The It Girl is a twisty, winding read about the death of a beautiful teenager and the impact it had on the lives of her friends, loved ones, and accused killer in the decade that followed. I enjoyed a lot of the story--the parts that were set at Oxford were richly detailed and atmospheric. I can't say the same for the "After" sections. However, that didn't stop me from being wholly engrossed in the story. This was a page turner, for sure. The It Girl will be a great read for fans of Ruth Ware and true crime podcast listeners.

1st time read of this author and while it was a slow starter for me, I did like how the author left many clues throughout the book on who the killer could be. While I understood where the author was going with the back & forth storyline it was very slow in the beginning, but definitely picked up and became more interesting as the book went on. Overall, I'm glad I stuck with it & as the author tighten the noose around the killer I will say I was surprised at the end. Good job, Ms. Ware.

When you “assume” you make an “ass” out of “u” and “me”.
Jumping to conclusions may be great exercise but it can have ramifications lasting years or lifetimes and the ripple effect goes on and on.
Another can’t-put-down-must-read by Ruth Ware.
When the “it girl” (whose always had any and everything she wanted) becomes roommates with the plain Jane nothing remarkable girl at college worlds collide. Friendships and lifelong relationships are forged in college — but what happens when trauma and tragedy are what bind you?
Full of twists and turns, the reader will be jumping to nearly as many conclusions and false starts as the main characters. Luckily for the reader, their over zealous reactions don’t affect the lives of anyone (and luckily the character are fictions because ouch!).
Clear some time and tune out the world before you pick up “The It Girl”!

This book just wasn't a good fit for me. I felt like the beginning was a bit slow and I really didn't connect at all with any of the main characters. The writing was good and the mystery was interesting but it didn't really hold my attention.

Ooh time goes by and if i don't write the review right away...sigh. I'm trying to be better. The best i can do right now is give a star count...

This was the first Ruth Ware book I read, and it definitely kept me guessing until the end. I loved the setting of the book in Oxford, but I just couldn't fully seem to understand the actions and thoughts of the main character.

Riveting tale of murder and betrayal, told in two timelines. "Before" and "After" perspectives introduce the cast of characters and detail their year at Oxford together, and revisits them ten years later. Ruth Ware fans will love this, and new readers will no doubt become fans after reading.

Ruth Ware has delivered another taut thriller with intriguing characters and well paced plotting. Attending Oxford is a dream for Hannah and being fully embraced by her socialite roommate April makes freshman year a fairy tale. Unfortunately, by the end of the term April is dead and Hannah is the star witness at the trial of her murderer. A decade later, Hannah is dealing with doubts about her testimony and what impact it had on a potentially innocent man. The format of alternating timelines from Hannah's perspective, add to the mystery and give credence to her growing uncertainties.

Do you have a hit or miss author? For me it’s Ruth Ware. I loved Turn of the Key so much so I’ve pretty much binged the rest of hers only to be disappointed.

The It Girl is a dark academia story taking place at Oxford. Hannah meets roommate April and they hit it off immediately. April is the life of the party and Hannah the wall flower. With their tight knit group of friends they are enjoying Uni life until April turns up dead. Flash forward and Hannah is now expecting her first baby with her husband. Things are good until she realizes the man accused of April’s murder died in jail. Then the past comes back to haunt Hannah as she struggles to come to terms with what happened the night April died.

Let me tell you that this book took me 2 months to read 🫣 You read that right 2 MONTHS! This book was too slow with not a lot happening until the last quarter of the book. It was also too long. Too slow + too long throws my attention span out the window. Here is what I liked about the book though: dark academia setting, dual timelines and short chapters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘼𝙣 𝙪𝙣𝙥𝙪𝙩𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙’𝙨 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧.

This book was right up my alley with the trope. I love a very well-written college campus murder mystery, and this was so well done.

This is my fourth Ruth Ware book and while I have a hit or miss with her books I’m glad this one was enjoyable. Unfortunately, I haven’t had any of her books compared to my favorite, The Turn Of The Key (the book that got me into reading, specifically thrillers).

I love when murder mysteries follow a group of friends with secrets and scandals to hide. While I loved that it took place at Oxford, I would’ve loved a bit more detail in regard to the setting. It still had that academic feel, but a little more of it would’ve made this book a bit better.

As someone who likes to go into thrillers blindly, I’m going to try and be vague as possible, there are some twists here and there.

I really enjoyed that the book was split into two timelines: the before and after. The before follows the group - April (the IT girl), Hannah, Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily - as they adjust to the jealousy, scandals, cheating, etc of Oxford. On the other hand, the after (a decade later) follows the group, specifically Hannah, as they recover from their friend’s death.

Again, I don’t want to get into details just because I know some don’t like to know anything. I think the ending was a nice touch, not perfect by any means but it made sense.

I will definitely be picking up anything Ruth Ware writes. I still have a few of her backlist titles to get to, but I just love her writing style and the detail of the story.

This was a super enjoyable read by Ruth Ware. If you’re into academic books, check this out! It gave me huge In My Dreams I Hold A Knife vibes.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for my review copy! All thoughts are my own!

I really wanted to love this book, but after having read "In my Dreams I Hold a Knife," this book felt eerily similar but not as strongly written. It's definitely an interesting look at what it means to covet the lives of others and to "have it all." I'll still be reading other Ruth Ware books, though!

"The It Girl" grabs you and doesn't let go, bringing you along for an emotional battering. Ruth Ware brings us a story of friendships, jealousy, grudges and fresh hopes. Hannah and Will are expecting their first child. The mom-to-be is excited, but she can't forget all that she and Will have been through. Their time together in college -- a time cut short by the death of their friend April. The man accused of murdering the coed is dying in prison, but Hannah keeps replaying the murder in her mind. After all, she was the witness that got the former college porter convicted. As memories play out, and school friends reconnect, Hannah discovers friends can be enemies wearing smiles.

The mesmerizing story is available as an ebook, hardback novel and audiobook. The narrator for the audiobook brings Hannah to life, adding the British nuances to her speech and life. Kudos to a job well done!

Thank you to Ruth Ware, Net Galley, and Gallery Books for the Advance eReader Copy. This book has a lot of twists and turns and requires the reader to keep up with a bunch of characters. I enjoyed the Oxford boarding school setting but felt like the story is overwritten and none of the characters are likable or clever. The ending isn't satisfying or redemptive either.

It has been ten years since April died and Hannah has always had a nagging fear that she missed something that night. Did her testimony put the wrong person behind bars?

This novel is told from Hannah’s perspective and goes back and forth between two time periods: before and after April died. The author does well painting a picture of the setting and of each character, making it easy to visualize what is taking place. I became vested in Hannah’s story and her need to discover the truth about that night.

I loved all of the red herrings and plot twists making it difficult to solve the mystery before Hannah does.

Thank you to #NetGalley @NetGalley and @ScoutPress @Simon&Schuster for the opportunity to read an ARC of #TheItGirl by #RuthWare - 4.5 stars

I couldn't put THE IT GIRL down! Ware did a great job of the "before" and "after" and takes us through Hanna's life. Every time I thought knew how the book was going to end I was wrong! I highly recommend this to all mystery fans.

The It Girl
⭐️⭐️⭐️/3.5 stars
by: Ruth Ware
Genre: Thriller/Mystery/Suspense/Psychological Thriller/Psychological Fiction

Hannah Jones tragically lost her college roommate and best friend, April Clarke-Cliveden, her freshman year at Oxford. The night of April's murder, Hannah saw the creepy porter, John Neville, leaving the staircase of where their room was located.

Because of what Hannah witnessed that evening and previous encounters with John Neville being in her and April's room, he was convicted and sent to prison.

Now 10 years later, John Neville has died in prison and there are those who believe he was innocent. John himself swore on his innocence and continued to appeal his case up until he died.

When Hannah is approached by a journalist, Geraint, he shares new information that sets her on a new mission to find out if Neville was guilty or innocent. Hannah soon finds out that April had more enemies than she originally realized. Definitely has a twist ending!

I will read anything Ruth Ware writes, and The It Girl is one of her absolute best. I love a spooky academic setting, and the discovery of April Clarke-Cliveden’s body in her Oxford room atop a stone staircase means we have a classic locked-room mystery as well. When John Neville, the porter convicted of April’s murder, dies in prison, an intrepid reporter sets out to clear his name, which means contacting all of April’s old friends, especially her roommate Hannah. Understandably, Hannah does not want to discover that she helped to convict an innocent man, but as she peels back the layers, it becomes clear that everyone in their friend group has something to hide, along with a motive for killing April. Ware’s plot twists are particularly ingenious, clever without being unfair (It was a ghost! It was someone the reader never met or even heard of! There’s time travel!) With a relatively small group of suspects, you might think that guessing the killer would be easy, but I did not see this one coming (full disclosure: I stink at solving the mystery, but that’s another story). Like I said, the reveal is smart without being unfair, which is so rewarding. If you felt burned by One by One, set those feelings aside and give The It Girl a try. I think you’ll find Ware is back at the top of her game.

Hannah and Will have moved on from the tradegy they endured in college when thier friend was brutally murdered. But as the person convicted dies, questions without answers start plaguing Hannah and she decides to travel back to Oxford to investigate. Unfortunatley, those closest to her become the suspects. Ruth Ware has done it again...creating a suspenseful page turner that leave you guessing until the end.

I am a huge fan of Ruth Ware and the It Girl is just another of her hits. April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford. April was everything that Hannah not. April is a vivacious, bright, sometimes vicious, and she quickly pulled Hannah into her world. The roommates developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends—Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily—during their first term. By the end of the year, April was dead. A decade later, Hannah and Will are expecting their first child, and the man convicted of killing April, former Oxford porter John Neville, has died in prison. Hannah struggles to deal with Neville's death and the thoughts that maybe Neville is innocent. As Hannah reconnects with old friends and looks to find answers, she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide, including a murder.

I always enjoy Ruth Ware novels. This particular novel was rich with detail and I enjoyed the alternating “before” and “after” chapters. I felt the progression was a little slow for my taste. The novel doesn’t really have any major plot twists until almost the very end. I would still recommend!