Sarah Taylor is a very intelligent fifteen-year-old who has been accepted to St Ambrose School for Girls. It’s an elite institution and Sarah feels out of place the moment she steps out of her mother’s shabby car. The girls at St Ambrose are not going to be her friends but Sarah has bigger concerns. She is hiding a secret that they will never understand and it only gets more complicated as the semester progresses.

The St Ambrose School for Girls has a great premise and is well-written, but I found myself struggling with parts of it as it seemed to move quite slow at times. I never did connect with the main character, Sarah, although the meet-up with her mother was one of my favorite scenes in the book. Also, Sarah’s roommate, Strots, is an interesting character and someone I’d want in my corner. She lends a lot of color to the story. The author’s depiction of bipolar disorder was fascinating. I have no basis for comparison but it seemed to me that the author approached the subject with a great deal of sensitivity.

I was bothered by the presence of Nick, the RA on Sarah’s floor. It didn’t seem realistic to put a male RA in a female dorm at an all-girls school. I just don’t think that would happen. But, his presence is an integral part of the story so the reader has to overlook it. All in all, The St Ambrose School for Girls is an interesting book but it took me a while to finish it and at times it failed to hold my attention. NetGalley provided an advance copy.

This is a psychological thriller that takes place at a boarding school. The girls attending have a vast array of mental health issues that are brought to the forefront.

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and give an honest review of this book.

When the main character was described as being bipolar, I was interested to see how that diagnosis would affect her time at the all girls school she had been accepted to.

The development of characters takes a long time before a murder occurs at St. Ambrose. Sometimes reality and hallucinations are difficult to tell apart. The people at the school that all had motives to kill the victim, were plentiful. If you like to figure out the mystery ahead of time, you may not be able to.
It will keep you reading to the end of the book.

I especially enjoyed the author’s prose and her style of writing.

Drumroll please....

I have a book to introduce to you that has quite literally, broke the internet.

If you are active on "bookstagram" you have seen the posts that have taken over social media and plagued our feeds. Well, there was no way in heck I was going to miss out on this one. The FOMO was kicking in and I ran on over to netgalley to request a copy for myself.

The St. Ambrose School for Girls, delivers!

Holy moly! What did I just read? I am a huge fan of boarding school/ College thrillers and this book right here was made for folks like me. I loved every minute of this book and I am left shaking after concluding.

Jessica Ward and JR Ward have come together to give us the BOOK OF THE YEAR! My fingers and toes are crossed that they turn this book into a movie, I would love to see it play out before my eyes.

Teaser :

A CrimeReads Most Anticipated Book of the Summer

Heathers meets The Secret History in this thrilling coming-of-age novel set in a boarding school where the secrets are devastating—and deadly.

When Sarah Taylor arrives at the exclusive St. Ambrose School, she’s carrying more baggage than just what fits in her suitcase. She knows she’s not like the other girls—if the shabby, all-black, non-designer clothes don’t give that away, the bottle of lithium hidden in her desk drawer sure does.

St. Ambrose’s queen bee, Greta Stanhope, picks Sarah as a target from day one and the most popular, powerful, horrible girl at school is relentless in making sure Sarah knows what the pecking order is. Thankfully, Sarah makes an ally out of her roommate Ellen “Strots” Strotsberry, a cigarette-huffing, devil-may-care athlete who takes no bullshit. Also down the hall is Nick Hollis, the devastatingly handsome RA, and the object of more than one St. Ambrose student’s fantasies. Between Strots and Nick, Sarah hopes she can make it through the semester, dealing with not only her schoolwork and a recent bipolar diagnosis, but Greta’s increasingly malicious pranks.

Sarah is determined not to give Greta the satisfaction of breaking her. But when scandal unfolds, and someone ends up dead, her world threatens to unravel in ways she could never have imagined. The St. Ambrose School for Girls is a dangerous, delicious, twisty coming-of-age tale that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

The story was very hard to follow with, Sarah, the main character. She is bipolar and she experiences blackouts, obsessive behavior and suicidal thoughts. She is brilliant but it seems like her disease prevents her from succeeding. Now since her first day at St. Ambrose she is being bullied by Greta. Greta is relentless in making her feelings known. Sarah tries to not let the bully get her down and finds friends and allies to help her survive. Now people are dying and a scandal unfolds, the world that she has build may unravel.

A murder mystery in a boarding school was a roller coaster of emotions. I got into half of the book but kind of skimmed through the rest just to find out what happens. I wanted to really enjoy this book because of J.R. Wards ability to write amazing stories, but this one seemed to be over written and dark. I feel like there was something missing from the story but could not put my finger on it. I liked the the approach that was taken on mental illness. I hope that as a reader you enjoy it.

Received ARC in exchange for voluntary honest review
3.5 stars

3.25stars--THE ST. AMBROSE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS by Jessica Ward is a young-adult, coming of age, suspense thriller set in 1991, focusing on fifteen year old Sarah Taylor and her first few months at the prestigious St. Ambrose School for Girls.

WARNING: Due to the nature of the story line premise, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers. Although most of the characters are underaged teens, the subject of the story line is adult and dark.

Told from first person perspective (Sarah) THE ST. AMBROSE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS follows fifteen year old Sarah Taylor’s arrival at St. Ambrose School For Girls in the wake of winning an essay contest. Sarah does not come from money; she has won a scholarship to the all girl school but it is her need for Lithium that will set her apart. Sarah struggles with bi-polar disorder, and in this, she is about to meet her match in the school bully Greta Stanhope but all is not well at the illustrious school when secrets reveal a twisted scandal that results in a murder-suicide.

The world building follows the struggles of fifteen year old Sarah Taylor, a young woman who is battling a debilitating mental disorder where she will often disassociate, and in this Sarah doesn’t often know reality from imagination. There are plenty of issues behind the scenes at the St. Ambrose School for Girls, and these issues are about to spiral out of control. As the new girl at school, Sarah will become the target of Greta Stanhope, a target that will become aware of the secrets hiding behind the closed doors.

The secondary and supporting characters included Sarah’s roommate Ellen ‘Strots’ Strotsberry who has a past with Greta Stanhope, a past that is about to push Ellen in more ways than one. Greta ‘s own secrets become fodder for those in the know but money is power, and power is control.

THE ST. AMBROSE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS is a slow building story line in which we only see one side of the story. Most of the conflict takes place off page wherein the reader is only witness to the fall-out and spiral. Most of the characters are not likeable including Sarah Taylor, although the reader may have sympathy for her struggles and her plight.

Throughout the story we are witness to Sarah’s endeavor to fit in but Sarah is so far outside of the box she becomes a target of those taking control. Befriended by her roommate, a sympathetic teacher and pharmacist, as well as the RA who is aware of Sarah’s emotional turmoil, Sarah hopes to move forward but secrets and lies begin to overwhelm a young woman who is unable to navigate the world as it is. The premise is intriguing and fascinating but felt stilted in its’ presentation; the characters are desperate and broken. As per the usual YA requisite trope parameters, the author included the mean girls, and the questionable and oblivious adults.



THE READING CAFÉ: http://www.thereadingcafe.com/the-st-ambrose-school-for-girls-by-jessica-ward-dual-review/


GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5670243682


AMAZON COM: https://www.amazon.com/review/R1MIQZ97TK3R2G/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8


BOOKBUB: https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/2861782101


B&N (Sandy_thereadingcafe) https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-st-ambrose-school-for-girls-jessica-ward/1142483499?ean=9781982194888&bvnotificationId=110be782-2071-11ee-bec8-0eb614f2e825&bvmessageType=REVIEW_APPROVED&bvrecipientDomain=hotmail.com#review/252802413


Ibooks (Sandy Sch) posted

GOOGLE PLAY (Sandy Sch) posted

Hearing amazing things from the plotline of The St. Ambrose School for Girls, I was excited to read it. However; the plot fell flat for me and I wasn't able to connect to any of the characters. As a reader, I ended up "not finishing this book" 15 percent in.

A complex psychological dark academia thriller! Overall I thought this book was okay. I liked the setting and thought the premise was interesting but certain parts of the story and characters fell a little flat.

One of my favorite reads so far this year.

This is much more campus/prep school thriller than Dark Academia, but it’s smart enough and atmospheric enough to be reminiscent of the latter.

Ward found some unique and interesting angles on the standard dark prep school drama, managing to hit on all the elements readers of this subgenre love while also putting her own spin on some of the more tropey themes.

The best of this is both the satisfying ending which carries a terrific sense of justice and the characters, who are all wonderfully drawn.

Our protagonist is a whip smart, awkward, and well-meaning girl who is bipolar, and while I’m not an expert on the disease by any stretch, this seems to be both an exceptionally well-researched and an extraordinarily empathetic portrait of the disease. Both she and her friend and roommate Strots are as delightfully unusual and easy to root for as they come, and the villains of the story are equally well-drawn.

Despite staying largely away from any academic content, the sense of place was still wonderfully well-rendered, and the suspense was marvelously chilling and gothic.

I really loved this book, the best school thriller I’ve come across in a while.

Personally, this book under delivered on the thriller part but over delivered on the coming of age story. I was ready for a dark academia murder with plenty of suspense but it was more of an exploration into mental illness in the 90s/2000s (couldn't pinpoint the time period) and high school girls. Sarah gets into the St. Ambrose School for girls, a prestigious class that will surely catapult her to stardom, at least her mother hopes. What we get is Sarah constantly battling within herself to stay on her medications and also fend off the bullies. There is a murder but it is all solved rather quickly. I think this book while it did capture my attention was marketed incorrectly.

DNFing because I am not into it. I’m 25% done and I just don’t care about the plot or characters. I was hoping for amazing things with boarding school vibes but it just didn’t work or get to any sort of conflict.

I really try to reserve one stars for books that I DNF…this one probably should have been a DNF. There were some moments that kept me going (like the actual story) and then other moments that made me almost fall asleep (like the way too ling descriptions of absolutely meaningless things that added nothing to the story). The (predictable) “twist” ending was a letdown even though that was probably the most exciting part.

DNF at 41% - The author's writing style was just not for me. The main character/narrator of this book is seriously mentally ill. I think the author tried too hard to bring that out through the way the character told the story. Because of that the writing felt choppy and often left me confused. I would need to reread parts to make sure I understood what was going on. This book was not for me.

Definitely not the book for me. As someone who battles from anxiety and depression, I just couldn't relate to these characters.

St Ambrose School for Girls by Jessica Ward is a YA suspense standalone novel that takes place in a boarding school. When 15-year-old, Sarah Taylor arrives at the exclusive St. Ambrose School, she knows that she is not like the other girls in the school; as she has a bi-polar disorder. Especially since she was an unlikely candidate for the prestigious school, as her mother was the one who submitted her essay without her knowledge. She makes an ally out of her roommate, Strots (Ellen), who is an athlete, cigarette smoker and is gay.

St. Ambrose’s queen bee, Greta Stanhope, targets Sarah from the start, as she is evil and a classic mean girl. Greta constantly pulls vicious pranks on Sarah, making her life difficult. Nick Hollis, is a teacher who is assigned to the upper floors, and since he is very handsome, all the students adore him; of course, Sarah also is infatuated with him.

Sarah tries to hide her bi-polar disorder, as well as her previous attempts to commit suicide. We spent a lot of time seeing Sarah’s episodes that take over her mind; obsessive thoughts not in reality, blanking out, losing time, suicidal attempts, etc. This was very dark, somber and at times depressing, to watch a young girl going through her disorder with some confusing and detailed descriptions.

What follows is an exciting and wild last third of the book; when scandals are revealed, as well as murder; with everything at the school falling apart. I did like Strots, as she was always willing to protect Sarah from the evil girls. I was not a fan of the rest of the characters, which included Sarah. I also thought Sarah’s crazy thoughts were too much and a bit of overkill. The St. Ambrose School for Girls was an interesting, wild, suspenseful YA tale that had a decent finish.

What could have been really timely and thought provoking fell flat. I am. not the audience for this. I love all of the reviews with their “because it was the 90s” excuses. As a person diagnosed bipolar in the 90s, I can tell you that this was not the excuse for the writing that people are making it out to be.

•Description•
Private School
Bullying
Depression

•Rating•
⭐⭐⭐ 3 stars
Not for me, but might be for you.

•Similar Recommended Reads•
The Gifted School
Luckiest Girl Alive
Wilder Girls

Sarah Taylor is accepted into the St. Ambrose School for Girls on scholarship - one she didn’t even apply for, but her single mother did. Sarah is from a poor, small town and suffers from bipolar disorder - her mother thought the school might be exactly what Sarah needs to turn her life around. But St. Ambrose has a pecking order with Sarah at the bottom and Greta at the top. Greta immediately sees the potential in bullying Sarah and she is relentless. What unfolds over the course of the first semester is gut wrenching and astounding: an attractive and married RA who seemingly flirts with the girls, a friendship between opposites and a murder. How could any of this end well?

Super quick and enthralling read. My only issue with this novel is its treatment of bipolar. My dad is bipolar and has been for 30 years, so I have been in close contact. I know that it manifests differently in different people, but this didn’t quite fit with what I know of the illness and I struggled because of that.

I really wanted to like this book. Ultimately, I didn’t hate it; I didn’t love it. I don’t think I was prepared for the heaviness of this story. Sarah hasn’t had an easy life. She’s had to fight her mental illness every day. She’s given the opportunity to attend St. Ambrose and life there isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. But this self-proclaimed loner does make a friend. I did enjoy seeing Sarah open up and start a friendship. I also liked how as things progressed, it opened Sarah’s eyes to her mother and changed her opinion of her. This book definitely had some twists I didn’t see coming and I still wanted to know how things ended.

This was a title I was very interested in reading. I'm always up for a good "mean girls" gothic sort of story and The St. Ambrose School for Girls has all the elements -- rich mean girls, resident advisors with lots of temptations in front of them and history behind them, and the girls who don't fit in. The story is told from the perspective of one of those girls. Sarah Taylor isn't like most of the rich girls attending the school. She's there on a scholarship that she didn't apply for, and she has a serious mental illness. She has a target on her back before her bags are in her room.

Greta Stanhope is the mean girl to eclipse all mean girls. She just isn't mean -- she revels in the destruction she causes. She's also in the beautiful girl clique, where jealousy and passive aggressive behavior are currency. And there's Strots -- or Ellen Strotsberry, Sarah's athlete roommate. I really liked Strots. She had her own demons to deal with but still managed to look out for Sarah when she needed someone.

The story is told from the point of view of Sarah Taylor. Much of the first half is devoted to a very thought-provoking, sometimes harrowing and often very emotional expose on what it is like living with multiple health issues, including bipolar disorder at the age of fifteen. The author does a good job of showing Sarah's life through her eyes with sensitivity even when it was difficult to read. This part of the story is not for the faint of heart. Sarah's unique perspective had me holding my breath at times as Sarah navigated her illness and her enemies around her. The rich girls do their usual sort of pranks on Sarah, but things gradually escalate, especially after Sarah starts connecting the dots between her rich tormentors and Nick Hollis, the gorgeous male resident advisor on their floor.

As Sarah continues to deal with both her illness and all of the aspects of being at the new school, Greta and her group of mean girls turn up the heat on everyone, even each other. While the first part of the book was more slow burn and getting to know the characters from Sarah's viewpoint, the second half of the book heats up with some fairly predictable and awful actions.

Overall, The St. Ambrose School for Girls is a sensitive story of mental illness wrapped around a bit of a whodunit. While the first half takes it's time establishing Sarah's viewpoint, the second half is a taut mystery that gradually builds in intensity. There is a payoff at the end and it left me questioning, wondering, and thinking about everything I just read. This is a perfect book for a book club discussion, especially if you want to talk about ethics. To tell you the truth, I'm gobsmacked about that ending in a good way as I love it when a story has me thinking about it long after I finished reading and that was The St. Ambrose School for Girls.