a classic college campus murder mystery done well.

this has everything you want from that kind of story - a close group of friends that is not immune to jealousy, stalking, cheating, and scandals.

the only thing that would have made this a perfect read for me is if academia played a larger role. really, oxford only serves as the setting and a means for the characters to meet. and so, because of that, this definitely doesnt have that dark academia feel i was hoping for.

but still a very enthralling read with a compelling group of friends and an intriguing “whodunnit.”

↠ 4.5 stars

A good mystery is essential to learning how to keep the brain astute and trained. I love Ruth Ware books because they are so reminiscent of, in my own opinion, the queen of mystery writing, Agatha Christie. There are no psychological tricks, no gaping holes or broken links to the point that the solution seems contrived. The It Girl is no exception to the classic mystery. A murder had been solved, but there were grave inaccuracies that affected a man's life. Time switching in the book between current time and the time back to the murder is easy to follow. The characters are well developed, although at times 2 dimensional. But the story is plot driven, so they are portrayed well enough for the reader to make good reasonings to figure out the ending. Ruth Ware is quickly becoming my go-to for a good mystery.

Hannah’s pivotal testimony led to John Neville’s imprisonment for the murder of her close friend, April. A decade later, Neville dies behind bars, relentlessly declaring his innocence until the very end.

One might assume that this development would bring peace to Hannah’s life, quelling the relentless media attention and allowing her to focus on her husband, Will, and the impending arrival of their first child.

However, Neville’s death has an unexpected effect—it casts doubt on his guilt. A persistent reporter resurfaces, presenting new evidence related to the case. Driven by uncertainty, Hannah cannot find solace until she uncovers the truth about Neville’s involvement…

Through a narrative that shifts between past and present, Hannah is drawn back into the mystery surrounding April’s death, rekindling her connections with old friends. This is a compelling and evocative crime novel that kept me engaged.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Hannah's ten years past her first term at university, and ten years past the murder of her best friend and roommate, April. April was the "it girl" who enraptured everyone. She cast her spell and everyone fell under it-or they were manipulated by it. When her convicted murdered dies in prison, it casts everything in a new light for Hannah and she wonders if her eyewitness account could have sent the wrong man to prison. The story moves at a fast pace with tension boiling just below the surface. It is a bit long, but the conclusion to the story was satisfying.

A fast paced psychological thriller that pulls you in. April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford. April was the "It Girl", a little bit of everything in her personality. She quickly pulled Hannah into her world and they developed a handful of friends that were always together. Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily.... but by the end of the year April was dead. Now years later Hannah and Will are expecting their first child. The man convicted of killing April, John Neville, previously employed at Oxford has died in prison. Until one day a journalist comes forward with evidence that Neville may just have been innocent. As Hannah starts spending time with her old friends she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide, maybe a murder. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the advance ecopy.

*NetGalley review*

If I were rating and reviewing on solely the last 30% of the book, it probably would have been a 4 star read for me. The first 70-75% of the book was way too slow for me. Even jumping between "before" and "after" didn't seem to pique my interest. I wasn't invested in this storyline and April was so unlikeable that it seemed like she had it coming, regardless of whom the killer was. There were eventually some twists and turns that I didn't see coming and I liked that the book had a nice wrap-up by the end. I'm happy that justice was served and Hannah can move on from torturing herself over what happened to April. Overall, not my favorite and not one I will likely recommend to friends, but I'm wiling to give Ruth Ware another try. Thank you NetGalley, Gallery books, and Ruth Ware for the opportunity to read this one in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5!

Ruth Ware has been an auto-buy author for me for years now. She was one of the authors that really got me back into reading and falling head over heels for thrillers. That being said…I’ve been majorly slacking on keeping up with Ware’s newer releases, so I threw The It Girl in my stack for the #23in23 challenge.

Ware gives readers a dual timeline with a dark academia flavor in The It Girl. Readers get to tag along with Hannah as she is forced to revisit the murder of her college roommate, April. The “Before” timeline serves to throw readers back in time from Hannah and April’s first meeting to the fateful night of April’s death. I loved this academia timeline and trying to catch clues in each chapter. The “After” timeline is present day, as we tag along with Hannah’s quickly spiraling quest to decide if she really helped convict the right man for April’s murder.

There were so many times where I wanted to yell at Hannah for the actions she took or the things she said in the present day timeline. I mean my god woman, please don’t do that! It was so hard to look away just knowing that something bad was potentially going to happen and not being able to trust any of the secondary characters.

The pacing is a mix between a slow-burn and more of that traditional thriller vibe as things escalate in the later part of the book. I do think this story would have benefited from being shortened. There were a handful of sections that I found repetitive and without them I think the pacing would have been much faster. Despite those issues, I couldn’t help but wanting to know what was coming next.

Bravo to Ware for making me think I knew all the answers and then laughing in my face!

This book had toooooo slow of a burn. It took forever to get to the twist and was maybe 100 pages too long.

I love Ruth Ware she is an auto buy author for me and once again the book did not disappoint. I loved the dark academia dual timelines. The closer I got to the end of the story the closer I got to the edge of my seat. Although I personally felt like this book was longer than any thriller should be at over 400 pages because it was Ruth Ware I will ignore the page count. Can’t wait for the next book from Ruth Ware.

I am thankful that the publishers gave me the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book. Due to health concerns in my family I was not able to read it before its publication date, but now that I have finished it, I sure wish I had! It was such a great read!

I loved taking the journey with Hannah to find out who murdered her college friend and roommate April. I kept trying to figure out who did it and was wrong every time! I love how Ruth Ware sets up her novels this way and keeps you guessing until the very end! I would definitely recommend this book to my friends!

Thank you to Net Galley, Ruth Ware and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was not one of my favorite Ruth Ware books. I found the premise interesting and exciting, but found that it fell flat.
Hannah and April met at Oxford. Hannah was popular, charismatic and everything Hannah wanted to be. They became the best of friends. By the end of the first term, April is dead.

Ten years later Hannah’s life is going well. When April’s murderer dies in prison, she feels a sense of relief. Then a reporter starts stirring up the past. New questions surface and Hannah begins to doubt what really happened all those years ago.

I definitely enjoyed this book. Ruth had hooked me with each book of hers that I read. This was a wonderful read with all the feels the suspense and that twist at the end! Wow! When you think you know and your heart begs for it to not be true!! How could it get any crazier??? But then… it does! I was thinking about this book when I couldn’t be reading it! And to me that is a mark of an amazing author! They have you so invested your thinking about the characters even when your not reading! Thank you NetGalley for allowing me access. I reviewed this on Goodreads when I finished it but apparently it didn’t process here.

I think this was just okay. I'm starting to think dark academia is just not for me. They all kinda feel and sound the same and then blend together. You've read one, you've read em all, so sadly this one is a miss for me

🎧Review-✨The It Girl by: Ruth Ware✨ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.✨

I got my Scribd membership back yesterday after not having it for 2 years and wasted no time getting back into listening to some of my newer backlist tbr books! I am a huge Ruth Ware fan and when I heard that this book had murder and flashes back to college my ✨dark academia✨ loving heart was soooo ready!

This book was the perfect dark academia book! That plus the dual timelines were perfection!!!

I LOVE a thriller set on a college campus, and bonus points if it’s set in England. The building of suspicion in this book was truly masterful. I suspected literally every person in the friend group at some point while reading. When the reveal came, I had figured it out just barely but its one of the few times when I have been heartbroken by a reveal! Equal to Cassidy in season 2 of Veronica Mars 🥲. I did like that it didn’t end right away with the reveal, they pushed a little further and we saw some of the aftermath. This made it so much more satisfying than an abrupt or vague ending after the big reveal like most thrillers do!

Hannah Jones and her husband Will are happily married and expecting their first child in a few months. Their happiness, however, is overshadowed by memories of the on-campus murder of April Clarke-Cliveden, Hannah's best friend and Will's former beau during their time at Oxford ten years ago. The death of the wildly popular It Girl is front and center once again when the man convicted of the crime dies in jail, still professing his innocence. Was John Neville telling the truth...and is the killer still at large?

The renewed media interest in the case forces Hannah to reexamine what she remembers from that fateful day and the testimony she gave against Neville. As doubt creeps in, Hannah is determined to set the record straight--but can she do so without putting herself and her unborn child at risk?

Ruth Ware once again delivers a suspenseful, fast-moving plot full of twists and turns and characters to feel conflicted about. This compelling, spine tingling novel demonstrates yet again her superb talent and mastery as an author.

I really enjoyed my first Ruth Ware book!
I love dark academia books since reading In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead.
This started fairly typically- a murder at school, and the friends and classmates are moving on with their lives until something gets in the way- usually journalists trying to get to the bottom of it!
I loved the majority of this book- the plot and characters but felt like a more ruthless editing was needed. Characters' constant thoughts really slowed the pace down at times, and particularly when I wanted to feel the suspense.
I will definitely read Ruth's next offering after this!

2 stars

Ruth Ware's books are a hit or miss for me. Sometimes I love them and sometimes I dislike them. The It Girl was one of those misses for me. I put this book off for awhile, I was never in the mood to read it. So I picked up the audio book and I have to say, I hated the narrator. The narrator did a great job on every character except April. April's accent was like nails on a chalkboard. I had to quit listening around 20% because I just couldn't do it anymore. Switching to the ebook was definitely better, but I still wasn't as emotionally invested into this story.

The plot was okay, it wasn't super great. The entire plot revolved around April's death, who did it and why. But I honestly did not care. April was unlikeable. I mean she wasn't a terrible person but she wasn't great either. I felt like the author wanted to me like April but I just didn't. And Hannah was just straight up annoying. 5 months pregnant an solving a murder isn't smart. But the amount of times she ended up at the doctor/hospital was ridiculous. And not to mention, how does she still have a job when every time she was a work, she left early. It just didn't make any sense. And Will was just always gone. Never home, hardly answered his phone. It just seemed weird. I am getting into spoilers at this point and it's turning more into a rant. But this book just irritated me to no end. If you are going to write about people normal everyday mundane people at least make it realistic?

Not my favorite Ruth Ware book. Perhaps even my last.

I didn’t love this one. Very slow moving and not really suspense-driven. It wasn’t a bad book, but didn’t give me anything new. Many undeveloped characters and just overall underwhelming.

Classic Ruth Ware! What more could I ask for. So happy to be reading a Ruth Ware novel again and loved being able to read early!