When the principal of Promise Academy is murdered in his office, three students who he recently had conflict with become the prime suspects. Each of the students was frustrated with Promise and had been targeted by the questionable discipline strategies of the principal. They don't know each other, but they must work together to find out the truth behind their punishments and behind the murder.

The mystery of the story was a bit predictable, but the social justice messages were on point. I think this book will be popular with students who like mysteries.

Have you ever been at a school where not just you but the entire school abhorred the school principal? There is no “pal” with Principal Moore who runs the D.C. high school with an iron clad fist and increasingly erratic behavior. You want him to go down! Scorch earth! Or so that’s just what you think and what you do are two totally different things, isn’t it? What happens when you are blamed for his murder?

This YA murder-mystery thriller centers around three students who become the prime suspects: J.B.,Trey, and Ramón. Told in multiple p.o.v., we get a close up of their background and how they came to the academy. We see the injustice of the social system when it comes to racism, lower income families and the corruption of the system. I loved that the author does not sugar coat it.

Chapters are short and they pull you in. A fast read that will have you up all night wanting to finish.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC digital copy. I was not compensated for this review and all opinions are my own.

4 out of 5 stars and my respect to the author.

Wonderfully written and relevant. Highly recommended for fans of Nic Stone, Tiffany D Jackson, Jason Reynolds, Elizabeth Acevedo, etc.

This is a title I will be suggesting for consideration to the Evergreen Committee for the 2026 cycle.
The characters have unique voices and backstories. My students connect with them.
The mystery is fabulous, and even though there are multiple perspectives, they are labelled well so students can follow the plot.
There were plot twists that were fabulous.
I have purchased multiple copies and it is circulating well.

Urban Promise Prep. A prestigious school that seeks to provide a quality education for those living in the poorer areas of Washington D.C. However, unbeknownst to those outside the schools’ walls, Principal Moore runs an iron ship and students can be sent to detention for simply forgetting their tie. Trey, Ramón, and J.B. are students at this school, and each have their reasons for hating Moore. Until one day when Moore is found shot to death on school grounds and all evidence points to them. As they try to piece that fatal day together, the boys uncover the dark underside of UPP and the beloved Principal Moore.

TW; abuse, racism

“I’m no snitch or nothing, but being a concerned community member and all…” translated: a non-white dude looks suspicious.

To many, the antagonist was probably immediately recognized and may generate some complaints and will likely be considered underwhelming. However, the ending does well in highlighting the fact that the criminal is usually obvious and right under your nose but you’re too blinded by your prejudice to notice this. The book also does well in highlighting that you can't assume how someone lives their life based on one or two glimpses into it.

I really liked how the book was broken down into parts, with the first three parts giving J.B, Trey, and Ramon great introductions and exposing the biasness of those around them in the interrogations and interviews, most of which just assumed one of the boys did it because they had violent tendencies, happen to hang around gangs, etc.

This was one of my most anticipated releases for 2023. I've had the privilege of getting to hear Nick Brooks speak at several virtual events, especially about this story, and his energy is so infectious. He has so much passion, so much charisma, and so much clarity in what he wants his writing to do that you can’t help but want to see him succeed—and I think in this debut he definitely does.

This is a deceptively simple story that has so much complexity under the surface. I’ve never read another mystery quite like it, and that is in large part because of its unique structure that makes it feel much more expansive than you would expect.

Not only are there three rotating points of view between the three main characters, but there's also interludes and testimonies between chapters from family members, fellow students, school employees, members of the surrounding community—all these different people who have been irrevocably effected by this tragic event.

Those added perspectives give a feeling of fullness to the mystery that not only adds to and also offsets the tension in some ways, but brings a feeling of depth that shows how this incident is rippling outwards. It’s not simply about the deceased and the accused, which also illustrates how when youth of color, especially, are involved in something scandalous or high-profile, everyone feels emboldened to share their take, because those lives are seen as a site for public discourse.

I think this mystery-thriller is also unique because the experience of reading it is part of the social commentary it’s attempting to make. It puts you, as the reader, in the position of judge, jury, executioner from the very first page.

You are told in no uncertain terms that someone has been killed and that one of these three boys has done it. They were all at the scene of the crime. They had motive, they had opportunity, there is evidence incriminating all of them. Then your job, as the reader, is to decide if what follows is truth or lies.

Before you know anything about the characters, you see them through the lens of “murder suspect.” You believe them all to be capable of this despicable act. And as the story goes on, it’s forcing you to confront why the moniker of “criminal” is so easy to place on these characters' shoulders.

In many ways, this story is direct commentary on the school-to-prison pipeline. It’s about the ways we criminalize youth of color on sight and on principle rather than judging them based on who they are. It’s about how the world so willingly strips boys of color, specifically, of the experience of their own boyhood, and tied up in that boyhood is the permission to make mistakes.

Because, really, that’s what childhood is. It’s a series of mistakes as you test out the boundaries of the world around you, learn how things work, figure out what is safe or unsafe, allowed or not allowed. And boys of color too often don’t get to have that full experience.

We expect them to be bad, we expect them to make trouble, to be violent, to be criminals. We force adulthood on them before they’re fully grown. And the second they make one wrong move—or if they’re even *perceived* as having made a wrong move—it’s game over. There’s no coming back. We find boys of color to be guilty as a fact of their existence. We force that guilt on them with no guaranteed path towards redemption, and this story is really about what the characters are left to do when faced with that lose-lose situation.

Boys of color are also denied the experience of feeling their joy, of feeling like active participants in their futures, in forming meaningful and healthy connections with their masculinity and with each other, and I think this story is also tackling those issues as well.

Even thought these characters don’t necessarily become the best of friends, this whole situation does force them to connect. Their shared guilt creates a relationship between them, and it allows them to share pieces of themselves with each other that they normally wouldn’t.

In that way, I think there’s also some lessons about community versus competition in here as well, because when these boys are almost “competing” with each other to prove their innocence, they don’t get anywhere. They realize they have to be united against the system that is attempting to stifle them and silence them if they want to survive it.

As I said, there’s a lot going on here. I think there’s so much value to this story and the larger conversations it represents, but it’s also incredibly smart in how it’s packaged in this engaging, thrilling, fast-paced mystery that a lot of young readers are going to latch onto.

On a minor note, I did personally want a little bit more from the big reveal. It’s a good one, I just think it could have gone even further. And while I love the incredibly expansive viewpoint of the story, sometimes I feel like a bit of character depth is sacrificed in the process, especially considering the fact pace.

Even with that said, I loved this debut! I would absolutely read more from Nick Brooks in heartbeat. This is an absolutely stellar YA mystery that I’m very excited for people to get their hands on.

PROMISE BOYS is a mixed format YA mystery thriller that starts off with the death of a neighborhood's beloved principal of an all-boy's prep academy that gets pinned on three of the young men who attend. Right off the bat, through a series of documentary-style side-character insights, interview transcripts, and traditional narration, we're introduced to this neighborhood, the school, and the tension. PROMISE BOYS interrogates how men (not young men, but GROWN men) perpetuate toxic masculinity and pass it on to younger generations.

We follow three dynamic and distinct young men who are not perfect and simply want to clear their name of a crime they did not commit against a man who was also less than perfect. PROMISE BOYS keeps you wanting to know what happened and piece together the events; we already known the end result, so the fun is finding out how we got there. There's a strong mix of complex main characters and fully realized supporting characters with a nice variety of personality that create and fill in this community. Side-note: I was roting for JB and Keyana the entire time lol. I highly recommend the audiobook; it's a full cast and the production value is impeccable.

This fast paced quick read had me turning pages quick! This one is told from the viewpoints of lots of characters. All of them knowing (or being) the three suspects in the murder of the principal. I was worried that it would be confusing, but it flows really well and helped the book go by fast. The three suspects are all very different, but have an easy time working together for their common cause, BUT they keep their individual aspirations and goals throughout the story.
There are the underlying questions throughout the book of What is success? What makes a school good? What makes a teacher good? It’s always a good thing to think about since these things constantly change as society evolves.
Thank you Netgalley for an advanced digital copy! Promise Boys is out now!

Urban Promise Prep is an all boys Charter School located in DC. From the outside, it appears to be the ideal school, with its academic records and promises of college scholarships. On the inside, we see that that everything is not what it appears to be. Urban Promise is reminiscent of a military school or even worse…a prison. The rules are too strict and the hours are long. It all comes to a head when the principal is found murdered and fingers are pointed at J.B, Ramon and Trey. They ultimately join forces to find the actual killer, and realize that it could've been a number of people.

This story was told from multiple POVs and I found that interesting, because they provided more pieces to the puzzle. My favorite character was Trey, because I felt like he had endured so much in his young life. My least favorite character was the principal. You could literally see him unraveling at the seams, and he took it out on the wrong people.

This is one of the best books that I've read in 2023 and I highly recommend it to all of my book loving friends. Great job @officialnickbrooks!

I have become interested in the genre of dark academia, which is why I selected to read this book. It did not disappoint. It is a story of three young brown/black skinned boys caught up in a system that seems to do everything possible to discount their existence. The principal is shot, and of course, these three are immediately blamed. We see the story from the perspectives of multiple people which is well done and the author really gives the boys authentic voices - all a bit different. Well done.

When the principal of the Urban Promise Prep school is found murdered on school grounds, three students quickly become the prime suspects. All three proclaim their innocence and end up working together, along with several friends, to figure out who the real killer is.

Told from multiple points of view – the main characters and smaller characters, who may only have a page – the story unfolds piece by piece and will keep you guessing. Secrets and truths start to come to light, and it's clear that things at Urban Promise Prep aren't really as great as appearances would leave people to believe.

With a view towards how the social justice system can treats people, especially teen boys unfairly, this riveting story will make readers think about the social issues and the bigger picture, while also trying to guess who did.

There are definitely things that I like about this book. I like the main characters, these boys who are seen as different kinds of trouble by the adults in their lives and how that perception colors the way that they are treated and hat people expect from them. And I like how the narrative shifts in the early sections. We're questioning whose narrative we trust, ho e know the truth. Some of the bias is too obvious. The white characters are thin and malicious. But I appreciate how many of the "bad guys' are also people of color. while the lines are often a little too stark, the ideas it raises are worth considering.

A true page turner, though cloaked in the shroud of systemic inequality in an urban school, the mystery in it rings true. The use of multiple perspectives shines a light on the plight of those with marginalized experiences, but also demonstrates the authors craft at giving voice and a story to those that may misunderstood.

I am so happy I read this book. The story was incredible. What the boys are going through breaks your heart but getting to go along as they do their best to solve the mystery of who really kills Principal Moore is quite satisfying. Books like this are ones that stay with me for years after reading them.

I cannot even. Nick Brooks made a masterpiece! Three boys from an all-male charter school are accused of murdering the principal, but they all claim they couldn't have done it. In this multi POV story, the reader is held tot he last minute to figure out what happened and who really killed the principal!

It was good but had an anticlimactic ending. I started the e-gally but switched to the audiobook and restarted. Initially there were a lot of ancillary characters introduced that I couldn't keep straight but ended up having relevant roles as the story went on. For me, the audiobook made keeping track easier.


If you are a fan of Karen M. McManus you will enjoy this book.

At Urban Promise Prep school, strict rules keep the students in line, even to the point of harassment. Donations are given to the boys’ school in large amounts but students are told no when they ask for help with extracurricular activity funding. On a day when Principal Moore sent three teens to detention, he ends up being fatally shot and those three young men are blamed. Trey, J.B., and Ramon have to work together to clear their names. They also need help from others to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Likes/dislikes: I liked the mystery and the story behind it. I enjoyed how the suspense built throughout the story. The alternating narrative made the book more interesting.
Mature content: PG-13 for implied sex
Language: R for 110 swears and 12 f-bombs.
Violence: PG-13 for fatal shooting with description of blood when finding the victim.
Ethnicity: mixed-white, Black, Mexican-American

Three boys. One murdered principal. Who did it?
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If you attend the prestigious prep school Urban Promise you’ve made it. However the pristine walls are hiding many secrets. When the principal is murdered, all signs point to the three boys who were in detention and had run-ins with Principal Moore that day. JB, Ramon and Trey all come from different cliques and backgrounds, but they’ll have to band together to help prove their innocence.
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If you are even the slightest fan of audiobooks I beg of you to listen to the full cast version of this production. They do an amazing job of acting @officialnickbrooks fabulous YA thriller book. Thank you @librofm for providing the ALC of this title. Out now!

CW: racism, police brutality, gun violence, murder, toxic school environment, references to gang violence, stereotypes

I wanted just a bit more from this. There were a lot of characters in this made it hard to follow at times.

Oh this was incredible!!! such a thrilling mystery with a lot of heart and even more twists and turns. The characters were really interesting and I feel like all complemented each other in new and unique ways. This story itself was really interesting and didn't go in the direction I thought. I read a lot of mystery books and this one didn't disappoint. In fact, it stood out from many of my recent YA thrillers and a lot of that has to do with Brooks's writing. It was engaging and I was never bored throughout reading this. Such a complex book with heavy themes, but was really well done. I can't recommend this enough!

Star Rating: —> 4.5 Stars rounded ^

I can NOT believe this is this authors debut novel!!! I will *definitely* be looking out for more Nick Brooks novels in the future!!!

WOW. WOW. wowowow! What an incredible read. An amazzzzing true crime/ dark academia mash up! I was completely invested from the first page, all the way to the ending!! This author fleshed out this story so very well; I was SO intrigued trying to figure out who the murderer was! And honestly, it made me really think about how shameful it is how huge a majority of people look at crime cases, especially when one or more BIPOC individuals are suspects.

We must always remember, innocent until proven guilty— and I can guarantee most people, whether they think themselves open-minded, fair-thinking individuals… do not naturally think that way. It is truly AWFUL to think about. Even if someone appears guilty, doesn't necessarily mean that they are. Until you know every detail of a case, and someone is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, they are INNOCENT.
Anyway, I’m just trying to make you think, not preach to you! Onward!

The character development was SUPERB! I was hoping/praying the entire time that they didn't commit this crime. And no spoilers, but I was SO satisfied with the way the killer was revealed, & the ending in general.

Amazing read.

100% recommend

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher, Henry Holt, & Co for the e-ARC! This in no way impacts my review; All opinions & thoughts are my own.