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jholt2899's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
[TL;DR]
Ambrosia never wanted to go back to Wesleyan. Someone else has different plans, though, and after a series of mysterious letters and emails, Ambrosia is drawn back to Wesleyan. Too bad her former best friend, Sloane, is also back under the same pretenses. The past has a way of coming back and there is nothing that either Ambrosia or Sloane can do to stop it.
The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a decent enough thriller. The first half was certainly entertaining, and I love characters that are easy to hate within this genre. Ultimately, the flaws of this book came from the pacing and lack of climax. The pace was just a bit too slow by the end, and I needed things to start progressing. Thrillers follow a formulaic pace traditionally, and there wasn't that speedy, racing end that we have come to know.
The climax came just a little too late for it to make sense, and I felt that the last 15 pages were a rushed madhouse comparatively. The character reflection was wonderful. I adored reading about how terrible everyone was because it created this nice juxtaposition. Who doesn't love a shady b trying to run from her horrible past?
Rating: 4/5 stars
TW/CW: blood, murder, suicide, rape, sexually explicit scenes, cheating, substance abuse, drinking
Ambrosia never wanted to go back to Wesleyan. Someone else has different plans, though, and after a series of mysterious letters and emails, Ambrosia is drawn back to Wesleyan. Too bad her former best friend, Sloane, is also back under the same pretenses. The past has a way of coming back and there is nothing that either Ambrosia or Sloane can do to stop it.
The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a decent enough thriller. The first half was certainly entertaining, and I love characters that are easy to hate within this genre. Ultimately, the flaws of this book came from the pacing and lack of climax. The pace was just a bit too slow by the end, and I needed things to start progressing. Thrillers follow a formulaic pace traditionally, and there wasn't that speedy, racing end that we have come to know.
The climax came just a little too late for it to make sense, and I felt that the last 15 pages were a rushed madhouse comparatively. The character reflection was wonderful. I adored reading about how terrible everyone was because it created this nice juxtaposition. Who doesn't love a shady b trying to run from her horrible past?
Rating: 4/5 stars
TW/CW: blood, murder, suicide, rape, sexually explicit scenes, cheating, substance abuse, drinking
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Suicide, Murder, Sexual content, and Rape
Moderate: Infidelity, Drug abuse, and Alcohol
bella_cavicchi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A solid thriller, one that's well-plotted and keeps you on your toes. That said, I never found myself particularly invested in the characters' outcomes and was weirdly... unsatisfied (?) by the ending. I'm not sure what to make of it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Murder, Rape, Suicide, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Grief, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
ellekreads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Rape, and Infidelity
soobooksalot's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"I don't know if it's disgusting or impressive that girls can do that for each other. That we can achieve that level of deceit in the name of sisterhood."
For me, The Girls Are All So Nice Here has Heathers vibes without the satire.
Someone died at Wesleyan University 14 years ago. And someone knows how it really happened.
A reunion invitation is accompanied by a note sent to three people who were involved with the deceased, stating "we need to talk about what we did that night".
Chapters alternate between "then" and "now", chronicling the toxic friendship between Ambrosia Wellington and Sloane Sullivan, aka Sully, during their time at Wesleyan and at the reunion.
Manipulation, lies, power through sex, and distortion through it all with the party substances of youth make up the story.
It's tense, it's taut, it's awful and it's fantastic reading.
These are not girls you want to be, or be friends with, but you can't look away.
I'll definitely be picking up whatever Canadian author Laurie Elizabeth Flynn writes next, assuming it's in the same dark vein as this one. Recommended!
For me, The Girls Are All So Nice Here has Heathers vibes without the satire.
Someone died at Wesleyan University 14 years ago. And someone knows how it really happened.
A reunion invitation is accompanied by a note sent to three people who were involved with the deceased, stating "we need to talk about what we did that night".
Chapters alternate between "then" and "now", chronicling the toxic friendship between Ambrosia Wellington and Sloane Sullivan, aka Sully, during their time at Wesleyan and at the reunion.
Manipulation, lies, power through sex, and distortion through it all with the party substances of youth make up the story.
It's tense, it's taut, it's awful and it's fantastic reading.
These are not girls you want to be, or be friends with, but you can't look away.
I'll definitely be picking up whatever Canadian author Laurie Elizabeth Flynn writes next, assuming it's in the same dark vein as this one. Recommended!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
Minor: Rape and Self harm
thenovelmaura's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This book was just... disappointing. I mean, if you want to read a book that switches between the present, which is a boring college reunion, and the past, which is the main character and her friend bullying, back-stabbing and manipulating her roommate solely because they're bored, then this is the book for you! I'm not against flawed characters, but when we're asked to both read about a woman with no redeeming qualities for 300 pages and care that someone at her reunion knows her secret, I am not ashamed to admit that I do not care. I think this one would have been much better if we had gotten perspectives from people besides Amb. I have no idea why the author only chose to use Poppy's perspective for a 6 page epilogue. She was actually interesting and her quest for vengeance was something I could get behind, unlike Amb's pathetic efforts to hide her involvement in her roommate's death. While including Poppy earlier would have ruined the big reveal at the end (which wasn't even that much of a surprise), hearing the "villian's" POV would have made for a more compelling book. As it stands, this was a quick read but I wouldn't recommend it to any thriller fan.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Murder, Suicide, and Infidelity
Moderate: Self harm and Sexual assault
outsmartyourshelf's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
In her mid-thirties Ambrosia Wellington (now there's a name) is working in PR and is married to Adrian, a hot younger man. Ambrosia is perturbed to receive an invitation to a reunion from her university - she doesn't want to return to those days when she known as Amb and was one of the 'mean girls'. When she arrived at university feeling gauche and reeling from a cheating boyfriend, she fell in with Sully, a girl who exuded danger and mystery. Ambrosia wanted to be one of Sully's 'chosen ones' but this meant acting in increasingly callous ways. Someone is determined Ambrosia will be at the reunion and she receives a handwritten note saying that they need to talk about what really happened that night. Who sent the note, what do they want from Ambrosia, and will it cost her everything including her life?
This is one of those books which has main characters that you love to hate. The two main characters, Sully (Sloane) & Amb (Ambrosia) display grade A nastiness and cruelty when they decide to wreck a fellow student's long distance relationship for the heinous crime of being too nice. (Well that's Amb's excuse, whilst Sully's reason is more that Flora can see through her facade). The book moves between the reunion weekend in the present and what happened in the past, and it shows the casual cruelty in the competition and one-upmanship that the girls indulge in. It was very well written and I flew through it, but I did think the ending rather overegged the pudding though.
Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, HQ, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
This is one of those books which has main characters that you love to hate. The two main characters, Sully (Sloane) & Amb (Ambrosia) display grade A nastiness and cruelty when they decide to wreck a fellow student's long distance relationship for the heinous crime of being too nice. (Well that's Amb's excuse, whilst Sully's reason is more that Flora can see through her facade). The book moves between the reunion weekend in the present and what happened in the past, and it shows the casual cruelty in the competition and one-upmanship that the girls indulge in. It was very well written and I flew through it, but I did think the ending rather overegged the pudding though.
Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, HQ, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Infidelity, and Suicide
Moderate: Drug use and Rape
pomoevareads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Sully was there for my worst moments, but the worst moments only existed because of her.”
I have been looking for a good psychological thriller to sink my teeth into lately and it looks like I found the perfect fit for my reading life right now.
A campus thriller featuring the ultimate mean girls vs. good girls theme, Ambrosia is at her 10 year College reunion during which she and her old sidekick, Sully, try to figure out who has sent them some eerie notes about an event that occurred 14 years ago.
Through well developed characters and dialogue, the author reminds the reader that the words you say can be as harmful as the actions you take. The alternating time lines notched up the tension to the point where I didn’t want to put this book down.
Suspenseful and exhilarating, The Girls are All So Nice Here dives deep into toxic relationships, campus life and the insecurities of women.
Thank you to @netgalley and @simonschusterca for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Girls Are All So Nice Here publishes March 9, 2021.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Bullying
illegiblescribble's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
a viciously sharp dual-timeline thriller that is just as likely to stab you in the back as it is to congratulate you on putting the pieces together.
it's been a while since i've read a thriller that left me reeling like this one did. the characters for the most part were unlikeable, the depiction of college life mildly unrealistic, the ending a wish fulfillment, but "the girls are all so nice here" is more than the sum of its parts. the real treat is the number of breadcrumb details scattered throughout the book that are easy to miss due to the first-person narration; ambrosia's voice is so strong it drowned out my inner skeptic that usually scoffs at the ridiculousness of most thrillers' plots!
while my college experience was nothing like ambrosia's, her constant worry and desperate attempts to fit in resonated with me (and i heard plenty of wild tales from the more adventurous of my friends!). ultimately, "the girls are all so nice here" was a page-turner that i could not put down until i had finished it... at 4am! if that's not high praise, i don't know what is.
thank you to netgalley and simon and schuster for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
it's been a while since i've read a thriller that left me reeling like this one did. the characters for the most part were unlikeable, the depiction of college life mildly unrealistic, the ending a wish fulfillment, but "the girls are all so nice here" is more than the sum of its parts. the real treat is the number of breadcrumb details scattered throughout the book that are easy to miss due to the first-person narration; ambrosia's voice is so strong it drowned out my inner skeptic that usually scoffs at the ridiculousness of most thrillers' plots!
while my college experience was nothing like ambrosia's, her constant worry and desperate attempts to fit in resonated with me (and i heard plenty of wild tales from the more adventurous of my friends!). ultimately, "the girls are all so nice here" was a page-turner that i could not put down until i had finished it... at 4am! if that's not high praise, i don't know what is.
thank you to netgalley and simon and schuster for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Drug abuse, Violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
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