This was a well-written and engaging mystery set in a private school. First of all, I love a book set in academia and a mystery is the perfect genre for this setting. This is a story about a missing friend, a secret society, and puzzles to be sorted. It was a fast read and kept my attention the whole time. I did not find myself connected to the characters but because I enjoyed the plot it did not take away from my reading enjoyment. I think this will be a great book for young readers and anyone who likes academic thrillers. Thanks to Chelsea Ichaso, Sourcebooks Fire, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars

As an adult the farfetched nature of the book I could not get over, but it was well written and thought out. I did not catch any plot holes and understood the character's motivations. I think if I was the target audiences age, or if this author write a similarly themed adult book set at college, I would love it.

Comp titles: Ninth House, Inheritance Games

When I first saw this book, I was immediately hooked- a secret society, mysteries, possible murders???, and a rich boarding school with secrets, a concept that would (and did) have me floored. However, it felt lacking. It was as if this insanely good pie was undercooked in the oven and ended up leaving you feeling fulfilled and happy, but definitely leaving a pit in your stomach because it wasn't the best it could be.

At the beginning of this story, I felt as if the characters were quite annoying. Maren felt like an overdone cliche, and the setting of a boarding school seemed like an excuse to not have adult figures around. I almost DNFed, but the suspense and the secret society dragged me in.

By the middle of the book, I was hooked. The puzzles were puzzles, and they did seem well thought out. I enjoyed the Greek mythological aspect of it, but I still had the lingering feeling that it was rushed. The puzzle would basically tell you how to solve it, and by the next page the lead was already putting the pieces together. I wished there was just more. More character building, plot building, and suspense building.

The ending, in my opinion, felt very rushed. There was a love triangle? that came out of nowhere and I kinda feel that it ruined the vibe of Maren. She seemed so strong and stubborn that her "falling in love" with one of the characters that felt misplaced and pushed into the spotlight wouldn't be in her nature.

I really enjoyed the puzzles and the middle of the book- I flew through like 120 pages (keep in mind it was relatively shorter), but the ending and beginning really felt dragging on this rating, although the epilogue was giving similar vibes to the middle of the book with a better energy to it. I think there just needed more building and formulation rather than thrusting everything at you- even if it made now sense- and expecting you to run with it. Overall, it just felt forced and needed more time in order to come up with total suspense, character acquaintances, and plot building into the magical thing it could be.

This concept was insanely interesting to read, and if you like puzzles and an interesting tie to Greek mythology you might want to give it a read! It is a book that just feels like the middle of the road- not something extraordinary but not terrible either. Once again, thank you to the author, publishing house, and Netgalley for sending me an e-arc of this book!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for a chance to read They’re Watching You in exchange for my honest review.
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Wow, oh wow. I am positively in love with this book. By far my favorite book I’ve had the honor of reviewing for a while! Please do yourself a favor and pick this book up.
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Maren is a scholarship student at a prestigious boarding school. Recently her roommate, and best friend, went missing. The cops said she just ran away, but Maren doesn’t believe that. The more she investigates the more things start to unravel. Enter two boys fighting for her attention, a secret society, tasks to ensure her place, unexplainable things, and life or death situations.
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The boarding school aesthetic gave me life. I fell right into the story and did not want to come out. Chelsea’s descriptions of the school and everything kept me tuned in. I read the story so quickly, always waiting for the next twist. Which They kept coming and I was always surprised. I have read many boarding school mysteries, but never one like this. This book is truly one of a kind. The characters were so good. Each and everyone had depth and meaning. Not one character fell flat. The story followed a wonderful plot line, everything worked so well. I was never confused or disappointed. I can keep raving, but I don’t want to spoil anything. Read it!

I don't know what I expected with They're Watching Us. I really love the idea of thrillers. I rarely enjoy them but I still keep picking them up anyway. I guess I was expecting more along the lines of One of Us Is Lying. They're Watching Us was a little too cult(y) for me. If you like that sort of thing and/or secret societies or dark academia then definitely give this book a chance.

Maren‘s best friend Polly is missing and everyone has written her off as a runaway except for Mirren. She finds out that Polly was joining a secret society and so she decides her best bet is to try and join as well but the more she looks in to her friend being missing the more dangerous it gets and if she’s not careful it will be way too late to cry uncle. This was such a good book it was an easy quick read I mean don’t get me wrong this is not Stephen King but if you’re looking for a fun mystery would like a book characters in a little bit of horror then this is definitely a book for you. I always believe there’s a book for every reader and this is definitely a book that should be read. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it if you love YaThriller‘s, mysteries or Horus you’ll love this book. I received it from NetGalley and publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

WOW! I couldn’t stop reading this book. I kept changing my mind on who was behind everything going on. Maren was such a good friend to Polly. She tried to find out what happened to he best friend. I was so glad that Maren ended up with who she did!

Secret societies, mystery, and a girl who will do anything to save her best friend… what’s not to like? They’re Watching You by Chelsea Ichaso follows Maren, a student at an elite high school. After her best friend disappears after joining the ultra exclusive Chess Club, Maren takes it into her own hands to find out what happened to Polly.

I have to say, this new string of YA novels coming out are so much better than the ones I grew up with. Yes, there is some romance, but it is not center stage. When I started this book I was not expecting much, but next thing I knew I was 80% of the way done and could not stop.

What I liked: This book is well paced with action at appropriate times with information peppered in throughout. There were times that the author could have written sections as “info dumps,” but instead the information comes out naturally.

To keep in mind: You do have to suspend some of your beliefs and reality to get into some of the deeper drama, but isn’t that what a good books is supposed to do? I also didn’t feel like the romance was necessary, but it was not the main focus so it was not too big of a deal.

Overall thoughts: This was a great book to kick off the start of the New Year! It was such a fun read that completely sucks you in.

Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for a copy of this books in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read They're watching you by Chelsea Ichaso. This book had me second guessing the entire way through!!! I really liked the main character, Maren and her determination to find her friend Polly after she disappears. The games she had to play brought back memories of reading The hunger games; never knowing whether she was playing for her life or if The gamesmaster was just making the challenges seem real! For those who love YA I think you will like it!!!

Maren has heard whispers of a secret society within her university. She has never really paid it much attention until her roommate and best friend, Polly, goes missing. She's considered a runaway, but Maren isn't convinced. She can't help but think Polly got herself tangled in a mess or maybe saw/did something she shouldn't have... and it all leads back to the Society. Maren decides to take matters into her own hands and finds a way to get an invitation to infiltrate the Society and save her friend.

Once she is initiated, she still doesn't have much control and can't seem to outsmart the Society, who always seem to be one step ahead of her. She is tasked with playing games, without knowing who she can trust. Who is the Gamemaster? Where is Polly? Is every figure of authority on campus a part of the Society? Every time I thought I had it figured out, I would get pulled in another direction. I highly recommend They're Watching You if you like mysteries and dark academia themes.

Thank you to Chelsea Ichaso, Sourcebooks Fire, & NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange of my honest review.

I really enjoyed a lot of the twists in this; however, the actual ending was so unbelievable that I could not help but knock it down a star.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a YA mystery involving a missing girl and connections to a secret society. It pulled me in from the start. I really loved the main character and her quest to find her missing friend. And the villains were written in a way that I found them intriguing.
I loved the puzzles and games the society made the characters play and the whole society was very well thought out.
Some twists were more predictable than others but the story as a whole kept a very good pace and it was engaging and keeps you reading.
There were some choices at the end I wish had gone a different way, but overall I enjoyed the writing, characters and plot.

I need to thank #NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me to read an eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

This was the perfect mystery/ thriller to end the year with. I feel like I can't say too much or I will give away all the twists. It was refreshing to read a clean YA novel, there is no cussing and no sex. What is there is:
*An elite boarding school
*A secret society
*A missing person
*Games that involve life or death situations
*Mysterious catacombs
*A possible love triangle that keeps you guessing till the end
*A teenage girl who will do (almost) anything to save her best friend

This is a great one that I will be recommending to all my mystery loving students.

One of my favorite books this month! I am really love secret society books and this one is super cool. I was blindsided by the ending. If you like dark academy, this is for you!

I’m so disappointed in this one. It sounded right my alley. Elite school, secret societies, murders and a missing best friend? Sounds like a recipe for a book I’m going to love, so of course I wanted to read it. Oh, how I quickly regretted my choice.

It starts off decent, with a nice build up of intrigue and then the story loses itself by chapter 10, maybe even before. The story is boring, the aim of the secret society is pretty clear since the beginning and the obvious villain that usually isn’t the true villain… turns out to be the true villain. What?

Don’t get me started on the forced and unnecessary love triangle. It’s 2023 and we’re still haven’t passed the two very mediocre men fighting over the main character phase. Enough.

The writing style wasn’t to my taste either. It feels very young, very middle grade. The most unrealistic part of the story is that this is set in high school and not university. The characters act like they’re 13 but the villains act like they’re 25 with teenager behaviour. Make it make sense.
In other words, I was bored out of my mind. And everything - from the writing style to the characters to the plot - was a miss. I’m so sorry I didn’t like this, I wanted to love it, but eh.

I usually love fast paced books, this was not the case for this one. The plot was really unbelievable and I simply could not suspend my disbelief long enough to enjoy it

Set in an elite private school, Maren Montgomery’s bestfriend, Polly St. James suddenly goes missing. And seeing her friend scared the night she disappears, Maren is determined to figure out her bestfriend’s whereabouts as she believes the missing girl deemed a runaway by police, is in danger. And as she gets roped into the Society and their deadly ways of their traditions, she realizes there is more to the games, one that could cost her, her life.

This book was so unexpectedly good! The synopsis gave what I wanted and I loved the mystery brought about by the premise of a secret society that thrived through centuries of clever, deadly games. The dark and tense mood was cleverly written and the characters and the story were laid out in a way no one can guess who is truly the pawn and the master in this sick game and challenged the concept of loyalty and truth, with the right amount of romance. It reminded me of The Order from Netflix, and the one episode of Riverdale (only so much better and does not end up in a musical lol). I’ve also seen people talk about the book like it’s a plot from Scooby Doo, but as a huge fan of the movie franchise, I loved it and would love to hear more from this author.

Alright! Incredible. That's the first word I would use to describe this book. I was doing a little bit of a tech cleanse, and this was the first book I picked up. I went away on vacation and brought this book on the plane with me. By the time I got off the plane, I was 75% done with this book. While I wasn't reading this book, my brain kept circling back to it.
The story was interesting and kept me hooked from chapter 1. And as the story went on, my heart started beating faster. I have never read a book like this, and was shocked at how much I enjoyed it. This book also had a love triangle, and I was basically sitting back, eating popcorn (metaphorically) and getting completely lost in the story. There was so much going on, that there was never a dull moment.
Even the "bad" characters, I learned to care about. This was crammed with action, and I wish it was longer.
I have never been so invested in a book like I was with this. I hope there is a book 2 coming one day. Even a week later, I am still thinking about it, I don't know how many ways I can say I loved this book. It was that good.
And please don't get me started on the plot-twists. There were so many that caught me off guard, I couldn't get enough of it.

This book is a MUST READ for fans of murder mysteries, secrets and boarding school, this is for you.

If you don't really like reading, and want to try it, and you are a fan of:
- Riverdale (earlier seasons)
- Pretty Little Liars
- Wednesday
This book is sure to keep you interested.

Maren never believed that her roommate Polly simply ran away. Maren knows Polly has a secret, and she thinks it has something to do with the elite, Gamemaster's Society. So Maren joins the elusive Society and discovers that the Society has connections, incredible rewards, and untold dangers. The Society's game is bigger and deadlier than she could ever imagine, and Maren will have to do whatever she can to save Polly and herself. I loved the secrets and twists in this story, especially the mystery surrounding the love triangle. It didn't really have the dark academia, mysterious vibes that I expected and was much lighter than you would expect from a mysterious book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. This was a lighter book than I expected, but it was a fun read!

This book definitely hooked me and kept my interest! I appreciate that this wasn’t a slow burn and pretty much jumped right into the action.

There were a few things I didn’t particularly care for. Without giving away spoilers I’ll say my biggest issue was the back and forth between the guys. This made it less believable when in the end Maren is “in love” with one of them.

On the subject of believability my other major issue was just the believability of the entire plot taking place within a high school. If this was set in college it would have been just slightly more believable.

Overall though I would still suggest this book because it kept me guessing along the way and kept me on the edge of my seat nearing the end because I just couldn’t fathom a conclusion to everything. Definitely a fun read if you like dark academia, secret societies, cults, and high stakes games!