many friendships in this coming-of-age time, especially when starting college.

ALSO can we PLEASE talk about Gen and Grant?????
I need their book like NOW! I feel like I'm going out of my mind lol

So yeah...
Was this a very much gut-wrenching, healing, and beautifully written read? Absolutely.
Was the storyline something truly original and inventional? No.
This storyline (brother's brother x fmc) was definitely used similarly before in other books I have read before, but nonetheless, I loved this read, only not for the storyline this time, but the writing and all the differenct facets of human life.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Astor Hill.
All of my opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sydney Madison for allowing me to ARC read for ‘Astor Hill.’

Unfortunately, I really struggled reading this one, and everything felt very ‘drawn out,’ to the point where I felt bored reading it.
Olivia, the main character, is extremely unlikeable, I didn’t relate to her at all, she was needlessly catty and gave off ‘pick me’ vibes.

The story didn’t really go anywhere for the first 60% of this book, and I found myself thinking ‘get to the point.’ The pay off of the ‘secret-reveal’ was really lacklustre.

I’m all for a love triangle, but there was absolutely no chemistry between Ben, Will or Olivia, and it unfortunately didn’t feel believable at all.

I was drawn in by the claims that this is a perfect book for fans of ‘Magnolia Parks’ or ‘Gossip Girl,’ but I didn’t really get those vibes, either.

The cover art is stunning, and the spice was done well, but I think everything else needs a lot of work, and I think this could have been summed up in around 200 pages or so.

I’m very grateful for the opportunity to ARC read for this book, but it really fell short of my expectations.

Sydney Madison’s Astor Hill is a fantastic blend of mystery and small-town intrigue. From the very first page, the atmosphere grabs you, pulling you into a place that feels like it holds a hundred secrets. The pacing is a bit slow at times, but it works—every detail and conversation feels like it’s building toward something big. The characters are layered and interesting, with motives you can never quite figure out. If you’re a fan of dark, atmospheric reads with twists and turns you didn’t see coming, Astor Hill will definitely keep you hooked. It’s a slow burn, but the payoff is totally worth it. Thank you netgalley for arc review

I wanted more from this book. I had no idea what to expect going into this as I've never read this author before. I'm sad to say it felt like there was no depth to the characters. I ADORE flawed characters. They're more real. However, these characters were just entirely unlikeable. The first chapter didn't start off strong with the FMC having some weird jealousy over her "best friend" and it just kind of went down hill from there. I feel like the description portrayed to make the book more interesting by comparing it to well loved stories like Magnolia Parks, One Tree Hill, and Gossip Girl. But those stories have depth and character development. With my dislike for the characters, I just was not invested in their story and getting through to the ending was not easy. I would not recommend this book.

This is my first DNF. I started this ARC a few months ago and could not get past 30%. I tried but made resolution to only read what suits me and this wasn’t it.
The pace of the book felt slow to me. I didn’t enjoy the cheating and third act breakup. I didn’t enjoy Olivia as a character. She was too entitled and toxic. Ben was favorite character, he seemed like a genuine guy.
The cover of the book gave me cozy fall vibes but this book didn’t portray the same vibes to me while reading.
Thank you for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and PS Published for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is about Olivia, who is attending Astor Hill College. But when tragedy strikes, Olivia ends up having to deal with the loss of her best friend Lily.
While dealing with grief, Olivia is also dealing with a toxic relationship of 2 years with her boyfriend. Will. What complicates this even more is Will's stepbrother Ben returns to school after taking time off for mental health reasons, and he has secretly been in love with Olivia.
This book definitely contains a lot of drama it reminds me of 2000s sitcoms like gossip girl. I definitely think a lot of people would enjoy this book, but for me personally, it was just an OK read.

I really hope this book blows up because it deserves it! It give gossip girl vibes and it really captured my attention.

Olivia’s best friend Lily passes away after their first college party together at Astor Hill college. This leave Olivia feeling lonely and sad so she leans on Will, the guy she met the night Liv passed. Their relationship over the next few years is toxic and wrong. Then she meets Ben, Wils older brother that has recently came out of “hiding”. He has secrets he’s kept hidden that’s been taking a toll on his mental health.

The charecters were written beautifully and I really connected with one of them. Olivia is a smart girl who is confident but insecure—something I very much am. The fake it til you make it type. I love when I can relate to a main character because it gets me more involved in the book.

Ben and Will are brothers who have a really rocky relationship. Ben wants to fix the bad blood between them but Will seems like he couldn’t care less. Watching that relationship unfold was pure drama.


Overall I loved Astor Hill and I can’t wait until I read Gen and Grants story!!

This book is gorgeous all the way through. It’s deep and real. I do honestly believe this will be the next big book, gave me huge gossip girl vibes. Definitely a slow burn so be ready for that. there is also a lot of secrets so it just makes the whole book a little unpredictable and exciting!

This book truly changed me. I am a student athlete on my way to play my sport at the college level, struggling with anxiety and depression. For the male main character to have these tropes as well was a connecting factor that made this book so much more impactful for me personally. This book surrounds very difficult subjects, such as death, grief, emotional abuse, among others, but the people who grow from their adversity, are truly something to read about. I have never read a story so eloquently written, but yet still feel so grounded in reality. These characters felt like mirrors of myself or people I could know. Seeing their emotions and their struggles play out in messy, emotional, human ways, was something I found to be unique. I think a lot of novels who bring such difficult elements into their story have a hard time making it realistic, or having the characters reaction/growth portray what this overwhelming grief and feelings of anxiety and depression does to them. This book is purely fictional, showing college relationships and their ups and downs, but creating a fmc struggling with grief, and a mmc athlete struggling with anxiety and depression, is such a nuanced idea I rarely see. To tackle these issues in such a raw way made me reflect on my own life. The authors do an amazing job at showing these tough subjects in their reality, but also showing the reader how one overcomes such adversity, that there is light at the end of the tunnel. And this hits so much harder because the characters feel so real. This book has truly changed my outlook on life and my relationships with my friends, family, and significant other. Always remember, whatever you’re going through, “all the goodness in the world that you’re so quick to see in others, you are.” - Ben Cabot🫶🫶🫶

I can see why people are saying a mix of Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill (both of which are some of my favorite comfort shows), so I had to read this.

Olivia and Will have an incredibly toxic romantic relationship, both using the other to avoid feeling the full grief of losing Lily. And while grief can be so consuming and confusing, it isn’t an excuse to routinely cheat on or gaslight your girlfriend. To me, Olivia and Will stayed together way too long.

Lily was a complex character, but she mainly seemed like a really bad friend, more like frenemies than actual friends with Olivia. There were a few things that should have been cleaned up a little, such as the whole “32” thing. It was great for the angst of the plot, but when it was explained it just felt lacking.

I really appreciated the importance put on mental health in this book, mainly on panic attacks and depression, and the importance of therapy - I love a man who goes to therapy and ACTUALLY listens and implements information from his therapist. Ben’s growth and practicing emotional intelligence was super attractive.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded to 4.

Don't Let this cute cover fool you, while this is romance, it's not a quick fluffy read. This is very heavy and emotional at times. If I'm being honest it actually took longer to get into it because of it. I also felt like there was more regarding Lily (Olivia best friend) that wasn't explored or explained like it could have been.
That being said, I still really enjoyed this book and I'm looking foward to book 2

Thanks to NetGalley and PS Published for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I'm not going to give Astor Hill the best rating, as I've decided to DNF it at 20%. I'd just say that this book wasn't for me, with a mixture of I'm not in the perfect mood for it, because I couldn't stand the characters and what was happening. I found myself struggling to connect with the main female character, Olivia, and her personality, which wasn't my favourite right away and I couldn't go past it as the time went on. I've also realised there are quite a few elements of drama and I was expecting it, but it wasn't my cup of tea, at all. The writing was good, it was easy to understand and there were no complicated words, coming from someone whose first language is not English.

Since we have some weeks left until the release date, I might find myself coming back to this book if I think about it or if I find myself in a better mood for this type of book. If that happens, I will post a new review either here or on Goodreads.

I immersed myself in a well-written and atmospheric book.
The plot had an intriguing element, but I quickly realized what had happened, so I was not particularly surprised at the ending.
However, I still felt a sense of sadness at the conclusion, as it was unfortunate what happened to the protagonist's best friend.
The characters in the book had chemistry, and Ben had a slight obsession with Olivia because he had seen her first, but he let her go.
I enjoyed the book because it kept me engaged.
I am looking forward to reading the second book in the series!

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH!!! a mix of one tree till x gossip girl x boston aesthetics uhggg i loved how the authors painted the scene of astor college and how lily plays such an integral role in the entire book even so far away! i love liv so much- i hate lily and honestly i was happy she wasn’t here because she just dimmed liv’s light. i was so confused between will and ben but after everything you know who i am!!! 10/10 recommend

This book would make an amazing movie or series. It had all the perfect elements of a good book, romance, sadness, joy, mystery all wrapped into one. I highly enjoyed it. It is about that time in your life that stays with you forever

This cover is so beautiful! I was looking for Gilmore girl fall vibes but felt like this was more pouring rain cartoon vibes

Okay first off I want to step inside this cover and live in that beautiful autumn world forever….🧡

Giving this one a 3.5/4 ⭐️
When they say it’s like gossip girl and one tree hill…. They mean it’s like if the two had a freaking baby.
Right down to the mean, basketball loving dad named Dan and weird cheating love triangle trope, and the war between brothers.

I don’t like cheating tropes or the blatantly flirting with other people - why I never continued Magnolia Parks (we’re gonna revisit it tho!) - but the world in which this writing duo created was so captivating and I could not put it down. There was no character I felt attached to, no person I wanted to win or excel (except Grant maybe) but the setting and the writing kept me so engrossed in the story. Speaking of Grant… he better not get fucked with in the next book…
Tears were shed and I might need Botox now from all the frowning but that’s okay. I actually really like how things were tied up as well as the loose ends that were left for the next one.
Will be buying the hard copy when this comes out solely for the cover ✨🧡 thank you Sydney Madison for the ARC!!