Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Layden, and St. Martin's Press for providing me with this ARC. I was very excited to delve into this book because I have a real thing for campus novels. In that aspect, this book did not disappoint. For the most part, I found this to be an enjoyable, twisting mystery. My one criticism would be that there were too many points of view in this story. It may have been better served to focus on a smaller group of main characters. However, this book was engaging and will be a great read for those who enjoy mystery and books set on campus.

The font seemed a little small and smashed together. I didn't care for the details in the beginning describing the land. Signs appear near a boarding school proclaiming a rapist. Lauren starts the boarding school and her roommate is Bryce. I was curious to see what would happen.

I was really intrigued by the plot line of this book, however, unfortunately I think there were too many characters, each were pretty indistinguishable from one another, and lots of them didn't advance the plot.

I think if there were a few core characters, who were more linked to the main plot line, it could have become more like The Secret History.

I went to an all girls high school, though not boarding school, and thought the sense of home and family that this title strikes is spot on. That makes it all the more jarring when you realize something horrible happened at the school, and the school is trying to cover it up. I could not put this book down! I love the changing point of views, giving a full 360 degree view of how each girl is processing this information and handling it-while also trying to handle being a teenage girl which anyone who was a teenage girl will say is truly hard enough.

All Girls has an interesting concept and one that any fan of literary fiction would enjoy. However, there were too many character POV's and it became very confusing to differentiate between them all. This caused my focus to wane. I will say though that I think this book has very good bones and would be a great read for those who can focus on a multitude of character narratives- that's unfortunately not me.

Emily Layden's All Girls is the story of a school year at a prestigious all-girls boarding school. When the freshmen are on their way to the campus, they see mysterious signs that point to sexual misconduct on campus. The first chapter serves as a jumping-off point for an unfolding of the truth of campus life that will come out throughout the year. As the reader experiences events like Vespers and prom with the characters, they also see a different campus side not shown on the brochure. Layden's narrators come in the forms of various girls on campus who lend a distinctive voice to life at Atwater. I was engrossed in this novel and would definitely read another book by Emily Layden. I would recommend this novel to anyone who likes books about schools or books that talk about the Me Too movement.

Liked, didn't love this book. My complaint is too many narrators but very relevant and interesting topic, with a teacher being accused of sexual misconduct. The story get lost in so many POV's. There are some strong moments that make you think and relate to the narrators. But all in all, the story was lost in the overflow of main characters. More to come in my review.
#netgalley

This was more a collection of short stories than a connected narrative; I expected a more cohesive message as well, but it seemed to cover a wide variety of issues facing today’s young women. Not what I expected.

All Girls focuses on the issues of personal identity, first experiences and sexual assault through the eyes of young women at a girls boarding school. Fraught with a millennial mix of insecurity and anxiety and being empowered by education and privilege, the girls attempt to navigate their experiences after a former student accuses the school of covering up her rape by a teacher.

I think the writing in this novel perfectly captures what it's like for a young woman trying to understand her place in a world still governed by a previous generation. For the girls at this school, the messages received are acutely mixed, favoring a capitalistic view of feminism and trying to the escape any real responsibility to adapt to the younger generation's needs. It's a pretty perfect mirror to what we can see happening, even now.

The experiences shared by the characters are varied and I think that is a strength rather than a weakness. I understand how the story's format has thrown some people off, I didn't particularly enjoy reading about new characters half way in, but I don't think it unravels the subject matter as a whole. It's a bit like an anthology in that way, but well worth reading.

Thank you to Netgalley/ St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This novel chronicles the lives of several high school girls who are attending a high stakes prep school. In the midst of the normal coming of age issues, a story surfaces of a prior student who was raped by a teacher at their school.

I enjoyed reading this book about an all girls boarding school and the girls who attended. There was scandal, of course, sexual assault which was the underlying theme. Although I enjoyed getting to know the many characters, I feel there may have been too many and I felt lost sometimes trying to remember them all. Still, I recommend this book as a good read!

The girls at this New England boarding school are interesting, and the mysterious signs leading to the school are intriguing. However, even with the premise that dalliances between male professors and their young students aren't taken seriously at this school, the story itself involves too many minor characters that are never linked together.

For instance, we learn that one young student is raped but how this affects her is never touched upon and she is never mentioned again. Interactions between students are shallow and even when close relationships apparently fall apart, nothing more is said. Lauren, who we meet on her journey to school, is only mentioned later as an afterthought by her roommate. I think the author has enough familiarity with boarding schools that she could have focused on 4-5 girls at the most and developed an engaging plot, which would have made for a better story. As it is I felt I was reading accounts from different diaries.

I received an advance copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

If you like Derry Girls, you will love this one. A fun read. Loved this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

All Girls follows the stories of multiple girls at an all girls boarding school in Connecticut, weaving their stories with larger issues of sexual abuse at the institution. First of all, as someone who has lived in Connecticut, the author completely nailed the New England prep school vibe. I felt like I knew these girls, and I loved all the details about the surrounding areas. Secondly, I loved the diversity of the characters, including their backgrounds and their struggles. My only complaint was that I wished I got to know the characters more. One chapter in their POV wasn't enough for me. Some of them were so interesting, I could have read a whole book from their perspective.

2.5 stars

Yes, my rating for this book is pretty low but I did get a few worthwhile things from the story. The main issue I had is there were too many characters and with each chapter featuring a new POV, it was too much. The story got lost with so many different voices.

Atwater is an all girls boarding school located in Connecticut. At the beginning of the school year, a former student makes allegations of sexual misconduct against a teacher. The story starts off following Lauren, a new student at Atwater, and from there on a new character is featured each chapter throughout the course of the school year. While the schools handling of the allegations is a main plot point, the story gives a look at everything that comes with growing up as a female.

There are a few moments in the story that really resonated with me. It was like I was transported back to being a fifteen year old girl and could totally relate to what a certain character was feeling or thinking. The author touched upon on how back in the 1990s certain subjects weren't really talked about and therefore it was hard for many of us growing up back then to adequately describe our experiences or feelings. And that hit me like a ton of bricks realizing that was spot on and how the girls of my generation and the ones before me, just didn't have all of the tools to help us navigate our way thru adolescence. But I also feel a sense of hope we are making strides in giving the girls of this generation more knowledge and building up their confidence so they are able to express themselves.

There were some good, thought provoking moments here and there. However, I can't help but think some of the author's messaging got lost because of the way the book was executed with the multiple POVs. Somewhere around the start of the second half of the book, it became difficult for me to focus. I like when you can feel invested in the characters and with the way this book was set up, it wasn't really an option. Before you knew it, you were moving on to the next character.

Even though I didn't like the story as a whole, it was worth reading for the couple powerful moments that resonated with me.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me an advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

While the book started off strong, it went into too many different directions. Too many POV's it got super confusing, and felt unfinished.

The plot of this book is driven by a sexual misconduct case between a teacher and student at an all-girls boarding school in the northeast US. While the alleged misconduct occurred in a past decade, it still impacts the school community as it receives attention in local and regional news outlets. The girls at the school grapple with issues relating to identity including class, privilege, and relationships while also trying to create change, despite the fact that they are often ignored/dismissed by adults. This was a powerful coming of age book that clearly depicts the challenges girls may face today during their teen/college years!

Since each chapter was narrated by a different student, the story often twisted at times when I was growing to love a character. Often when reading books with multiple narratives, I notice that some characters are developed more than others, and this was not the case with this book. Since the author did an excellent job developing each character, the I cared deeply about each girl and often wanted to know more about how their issues were resolved! Yet, I do not think I would have wanted less characters as the unique perspectives of the different girls allowed for the introduction of various struggles without feeling like one character was experiencing an unrealistic load including each possible issue.

This was a great debut novel, and I look forward to future books by this author.

I have always had a weakness for novels about boarding schools and I found “All Girls” by Emily Layden to be a pleasant surprise.

Lauren Triplett is headed to boarding school in Atwater, Connecticut. The all girls’ academy is touted as one for “progressive feminists.” On the drive, she notices her new school houses a rapist. How many of us would scream at our parents to turn the car right back around?

But there would not be much of a novel to that. Instead, we learn that a former student claims a teacher at the school has raped her. Unfortunately, the story does not stay with Lauren. Instead, we learn about the rape and its validity from a variety of voices, a technique that I found to be a bit jarring. I became frustrated because I could not connect to any one character. Additionally, I had to keep going back to reread previous sections to comprehend what was going on. A reader does not want to work to enjoy the story!

I give this author kudos for trying something different and addressing such a harrowing subject matter in such an honest way. The author did an excellent job of capturing the variety of personalities in the different voices who tell this story. But that strength became this novel’s weakness as you wanted to stay with these narrators once you got inside their heads (or at least go back to them). I think the best way to describe this novel is a set of short stories, setting around one event. While the stories move the plot forward, there was not much connection between these different tales.

I suggest trying this book if you are open to trying something different. Three stars.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, the author and NetGalley for the review copy. This novel will be published on Feb. 16, 2021.

This book wasn't at all what I expected, but I loved it. Through a series of different perspectives that almost read like short stories, the author explores many nuances of this difficult subject matter. While jumping from character to character can sometimes be confusing, it really works here. I enjoyed living out the school year through the eyes of so many people. This is definitely a story that will stick with me for awhile, and I highly recommend it.

An ambitious debut novel set at a prestigious all-girls boarding school in rural Connecticut. A former student has accused one of her teachers of raping her when she was a senior at the school. Though the story takes place in present-day, the events of twenty years earlier impact the lives of the current students. The story takes us through a full school year, following several students for a chapter apiece.

The thing I liked most about this novel is also the most frustrating: after each girl gets her chapter, we never hear from her again, except sometimes in the background of another girl's story. So just as I get invested in the student's issues and perspectives, her section ends--often on the cusp of something interesting--and we never find out what happens to her. It's an effective device for telling the central story, but I wanted to know more.

Overall a promising debut. I love a good boarding school novel, with its insular culture and secrets. Layden does not disappoint. I look forward to seeing what she does next. (Comparisons to Curtis Sittenfeld's Prep are inevitable, but this book has a different feel, and I enjoyed both.)

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review.