I’m not super big on audio books but i was so excited for this title that i thought i’d give it a go. the story was reminiscent of summer sons and the raven boys, which i adore, and i enjoyed the supernatural suspense as well. i think i’d definitely rate the physical book higher, but 3 stars for the audio!

I felt like the voice actor fit the macabre story very well. normally it is like pulling teeth to listen to an audiobook at normal speed, but it wasn't too bad, and it fit well with the whole vibe of the story. It was not what I was expecting, but in a good way. I enjoyed the story and the stream of consciousness.

3.5 stars. A good book, would recommend it to those I think may like it, but would not necessarily recommend broadly to everyone. Trigger warnings for death, violence, blood, self-harm, and suicidal ideation.

Some books invite you to solve a mystery. Others drag you into the mind of someone who thinks they already have. Boys with Sharp Teeth does both. I find this to be an incredible effort for a debut work. The atmosphere is thick with tension all. the. time. and the prose is hauntingly vivid. I found the way Jenni Howell described things as simple as seeing your breath in the cold poetic and nearly palpable. But I also had to suspend a lot of belief throughout the book and, even then, was left incredulous at the haphazard way our main character, Marin, develops her beliefs and makes decisions. The plot rolls steadily along until the last 25%, where there's a rush of activity and revelations and twist after twist after twist - a good number of which I did not predict, which was nicely surprising. The prose beautifully but I was so frustrated with Marin for so long that this work doesn't quite reach 4 stars.

We follow Marin, racked with grief from the very recent (think 3 days ago) passing of her cousin Sam, deceiving her way into a private school as one Jamie Vane. She somehow manages to procure the fake paperwork she needed, submit it to the school, have them admit her, dye her hair, and get to the school by that third day immediately after finding the body of her best friend/cousin. Ok, I can go along with that. She's convinced Sam's death was orchestrated by one or some members of a trio at the school Sam had mentioned befriending: Adrian, Henry, and Baz. When she gets there, she is assigned to a suite she shares with Adrian, while Henry and Baz share a suite on the same floor. I will admit it took a lot to get over the fact that this fancy private school allows for mixed gender suites with shared in-suite bathrooms. But this access is what allows Marin to integrate herself into this friend group and push towards finding out what really happened to Sam.

Let's talk about Marin. Marin is so sure of her ability to read people, to "discern truth." The problem is that she is absolutely terrible at it. Without getting into spoilers, Marin essentially believes what she wants to believe, sees the evidence that prop up her beliefs, and explains away the evidence that suggest otherwise. This seeps into everything - from her investigation to who she chooses to trust. She is constantly in denial and she doesn't start questioning herself until the very last part of the book. She jumps to conclusions and makes bizarre choices. She is a terrible detective, and I did want to yell at her to ask more questions, look into more things. But she was focused in on one theory of the crime, had her horse blinders on, and we have no choice but to go along with her on this ride.

As for the trio, Henry is a complete maniac (and you'll find out why), Adrian is basically a punching bag, and Baz is the sweetest person but comes across as more one-dimensional compared to the others (and she's not even on the cover or in the book blurb, justice for Baz!!). The relationships between each of the characters, Marin included, is definitely toxic, obsessive, possessive.

In terms of the supernatural aspect, I do wish it was a bit more clearly explained or just had more time to play out. It lingers throughout the book, but really comes to a head at the very end. I was still left quite confused by the end on how exactly the supernatural aspect worked.

Overall, I was left not quite grasping what the themes of this book were. What Howell wanted us to get out of it. A book definitely doesn't need themes - you can certainly just want to write a good story. But I kept feeling like the book was trying to get something across that I didn't quite get.

I did consume this book in both audio and written form. I preferred the written form. It was a bit tough for me as an audio listener because there tends to be a lot of other prose in between pieces of dialogue. A character asked a question, prose, prose, prose, and then another character answered. But by the time they answered, I would forget what the question was, or what the character was initially saying. Sometimes it's not even clear who is speaking without going back. This is fine when reading, since you can always just flit your eyes back up the page if you lose the context, little to no time is lost, you can proceed smoothly with the story. But it is infinitely harder in audiobook form when you have to go back 30+ seconds and then listen to the prose all over again, which sometimes made me forget again. I found this book is better experienced in print. I found the narrator's voice to be very well suited for the this type of darker, grittier story. And I liked how there were different tones of voice for different characters! But it did feel monotone at times, sometimes making it difficult to tell when characters switched speaking or when new sentences began.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the audiobook and eARC for this title. My opinions are my own and 100% honest.

I really did like the concept of this book, just not the way it was executed. I believe if I hadn’t read the book in audio form, I probably would’ve enjoyed it more than I did.

The writing is somehow both show don’t tell Ms Stella don’t show at the same time. While I feel like I couldn’t follow the story at moments, there were also plenty of times I felt like the storyline could’ve delved so much deeper, especially into some of the character arcs.

I did like Bas, but unfortunately, even though she is what holds this story together, she isn’t on the front cover. I also don’t think it’s appropriate to label this book as queer, as even though there are some tense moments between the two male characters, it’s never majorly developed other than stating that they “loved each other.”

The audiobook narration was pleasant. I liked the way the narrator could equally portray all of Jamie’s moods differently and well.

This book gave me the same vibe of reading "If We Were Villains," but with a YA vampire twist. At times I was really invested and at others I felt like the story jumped around and was somewhat confusing. The premise was really good but it fell just a bit short for me. Overall I did like the story and I thought the narrator was really good! I never really connected with the FMC or any of the other characters. This book just may have not been a book for me. Again, it was not horrible, but I wanted more.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC!

This cover is amazing! It gives the exact vibe the book gave… dark academia. Boys with Sharp Teeth is eerie, obsessive, cut throat, and unexpected. I was bouncing between characters and not knowing how I got there. There are so many elements in this book that caught me off guard. The relationships, the setting, and the twists! I enjoyed Jenni Howell’s writing style and Jennifer Pickens as the narrator. Steady pacing with a ton of drama. You won’t have any choice but to take your time with this one.

The narration for this book was SO slow and calm, I just couldn't get into it. (And I listen at 2x speed!)

I've really been looking forward to checking this book out but I think I'd enjoy it if I traditionally read this book.

Audiobook review: I thought the audio was well done on this book. The narrator had a southern accent that fit with the character and their narration kept with the pacing of the story.

The book missed the mark for me in several ways and I'm not sure that it accomplished what it set out to do. Too many times where you had to suspend belief. The ending was interesting.

Audio specifically: 4/5

The Raven Boys rates high on my list of favorite series. Between that and the hint of an otherworldly secret, it was inevitable that I'd request this novel from NetGalley.

I had to sit with this one a few days after finishing it before writing the review. I honestly wasn't sure how I felt. On one hand, the writing is lyrical and atmospheric. It perfectly sets the tone for this elite boarding school. I'm a big fan of morally gray characters, and there's certainly no shortage of them in this story, but those character types are usually easier to like - these aren't. Much of the story felt like a fever dream to me. My request for an ebook ARC was turned down, but I was approved for the audiobook. In this case, I think the ebook would have worked better for me and clarified some plot points. I still feel as if I missed some important information with the audiobook.

Marin enters Huntsworth Academy determined to learn who murdered her cousin, because she's certain he didn't die of a drug overdose as law enforcement believes. You'll have to suspend your disbelief at how easily she's accepted into this elite boarding school using fake test scores and a tuition check for over 20K written by a fake mother with no cash to cover it. Before long, Marin starts to enjoy aspects of this life - she's intellectually challenged in her classes, begins a tentative friendship, and is both charmed and horrified by Henry and Adrian, her top suspects. It's a twisted tale with an ending that initially surprised me, but once I thought about it, it makes perfect sense for these characters.

This is a heavy, angsty novel I'd recommend for the upper YA crowd due to its mature themes. If you enjoy dark (seriously dark) academia, heavier MC introspection, and a sprinkling of paranormal, add this novel to your list.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Marin James is on a mission to figure out who killed her cousin Sam and to avenge his death in this dark academia novel by Jenni Howell. Huntsworth Academy is the eponymous school that Marin (posing here as Jamie) attends alongside Henry, Adrian and Baz in Boys With Sharp Teeth. The foursome get in a good deal of trouble as Marin searches for the truth of Sam’s death.

I listened to the audiobook of this novel and thought the narrator did a good job with the story. The prose is dark, evocative and imbued with an enjoyable underlying sense of dread yet it didn’t completely satisfy me. Parts felt very repetitive, could have been cut and the fantasy element came far later than I would have preferred. Three stars.

I received this advance audio copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and feedback.

This dark, gothic ghost story carries you in suspense from beginning to end.

This is a must read if you like dark YA romance, non-traditional ghost stories, and teen angst.

Ultimately a coming of age story, the main character is drowning in grief, rage, and questioning her own sanity.

Marin has one goal. Avenge her cousin's death on the rich kids who killed him. But what she finds is the truth about herself, everything she almost wanted, and a ...love?...triangle with deadly consequences.

Trigger warnings: Self harm, murder, Drug use, violence. loss, grief.

While this is not my usual style of read, I found it extremely well written and the plot ties very cleverly together at the end. I found some parts very triggering, but that was the point.

I thought Jenni Howell's voice fit the character perfectly and her delivery contributed to the experience.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC!

If you enjoy murder mysteries with a touch of the paranormal, this book is for you! You'll follow Marin as she goes undercover at Huntsworth Academy to solve her cousin's murder and get revenge on the group of friends she knows was responsible.

The narrator of the audiobook, Jennifer Pickens, was easy to follow as she helped you get into Marin's head. There was plenty of emotion coming through her voice, and I appreciated that she didn't try too hard to change her voice for each character. I was never thrown out of the story because of the audio, I was in it the whole time!

Boys with Sharp Teeth by Jenni Howell reads like a whispered secret in the back halls of an elite prep school, where the air is thick with dust,, blood, and betrayal. Marin James steps into the shadows, wearing someone else’s name, chasing the ghost of her cousin through ivy-covered walls and moonlit corridors. The mystery is intoxicating, but the prose, like cigarette smoke curling in a dim-lit room, sometimes lingers too long, clouding the path forward. Some twists hit like a lover’s last words, others feel like a song you’ve heard before. Still, for those who crave dark academia with a taste of the tragic, this one just might sink its teeth in.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this ALC in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this completely blind - having been drawn in by the beautiful cover and title. I saw some comparisons for Jenni Howell's writing to Kelly Andrews, and I can definitely see why. The writing is beautiful and atmospheric.

That said, sometimes prose adds to a book's story, and other times, it detracts from it. Similar to how I felt about Your Blood, My Bones, I found things to be so wordy that I often got lost and couldn't keep track of the plot. It could be that this would have been better suited to a read - there are many quotes that I wish I could have highlighted.

The narrator, Jennifer Pickens, did a phenomenal job with the tone and pacing of her narration! My minor gripe is that she sounds like an adult woman and not a young woman in highschool for a YA novel.

Overall, I don't think this is my type of book. If you're into atmospheric/moody reads - pick this one up! Just note that you may have to overlook the plot for much of it.

Wow!! Every sentence of this novel was meticulously crafted! While I loved the audiobook, I definitely wished I read the print in tandem so I could highlight and notate my favorite passages. This haunting, supernatural world of tortured, philsophizing teens wound appeal to fans of Cruel Intentions and The Night Circus. Can’t wait to grab a hard copy of this!

I don’t know if I’ve ever read a book so rooted in obsession and psychotic tendencies where I really didn’t know who to root for because they’re all as twisted as they are hawt! Boys With Sharp Teeth is a dark academia dream, but one with so much tension, I would get lockjaw waiting to be kissed by one of these boys. I’m not saying I wasn’t into it, but there is no “waiting with bated breath” when I don’t even know if I can trust someone not to kill me.😅

I really enjoyed Jenni Howell’s writing and found myself wanting to make the story last longer. Rarely do I take my time with a story, because I’m like a tornado trying to consume all that’s in my path, demolishing a whole book before I know it. But the characters in this story were so mysterious and sexy and one of them is hellbent on finding out what actually happened to her cousin… and bringing the killer to justice.

I’m excited to see what dark and twisted story we get next from this author. If it’s even a sliver as good as this one, I’ll be a happy happy camper!

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯? 𝘖𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯?

I went into Boys With Sharp Teeth hoping it would be kind of the love child of The Secret History, Don’t Let the Forest In, Summer Sons with maybe a smattering of The Raven Boys…it was adjacent in the end.

For the good—the story is written well and there’s good passages with quotable moments. I think this story of obsession will really suck people in. It’s a murder mystery with 4 very interesting characters to say the least.

Unfortunately, in the middle I found myself losing interest. Everything was starting to feel a little repetitive and overly dramatic. I’ve found, in my ready of academia focused books, that there’s a fine line between enjoyably pretentious and obnoxiously pretentious. Atlas 6 was one that fell into the later category and unfortunately I think Boys With Sharp Teeth was also leaving into obnoxiously pretentious for me.

You have to suspend some disbelief when Jamie gets into this fancy school with a big forged check and some fake test scores, there’s Co-Ed dorms, she just HAPPENS to be paired on the same floor/room as all three of her suspects and all the teachers seem to know and not care about their underage students throwing parties and getting drunk all the time on campus.

I think the ending was a bit abrupt, albeit an interesting twist. I just wish it had a little more of a payout.

This book unfortunately wasn't for me. I really wanted to like this book and I tried really hard but I find it so hard to relate to stories with rich white main characters. It just feel so hard to care about them in today's climate. Overall I can see this book being popular as the things that bother me rarely bother others.

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan, for the ALC for Boys with Sharp Teeth in exchange for my honest review.

Whoa, this was a dark, twisty, and suspenseful, dark academia book. I get why I've seen a couple of comparisons to "We Were Liars," honestly, I think "Boys with Sharp Teeth" had that vibe but executed it better. (Though, admittedly I did not enjoy "We Were Liars.")

There was a lot I liked and a lot I felt could have needed improvement. The biggest issue was as soon as it felt like we were really getting into the story—we hit another slow patch. I feel like some of the middle could have been cut. I know the purpose of the red herring at the 50% mark was supposed to increase tension, and it did, but it was also frustrating, considering it was really slow to get going. There was also a lot of repetition with Marin and her inner plotting, and I get it because intentional repetition can be very powerful but there was just a little too much and ultimately it detracted from the plot.

That being said, I'm glad I stuck with it. I thought the ending was worth the wait.

I thought the characters were really interesting and I love me some dark flawed little monsters, because that's what they are monsters. None of them felt like a carbon copy of each other but what I really loved was how messy they were with each other.

Also, damn Jennifer Pickens was a phenomenal narrator.

This book had so much potential, but it just didn’t deliver for me. The whole “revenge mission at an elite boarding school” setup? Amazing. The morally gray, dangerously charming boys? Say less. But somewhere along the way, this lost its bite.

The atmosphere was there—dark academia with a sinister edge—but the plot felt like it was trying too hard to be mysterious and ended up just being… boring. Marin’s infiltration of Huntsworth had all the makings of a gripping story, but the execution dragged. The romance (if you can call it that) felt more like a fever dream than actual chemistry, and I kept waiting for the moment where everything would click—but it never really did.

Maybe I wasn’t in the mood for YA, or maybe this just wasn’t for me, but either way, I closed the book feeling underwhelmed. Not the worst thing I’ve read, but definitely not the dark, thrilling ride I was hoping for.