"The It Girl" by Ruth Ware is an enjoyable, albeit predictable, thriller that kept me engaged until the end. The protagonist, Deidre, is a likable character who is easy to root for as she navigates her way through a prestigious boarding school in England and the secrets that come with it. The setting is beautifully described and adds to the overall atmosphere of the story.

However, the plot itself is fairly predictable and lacks the level of suspense and tension that I was hoping for. The twists and turns are fairly easy to anticipate, and the climax of the story was underwhelming. Additionally, some of the characters feel underdeveloped and their motivations are not fully explored, which left me feeling unsatisfied with the resolution of certain plot points.

Despite these criticisms, "The It Girl" is still a fun and easy read that fans of Ruth Ware's other works will likely enjoy. The writing is engaging and the pacing is well-done, making it a quick read that will keep you entertained for a few hours. Overall, while it may not be the most memorable thriller out there, "The It Girl" is still a decent choice for fans of the genre.

Adore Ruth Ware. Had recommended her pieces for quite some time and this will be a new one to add to the list.

Recently caught up on long overdue NetGalley ARCs. The It Girl was a textbook Ruth Ware thriller, however you take that. I, for one, like all her hallmarks: anxious heroines thrust into tense situations, where your stomach twists with worry for them over and over. Personal stakes, including romantic, that spark the imagination. Well-drawn casts of characters who feel dynamic, real, and messy. And killer settings/set-ups that tick all my favorite trope lists.

But. To that end, well, The It Girl was textbook Ruth Ware. I could see the seams of this one, and two particular narrative cheats that, having finished, I'm not sure how I feel about. I do think the ride makes up for it, more or less--I enjoyed the dark academia-adjacent vibes a LOT, and the back and forth in time narrative style. Lots of compelling and fun red herrings. I cared about Hannah as much as I wanted to bonk her on the head more than once.

If you read The Maidens and hated it.. read this as a do-over. It hit almost every point of the same tropes, with almost an identical setting (Oxford instead of Cambridge), but more effectively and via an actually organic female lens. THAT SAID this is NOT a Gothic, so that's not an itch it scratches, but it does just enough of the dark academia tropes to satisfy.

Hannah and April are suite-mates at Oxford and April introduces Hannah to their group of friends: Will, Ryan, Hugh, and Emily. April is "The It Girl"- everyone wants to be around her, date her, she is "charming" and vivacious - by the end of the term she's dead. Hannah is the one who found her after she witnessed John Neville leaving the girls' rooms. He is quickly tried and convicted. Fast forward ten years later, Hannah and Will are expecting, Neville has died in prison (still proclaiming his innocence) and there is a reporter/podcaster who agrees Neville is innocent. Hannah gets roped in revisiting the night April died and it is becoming clear that everyone BUT Neville had a motive...including her husband who happens to be April's ex-boyfriend...
Told from Hannah's POV, the narration switched from "Before" and "After" April's death, which Ruth Ware does masterfully. Ware also has the ability to flesh out each character where they seem distinct from one another. Although April is supposed to be the girl who has everything, she was just plain awful: she is manipulative, plays really terrible pranks on her "friends," and has very few redeeming qualities. I enjoyed going through Hannah's list of suspects as she explores their alibis and motives and I really did not see the twist coming up until the final moment and then the SECOND twist where Ware literally gave me chills.
Ok, the bad: -the pacing was a bit slow
-there were a lot of details that feel left out (the timeline of Hannah's investigation, even some of Hannah's details where she kind of felt like a pregnant person-shaped grey outline).
-The choice for Hannah to actively investigate while pregnant, ok fine, I can accept that, but not telling the authorities at all....not the brightest idea.
Overall, 3.5 stars rounded to 4, it was an enjoying read with an unexpected ending.

I can go either way with Ruth Ware. Some of her books I am just not interested in reading, some I can devour. This one was a good one - I plowed through it and will be giving it a solid 4 stars. Good pacing, interesting plot and characters.

Now I can see why this book was nominated by readers in the Goodreads Choice Award Best Mystery & Thriller category last year—it’s a killer psychological thriller! The It Girl is told in alternating before and after chapters beginning at Oxford University (did you know Oxford comprises 39 separate colleges?) when freshman Hannah Jones meets her new roommate. April Coutts-Cliveden is sophisticated, wealthy, the ultimate “it” girl.

“She had the kind of beauty that hurt your eyes if you looked at her for too long but made it hard to tear your gaze away. It was, Hannah realized, as if a different kind of light were shining on her than on the rest of the room.”― Ruth Ware, The It Girl.

April also has a malicious side, and by the end of the second term, she is dead.

Fast forward ten years and John Neville, the man Hannah helped convict of killing April, has died in prison. When a journalist contacts her, claiming Neville was innocent, her world is upended. What really happened that night?

Ruth Ware’s book is beautifully written with great flow and pacing, and I flew through the pages. She created unforgettable characters—the good, the bad, and the downright evil—and crafted a twisty plot rife with trauma and tension. If you prefer audiobooks, you might want to take a pass; the before and after construction is confusing. The book, though, is terrific. 4 stars.

Ruth Ware wows us with another mystery that you can't put down. When Hannah Jones goes to Oxford to study, she is dazzled by her roommate April Clarke-Cliveden. April brings her into her group of friends, Will, Hugh, Ryan and Emily and Hannah feels like she is in the popular crowd. But by the end of the year her friend April is dead and the group disperses. Ten years later, a reported knocks on her door and reveals that the convicted killer is really innocent. She tries to find out who the killer really is and cannot believe what she finds out.

Being a huge Ruth Ware fan, I dove into this one head first, ready to be in it to be win it. I love a dual timeline approach, but only when I feel equally invested in both stories. Sadly, one fell a little flat for me, and I found myself speed reading through those chapters to get back to the other storyline. I do love the author’s writing style, and I look forward to any and all of her next books.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC for an exchange for an honest review.

Wonderful book, recommend it.

Another successful mystery by Ruth Ware! I had high expectations for this one after loving One by One so much and it didn't disappoint. The alternating timeline helped build the suspense and I appreciated the slow burn and use of red herrings. Maybe too many red herrings, but still well done and plausible. Hannah was a relatable protagonist and was the perfect balance to It Girl April. Overall, and enjoyable read!

Ruth Ware can be hit or miss with me. This one fell somewhere in the middle. This book kind of dragged on and seemed to have a lot of filler details that could have been eliminated to get to the heart of the story faster. The settings were great, the storyline was decent but there was so much miscellaneous info that it just felt like a chore to finish. It had a couple of good twists that made it interesting but I would skip it.

There have been comparisons to The Secret History, which i think does a disservice to both books.

The Secret History is a literary novel on human nature, masquerading as a mystery novel. It was beautifully written and meant to be savored.

The It Girl is a classic mystery ala the whodunit which makes for a much faster read. that said, there are still pacing problems, mainly having to do with how dithering the protagonist is. I found her frustrating and a bit stupid.

Ruth Ware is an Author from whom I like to get exactly what I am expecting, no complaints about this one.

A real page turner that draws you in very quickly. At times it bothered me that Hannah was willing to put herself in danger when she could or should have contacted the police or asked for help in her investigation and quest to figure out who had murdered her college roommate April. But after I let that go, it was an entertaining thriller.

Ware has a well-earned reputation as this generation's Agatha Christie, and the It Girl once again delivers. Who hasn't had a friend who outshines you at every turn? The setting, characters and plot twists are all top-rate.

Ruth Ware is one of my "must read authors", and she lived up to expectations with this novel. The main character, Hannah, has always struggled with the death of her friend, April, during their first year of college. She has guilt about the man in prison for April's death, and guilt for losing touch with some of the old crew from those days. As she reprocesses April's death in light of the death of the man serving a prison sentence for it, Hannah becomes obsessed with the past, causing problems in her marriage. Ware delivers the details in this story at the perfect pace, and I found it difficult to put it down to do my real world requirements. The characters were well developed, and kept you guessing about their motives until the end. Overall, a great choice if you are looking for a gripping mystery/thriller to fill your weekend.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read a copy.

Ruth Ware has become an auto read author for me. Some books I've liked better than others but all are enjoyable. The It Girl is no exception, however the pacing is a little slow in the beginning. I found that I liked the present timeline over the past when they were attending school. This book has similar vibes to In My Dreams I Hold A Knife so if you like one, I'd recommend reading the other.

DNFed - way too long and slow. I loved the setting, and this would make a great novel in a different genre, but I was very disappointed. I LOVE Ruth Ware and have enjoyed all of her other books. But this was a miss for me.

I gave the book 3.5 stars out of 5 on Goodreads. I didn't realize who the killer was until nearly the end, but before it was revealed. I would recommend this book to readers of suspense and psychological fiction.

It has been 10 years since Hannah’s roommate at Oxford, socialite April Coutts-Cliveden, was found murdered in their dorm room. Alternating between the past and the present, the story unfolds. Through her testimony, Hannah helped put away the killer, John Neville. In the present day, John Neville has died in prison. A journalist is convinced that Neville was not the killer and he comes to Hannah with his suspicions. The doubts that Hannah has carried with her for years re-surface with the news of Neville’s death and the journalist’s insistence that the wrong man was imprisoned. Maybe she was wrong ten years ago. Maybe an innocent man went to prison. She feels that she needs to revisit what happened the night of April’s murder.

This latest psychological thriller by Ruth Ware is a page-turner. There is suspense, intrigue, and plenty of suspects. As readers learn about each of the characters, we learn that each of Hannah’s college friends (including her husband) has a possible motive to kill April. Who really killed April?

I highly recommend this thriller! There are twists and turns that lead to a satisfying conclusion. You will not be disappointed!

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.