When a high school bully is murdered at a party, introvert Kerry is shocked. When another person is killed in a similar way, she and her best friend pull out their investigating skills to find the culprit.

I wanted to like this book so much based on the premise but the writing wasn’t my favorite. I think it also took a lot of setup to get to the first murder.

Kate Weston's Murder on a School Night was an entertaining read, albeit a bit on the YA side for me.

Prior to getting to my review, I feel the need to disclose this is a YA Novel and thus my challenges with the book should be taken with a grain of salt. I am 33. I love YA and I find the stories so captivating that it has been a niche for me that I enjoy so deeply.

Through a series of odd happenings, Kerry and her bestie Annie get invited to a high school party where one of the popular girls gets murdered. Roped in by the Queen Bee, Heather, the two find themselves knee deep in attempting to solve the murder.

Annie is just too much! I liked her character even though she's obviously quite annoying. Her scribbling notes, awkwardly typing into her notes app, and not so discreetly carrying a dictaphone just made me chuckle. She's clunky and goofy and oh so determined to be popular and fit in.

Murder on a School Night is perhaps just too hip for me! I am an educator and I pride myself of knowing a lot of the cool lingo the kids use these days (I sound convincing right?!), but at times in the book, I found myself a bit lost in the sauce. I also found some of the nonsense the girls fixated on to be a bit too shallow and silly for my liking. However, I do know my 16 year old self would've devoured it and come back for more.

Bottom line, if you are like me, an adult who loves reading YA, this may not be your ideal pick. However, I am very very curious what the reviews look like from a teenage range!

Well, this unfortunately wasn't for me. While the premise sounded interesting, the execution wasn't the best.

This book has very strong feminist views and tries to be very "woke", so much so that it becomes irritating to read. While I appreciate the characters trying to normalize some taboo topics, such as period talk, a lot of the time it just comes out as forced. Aside from that, the characters themselves (like all of them) aren't likable. While the main characters of the story are Kerry and Annie, I'm glad our POV was Kerry, as she was the more level-headed of the two, but not by much. Both characters were overly weird(many second-hand embarrassment moments for us to witness), but Annie was very obnoxious. She also had this strange obsession with becoming popular, which I found a bit odd because she really REALLY wanted to be popular. But at least both were good friends with one another, I'll give them that.

Aside from the characters, the plot of the story wasn't doing much for me either. I didn't feel engaged with the plot, nor was I satisfied with the revelation. It all felt a bit lackluster once the culprit behind the murders was revealed. Overall, this story had some funny moments, but that's about all it had going for it. The book had potential, but it just didn't go anywhere with it.

Overall rating: 2/5

Enjoyed this book! A good, fun read I think everyone will enjoy. It’s got mystery, murder and friendship! What more could you need?!

This was such a fun read about a pair of teenage friends trying to investigate a murder in their town. The characters were written well for high schoolers- precocious, cocky, insecure, and a tad annoying. I enjoyed the book and will be looking for more by this author.

I love a good murder mystery and one with strong female teen leads seemed like it'd be a fun read - Murder on a School Night not only met my expectations but it kept me laughing through the whole story. The author did a nifty job weaving in the trials of high school, female rights, embracing menstruation, and whether popularity is really all it's meant to be.

Kerry and Annie are fun leads that complement each other in personality - Annie has a strong desire to be seen by the popular set, is always ready to interject and sees the chance to solve the murders as the perfect opportunity to get in with the popular set. Kerry is much more thoughtful in her actions, thinking things through but also being swept up in Annie's enthusiasm. The two together make an excellent murder solving team!

A menstrual murderer is a twist I never would have thought of it but it worked fabulously in the story, adding a both feminism and humor. I really enjoyed the twists and turns of the book and found it to include a very well wrapped up ending.

Posted my review on goodreads so all my friends can see it and add the book to their TBR, but in shorter words:

This book had me laughing out loud from page 1 onward to the very end. I normally don't like rom-com thrillers, but this is without of a single shred of doubt, one of my favorite YA reads of the year so far.

Thank you so much for giving me one of these ARCS!!!!

A cute, quick and fun read! I loved it. I loved the characters, I loved the writing style, I loved all of the characters and just found this book to be so good!

First things first, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Murder on a School Night. When I first read the description of the book, I started laughing so hard that my student interns asked what was so funny. I read them the description, and we decided that I had to request it asap. I enjoyed this one very much, though it wasn't quite as funny as the description. The end was a bit hasty, but not so hasty that I was left unhappy with the book.

I honestly wasn't sure what I was picking up here. I got an advance copy and skimmed the description. It seemed intriguing enough and I'm glad I read this. It wasn't something the knocked my socks off, but it was something that I enjoyed start to finish. I've really been reading more and more books with strong female characters and minimal or no male-centered shining moments. This book has that and in fact celebrates that they don't need any men telling them what to do or how to do it. I'm glad I tried this out and would recommend it to anyone with a sense of humor but also likes murder mystery!

This book started out a bit slow, so I didn't have high expectations. But WOW it redeemed itself with that second half! I was able to get one of the plot twists, but not the main one. This book was so cleverly crafted I literally Could. Not. put my phone down. I loved how it incorporated modern day issues, and just wow I'm still kind of in shock after reading.

Absolutely engrossing, it had me laughing and WTFing outloud. I was not expecting that plot twist whatsoever, and the fact that we also got answers to every conspiracy mentioned. Usually all the books I've encountered that are labeled Rom-com thriller there isn't actual thrill or mystery present, but this has everything. I will be adding this gem to my mystery shelf once it comes out. I recommend it to sleuths like me also would be an amazing read for young adults since it incorporates topics that need to be talked about. I'd like to mention the fact that the author teaches us that no matter how bad or misunderstood the dead person was they didn't deserve that and has her characters avenge them even though they were hurt by them. The popular group isn't as perfect as they seem.

“I am strong and empowered, the patriarchy is but shit upon my shoe, good morning to all….” ❤️

I received this book as a dARC from NetGalley and I’m so glad I did! Kate did a wonderful job of putting together a mix of mystery, humor and pop culture. I loved the shout outs to feminism and equality. The book gave me strong Pretty Little Liar and Murder in the Building vibes.

The story itself was well written, had a couple of points that got a little slow but overall kept my attention well. I was able to figure out pieces of the mystery on my own but the complete ending was still a surprise which I enjoy.

*Thank you NetGalley for sending me a review in exchange for an honest review!*

I laughed so much reading this book! It was a really fun YA mystery. It was like a more comedic version of Pretty Little Liars or Only Murders in the Building set in high school.

I thought Kerry and Annie were great protagonists (friendship goals!) I liked that we really got to know them throughout the story. They are the definition of #GIRLPOWER!

While the ending was a little wild, I think it worked. Especially for a fun "cozy" type of mystery. I feel like there is always a little creative license when it comes to that! I would love to see what trouble girls get themselves into in the future.

Will give feedback and my review when the HCP union gets a fair contract. Thank you so much for the book and can't wait to leave a review in the future.

Kerry’s character resonated with me. She is cautious, bookish, anxious, and a fiercely loyal friend. Because the story is told from a perspective I can relate to, it made slipping into this story simple for me. The humorous dialogue was the best part of this book for me.

An amazingly fun, thrilling, and mystery seeking ya read. I adored this one and was never bored! I highly recommend and will be picking up more of Weston’s
Work.

What a fun read this was- a murder mystery that had me laughing out loud at times! These two amateur detectives, Annie and Kerry, are unpopular best friends who are determined to solve the murders that have happened in their town. But these aren’t any murders, they all seem to be perpetrated by the menstrual (yes you read that right) serial killer who is killing people and leaving messages using menstrual products. I told you some of it was laugh out loud funny. As these two try to become popular, navigate you do lone and solve a murder they also manage to use lube as a weapon and experience their first leg party! A wild fun ride!

Such a phenomenal book! I truly enjoyed it and it gave me Truly Devious and The Agathas vibes! Add it to your list of great mysteries for teens to read! I look forward to the next one!