I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from netgalley Lisa Lutz’ novel “The Swallows” aims to be this year’s Big Little Lies, and it is equally as gripping. While I do wish some of the characters were a bit more thoroughly developed. This is a fantastic novel and the pacing is breathtaking. I loved the female characters and Lutz does a terrific job writing from the teen perspective. As a teacher, I was disappointed by the portrayal of male teachers and the trope of teachers sleeping with students but Lutz deftly ties all of the plot points together and does not stray into this topic without purpose. This is a great summer novel and it is aching for the Netflix treatment. Well done!

In Lisa Lutz's The Swallows, newly hired teacher Alex Witt is going through some hazing at Stonebridge Academy, a private school in Vermont. As she begins to deal with the bordering on nasty harassment, a student named Gemma informs her of a website where the boys of Stonebridge brag about their sexual conquests, complete with a ranking of their female classmates.

Not wanting to make waves yet unable to ignore the issue, Alex becomes an unofficial advisor to Gemma, who is forming a group of her peers that are planning to take the boys on, especially since they know the patriarchal power system that runs the school certainly won't. As remote as she hopes to be from all of this, Alex finds herself caught up in the maelstrom that eventually ignites but is not unhappy about which side she's on.

Lutz is known for her sharp satire mixed with savvy storytelling and while this novel is set several years before the rise of the push back movement against misogynistic behavior that we see today, this vivid tale of payback rings strongly to our times.

Gripping from the start, this book takes you on a wild ride with unexpected twists and turns and believable characters. Very much enjoyed this one, recomend it to readers and can't wait to see what this talented author comes up with next!

It took me a while to get into this book by Lisa Lutz. I loved the Passenger which kept me on the edge of my chair. This book seemed to slowly gather steam, but once it did, I could not put it down. Campus sex isn’t steamy in this book, it’s downright evil and disgusting, but no spoilers here. Ms. Lutz writes in a prolific style, and I loved the short chapters. Get yourself a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, not mulled, and dig in to this story. Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for the perusal. I thought this book was interesting, frightening, and realistic regarding this very real subject. #metoo

Alex Witt has come to Stonebridge Academy to teach creative writing. And maybe fencing. Her fathers' relationship to the Dean has secured her position and she isn't exactly happy.

The daughter of a somewhat successful author and a Russian no-nonsense mother, Alex has perhaps inherited some qualities from both sides. Stubborn, single and not looking and very to the point!

Her first look at some of her students is a simple enough assignment. 

What do you love? What do you hate? What do you want? Don't sign your paper.

Some of the answers are easy to assign to the authors. Some look like a code of some type and Alex gets the impression not everything is kosher at this odd school.

My take:

Adults and children behaving very, very badly. Hundreds of students and only a few teachers? And there were maybe 2 redeeming characters and the rest were horrible.

It's not an original tale. There have been cliques in schools for decades. Adam has taken it to a whole new level. Find the dirt on everyone and use it to leverage things in his favor. Apparently, this system and his band of merry men who love blow jobs have been around awhile. These guys have just elevated it. And they would still be getting away with treating girls as sexual objects, grading their partners without their knowledge.

All it takes is one warrior. One person willing to stand up and say, "Enough!" And with the Blow Job Chart, it should be easy to decide. Genius! What happens is a full-on war between the sexes. These girls were scary good! In the end, all I could think was, "Girls will be Girls". And laugh.

This isn't my favorite book by Lutz. Some of the characters were a bit cliche'. All in all, I was cheering for Gemma!

NetGalley/ Ballentine August 13, 2019

This is my first time reading a book by Lisa Lutz and I will say that I enjoyed the writing style more than the book premise. The author was able to interweave different characters seamlessly. Now I like boarding school books and thought I would enjoy this one but I found the boys in this book despicable in their "rating". I guess that was the authors point since it felt it was written to purposely have a discourse on the topic. That is what literature can do so I will say she did a great job depicting things that actually do happen in our society.

The Swallows was ridiculous and over-the-top and I loved it. If you're looking for Sex Education (Netflix) in book form for the #MeToo generation, this is your book. Just make sure you go in wanting a bit of a romp, because I think if taken too seriously, The Swallows won't land. It's a fun book.

It's multi-POV, 1st person with helpful chapter headings to let you know whose POV you're in. I only had to go back to remind myself who I was with once or twice--honestly it's a case where it could have easily been in third limited and felt the same; the whole book has a punchy adult literary tone that really works. Alex Witt is our primary main character, the daughter of a famous crime fiction writer who fled her last teaching job in scandal and has landed at Stonebridge, a middling boarding school with a dark secret.

The secret is sex. The boys are garbage and treat the girls like sex objects. There's this whole not-so-secret society thing where the boys have a digital locker room of sorts where they rate girls on their blowjob skills, and the girls who find out don't like it one bit. Our primary teen character is Gemma Russo, rebel with connections to the popular set (called The Ten) who is out to dismantle the whole system. We also get POV chapters from Finn Ford, douchebag teacher/novelist, and Norman Crowley, techny nerd kid who helps fuel The Darkroom but feels bad about it.

Both the female protagonists read like Manic Pixie Dream Girls if you only concentrate on the top level details. Alex is brusque but sexy, witty, doesn't care about trivial bullshit, etc. She's the ultimate Cool Teacher, like Dead Poets Society but a 30-something-woman who gives no fucks. Finn immediately sexually objectifies her, thanks. (his POV is there in large part to contrast to the actually-fleshed-out women and demonstrate gender bullshit; it works.) Gemma is pretty but actively hides it by styling herself punk/emo, she's smart and badass, always has a quip. She's honestly a carbon copy of Maeve from Sex Education, and I even pictured her looking like her, hence why I drew that comparison. Alex and Gemma are stereotypical "strong female protagonists," who in a different book by a different author with a different POV character (male, like Finn) would come across as very different characters--thin, shallow. But they really work in Lutz's hands. Both women are complex, vulnerable, and, for me, relatable. Even though I have almost nothing in common with either of them--I related to their spirits, and their palpable anger.

This is really a book, wrapped up in a hooky commercial and slightly ridiculous plot, about anger. About rape culture, #MeToo, modern feminism. It presents everything mostly without explicit commentary, which I appreciated it. It was there on the page--female characters Witt's age or older who enabled the rape culture at the school, even blamed the girls. The men who participated and the men who did not. The spread of girls and their varying reactions to the sex games going on. One woman Witt's age (approximately 40) comments that they had it worse as teen girls. Witt responds that, no, she thinks these girls have it worse. It was straightforward, just there on the page to chew on. I liked it.

But then, okay, as I mentioned the boarding school stuff is RIDICULOUS. And I love a good ridiculous boarding school book (so I liked this one). I almost rolled my eyes a few times though. From "The Ten," which posits the popular crowd in each grade was comprised of the "top ten" students, but not based in academics--just at any given time in each grade there were ten kids who appointed themselves the most popular and they all hung out? Really a stretch for me. And then the Darkroom and the editors and the Dulcinea. Well, ok. The Darkroom I believe. But every time they referred to themselves as the editors I just deep sighed. The Dulcinea had a great payoff--I mean it's the crux of the whole book.

But I'd just like to remind everyone that 60% of teens are not having sex. Today teens have LESS sex than in the past. So this is why you have to kind if disengage your reality filter and read this as a fun romp, because the sexual antics are a bit over-the-top. A LOT of these girls are having sex from age 14 or 15, which I think is meant to be sex positive but just feels statistically ridiculous? Every single girl depicted in this book is having sex. No one is queer. Many students sleep with teachers. I mean, it's fine, but just something I thought of a lot reading it. In that sense, it definitely feels properly like an adult book (which it is), rather than a YA.

Anyway, I loved reading it. Highly recommend!

“The Swallows,” a novel by Lisa Lutz, is an attempt at social discourse about sexual hijinks that has left me a little flabbergasted and disappointed. Her Spellman series was well received and she has won some prestigious awards for her writing but Swallows doesn’t hit the approval button for me.

A teacher at a New England prep school, Alex Witt, creates a writing project for her students the brings some unusual responses. The social hierarchy is exposed in all its ugliness and the Darkroom, a website generated by boyish fascination with oral sex that gets too informative about the girls at Stonebridge Academy, generates disruption, resistance, and revenge. I’ll leave the story at that and get to my opinions.

There are too many characters with too many interruptions to produce an orderly telling of the tale. I was constantly looking back to see who was being featured in the narrative at that particular moment, trying to decide what their role was, and scratching my head about why it was being described at all. The details of the Darkroom should have been upsetting to the administration, but, instead, appeared to be an occurrence that got a “kids will be kids” response, and even promoted some joining in by some of the responsible adults. Not likely to happen and even falls into the category of unbelievable.

So, if you enjoy scandal and sexual encounters and revenge plotting you might find some redeeming value here. I, personally, did not.

I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This story line was a struggle to get into and not one I enjoyed at all. While I understand the need for revenge against people the whole nasty school boys and their grading of girls in sexual ways, was bothersome. Not to say it couldn't happen it just wasn't something fount myself wanting to read about in any great detail.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43744294-the-swallows" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="The Swallows" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1553520339m/43744294.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43744294-the-swallows">The Swallows</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/74189.Lisa_Lutz">Lisa Lutz</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2865697395">2 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I received a copy from Netgalley for an honest review. I really liked the first half of this book where the main character, who is a creative writing teacher, is trying to figure out her students through a series of a few simple questions. She has a past with a rival school while employed there, her father is a writer whom she has a complicated relationship, so there are back stories. The second half of the book it became apparent this book is more about oral sex (hence the title). At that point it became very unimaginative for me and I DNF. I thought the questionnaires and her trying to figure everyone out was much, much more interesting and wish the author had spent more time there.
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5483119-sherry">View all my reviews</a>

I've mixed feelings about this book. I found it a quick read, and certainly a topical one, in that gender issues involving consensual sexual activity have been in the news lately. It's definitely a topic that bears discussion. It's just that this book does that in a coarse manner via language and subject matter. The Swallows also reads strongly like a coming-of-age YA book whereas I believe the intended audience is adult.
The book is written using alternating points-of-view which slows things down a bit as the reader learns of the same event through different character's eyes. I enjoyed the main protagonist, Alex, and found her interactions with her divorced parents humorous.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC to review.

I am a fan of Lisa Lutz so I was happy that her usual humor gave some light to what is a dark theme. The main story point, boys at a prep school online shaming girls for their sexual skills, made me uncomfortable, although it certainly is something I believe could take place. The fact that these were high school kids made it creepier. Using the different points of view to move the story along was a good strategy because I wanted to see how their stories played out. I was less invested in the revenge plot, which was secondary and not satisfactorily resolved. The last third of the book seemed rushed and a little uneven, particularly in a flurry of unfortunate actions that weren't fully developed. In the end, I stayed for the storytelling, not for the story, but enjoyed the read.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing me with an ARC of this novel through NetGalley.

I requested this novel as a fan of Lisa Lutz. The writing style jumped out to me as familiar, but the story is a bit outside my usual fare. As a high school teacher myself, I was deeply disturbed by the story. I recognize that the story has relevance today and is even, I believe, based on several true stories. It's a sadly believable story.

Boys rate girls on their sexual prowess. Girls are unaware. Girls find out. Girls seek revenge.

This story pulls no punches in its depiction of a secret oral sex competition held by the boys on a boarding school campus. It is dark, gritty, and infuriating. And, as previously noted, it's highly disturbing. This is what drags the novel down for me. There were no characters I liked by the time I was done. I was left with unanswered questions about consequences.

At the end of the day, it just wasn't my cup of tea. But there are many lessons to be learned from this story, especially in today's world. I thank Lisa Lutz for having the courage to write it, even if I found it hard to stomach.

This was one of the most realistic books I have read in a very long time. It tells a story that, bizarre as it seems, could so easily have been drug from the nightly news. Lisa Lutz' characters are so real, I recognize them in people I meet in my daily life. Scary, enthralling and true-feeling, with a lesson to be learned- well worth the time to sit down and read it.

Outstanding read. A story of an East Coast boarding school with the curtains pulled back. Any woman who attended high school al pst anywhere in America will recognize all the characters. The actual socioeconomic environment is not particularly relevant - every school has the elite and privileged, the underclass, and the climbers. Most every school has both girls and boys, and the teenage jungle never changes. What is different about the girls in this fascinating study is that they actually are empowered. Instead of the whining women so exploited by the “Me Too”.movement, these girls fight back. They do have assistance from a very atypical woman in Alex Witt ( would so be friends with her) and marginally, her mother. To be fair, there are a small number of male characters who recognize the boys for who they are and align themselves with the girls. As always, there are the traitorous women and the spineless males. Whatever you may feel about the eventual outcome of the girls’ actions against the boys, you must respect their courage and determination and self-respect. This in not a YA novel by any stretch of the imagination, but if I had a teenage daughter (or son), I would want them to read this novel.

Is this YA? Maybe it's just that I can't relate to boarding school kids. Found it funnier than I think it was meant to be, but I did enjoy the characters and the plot twists towards the end.

An unpleasant incident, which results in her reputation as a faculty member damaged, leads to Alexandra Witt accepting a teaching position at Stonebridge Academy. Persuaded into teaching creative writing, a subject she was not prepared to teach, Alex gives what she believes to be a harmless and anonymous "ice breaker" assignment. The responses lead to a disturbing insight into her students and their connection to something known as the Darkroom. Alex begins to uncover a mysterious and disturbing ranking system which faculty members seem to ignore. Attempting to help she finds herself pulled into a gender war in which the revenge plots become increasingly dangerous and potentially fatal.

The Swallows offers mystery, suspense, and dark humor as it explores a group of high school students (and faculty members) who are involved in a secret online forum, which among other things, scores girls on their ability to perform oral sex. The winner receives the highest award of Dulcinea at the end of the year. As you can imagine after discovering what this novel was about; the title takes on a whole new meaning. Alex, still traumatized from a mysterious event at her last school, attempts to help Gemma, one of her students, who is trying to shut the forum down for good resulting in an all-out war between genders. The novel slowly exposes the true nature of each character; revealing secrets and disclosing true friend from foe in the end. This novel covers some important and uncomfortable topics, often with dark humor, that may not appeal to all readers. Overall I found it interesting, entertaining, and even amusing at times and recommend it for readers not sensitive to topics of a sexual nature.

I was so excited about getting approved by the author since I read every Spellman book she wrote. I am not too keen about reading books that could be based on political theme but this book was an exception. The author is funny and witty and tells the story from different points of view so you get the whole picture. What is passable for one generation is passable for another. The ending of the book to me everyone got what they deserved. I would definitely recommend this book for others to read.

Once again a setting in a private school so I knew I would love it! Ms. Witt joins the faculty in this secluded area hoping to find solace from her past but is quickly thrown into a perverse and twisted 'game" the boys play by setting up the girls and then rating them on a hidden website. Senior Gemma is determined to put an end to this practice but of course needs help to bring the boys down. It was an enjoyable yet sinister read that felt all too real. Told from multiple perspectives, it was sometimes hard to follow and remember which students I "liked," but overall, I really loved the twists and turns.

The Swallows is a complex book full of memorable characters and dynamic plot threads that all come together in a heart-stopping ending.
I’ll admit that I wasn’t sold at the beginning. For starters, there were a lot of characters to remember. The story takes place at a New England boarding school, and there are plenty of students’ and teachers’ names to remember. Also, the beginning - although interesting - moved a little slowly. However, by the fourth chapter, I was hooked.
Once the story gained momentum, I became intrigued by each of the main characters. There were some who started out seemingly good and then, by the end of the book, turned out to be bad. There were others who seemed shady but turned out to be good. I loved the complexity of the cast.
I also liked how the school’s secrets were gradually exposed. When I was reading, I had a strong feeling that something was very wrong at the school, but only as I read on did I find out how dysfunctional the students and faculty were. Each chapter did a great job of laying the groundwork for the ending.
The last few chapters were some of the best I’ve read. Certainly, they were among the top of what I’ve read this year. Beware, however. The end of the book doesn’t tie up everything with a nice bow. There are lingering questions and a few loose ends. I didn’t mind this at all, but not every reader likes uncertainty.
Overall, The Swallows was an excellent thriller that will leave you thinking about long after you’ve finished reading.

Four out of five stars.

Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy.