I love Ware's books. This one was just a miss for me. The timeline hops were frustrating, and I felt like the mystery wasn't really all that mysterious. Maybe because it felt really long and drawn out? I just didn't devour this one like I have her previous books. I set this down for months at a time. I only kept going because it was Ruth Ware! I am totally in the minority though, so I think many other people will enjoy this immensely!

I've read ALL of Ruth Ware's books so I am an honest FANGIRL!! The It Girl has been my least favorite of all her books but not for reasons that are within her control. It's mainly because my one and only girl is graduating and going to live in the dorms next year at college. I could totally see her as either of the female characters so I often had to put the book down due to stress and anxiety over her future. Anyway, I will always be a Ruth Ware fan and can't wait to read her next one!!

The It Girl by Ruth Ware is an unputdownable thriller set at Oxford and written in two parts - Before and After.

In the Before sections we are introduced to Hannah and her new roommate April, along with Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily as they are beginning their first year at Oxford. April and Hannah seem like they are opposites but they get along IMMEDIATELY. And April is the IT GIRL. Other girls want to be her and the guys want to be with her. She's rich, beautiful, and can talk her way into and out of any situation. It seems like April has it all, but things take a surprising twist when April is found dead in the dorm room late one night near the end of the year. Hannah was the one to find April and her eye-witness testimony puts the creepy school porter, Neville, at the scene just before she discovered Aprils dead body.

The After sections take place ten years later and we find Hannah, pregnant with her first child and married to Will. We learn that Neville has just died in prison but Hannah is contacted by a reporter that seems to have evidence that Neville might have been wrongly accused. Hannah begins to spiral, believing that her testimony had put an innocent man behind bars and that the actual murderer was still out there.

As Hannah begins to investigate on her own, she reconnects with each of the members of the friend group and realizes that they each have their own reasons to hate April and their alibies for that night might not be as secure as they made Hannah believe all those years ago.

What a ride! Ruth Ware certainly doesn't disappoint. Just when I think I know what's going on, she throws something else in. Loved this book!!

I've recently fallen in love with Ruth Ware and with good reason. The It Girl was another 5 star read for me. It focuses on flashbacks of a group of friends in college when one of their friend members dies. In present day, the man who was arrested for killing her has just died in prison. So it should be time to move on, right? Wrong. A new reporter shows up in town and starts planting ideas that maybe that man was actually innocent after all. Can we trust those around us at all times? What about our memories? Can we trust them? I really enjoyed the e-book overall It's nice to not know where you're at in case something comes up. I look forward to her next book.

3.5/5

Hannah and April are college roommates at Pelham College. They,along with the rest of their friends Will (April's boyfriend), Ryan, Emily, and High navigate the pitfalls of academic life and parties, until one night, Hannah discovers April's body in their dorm room. The obvious suspect I'd John Neville, who was seen leaving the building shortly before Hannah made the discovery.

With this evidence, Neville is convicted and some ten years later he dies in prison from a heart attack. When a journalist talks with Hannah about his fears that Neville was wrongfully convicted, Hannah sets out to investigate if her testimony sent the wrong person to prison in this dual timeline novel.

Honestly, this book is a bit of a slog. Nothing much really happens until about 70% or so of the way in. Its mainly just the characters' mundane daily lives and I feel there was way too much of it. I also had a very difficult time with finding Hannah to be likable. The characters are all fully fleshed out and some of the secondary characters were much more enjoyable. The dual timelines were not a problem as each chapter is labeled either before or after. There are plenty of red herrings, which saves this book as I wanted to see who did it and I suspected each of the secondary characters at one point or another.

My thanks to Gallery Books, Scout Press, author Ruth Ware, and NetGalley for gifting me a digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

I've been enjoying all of Ruth Ware's books. Her books are fantastic. This one did not disappoint. If you are looking for twisty turny reading, read Ruth Ware.

A good not great mystery. Lots of red herrings, two of my favorite settings (Oxford & Edinburgh) but too much of a lackluster main character for me to be completely invested.

I really enjoyed reading The It Girl. I was surprised and caught off guard multiple times, and just when I thought I had it all figured out, the book twist caught me off guard again. I switched between reading and listening to the audio and the entire time I was at the edge of my seat waiting for what was next.

Hannah ad April are college roommates that quickly become best friends during their freshman year. April is a rich “it girl” and Hannah feels like she lucked out being matched with her. They foster a close-knit relationship with classmates Emily, Ryan, Will, and Hugh. April and Will start dating, but by the end of the year Hannah finds April murdered in their dorm. The novel jumps between timelines of before and after April’s murder. In present day (after), Hannah is married to Will and pregnant with their first child. She hears that the college employee convicted of April’s murder is dead, feelings of uncertainty resurfaced and Hannah begins to reevaluate that fateful night. The book was a bit drawn out and predictable, but still an enjoyable read.

I liked this book. Maybe not my favorite by Ruth Ware, but still solid. I would share this book with others.

Now when accused mureder of a Oxford student dies and still not addmiting a guilt Hannah started qurstioning herself as a main vitness to Aprils murder. All Hannahs friend from college dealt with murder and finished school but onlyshe could not. Are her friends privliged kids who think they can get away with a murder or are they true carring friends. Can Hannah find a truth or is she going to be ignorant ?

"The It Girl" by Ruth Ware is an exhilarating and suspenseful novel that will keep readers on the edge of their seats from beginning to end. This book tells the story of a young woman named Anna who is invited to work at a luxury hotel on a remote Scottish island. Anna is thrilled at the opportunity and excited to start her new job, but things quickly take a dark turn when she discovers that the hotel has a sinister history and the other staff members have secrets of their own.

One of the strengths of this book is the well-crafted plot. The story is expertly paced and full of twists and turns that will leave readers guessing until the very end. The characters are also well-developed, with each one having their own unique motivations and secrets that add to the complexity of the story. Anna is a particularly likable protagonist, and readers will find themselves rooting for her throughout the book.

Another standout feature of "The It Girl" is the vivid and atmospheric setting. The remote Scottish island is beautifully described, with Ware's prose bringing the rugged coastline and wild weather to life. The hotel itself is also expertly rendered, with its faded glamour and creepy atmosphere contributing to the sense of unease that pervades the book.

Overall, "The It Girl" is a fantastic read that will appeal to fans of suspenseful, character-driven thrillers. Ruth Ware has once again demonstrated her skill at crafting engrossing and entertaining stories that keep readers hooked until the very last page. Highly recommended.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a fan of Ware, so I was excited to read this oneZ I think it might be my favorite of hers so far. Lots of twists, great characters, a fast-paced story.

I felt it did go on a little bit longer than it had to at the end, but was still a good read.

Not my favorite Ruth Ware story but I will read whatever she writes. I love how phycological her character development is, it immerses you into the characters mind.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me an ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.
I so enjoy Ruth Ware!! She has a talent for casting doubt on all characters. I was suspicious of all at one point or another, and this element kept me turning the pages. I believe the book was a little longer than it needed to be. However, I can still remember parts of it 6 months later. I usually forget most of the book a month after I finished it.

April, the It Girl, is found murdered at Oxford. Her roommate Hannah is sure it was the Porter, John Neville. When John dies in prison ten years later, Hannah finds herself doubting her memory of the night April died.

The It Girl focuses on the death of April, Hannah's college roommate. Ten years later Hannah is pregnant and should have put it all behind her, but the death of the man convicted of April's murder, reopens the case for Hannah. She starts questioning everything that she thought she knew from that last night, and begins to review the case.

Overall, a decent thriller, but it could have been significantly shorter and been more enjoyable. It moved very slowly.

Kirkus Reviews: "...the mystery disappoints."
The Wall Street Journal: "...may well be her best book yet."

Guys, I'm sad to say that I fall closer to that first comment than the second. What I've come to expect from Ware is a book with a fish out of water heroine, a constant sense of danger, and a book that keeps me spellbound from maybe 100 pages in on to the ending.

This one has the first.

But, I'm sad to say, I didn't feel much of a sense of danger until nearly the end and the suspense only arrived, for me, about one hundred pages before that. And, in the end, the "why" of April's murder fell flat.

I didn't care much for April or Hannah. Oh, heck, I didn't care much for any of the characters but that just called to mind Donna Tart's The Secret History which is the predecessor of all murders/college setting thrillers. Tart pulls that off better.

And I'm really sort of over dual timeline stories.

And yet...

I still raced through this book. Because Ware writes terrific settings and the question of who can you trust was compelling. Every one of Hannah's friends seemed to have some potential motivation for killing April and you couldn't be too quick to write any of them off. So, for me, not Ware's best work (that still remains The Turn of the Key) but it was worth the reading and just what I needed in a book when I read it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I just haven’t seemed to love Ruth Ware. I will absolutely keep giving her chances because I don’t think I’ve read her most popular books still even. I also really love a good female thriller writer.

This one also just felt so king? The beginning of it went pretty fast, but the second part of it went by really slowly.

I liked overall what this book was trying to do, but it just didn’t do it for me.