I absolutely loved this book! One of the best I've read in a really long while.

We have a dual perspective story, told in alternating timelines, that tie together with a nice little bow. I was more interested in Connie's storyline (the past) than I was Eve's (the present) but I was also interested in seeing how they tied together. After awhile, it was pretty obvious how it was all connected but I didn't really care because the story was so good.

I love the psychological aspect from Connie's timeline. During the Cold War era and all the paranoia that was set into place during that time. It setup perfectly for the project that ultimately became part of the plot. The idea of a secret society in schools -- plus, I also love boarding school settings -- is always intriguing, so Eve's storyline added another element of intrigue.

Don't sleep on this book. It's the perfect thriller.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Will be published on Forever Young Adult on 8/9/22.

Cover Story: Coming Into Focus

Until you read the book you don’t know what is up with the V on the cover, though the two silhouettes at least are a nod to our two main characters. I’m not sure if the happy-ish blend of yellow and purple really gel with the tone of the book for me, personally.

The Deal:

Hardwicke Preparatory Academy has been around for decades with a storied history. While Eva didn’t choose to attend a boarding school and leave her family, she throws herself into finding friends and soon discovers she’s been tapped for an exclusive secret society…if she can pass the initiation trials. As she gets deeper into the group, she realizes it may have something to do with an incident that happened in the 1960s, where our second protagonist, Connie, is deeply concerned about a potential nuclear threat. Connie joins five other students in a fallout shelter under the school for a four-day trial of how to survive if a nuclear war comes to pass, but the things they have to do in that shelter don’t seem to make much sense…especially when things start to turn deadly.

BFF Charm: Yay, Oda Mae Brown

At first Eva is desperate to be liked and will take any crumb of kindness offered to her, which is how she ends up being tapped for the Fives. I was definitely shaking my head because those kinds of “friends” who will make you pass initiation tests before they’ll approve of you definitely aren’t the kind you need, but thankfully Eva’s journey is one of character growth, and she’s pretty awesome by the end.

I felt for Connie and her anxiety around a Cold War, because our fears aren’t always rational (not that it WASN’T a threat at the time, but I feel like she had an unreasonable level of worry about it to where it was affecting her day-to-day life). She’s also kind of a pushover and unwilling to rock the boat, which I’m sure many of us could relate to, but as a reader makes you want to shake her into action. Regardless of her potential character growth, she was stuck in an increasingly untenable situation and I was reading her parts through my fingers.

Swoonworthy Scale: 4

Connie is very interested in super popular and nice guy jock, Craig, which in no small part leads her to agreeing to this survival experiment. Meanwhile, Eva connects with her own jock in her timeline. Their interactions are cute and simple as romance isn’t really the main focus of this story.

Talky Talk: An Uncomplicated Conspiracy

Taylor’s writing is straightforward and uncomplicated, leading this to feel more like a “basic” story of secrets and lies than some. And I don’t mean that to be disparaging, because it was a decent book and moved along at a brisk pace, so even as I was thinking, “Well, I can kind of guess what is coming next”, I wasn’t glancing at my completion percentage and cursing how much further I had to go. It just, overall, had a “murder-mystery sanitized for actual teenagers” feel (which, again, is not a dig, because we are talking about YA and I am definitely the thing that doesn’t “belong” here). So if you or someone you know is a person who likes their “dark academia” not quite so dark, then this is a good pick!

Bonus Factor: Boarding Schools

Like many great YA settings before it, Hardwicke Academy is all classic brick buildings and beautiful grounds barely hiding the wealthy privilege and moral rot underneath. I don’t think there was anything so amazing about this particular boarding school that would warrant the kind of loyalty it inspired in certain people, but having its own hidden fallout shelter untouched since the ‘60s is kinda neat from an “urban explorers” perspective.

Anti-Bonus Factor: Psychological Manipulation

Watching people get manipulated or brainwashed and seeing how easily it can happen always feels very…uncomfy. And also makes me understand why my dad was always going on and on about “critical thinking skills” when I was a teenager—which is kind of ironic considering the political viewpoints my parents espouse, but that is mental trauma to be unpacked another day.

Relationship Status: Running Partners

Thanks for letting me keep pace with you as we went on our morning run, Book. You were easy to chat with and kept me entertained but I’ll have you know that running is not really for me, so I probably won’t see you out on the trails again. Keep safe!

FTC Full Disclosure: I received my free review copy from HarperTeen. I received neither money nor peanut butter cups in exchange for this review. Don’t Breathe a Word is available now.

This was a trippy read that was very engaging and well-written for a dual timeline story. You have your standard story of teens, secret society, boarding school settings and a mystery/conundrum that each generation of students hear/know about. Thank you to HarperTeen and NetGalley for the opportunity read this eARC.

This book was an enjoyable ride! I enjoyed the mystery element of the school and the Dean but felt the book was slow in the first 30% of the novel. I enjoyed the characters but did not feel a strong connection to any of them. Overall, I would recommend this novel.

I really enjoyed this, though Connie's storyline was a lot more interesting. But I really loved the way the author connected the 2 POVs together. The mystery was a little predictable, but I still liked it and it kept me entertained for a while.

3.5 stars

Really enjoyed this book! It was the first one for me to read by this author and I can't wait to read more! The characters stick with you long after the book is over.

I was very into this book for the first like 80%, but didn't like the ending quite as much as the rest. It takes place during two different time frames at a fancy upstate New York boarding school. In 1962, Connie Abbot, who is terrified of nuclear war, somehow gets talked into being part of an experiment that involves staying in the school's new fallout shelter over spring break. Her best friend Betty talks her into it, but the tipping point is that her crush, Craig Allenby, has also volunteered. The experiment is being led by their 24 year old wannabe psychologist teacher, who turns the whole thing into a super messed up psychological experiment. Connie's chapters alternate with chapters featuring Eva Storm, a current day Hardwick Preparatory student whose loneliness ends up leading her to be recruited by the campus secret society, the Fives. The Fives are basically elite tattletales, and they tattle to the Dean of Students - Craig Allenby. Eva and a non-Fives friend, Erik, become fascinated with stories of the old fallout shelter, and decide to find it even after Eva is warned/threatened by the Fives. Erik's grandfather had a family member, Helen, who died in failed psychological experiment in 1962, and Allenby has been covering it up since. I was super into the buildup and the alternating storylines, but I felt like there could have been a lot more development in Connie's chapters, especially moving towards the end of the experiment. Still, a cool idea and definitely a book I would recommend.

Eva is shipped off to Hardwick boarding school. She is desperate to belong and fit in with the others. She is elated when she receives and invitation to join "The Fives," a secret student group. As she is drawn deeper into the group, she learns of a social experiment gone wrong in the 60s that no one is allowed to talk about. Six students go into a bomb shelter but only 5 come out alive. Eva can let this go and must find out the whole story. Overall, a fun mystery and worthy addition to grades 7+ library.

This romance is one with a chilling story. I loved the dual time POV it made the book feel so real. Past and present crash together in this thrilling page turner with a fast-paced plot and killer story. Twists and turns drew me in and the darkness of this story was just so good. I loved the characters and can't wait to see another story from this author.

It is hard to imagine what it was like when the world was constantly in fear of nuclear bombs. My mom had bomb drills at her school and President Kennedy’s speech did nothing but add fuel to an already out of control fire or fear. This books weaves together two story lines at the same school at different times. Eva in 2021 is desperately hoping for some new friends at her boarding school and will do just about anything the secret society asks her to in order to make that happen. Connie is stuck in a fall out shelter experiment gone awry and doesn’t have enough voice to stick up for herself. A murder investigation 60 years in the making brings these two women together. I loved the varying viewpoints and the unfolding drama!

Connie, a teen girl attending Hardwick Preparatory Academy in 1962, was not prepared for what would happen over spring recess. Eva, the new kid at Hardwick Preparatory Academy today, wants to find out the truth about what happened in 1962. Jordyn Taylor weaves the tale of two teen girls, from two different time periods, who are connected by a fall-out shelter, a secret society, and a dead student in Don’t Breathe a Word.

Eva’s world is turned upside down when a week before classes start, her mom and step-dad reveal they are sending her to Hardwick Preparatory Academy, a boarding school, so they don’t have to deal with her anymore. If that wasn’t bad enough, she quickly learns that finding friends among classmates who have been together since the 5th grade is basically impossible. But then Eva meets Jenny and everything changes. Jenny is a part of a secret society at Hardwick Preparatory Academy, called the Fives, and she bring Eva in. Eva wants to be a part of a group so badly, that she is willing to do all of the crazy things the Fives require of prospective members, even jumping of a cliff, in the middle of the night, naked. But being a Five isn’t quite what Eva expected it to be, she learns that her fellow Fives have been keeping tabs on other students for the Dean, ratting them out in exchange for favors and status. Even more suspect is that the Dean and his loyal Fives are actively working to hide the existence of a bunker, built during the Cold War, on campus. When Eva meets Eric, whose relative died in that very bunker in 1962, Eva is determined to find out what really happened, and what it is the Dean is trying so hard to hide.

Growing up during the Cold War is not easy, and Connie is constantly plagued by the fear of a bombing or missle strike. The assemblies and drills they do at Hardwick Preparatory Academy, do nothing to ease Connie’s fears, often making it worse, so when the student body is informed of another assembly about the war, Connie is dreading it. It turns out that the school has built an public bunker to be used in case of a nuclear attack, and they want six students to spend their spring recess in the bunker to test it and also prepare for a real event. They will spend the four days mostly alone in the bunker, with Andy, everyone’s favorite teacher (except for Connie who feels something isn’t right about him), giving them guidance and observing from the outside. But things begin to take an unexpected turn, and later a deadly one.

Boarding school, a secret society, a mystery to solve, Don’t Breathe a Word has everything it needs to be a successful YA book. For me, the best thing about it was the chapter’s told from Connie’s perspective. It was very interesting to read about life during the Cold War, and how that affected people and kids especially. This isn’t a common time period in historical fiction, so it made the book unique. The chapter’s that followed Eva were a little less exceptional. It felt like a pretty standard secret society story, the only difference being the Fives’ origin and purpose. However, following Eva as she tried to solve the mystery of the bunker and learn that being a member of the Fives isn’t all it’s cracked up to be was still plenty enjoyable, and it will appeal to many teen readers. The pacing is great; it kept me pretty glued to the story hoping to find out what happens next. And, once Eva and an older, angry, and finally ready to stand up for herself Connie meet, I couldn’t put the book down.

Jordan Taylor takes a classic boarding school/secret society story and gives it a refreshing historical twist in Don’t Breathe a Word. This will be an easy sell for most teens and new adults.

I really enjoyed this book. A fun, enthralling read that I couldn’t put down. Loved the characters, alternating point of view and, of course, the story.

I was really excited by the premise of this book when I read the description, but I have to admit that the execution fell flat for me. Although I still think that the basic idea of a Cold War-era conspiracy gone wrong at a boarding school is super engaging, I felt that the plot was incredibly formulaic in practice. All of the "big reveals" seemed to me like foregone conclusions pages before they arrived, and I didn't really develop strong feelings towards any of the characters, who were all very two-dimensional. At times, the dialogue felt forced to me, and a lot of Eva's narration seemed to be trying so hard to be witty that it just sort of got in the way of the scene. I also felt like there was a lot of setup for the plotline with Eva's family, which was then resolved in a really anticlimactic way at the tail end of the book. It just didn't work for me, unfortunately.

This book was SUPER readable, couldn't put it down. I would definitely recommend it to any teenagers looking for a story that is compelling and fun but also has a good message about what kinds of people you should spend time with and invest in. I thought the end was tied up a little too nicely, I was expecting more blow back for the characters or an additional twist. Still, I really enjoyed it and am recommending to teens.

I have loved Jordyn Taylor’s books since I read her debut novel, The Paper Girl of Paris. I wasn’t a fan of the cover art, but this is a perfect example of don’t judge a book by its cover! Don’t Breathe a Word is one of the best historical fiction/mystery books I’ve read this year.

Told in dual timelines, Don’t Breathe a Word takes place between now and 1962, during the Cold War. I found both Eva, from present day, and Connie, from the 60s, to be very relatable characters. While they were both followers at first, in the end, they both came into their own in different ways. The story had me hooked from the very beginning, and the way Taylor switched points of view was excellent.

All in all, this was a fantastic mystery, and I highly recommend it.

I received an advance copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

Don't Breathe a Word was a good mystery and a look at how having any power can turn you into something you don't recognize. Both timeless played out well and I enjoyed this fast paced story. Thanks to Netgalley for a digital copy.

A suspenseful story that encompasses two worlds. The flashbacks to the school in the fifties and sixties was an enjoyable part of the mystery. It's the type of book you find hard to put down and can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike.

So good!!! I love dark academia and specifically books set around secret societies. This one was fast paced and super easy to dive into and binge in one night. It is told from the perspective of two different people and switches back and forth between Eva in present day, and Connie from the early 1960's. I'm not usually a fan of multi perspective books with alternating chapters but I had no trouble keeping the two stories separate and I was invested in both stories equally which never happens. I would definitely recommend this for anyone wanting a quick entertaining YA boarding school read!

I went into this book with high hopes - I am a fan of mysteries, and I tend to enjoy books set in boarding schools. However, DON'T BREATHE A WORD just did not land for me. I found the writing awkward and forced, and the characterization was not believable. This story had potential, but I don't feel that the execution was effective.