True to form, this is a wild ride of a mystery that lives up to the promises it makes. With all the politics, drama, and glamor of Gossip Girl and the intrigue of The Counselors. Told in four perspectives-- a detached third of the aftermath of the death and the three girls who are wrapped up in it.

The structure propels the story forward; the release of information is timed perfectly in each of the perspectives to reveal twists and turns right when you think you've figured out what's going on. There are some moments, particularly towards the end, where it feels a little convoluted or hard to follow or unconvincing, but this didn't ruin it for me.

Sometimes the stakes/intensity felt a little off. For instance, there's a lot of tension around something one character, Isobel, said to another, Bernie, at a party. It's supposedly so bad we don't find out what it is for a while-- and when we do, it's the kind of thing said in the heat of the moment that hurts but doesn't necessarily ruin a friendship.

If this sounds like something you'd be into-- read it! It's a great mystery with so so so much drama, really interesting dynamics, and complicated characters.

Sadly I finish this book with a big "meh", as it was very average: there were things really interesting and others really boring that I can only give a 2.5 stars.

I really liked the Legacy Club idea, the way everything was around that club, high society and what everything did or knew to get there easily. The Legacy week was interesting as itself. The whole story surrounding the death and the revelations was still really great.

But it was extremely slow and predictable. Only the last 40% were really holding me on my seat, even tho I wasn't surprised by any reveals made (again, it was too predictable). The first 60% were just blah blah to me and way too many useless description. It felt like the book could have been perfect with less than 200 pages but somehow a novella was turned into a full novel.

I really liked the "Elite" vibe (from Netflix, without the adult/sexual side), with flashbacks from the moment of the death and up to the discovering of the body, police questionning, as well as current timeline with the whole socialite thing and all the drama. But I was also very frustrated because, unless the tv show, we get to learn who's dead only at the very end of the book. I would have prefered to know who were dead and get into investigation mode through my reading to know why would they be dead and who could have done it. But it's a personal liking, hence why it's upped to a 3 stars here!

This was a quick easy page turner. A guilty pleasure suitable for beach reading. The characters are awful people and pretty whiny. They all have pretty idyllic lives. Even the "outsider" has a pretty sweet existence.
The ending I found to be a bit unsatisfying. I think it would have been okay, But the build up, and intertwining of the "after the party" incidents throughout the book, made it feel like some big horrible reveal was coming at the end.

Pretty little liars meets gossip girl. Point blank period. Loved the thriller aspects but do wish it seemed higher stakes.


Content Warnings:

infidelity, grief, loss of a parent, medical malpractice, substance abuse, death

I tried,but unfortunately
,I couldn't make it past 18% on this book. None of the characters or plot development stick with me,so...anyways,I would highly encourage and recommend other people to try this one,since ever reader has a experience with a book. Thank you net galley and penguin group for having my opinion on this one.

This book is a thriller and mystery staged against the elite of New York society, and it delivers on the mystery but not so much anything else. I didn't particularly engage with any of the characters and I think maybe this just wasn't the book for me. Twists were fairly good though!

Thank you to the publisher for providing a review copy.

There is nothing I enjoy more than a “Gossip Girl” type book mixed with murder. This author captures perfectly the illustrious lives of Manhattan’s elite but tainting their shinty world with lies and deceit. I loved the juxtaposition of characters and how the author played with the theme of wealthy versus not.

The different POV kept the story fast past and the Interesting and past and present dual storyline kept the mystery alive throughout the book. Though some of the twists are a little predictable, it didn’t ruin the overall vibe of the book because it is very well written. This author is good at building tension within a scene and keeping the reader hooked until the very last page.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for this ARC

Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I like YA thrillers, they can be so well written, but this book just wasn’t it for me. The idea seemed awesome, and something that I would enjoy, but honestly, I struggled to get into this book.

First, I wasn’t enjoying the writing style that much. I struggled with it, because the inner thoughts, narration, and dialogue all felt stilted/didn’t work for me.

I wasn’t invested in most of the plot of the characters, the only plot I was somewhat invested in was Bernie’s. And even then I was just so-so on it.

It did come together in the end, but not enough for me to have really enjoyed it. The last 15% was the most enjoyable of the whole book.

This was a case of "it's me not the book". I've grown tired of YA mysteries in the style of "Gossip girl" or "Pretty little liars" but I'm sure this book will work for the target readers.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Trigger Warning: Murder, Drugs/Alcohol

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

If you love Gossip Girl and Bretty Little Liars this book is definitely for you. I could not put this book down.
The Legacy Club is an elite club in none other than New York City. The first thing the reader learns is that it is the night of the Legacy Ball and someone is murdered. Throughout the book we get multiple POV’s and flashbacks leading up to that fateful night. It was fast-paced with plenty twists and turns.

I was so excited to review an ARC of The Legacies! Coincidentally, Jessica Goodman was a year ahead of me at Penn, and it's been awesome to see her become one of the queens of the YA murder-mystery thriller genre. Unlike her past novels, The Legacies is not a murder mystery but rather a slow-burn thriller. At the beginning of the novel, we learn that one of the high school students at Excelsior is dead, but not which one. Thus, it's more about who's been killed than who did the killing. The title refers to the Legacy Club, an elitist club to which some of NYC's most privileged young people gain entry to each year. The novel alternates between three POVs: Golden child Bernie Kaplan, her artistic (and benzo-addicted) best friend Isobel, and Tori Tasso, the proverbial fish-out-of-water scholarship student. I think Bernie and Tori's POVs would have been sufficient to carry the novel; I found myself skimming some of Isobel's passages. Goodman has written an entertaining book, for sure, but it's a bit too long and then wraps up neatly. I also thought the characters were really archetypes rather than fully-fledged; the book tells a really classic morality tale of the have's and the have-not's that's not really nuanced. Overall, this is still a fun YA thriller read for summer. I think some of Goodman's past books were more original, and I look forward to seeing what she writes next!

no spoilers because it’s an arc but!! jessica goodman does it again! she will say “hey here’s a ya mystery with messaging about class” and i go “and” and she sighs and says “and the main character is jewish” and i go nuts for it every time!! i will say the constant flash forwards were a little confusing but they did a really good job of hiding the reveal. (i, of course, am a nancy drew level genius and guessed the reveal on my own.) overall i really did like it a lot!!

SPOILERY STUFF AHEAD:
i was so intrigued as to how esther is such a calculating figure but rlly did seem to regret what she did to tori’s mom!!! and the way the book left off i really hope we get a family of liars style prequel i’m so ready. also why did esther even dislike tori’s mom in the first place?? also like it was so clear that it was bernie’s boyfriend who died but yk what it’s ok i was still gagged.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book kept my attention but I did not enjoy it much as I enjoyed Goodman's last two books. I didn't find most of the characters, and their motivations and actions, believable. One of the underlying mysteries - where is Bernie's mom- was particularly underwhelming. I do understand Goodman's larger point about the advantages of privileged private school kids in NYC and the performative philanthropy of their parents, but overall the book was too silly for it to have much impact.

Without spoiling the ending, I will say that the main murder victim was pretty obvious but the perpetrator's actions seemed inconsistent with their character and entirely unnecessary.

I was on the edge of my seat for the majority of this book. Goodman's use of flash forward scenes created the perfect air of suspense, and the various points of view helped me truly understand the main characters and their motivations. The Legacy Club is such an intriguing concept that confronts many issues and important topics, a glaring one being nepotism. The juxtaposition of the characters with privilege to a character like Tori created a new perspective on wealth and connections, and whether they are as all-important as they seem. Truly enjoyed this book, and would definitely recommend! Thank you Netgalley and publishers for the eARC!

There is a specific genre of YA mystery (specifically, murder mysteries) that I absolutely love. It's the very niche 'rich and/or privileged kids face consequences' type of mystery and I love it. Bonus points if there are noble/deserving less well of kids who are either there to solve the mystery or be involved in the crime in some way (although rarely the culprit). There's something fun about reading a story featuring teenagers with what I would think of as adult money, because the drama is able to be so much more heightened.

The Legacies scratched every itch of this genre and then some. Strong plotting, engaging characters, and just enough information that you could make guesses about what might be coming next and reevaluate when you received new information. The structure of the book plays into this, with character POV chapters describing past events happening interspersed with the present-time descriptions of investigation. The novel follows three of the six "Legacy" nominees from Excelsior Prep, and their week leading up to the Legacy Ball. But someone's there who maybe doesn't belong, and the past will influence how the future unfolds.

Goodman is great at building tension, and if I was able to predict the ending, that's likely because I'm an adult reader who has read my fair share of mysteries both new and old. I think a teen/YA reader would enjoy this as much if not more than I did. There are proper red herrings and betrayals, and reading this was an indulgent pleasure. Fun, thrilling, and just a little bit of scandal - the perfect book for a summer read!

Teen drama, mystery, intrigue, a who done it? Yes please.
This was my first Goodman book and I was not disappointed with how it went. Was it somewhat unbelievable, perhaps. Did the teens have a bit too much power, for sure. Did it matter in the end, nope. I went to private school for 10 years and, while it wasn't exactly what is represented in this book, I can definitely see things I experienced in the stories of these characters.
I read this book in almost one sitting. The pacing and cadence were spot on. The characters were well developed. The relationships between those characters were somewhat unexpected. I enjoyed seeing the book through several points of view. This helped solidify what each character was going through and also see a different perspective of each character through multiple perspectives.
The mystery was fun. I did figure out who it was that actually died prior to the reveal, but that didn't keep me from turning the pages to get to it and see how it happened.
I will say, I can't see how such a big secret could be kept forever without guilt eating away at someone. But perhaps the point is what the characters have to live with to maintain their place in the society they have grown up in. Well, all except the one character who truly didn't seem to belong until she did.
Overall, a page turner that kept me wanting to get to the end to see how things wrapped up. I'd delve into another Goodman book, given the chance.

I’ve read 2.5 of her books and the writing in this was miles beyond the other ones. I really found myself scared and intrigued. It’s like a gossip girl murder thriller.

Interesting but not my cup of tea. It was slow to start and it took me a while to get into the book. Although the mystery and plot twist was interesting, I felt unsympathetic towards the characters. The ending felt a little flat, but I can see it potentially leading to a sequel.

This book got me out of rut and I’m still thinking about it! And haven’t picked up something that has sucked me in quite like The Legacies since I finished. For fans of gossip girl and pretty little liars, you’ll love this fast paced thriller taking place on the upper east side.

*Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy of The Legacies by Jessica Goodman.*

The high society elite seems like the A-dream, classy balls, exclusive access to your dream school and connections with the best of the best, but we learn through the pov's of six seniors of Excelsior Prep that the high society isn't all glitter and glamour.

Money, lies and drama in the world of the Legacy club where you can achieve your dreams, if you get in and if you survive. A spectacular story about the hidden truths inside the world of the rich and famous with dash of a murder mystery. The switching from counting down the days until the ball to snippets of interviews about what happened, gets you on the edge of your seat. Bit by bit you learn what happened, and the secrets each character keeps.

3.8 for me because there was lots of the standard drama, but it still got me on hook to find out how the characters were connected.