This was a great debut from Dang! I was hooked and intrigued instantly and I flew through it in a day!

I throughly enjoyed the true crime vibes and appreciated the important topics that were addressed in relation to mental health, bullying, racism and #BlackLivesMatter.

‘Ivy League Mary’ made for an interesting love to hate narrator and protagonist as I felt for her and her struggles yet still questioned so many of her decisions. This made her super compelling to me nonetheless!

This was an entertaining mystery that was definitely dark and provocative. I’m super curious to see what Dang does next!

“𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬, 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥.”

3.5 stars rounded to 4 for goodreads!

A perfect fall read by a fire. Nice girls is a fast paced suspenseful story. Mary finally gets out of her small town and into the ivy league only to ruin it. There was definitely some plot twists .

3.5 stars, rounded up. I enjoyed the story, but Mary was a real pain and I didn't love spending time with her mopey a-word.

I'm definitely the type to try out every mystery/thriller because why not. They may all feel the same but who knows, maybe there's some aspect I'll like. Sometimes I do wonder what I really, really look for in a mystery/thriller that I just pick up most that I can get my hands on. Nice Girls has a very typical-ish plot when you read that synopsis. and somehow, yeah... it is..

Nice Girls follows Mary, or Ivy League Mary as they call her, who comes home to her small town after an unfortunate event that got her expelled from Cornell University. When Mary's childhood bestfriend, Olivia was reported missing, the entire town started searching for her neglecting the possible connection to another missing girl report than Mary believes to be related. Mary decides to find out more and delve into the lives of both Olivia and DeMaria. How far will Mary go to find out the truth?

This started quite strong for me. I was genuinely intrigued by Mary and the disappearances. Why did she go home? What happened to Olivia? What is the town's star football player doing home? Is he related to Olivia's disappearance? Despite Mary's past with Kevin, is he a reliable policeman? You can just come up with so much things that could make this interesting. And somehow, all of those parts moved. And they're all moving at the same time, it felt overwhelming. Are they really connected? Are they all important? And that's what felt off for me. I think that this was trying too much. It's trying to put too much twist into this (or more like forcing it, I guess. or it just made me feel like it). It's trying to put too much issues or things to think about (aside from the mystery itself) into it that at the end, I'm not sure if I'm okay with it. I mean, yeah, of course tackling all those things are good but sometimes, maybe it's better to stick to one and focus on that for more emphasis (?).

As usual, I'm not delving much into the story especially since this is a mystery/thriller. Just a few things of note: (1) Mary was a fat girl in high school and she absolutely hates it (if you don't like characters with that kind of mentality, skip this!!). She goes on and on about it in this book and how much she's supposed to show people in her small town how much weight she lost and how successful she's supposed to become by going to an Ivy League school; (2) They touched racism and social standing (?). There's so much talk about the police shrugging DeMaria's missing person case because she's not white and they're not well off. They didn't give as much effort to her as they did to Olivia because she's black and they're not well off unlike Olivia; (3) The police force isn't always gonna out that much effort in finding out the truth. Like most police procedural novels, Nice Girls shows a police officer willing to go against their bosses just to find out the truth and there would be those who'd just go around catching someone that works for their interests; (4) People you met in high school aren't the same people once you all get out of there. You'll realize that there's a lot more going on in other people than what they've shown throughout those four short years of their life. It's not a news flash but there really is a lot of parts in here where there will be comparison of they were then and who they are now. People change so much every year.
OVERALL, Nice Girls is started strong for me. It's a missing girl mystery and a few more things in tow. It feels slow, dragging at times even (especially the confrontation part, I don't know it just feels like it too forever for me), and it feels like it wants tackle more things. The mystery did got me thinking but there's a part of me that thinks that somehow it's one of those that just didn't have enough foreshadowing (or it could just be me missing all of them early on or the author misleading me, someone tell me if you've read this already). The ending also didn't feel strong me. Just not what I want, I guess.

Unpopular opinion coming

I liked this one in the beginning but then I don’t know exactly what it was but it seemed to “drag” on for me and I got less and less interested in the story.

Thank you to the Publisher and Netgalley for the advanced e-reader copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Mary was the smart, chubby, bullied girl in high school who managed to graduate with the nickname Ivy League Mary and reinvented herself at Cornell by losing weight and going out with friends to party and drink. But in one moment of rage and anger she loses it all and is now back in her hometown, working at the local grocery store. When her childhood friend Olivia is reported missing the town rallies together to find the popular girl with a shining future on social media. When another local missing girl is discovered brutally murdered, Mary begins to suspect there may be a serial killer lurking around. She doesn't know who to trust, is suspicious of everyone, and makes accusations. Is Mary close to catching the killer, or is she putting herself in danger?

It was hard to like any of the characters and was confused on some things. Mary was always reflecting back to her past and what happened at Cornell, as if she can't ever escape being that girl who was ignored and unwanted. She feels a connection with one of the victims as they were both depressed and taking the same medication, which comes up numerous times in the book. The ending was somewhat vague at the very end with no complete resolution. Overall the story was okay and I would have enjoyed it more if the ending had more of a closure with everyone involved.

Thank you Netgalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read this book.

Happy pub day to Nice Girls! Thank you to William Morrow for my ARC on NetGalley!

In one sentence: Mary was always the nice girl, but after her expulsion from Cornell, she returns home and gets caught in a mystery of two missing girls, Olivia and DeMaria.

Read if you liked: A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, Local Woman Missing, False Witness

This book reminded me of a darker, more adult AGGTM. Mary was a compelling character - here's someone who was always a good girl overachiever and now has lost practically everything. Her investigation of Olivia and DeMaria's deaths had me hooked. I liked how the story explored class and race differences across crimes - unsurprisingly, beautiful blonde Olivia gets plenty of attention, while teen mom DeMaria is treated as a runaway despite evidence to the contrary. I did not guess the culprit, and there were plenty of twists to keep me entertained.

This is a strong debut, and I'll definitely keep an eye out for Catherine Dang writes next. I think readers who enjoy thrillers with true crime elements will enjoy this book - and it's perfect for spooky season!!

Nice girls is a compelling twisted thriller .
The narrator really pulls you into the story .
I was hooked from the first page .
Dark and twisty , this is one novel I couldn’t get enough of . The characters were rich and complex . A winner !

After an act of dorm violence ends with her expelled and sent back home, the formerly nicknamed “Ivy League Mary” now finds herself working at a grocery store and trying to figure out what happens next for life. Her return home coincides with the disappearance of a childhood friend turned enemy Olivia, and that disappearance opens up another missing girl to their hometown. Olivia is the Instagram-famous white girl that everyone is looking for, while DeMaria is the poor black girl missing from the same town that no one pays any attention to. Mary finds herself looking into the similarities between these cases and asking herself how far she’ll go to find answers.

I especially appreciated that Mary was a snob and a brat and a generally sullen young adult, because it’s through her faults that we sort of see her strengths. That same stubbornness is perfect for an amateur true crime detective, and I enjoyed watching her try to solve this mystery. I did wish for more consideration on her part for some of the actions she takes as they impact the minority characters in the novel. It’s sort of hinted at, but never really touched in a way I would have liked. Still an enjoyable mystery that ties in my favorite true crime angle with a missing persons case.

I was provided an ARC of Nice Girls from NetGalley. This book definitely grabbed me from the start, and it kept me guessing throughout! Mary has recently been expelled from Cornell and returns home in disgrace, only to find that her childhood best friend has disappeared. Mary decides to investigate and figure out what has happened when she learns of another young woman’s disappearance. Mary suspects several people of committing the crimes during the book, and the suspense builds until a shocking ending. I highly recommend this book!

True crime is one of my favorite genres to read, so I had to keep reminding myself that Nice Girls was only fiction. It truly could have been ripped from the headlines. As a Midwesterner, I also enjoyed that it was primarily set in Minnesota. Catherine Dang has written an impressive debut, and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the advance copy to read and review.

This one was overall a miss for me, despite a strong start and good premise.

Mary gets kicked out of Cornell and returns to her hometown. Her grade school BFF, beautiful mean girl Olivia, goes missing, and everyone in the town loses their minds. Meanwhile, the body parts of a Black single mother who went missing months before with zero investigation, begin washing up on the shores of the lake.
Mary starts investigating.

I liked some aspects, like highlighting how police only investigate missing girls if they’re wealthy, white, attractive, “nice girls,” and I usually enjoy stories about the struggles of people being forced back into a life or town they thought they’d escaped and fighting their way back out again.

But Mary was a real dud. I definitely don’t need to like a main character to enjoy a book, and did I find some connection with her - feeling out of place and lost and pressured to look a certain way? Yes, of course. But omg she was annoying.

I also got pretty fed up with everyone talking about how Mary used to be fat and was therefore hideously unattractive and useless.

A lot of people have really enjoyed this book, so it clearly works for some readers, but it wasn’t a great one for me.

Our definition of who is "nice" and who is not can be formed by either our interactions with a person or by their reputation. The person who ignored you could be a snot, or they could be shy. The person your parents think should be your best friend - their parents are pillars in the community, after all - might be your worst enemy.
"Nice Girls" gives the reader plenty of contrast to determine who the nice girls are, or not.
Mary is expelled from Cornell and returns home. She takes a job at a grocery store, mostly to stay distracted from the reason she was expelled. Mary's ex-best friend turned enemy disappears, and shortly after the mutilated body of a local girl is found in a lake, Mary poses as a journalism student to learn what she can about the victim, and learns first-hand about bias in the press and in police operations.
Are the disappearance and the murder connected? What secrets do the victims have? And who else is hiding behind the mask they show in public, keeping dark secrets locked away from casual observers?
An engaging murder mystery with a twist of psychological thriller.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

This is the debut book for this author, and overall I would say it hit the mark. At times it was a little slow, but it did keep me entertained for the duration of the book. This was a quick read with some twists and turns. The ending was a surprise which in my opinion is always good. I would recommend this book to others.

I received a ARC from NetGalley and the publisher William Morrow, and all opinions expressed here are my own.

Title: Nice Girls
Author: Catherine Dang
Publisher: William Morrow (2021)
𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 3.5 Stars ★★★☆☆

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:⁣
"Ivy League Mary" was involved in an incident during her third year at Cornell which forced her to be kicked out and to go live with her father back in her hometown of Liberty Lake, MN. Mary's one goal at the end of high school was to get out of her hometown and make something of herself and she thought she was on the track to do just that. Now Mary is living back at home and is working at the local grocery store while she figures out her new life plans.

Meanwhile, Mary's childhood friend, Olivia, disappears and the whole town is helping search for her. Mary becomes intrigued and starts sleuthing around to see what information she can find out for herself. Mary then learns of another girl that went missing a few months prior and wants to know if there is a connection. As she tries to solve both cases, she runs into familiar faces which open up old wounds as she tries to make sense of the past and of her current life.

A huge thanks to William Morrow and Catherine Dang for providing me with an eARC of the book in exchange for my honest review. 

𝙋𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙨:
• Touches on social injustice and how victims are treated differently based on race and privilege • Mental illness is a huge topic in this book and the author does a great job of describing how Mary feels• The author kept me guessing the entire time and I can saw I didn't see it coming on who the killer was

𝙋𝙞𝙩𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙨:
• I found the main character, Mary, to be annoying and unreliable which made reading this story a bit hard• The book started off very slow and took awhile to get to the plot
• Not all of the characters were that well developed. I would have loved to learned more about them

Goodreads Rating: 3.65 Stars

I will not say that I loved this book because I didn't but I liked it, It had some boring parts but. but I dragged on and finished. And what a Bang it had at the end it dragged me in. I'm glad I finshed this story.



Mary ivy league, Has been expelled from her college senior year, Getting into a fight with another schoolmate. But there's more there than meets the eye.

Back home, Mary's child hood friend goes, missing Along with another young girl..
Body parts wash up in the lake.
But who do they belong to.
How long have they been there.

The twist of who, did it will totally shock you.

This book Builds up to a nice suspense.. I didn't feel this book was about mean girls.

But Definitely Turned out to be a great book for me.

Mary, also known as “Ivy League Mary,” was picked on throughout high school. Known as the awakened girl, the fat girl, the girl no one wanted to be friends with.

Mary set out with a mission-to prove everyone wrong-to show them she was somebody. Mary was accept to Cornell University (hence the name “I’ve League Mary.”) Mary felt on top of the world, that is until she was expelled from Cornell at the beginning of her senior year.

Mary moves back home to live with her father, takes a job at a grocery store, and struggles with depression. She has done a complete 180 since her HS days, but Mary is ashamed, she does not want anyone to find out what brought her back home.

One of Mary’s old friends, the ever-so-popular Olivia, goes missing. Mary becomes intrigued by the disappearance of her old friend. She becomes obsessed, and starts to do some investigating on her own. She soon discovers that another girl went missing a few months prior to Olivia’s disappearance. Are the two cases related? Mary is determined to find out.

The author does a fantastic job with the slow burning suspense. It is a very intriguing mystery story that definitely had my attention throughout. The author brought up many real life issues such as anxiety, depression, mental health, and the pressure that woman have to fit a certain image.

The only downside for me was that I did not really like the main character, Mary, as she seemed to self absorbed and I found it hard to relate to her and emphasize with her.
For a debut novel, Author Catherine Dang really packed the punch with this one! This definitely is a slow build up to the explosive conclusion. I loved it and definitely recommend it!

Ivy League Mary is expelled from college and returns home disgraced. Then her old friend, Olivia, goes missing and Mary sets out to find out what has happened to her.

I had real high hopes for this one. It took a bit for me to get into it and then I was pretty sure I had figured out who did it about half way through although I didn’t know the why or how. This was twisty and intriguing but just didn’t suck me in like some other thrillers have recently. Overall a solid story but not my favorite.

This was a quick read but unfortunately I did not connect to it. I wanted to know what happened and enjoyed some of the suspense but felt I wanted more to the ending. I did not really like most of the characters and usually that is ok. I would have liked to have read more about Mary’s first three years at Cornell. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

I am almost speechless. I mean, you know, as much as any bookworm can be speechless about a book they loved.

This one totally caught me off guard. I know it's overplayed to say it's like gone girl, but it's not the plot, its the unlikeable main character. She's gritty and course. It's reminiscent of Gillian Flynn's rough leading ladies. I guess I wouldn't go so far as to say Ivy League Mary is unlikeable but she's flawed.

She was the outcast in high school. And being an outcast doesn't automatically equate with being a tame and sweet wallflower. In fact, for Mary and her high school best friend Madison, they were just as unkind as the mean girls, with just a smaller audience. They were ruthless in the things they wished upon their peers. And then Mary was accepted into Cornell and things turned around. The local paper dubs her "Ivy League Mary" and the name sticks.

So when Mary comes home at the start of her senior year of college that's how she's remembered. Except she's home because she was expelled. And then her childhood-best-friend-turned-high-school-nemesis, Olivia, goes missing. It garners national attention and the police are getting no where. Until an arm washes up on the shore of the town lake.

It's honestly hard to gather my thoughts to describe the plot - Mary ping pongs through suspicion after suspicion and so will you. What unfolds is INTENSE. My eyes were glued to the pages, my heart was pounding in my throat as the suspense devolved into a horror story.

This is an interesting look into mental wellness, rape culture, toxic masculinity, and the double standard society imposes on women. I was left totally sated with this book. If you're a suspense/thriller/horror reader, you will not regret reading this one.