I've enjoyed other books by Ellison, but this one I couldn't really get into. Maybe it's the whole boarding school, teenage stuff, who knows. Good premise, and Ellison is a great writer, but it was kind of slow to start and I'll be honest and say I couldn't finish this one. Will try and go back at some point, but for now I guess I'm just not in the right headspace for this type of genre.

I'm a sucker for a good boarding school story, always have been since my Malory Towers or Chalet School days, so when I read the synopsis of this latest book from J.T. Ellison it seemed right up my alley. Set in a prestigious and exclusive boarding school in Virginia, the Goode School, this is a book full of teenage cliques, secret societies, mystery, murder and intrigue.
A new pupil, Ash has arrived at the school following the tragic deaths of both parents, and initially struggles to find her feet. Due to the notoriety and scandal following her parent's deaths, she has elected to enrol under a different name, and her new schoolmates soon figure out that she is hiding something. Settling in proves difficult but when she is tapped to join a secret society by glamorous senior Becca it seems like her luck is on the turn. However in this book nothing is quite as it seems, and when Ash's room mate is found dead, it seems like someone it trying to pin the blame on the new girl.
This is a book that is full of twists and turns, and combined with the use of short chapters, it means that it moves at a pretty rapid pace. We are given several point of view characters, Ash of course, but also the headmistress of the school, or Dean as she prefers to call herself, a woman who is struggling with the legacy of running the school while dreaming of making it big as a best selling author in the city. and later in the book, we also meet an off duty detective who is drawn into the murder investigation. Each of these perspectives gave us a little more of the story, as well as more background information about the characters and the school itself. Most of the characters are well fleshed out, which can be difficult to achieve when so much of the action is set in one place. As the book moves towards its conclusion ,it does veer slightly into soap opera territory, but while this may be a flaw, I really did enjoy the book, and found myself hooked enough to read it in a single sitting. The writing is good and flows well, making the book easy to read, and the short chapters kept it moving nicely. I thought the author did a great job of creating a creepy setting by slipping in details about the history of the school itself. While the opening of the book is a little jarring, it is worth persevering, and by the time you wind back to the opening scene, it makes a lot more sense.
While this book was pitched as YA. I would definitely say its aimed at the older end of that market. as it tackles some pretty heavy topics including suicide and mental health issues, abortion , torture and obviously murder, including some gruesome details.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

J.T. Ellison is a literary master. Ellison is capable of so many twists and turns in her novels you are constantly second guessing every character and narrator. Who to trust? Who to believe? For a suspense/thriller, this sort of unease and anticipation is paramount, at least for me.

Meet Ash. She's just arrived in the United States from Jolly Ole England a poor (kind of) little orphan girl. A poor little orphan girl that just has to be 25 to come into her inheritance that is. And she's on her way to attend a prestigious and expensive all-girls private school in Virginia, the Goode School. Just like any "horror" story you've heard about private boarding schools, there are mean girls, entitlement, rituals, social order, and lots of hazing.

Like I said, Ash is an orphan. After an unfortunate and public scandal over the summer, her prestigious high-powered father commits suicide. Upon coming home and finding her husband dead, Ash's mother takes a gun to herself. And their young daughter is the one who found them both. So Ash is a broken girl, for sure, who's life has already been filled with much death and tragedy, on her way to America for a fresh start.

Unfortunately for Ash, deceit, terror, and evil don't rest and secrets don't stay dead or buried. When strange things start happening at Goode Ash doesn't know who to trust or believe, or even if she should believe herself. And reader, neither do we.

Every single character we meet has a secret they are hiding. Everyone is lying. Quite ironic considering the pride and confidence Goode school puts behind their "time-honored" honor code.

If you've been spell-bound by Ellison before you are sure to be once again by Good Girls Lie.

The perfect scenario - an old all girls boarding school in the mountains of VA with stories passed of ghosts and secret societies and an opening prologue with a dead girl, this book should have been right up my alley, but it just didn't work.

The short chapters were ok. I felt as though they stunted the pacing of the book and I wanted more continuous flow in the story. I think if the chapters had lingered a bit more and let you sit into the drama of the novel it would have worked just a bit better.

The girls in the boarding school were great to follow. I loved the range of characters of characters and they didn't feel cookie cutter - they felt unique. The teachers and administrative staff of the school on the other hand were just ok. They felt obvious in the roles that they played and I wanted more from them.

The twists and turns ended up being just ok. I would read this author again, but would have to make sure I liked the setting and the jist of the plot.

The story starts off with the mystery right away but slowly turns into endless inner dialogue with to much telling read what is happening and not enough showing them what is happening. The story drags on in certain area. This book was a struggle as the thriller seemed to lack any sort of point and left readers scratching there heads wondering what is the purpose of the story?

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of J.T. Ellison Good Girls Lie.

Book: Good Girls Lie
Author: JT Ellison
Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Mira, for sending me an ARC of this book.

As soon as I started reading this book, I got Pretty Little Liars vibes. Now, I do actually like Pretty Little Liars, but I thought the series went on for too long. I was actually thinking the same thing about this book-that we were going to have another series that lasted for too long. Imagine my surprise when I saw that this is a standalone. Don’t get me wrong, I do actually enjoy longer series, but there is just something wonderful about reading a standalone and being done with the world. Anyway, this is a stand alone set in an all-girls boarding school with a dark past that has been covered up. Not to mention that this is one of the top schools in the country and full of daughters of some pretty high profile people. It’s one of those books were everything looks great on the outside, but once you start reading, everything is actually messed up.

I really liked the different elements of the story. I mean, a lot of them were really unbelievable, but that’s okay. The really unbelievable parts are what made the story for me. I mean, in the real world, the events in the story would not have worked at all. However, sometimes it is good to escape from reality. Plus, we all know that stories like this are bound to have a lot of secrets and these secrets just suck me in. I really liked how everything was bound by some kind of tradition and a lot of the secrets were brought on by this tradition. I really can’t say too much about the secrets without ruining the book.

The writing was very smooth. I was sucked right in. Now, I will admit that I was a little more than hesitant at the beginning. The start of the book is just rough. I don’t know what it was about it, but it just didn’t have that first line hook that I look for in books. I kept on going and things did involve a lot.

While I did really enjoy this book, the ending was what really made me knock a star off this book. I did figure it out, but that wasn’t what ruined it. It was the fact that so much of it was spent explaining how we got to this point. I really don’t like that in books. I would rather been shown how we got to this point instead of being told, but that’s just me.

Overall, I did like this book. I know the characters are younger and this does have a YA feeling to it. However, there is a lot of content in here that just isn’t at all appropriate for younger readers-so be warned if you see this in the YA section or think that you are getting a YA thriller.

Anyway, this book comes out on December 31, 2019.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/1SVwluxNGvc

This was a DNF for at me at 45%. I just couldn’t get into the story; the premise of the story sounds really good. I just had a hard time getting into it. I may go back and re read this and see if I can finish it so that I can do a proper review.

First, this is definitely a mature book. I would say 16+ unless the younger reader has read things like this before. Think of a trigger warning and it's probably in this book. I will mention just some of them, but please be aware. This book was dark. Suicide, murder, drug addiction, hazing, physical abuse, abortion, mutilation, relationship with 16 and 20 year old, drinking, mental health issues, and more.

Even though there were some strange parts, I really did like this book. I wasn't quite prepared for how dark and mature it was, but I don't need the warnings (except for pet deaths). I was excited when I saw another mystery/thriller that took place in a boarding school, so I knew I'd have to sign up for the review tour. The book starts off with a body hanging from the gates of the all girl boarding school, The Goode School. When she's turned around, everyone says the word Ash. Everything goes back in time and it works its way back to that moment and what led up to it. The narrators were weird at times. It wasn't always the same person, but mostly Ash. I was questioning a lot and didn't believe anything. As the story was told, we find out that Ash's parents both died and she left Oxford to go to an elite boarding school in the US. She is 16 and a sophomore. It' obviously early on that Ash is upset about a lot of things. There are flashbacks to abuse from her father and drug use. She's determined that this fresh start will get her into Harvard and she can live a new life.

Ash had no idea how this school would be. It has an honor code with no lying. There were other rules, but that was the big one. There were no cell phones or internet use. Ash was good with computers and hid some accounts and could hack. She didn't do it often though. She really was trying. Her goal seemed to be to blend in and just get through school. But at other times, it seemed she wanted real relationships. Ash has a weird relationship with multiple students. Her roommate was hot and cold, often crying at night. Then there was Becca. Becca was the "head girl" at school. Everyone followed her and did what she told them to do. There was something about Becca that Ash was attracted to.

The school had a big history with some major scandals. The dean, Ford, was young, but it was a family school. She was determined to make it work. While reading, a lot of the past comes out. There are also secret societies with hazing that goes on. The school was a bit dark considering only the best 200 girls get into the school. Most of these girls are rich and privileged, so it wasn't surprising that they were viscous and backstabbers.

The book goes back and forth in time. There are also chapters that cover people like Ford, where Ash is not the narrator. Secrets and twists happen until we get back to the girl hanging on the gate.

I gave this book 4 stars. Thank you to the publisher for my review copy.

Good Girls Lie by JT Ellison ticked all the boxes for a great psychological thriller for me. I am a big fan of JT, loving her stand alone books as well as the Taylor Jackson series through the years. When I heard about her new book I was desperate to get my hands on a copy. l was thrilled when I was approved for an ARC. And true to form once I started reading I did not want to put it down. I was completely hooked after that first chapter - and it just kept getting better.

So Good Girls Lie opens with a young student hanging from the front gates of the Good School in Virginia, a boarding school for the daughters of the rich and elite. A new student has arrived, Ashlyn Carr. She has recently become an orphan when both her parents died suddenly. Being from England this is a whole new world for her. A school steeped in history, old and creepy with secret societies and lots of mean girls. Ash has plenty of her own secrets and struggles to find her place. She tries to fit in and make friends but these girls do not make it easy. And then girls start to die...…

Absolutely loved this book, could not get enough. Highly recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin MIRA for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.

Not you average “ mean girls in a boarding school” book. I really enjoyed the twists and turns of Good Girls Lie.
Ash has entered a new world at an elite boarding school, where everyone has secrets. But maybe not as many as Ash. Is she really who she says she is? And why do people start dying when she is around?

Thank you to NetGalley, J.T. Ellison and Harlequin – Mira for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I love Ellison’s writing and I was so excited to dig into her newest dark mystery! I love boarding school mysteries and I was not at all disappointed by this one! It was a long, but interesting and quick read for me as there was never a dull moment. I loved the characters and all the rivalries’ that were occurring between the grades and the different personalities. Each character seemed to have more than their fair share of secrets and finding them out throughout this novel was so much fun. This was such a twisty, dark novel and I was thrilled to be allowed early access! This one is definitely worth the wait and I would definitely recommend!

Out December 30th!

Oh. My. Gosh!!! What a juicy and compelling read!! I had trouble putting it down until I could see how it all planned out.

Take one very small, female-only, very elite prep school. Fill it with rich, young, entitled women on the fast-track to the Ivy League college of their choice, add a Dean who has issues of her own and a couple of girls with serious mental health issues and you've got a recipe for disaster! And disaster finds the Goode school in small-town Marchburg, Virginia, again and again and again.

This book is one that fully earns its inclusion in the psychological suspense genre. Twists and turns, abundant secrets and duplicity, creepy factor, Ellison plays us well with this one! Add it to your TBR pile. This gets a 4-star review from me!

Many thanks to NetGalley and MIRA publishers for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

A brilliant psychological suspense. Really creepy and dark. Chilling to the point of scary characters. Reminded me of The Dead Poet Society. Brilliant xx

This thirller is based at a boarding school, it is filled with so many secrets, hazing, murder, and some amazing surprises. I thought this was more of YA read when I requested it, but I can see now, that it could be for anyone.

I absolutley loved this fast paced read, I read it in a day. I couldn't put it down. This is my first book by this author, and I hope to be able to read many more.

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this book for my honest review.

The Goode School is a prestigious all-girls boarding school in a small town in Virginia. They only accept the best and the brightest, and have a select number they accept each year. This year one of the ones accepted was Ashlyn Carr...recently orphaned rich girl from England. But bad things keep happening to the people around her.....
This book was SO good. I could not put this book down. This is definitely a must-read for all suspense lovers.

This book was a little bit hard for me to get into. I normally don’t mind books that seem a little on the YA side but this one was a bit predictable to me. There was some tension and secrets that made me keep going back to it though. This is definitely one of those fun weekend reads to relax to but not exactly my favorite. Still, the writing was good and I would read another book by this author.

Thank you Mira Books and Harlequin for the advance digital galley.

The Goode School has been around for decades, providing young women with a top notch education and ties that gain them early acceptance to ivy league schools. But, the school has its share of secrets and scandals. And Ashlyn Carr is about to bring even more of that to the table.

This book kept me reading until all hours of the night. It has twists and turns that kept me on my toes til the end. Just when I thought that I had things figured out, a new twist was thrown into the mix and I was left slack jawed.

This Gothic take on a boarding school with secrets made for an atmospheric thriller that sucked me into the complicated lives of all of the characters. I was engrossed in this story and invested in the people, likable or not. I do wish that I had more background on the detectives that were involved in the case and I wish that I was able to get to know Rumi (the townie who works for the school) a bit more. He is an interesting character that I would have liked to have gotten to know better.

This is a page turner of a thriller and the first JT Ellison book that I've read. I really enjoyed it. I like her writing style and I'll definitely be reading more of her work.

I will leave a review on Amazon or B&N on Dec 30, 2019

My thanks to the author, Harlequin-Mira and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow this was really one twisted book. I love thrillers, but for me this one was really out there. I'm not sure its because of the ages of most of the characters, but I have read many books that are more a YA book. The author is a very good author the book was well written but really just too twisted for me. I am sure many will love this book, and I was recommend anyone that enjoys thrillers read and make your own opinions.

This one was...weird. I read The Swallows earlier this year. I've read Prep and Magic for Liars and Old School. I get it. Boarding school is ROUGH. This one started out as strongly as all of those - but somewhere near the beginning of the end, it got just plain odd and it started losing me...

There's a lot of good stuff here. The characters are well developed, as is the setting - and in an atmospheric novel like this one, the school is almost a character in and of itself. Ellison did a great job establishing the creepy environment early on and that, coupled with our protagonist's disdainful dismissal of all the ghostly mumbo-jumbo, sets the stage nicely for the bizarre twists and turns that unfold. For the most part, throughout the majority of the book, the stage and the twists/turns follow a pattern that makes sense - a pattern that I enjoyed following along its windy, twisty way. But then, as things finally reach a head and actual (as opposed to red herring) revelations start trickling in, things shifted and the pattern felt hinky and I started rolling my eyes and skimming a bit...

I saw the major twist coming. Early on. But that's not the issue I had. I read A LOT of thrillers, and it's getting increasingly difficult to *really* throw me for a loop in this type of story. It happens, and I love when it does, but even if it doesn't, I often still enjoy reading them. These are escapist stories for me, and when they're written by someone who clearly knows what they're doing (as Ellison does), the pattern feels comfortable, like snuggling in your favorite sweater or watching your favorite movie yet again. The twists can be a fun diversion, but even they have to follow some kind of logic - even if only the internal logic already established in the book. I think that's where this one lost me - something about the runaway train of revelations and lies uncovered felt like it took a sharp left turn at Albuquerque (yes, I went with a Bugs Bunny reference) and that's where it started losing me...

On the whole I still enjoyed the story. It's got a VERY dark underbelly, but the writing is solid and so is the vast majority of the plot/pacing. Ellison is good at writing this particular brand of darkness. It's a compelling tale and you'll want to read it through to see what on earth it all means/was about. Just don't be surprised if it hiccups a little as you near the end...

3.5 Stars The story kept me engaged and I read it on a weekend. There were aspects especially towards the end of the novel that felt rushed and definitely "told rather than shown." I appreciated the author's note that explained the real-life inspirations. Overall, I'm still a fan of Ellison and look forward to reading more.