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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
full review here! https://teatimelit.com/2021/05/25/blog-tour-review-the-ivies-by-alexa-donne/
There are a few things that I think a book absolutely needs to be categorized as a good dark academia mystery/thriller: an unreliable narrator, a gripping mystery with lots of twists and turns, ruthlessly ambitious and morally gray characters, and insane amounts of drama. The Ivies has all of that and then some.
I was hooked from the first page. In fact, once I started I don’t think I stopped until I was around 60% through, and the only reason I stopped was because I needed to sleep (ugh that pesky thing that gets in the way of reading time). The story was dramatic and over the top and I was addicted. I loved how descriptive the writing was; it was so easy to picture everything that was happening. I felt that the plot twists and reveals were done extremely well. They made sense with the direction the story was headed and there was the right amount of shock factor without it seeming completely out of left field. The plot twists had the desired effect and kept me interested and eager to continue reading. The vibes felt reminiscent of both Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars, two of my favorite teen dramas, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we eventually saw a screen adaptation as the writing also felt very cinematic.
The overall mystery was incredibly thrilling. I liked that it wasn’t super obvious which character was going to die right from the get-go. There were two characters that I thought would be the victim at the start and I flip-flopped on which one of them I thought it would be. I wasn’t completely sure until just before we found out. Once it was revealed, the mystery just kept developing. I definitely found myself putting on my sleuth hat and trying to piece together all of the information. Honestly, I was almost considering starting an online murder board to keep track of all the possible suspects and their motives. There was so much information; the story just kept building and building and when it finally came to a head it all made sense.
There are a few things that I think a book absolutely needs to be categorized as a good dark academia mystery/thriller: an unreliable narrator, a gripping mystery with lots of twists and turns, ruthlessly ambitious and morally gray characters, and insane amounts of drama. The Ivies has all of that and then some.
I was hooked from the first page. In fact, once I started I don’t think I stopped until I was around 60% through, and the only reason I stopped was because I needed to sleep (ugh that pesky thing that gets in the way of reading time). The story was dramatic and over the top and I was addicted. I loved how descriptive the writing was; it was so easy to picture everything that was happening. I felt that the plot twists and reveals were done extremely well. They made sense with the direction the story was headed and there was the right amount of shock factor without it seeming completely out of left field. The plot twists had the desired effect and kept me interested and eager to continue reading. The vibes felt reminiscent of both Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars, two of my favorite teen dramas, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we eventually saw a screen adaptation as the writing also felt very cinematic.
The overall mystery was incredibly thrilling. I liked that it wasn’t super obvious which character was going to die right from the get-go. There were two characters that I thought would be the victim at the start and I flip-flopped on which one of them I thought it would be. I wasn’t completely sure until just before we found out. Once it was revealed, the mystery just kept developing. I definitely found myself putting on my sleuth hat and trying to piece together all of the information. Honestly, I was almost considering starting an online murder board to keep track of all the possible suspects and their motives. There was so much information; the story just kept building and building and when it finally came to a head it all made sense.
stupidest motive for a murder i’ve ever seen and i read every case in detective conan
I knew that Ivy League was cut throat but dang. Loved the gossip girl undertones meshing so well with murderous intentions. I was honestly kept guess at whodunnit
I feel like I had low expectations for this book, but it's a solid YA Mystery. I'll hand it out to teens.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I personally found this book to be an interesting read. Was it the best book ever, no, but I throughly enjoyed my time reading it.
This is a YA mystery story following a girl who got a scholarship to a prestigious private school who is in a friend group called the Ives who would do anything to get into the ivy league. Early on in the story one of them dies and thats basically the book. The main character tries to solve the mystery.
It was very much like who done it with our cast of characters. Like every mystery I did have my list of suspects and I feel like there were twists, but I did see a lot of them coming.
Overall I would recommend this if you are in the mood for a YA mystery story. Its a standalone as well for those who want to read a YA mystery without the commitment of a series.
This is a YA mystery story following a girl who got a scholarship to a prestigious private school who is in a friend group called the Ives who would do anything to get into the ivy league. Early on in the story one of them dies and thats basically the book. The main character tries to solve the mystery.
It was very much like who done it with our cast of characters. Like every mystery I did have my list of suspects and I feel like there were twists, but I did see a lot of them coming.
Overall I would recommend this if you are in the mood for a YA mystery story. Its a standalone as well for those who want to read a YA mystery without the commitment of a series.
did this book fall a little too much into classic high school clichés and was overwhelmingly predictable? yes, but it was still fun enough so that's pretty slay
This ya thriller is a compulsively readable story about five girls who have one goal, get into the Ivy League schools and make all their dreams come true. That is of course, untill admissions go sideways and one of them ends up dead.
Our intrepid narrator is Olivia, a member of The Ivies whose middle class upbringing and scholarship student status make her the outsider of the insular group. When both Olivia and one of the other Ivies Emma get admitted to Harvard on Early Decision, Emma ends up dead and the other Ivies are at the top of the suspect list.
Olivia, wondering if Emma might have been murdered because of her admission to Harvard, takes matters into her own hands to try and uncover the truth.
The book has a very claustrophobic setting, surrounded by prep school elitism, cutthroat competitiveness, and plenty of academic and personal sabotage. Reading about it all made me nostalgic for grad school admissions and my decision to avoid certain universities because of how competitive students in certain programs were.
Ultimately, The Ivies was 5
Our intrepid narrator is Olivia, a member of The Ivies whose middle class upbringing and scholarship student status make her the outsider of the insular group. When both Olivia and one of the other Ivies Emma get admitted to Harvard on Early Decision, Emma ends up dead and the other Ivies are at the top of the suspect list.
Olivia, wondering if Emma might have been murdered because of her admission to Harvard, takes matters into her own hands to try and uncover the truth.
The book has a very claustrophobic setting, surrounded by prep school elitism, cutthroat competitiveness, and plenty of academic and personal sabotage. Reading about it all made me nostalgic for grad school admissions and my decision to avoid certain universities because of how competitive students in certain programs were.
Ultimately, The Ivies was 5
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes