I wanted to love The Things We Do to Our Friends so badly but I just didn't. I found it so boring and unnecessarily long. Just not a fan of it.

this book was definitely not made for me, I had a hard time getting into it, maybe it's my fault for knowing whats types of books i alr like and STILL trying to get into something else.

Friends Forever

This book is a must-read for avid thriller fans who enjoy being swept away in a fast-paced story. Although I'm a bit late to the reviewing party, I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend it to fans of Lisa Jewel's work.

The story starts with a shocking event that sets the tone for the rest of the novel. Clare, who uses an alias, enrolls in a university in Edinburgh hoping to make new friends and start afresh. However, it's not as easy as she thought, and the people who want to befriend her are not the type she's interested in. That is, until she meets Tabitha, a charismatic girl, and her wealthy, carefree group of friends. They invite Clare to join their clique, but she soon realizes their motives are not entirely pure and are linked to her past.

As the story progresses, the author, Heather Darwent, skillfully keeps readers guessing with every revelation and event. Although Clare is initially quiet and seems to blend into her new group of friends, she's far from passive and has no idea what plans they're making behind her back. Every few pages present a new event that throws the previous ones into question, and while there is foreshadowing throughout the book, it's difficult to predict how the story will end. Darwent's writing is subtle, dropping hints and creating a cast of complex, unlikely-but-believable characters.

Overall, this book is a wild ride that's worth reading, even if it doesn't hold up under close scrutiny. I'm a new fan of Darwent's writing and would like to thank NetGalley and all those involved in granting me an advanced copy of this book.

I absolutely love the recent trend of toxic friendships, secrets, & dark academia vibes! When I saw this one being promoted, I was so excited - and it mostly lived up to the expectations I had, although I wish the pacing were a little more quick. There were points where I felt my attention waning slightly -- mostly around the middle, although the beginning and ending were definitely worth 5 stars!

A dark academia moody mystery set at a university in Scotland with a group of complicated, privileged friends? Sign me up!

I was very excited to reach “The Things We Do to Our Friends” by Heather Darwent, and while it did not fully meet my expectations (which were high), it was a very entertaining read.

The story follows Clare as she starts university, leaving behind a past filled with dark secrets and many regrets. Clare soon meets Tabitha, a charismatic and intimidatingly rich girl from her art history class, and her friends rakish Samuel, shrewd Ava, and pragmatic Imogen. Wrapped in the mesmerizing cocoon of her news friendships, the life she always envisioned for herself seems to be in reach. But things begin to rapidly spiral out of control as the group’s reckless actions, inspired by Tabitha’s secret project, start to cause irreparable damage.

Admittedly, I want every dark academia novel to live up to “A Secret History,” which simply is not possible. But I would recommend this book for anyone who enjoys this genre and especially liked “Catherine House” by Elisabeth Thomas “All Girls” by Emily Layden, “Madam” by Phoebe Wynne, or “The Truants” by Kate Weinberg.

The writing was especially enjoyable for me, some of my favorite passages included:

“September is a month that has a special anticipation associated with it. As the leaves turn and the nights darken. The first time you open a book, cracking the spine and smoothing down the pages so they can't spring back up.”

“It's a month that means fresh beginnings, and that only happens a few times in life when the slate is wiped clean, and the story is ready for you to begin and tell it how you wish.”

“I couldn't stay away from them. They were a drug that builds in effectiveness as it accumulates in the bloodstream.”

“We can't help gathering information on our friends. Everyone does it. Even if we don't think we're storing it all away, we do it instinctively.”

“I hoarded the fragments to use as some kind of currency later, kidding myself that I knew all of their secrets.”

“I am capable, but also different, and I cannot be fixed by anyone or anything however hard they might try.”

“Behind closed doors, you see the cracks if you care to look.”

I went into this blind and wanted to read it because of it's beautiful cover. I didn't expect it to be dark. This book, I felt was a slow burn and had some twists as well. It has scandal, dark secrets, college settings and more. 


Thank you NetGalley and publishers for this ebook for an honest review.

This book has major The Secret History vibes! Overall, I enjoyed it and the underlying aesthetic; however, I felt that it was a tad drawn out and slow at times. I didn’t get the point of some of the side characters. The writing was really intriguing and made a lot of commentary on human nature which I found interesting.

This was far too slow of a burn and felt too predictable for me. It wasn't really a thriller or mystery but more of a character study. I do think the cover is gorgeous!

I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a quick read.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Right from the opening page, I was captivated by this book. The way events gradually unfolded and the introduction of darker elements made it a compelling read that was hard to put down. The short chapters not only kept things fresh but also added to the book's addictive quality. The character development was exceptional, with each individual's intriguing layers keeping me on my toes. The Scottish setting added to the book's charm and made it even more enjoyable. Overall, this debut novel was excellent.

Ahhhh I'm so tired of books trying to be the Secret History!! I love a dark academia book about toxic friendship but compared to all the others I've read, this just didn't compel me.

The Things We Do to Our Friends follows Clare, a girl who’s just moved to Edinburgh to attend the University of Edinburgh. As she tries to escape her dark past and reinvent herself, Clare finds herself drawn into a clique headed by a girl named Tabitha. The usual dark academia style shenanigans ensue.

Aside from one of the twists near the end there was nothing that I liked about this book. This “review” will really just be a list of my complaints.

1. Clare wasn’t an interesting main character. Throughout the entire book it is implied that the version of her personality she’s trying to escape from will one day jump out of her. But if I remember correctly that never happens. I think in the present day the reader should’ve gotten a taste of what Clare was like when she was younger instead of only seeing it in flashbacks of the past.
2. This was the worst thing about the entire book in my opinion: Tabitha was INSUFFERABLE. Of course in books like this the characters are always unlikable, but there was nothing about Tabitha that convinced me she could’ve let what was almost a cult. There was nothing intimidating about her. I don’t think she was particularly intelligent (or able to pretend to be intelligent). I don’t know what was supposed to make her likable because to me she was just annoying. The way the audiobook narrator read her parts of the book made her especially annoying.
3. I think the big event at the end should’ve been bigger.
4. In general I think it was badly written. The sentences were awkward, the descriptions were strange and ineffective, and the plot dragged.

I’ll stop here. I don’t want to write any more. I hate reviewing books I don’t like. It’s safe to say I don’t recommend this book lol.

- "I needed to find friends who were going to make me the best version of myself, and they already had that ease with each other that felt so natural. I slotted in." - this quote kind of sums up exactly what I loved about this book. This was a tense, atmospheric read fuelled by underlying tension and an inability to imagine what might happen next- it is cleverly involving and not easily forgettable. Edinburgh is a beautifully bleak city, history towers over you wherever you go. It’s gothic and spooky with a whimsical charm - the perfect place to set a slow-burn thriller.
The Things We Do to Our Friends is toxic, vile, and manipulative. It has you convinced you know what is happening only to throw something new at you. Not only was the novel a thriller around the toxic female friends trope, but it delved into class, privilege and obsession. The ending felt slightly anticlimatic to me after the plot's buildup, but that's a minor complaint. As I mentioned, I really loved the Edinburgh setting; the descriptions of the city added a layer of depth to the story.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

I was disappointed by The Things We Do to Our Friends by Heather Darwent. While the premise of exploring the complexities of female friendship was interesting, the execution fell flat for me. The characters were unlikable and poorly developed, and their actions often felt contrived and unrealistic. The writing was also awkward and difficult to follow at times, which made it hard to stay engaged with the story. While there were a few moments of insight and poignancy, they were few and far between, and overall, I found this book to be a slog to get through. Unfortunately, I would not recommend it.

2.5-ish Stars

I honestly have no clue what I just read. I found it very hard to get into and had to restart it because I felt like I was missing something (BUT WASN’T). It did have potential. There were some jaw dropping moments but overall it felt all over the place and the characters were despicable. It was really hard to rate. Wasn’t the worst thing I’ve read but doesn’t really stand with other books I’ve rated at 3 stars.

Special thanks to Random Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

Oh wow this book did not do it for me at all. I really wanted to like it but it lost me by making the whole story about a bunch teenage brats entertaining themselves at each other's expense.

I just wanted it to be so much more!

This one did not do it for me. I didn't connect with the characters, and I really struggled to get through it. I felt like I was putting it off more and more when it was time to start reading, I initially felt like the story had potential and I was excited to dive in but I wasn't into the writing choices. It was very choppy and fell flat. I also did not enjoy the epilogue. I typically can find a silver lining,, but this book was not enjoyable for my taste!

This novel begins with a shocking act that sets the tone for the rest of this thriller. Clare (not her real name) has looked to friends to fill the role her parents don't and she has high hopes that going to university in Edinburgh will give her the opportunity to make friends and a fresh start. But she finds it harder than she thought. The people who want to be her friends are not the people she wants to have as friends. Then she runs into the charismatic Tabitha and her careless and wealthy friends and she is delighted and surprised to find that they want her to be a part of their group. But there's a reason they want her that reason has a lot to do with what happened in her past.

This is the kind of thriller where events and revelations occur so rapidly that it's impossible to figure out what the end game is. Clare is quiet and she works hard to blend into her new group of friends, but she's not as passive as they assume. And Clare doesn't know what is being planned when she's not there. Every few pages, a new event throws what came before into question and while there's plenty of foreshadowing, the events hinted at show little resemblance to what seems likely a few chapters earlier. Does this wild ride of a book hold up under scrutiny? Oh, certainly not! But does it matter when the whole thing is so much fun to read? Darwent's writing is never clunky or lazy. She's adept at dropping hints without them looking obvious and at creating a sizable cast of complex characters that she manages to make live and breathe, no matter how unlikely they would appear out in the actual world.

Clare is looking forward to her fresh start. She’s a new university student in Edinburgh, learning all about art history, working her new job at the bar. Then she gets new friends - even better. Life is going the way she always wanted. The closer she gets to her new friends, the easier it is to leave the past behind.

Unfortunately, it soon becomes clear that Clare’s new friends are actually quite creepy. A completely insane business idea and a few other odd encounters leave Clare wondering if this is really turning out as swell as she had envisioned.

The book was well-written and the author’s creativity, as well as her talent for weaving a story, can’t be denied. The tale is a bit darker than I prefer, so while I can’t say I necessarily enjoyed the book, I feel that people who enjoy darker thrillers might want to check it out.

Thanks to the author, Random House Publishing - Ballantine and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

I would probably replace one word in the title with another to summarize my thoughts on people this book. First I was thinking more than what we do to our friends, it would be story of what we do FOR our friends. Boy, was I wrong! (and that’s not the word I would have replaced)

I find it hard to believe there are teenagers in high school or very young adults in university thinking of doing what these kids do in this book and books like this. Then I remind myself how 14 year olds look and behave older than I am on daily basis. So them starting a weird service for women who need proof of something or the other didn’t sound that disturbing.

Prologue was a good hook to pull me into the book, but it slowly lost me by making whole story sound like bunch of spoiled brats entertaining themselves at others’s expense. I’m on the fence with this book. If you are interested in books set in universities and look into friendships built there, give it a try.