E.K. Johnston's "Pretty and Furious" is a fascinating and thought-provoking examination of justice, empowerment, and friendship, set in a tiny town in Ontario. Johnston expertly creates a broad group of characters, each with their own distinct strengths, vulnerabilities, and motivations.

"Pretty and Furious" stands out for its frank analysis of societal issues and moral difficulties. Johnston digs bravely into subjects such as privilege, power relations, and the consequences of vigilantism; this book made me seriously consider my ideas and biases.

The novel is as much a character study as it is a thrilling narrative. Through the perspectives of the five protagonists, Johnston expertly navigates themes of identity, agency, and the bonds of friendship. This book had me rethinking everything; it was not what I was expecting as I read it.

At its heart, "Pretty and Furious" is a story about reclaiming agency and fighting back against injustice. Johnston's prose is sharp and compelling, and this book drew me in so fast because I felt like it related to me in many ways. It was not only an eye-opener, but it was also heartbreaking for me.

To summarize, "Pretty and Furious" is a contemporary and thought-provoking story that approaches major societal concerns with nuance and humanity. With its engaging characters, gripping plot, and powerful message, E.K. Johnston has created a book that is both wonderfully written and approachable; it has given me new ideas on social issues and injustice. It gave me chills because I believe so many children and adults should read it.

Thank you netgalley and penguin group And penguin young readers group for the ARC

Thank you to netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers for allowing me to read this book. I had high expectations going into this book but it fell flat.

This story follows 5 good girls who look for justice through fierce friendships. This is a book that I read in one sitting due to how short the story was. I enjoyed the overall plot of the story and the message that the author was giving to its readers. It showed a different side of society especially with the way people think in a small town and how it can affect the young ones. I do wish there was more of a strong conflict in the story as it was like nothing happened but instead we get a message. The story is told from the different perspectives of the girls with their wishes.

I won’t go into each character since there’s a lot of FMCs but I enjoyed most of them. I did feel a bit like I was missing some of their stories from the start of the book but I guess that’s the perspective we are supposed to get. I did enjoy the wishes aspect of the story for each character and how it is associated with them. They all developed in some way but the story mostly showed how the society worked in that world. There are many side characters in this book which most I didn’t enjoy but it’s because it was the way the characters thought of them.

The ending was well done but overall it was a pretty good read. I enjoyed the fierceness of each character and how their relationship was strong showing that no one can mess with them. I do wish there was more of a conflict to keep the story entertaining.

*this e-arc was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

I really enjoy a revenge premise and was super excited to read Pretty Furious. Sounds like my kind of read. Five ‘good girls’ in high school senior year, trying to make good with some revenge plots. One wish per girl on their birthday and then they follow out on the plan. Sadly for me, the premise was more fun than the read here.

To start off the list of characters in the front of the book was overwhelming and not really necessary for me. The five MCs here are not all that likeable tbh and the ‘revenge’ plots were fairly tame.

I get what the author was going for here and can appreciate that, but this one fell flat for me and felt longer than it was. It’s a short book and I thought it felt very long winded.

Overall it wasn’t bad, just not my jam.
Appreciate the early copy and the cover is stunning here.

2.75 stars

This is a short read that follows 5 high school girls living in a small town in Canada and using their reputations as good girls to enact minor schemes of revenge on those they see as oppressors. In theory, that sounds really entertaining. In actuality, I felt like I was missing parts of this book. It focused a lot on the day-to-day lives of these girls and not as much on the revenge or fallout. There's several pages at the start that list out every single character, their relatives, jobs, etc, and if you didn't reference this at all you'd be super confused, because it felt like every other page that a new character would be mentioned in a way that implied I should know who they were. It didn't help that there were so many similar names: Jen, Jenny, Maddie, Mags, David, Uncle David, etc.

The small-town dynamics of famililes that have known each other forever and things that have always been done a certain way were well-done and entertaining. It tackled religion, gender identity, sexuality, abortion, etc and handled them with grace. I get that this wasn't telling a big splashy story and that part of the point was that sometimes change takes little efforts and might feel futile at times. But I wanted a little more from this book, especially at the end. Thanks to Penguin Teen and the author for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was really looking forward to the finale of this book because it was really building up to that moment so I was disappointed when it fell flat. I found some of the other wishes to be grander and better thought out than the finale of this book. I also didn't really care for the characters, they all felt the same and there was no distinction between them. What I did like about this book was the reasons as to why these girls got away with each of the things and how they recognize the reasons behind this and use it for good.

Good premises but fell a little flat for me. I like the idea of a book about a group of friends but I wasn’t the biggest fan of these characters. Overall it wasn’t a bad book just not for me.

Thank you Penguin Teen for the #gifted ARC. #PenguinTeenPartner #PrettyFurious

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐲 𝐅𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐄.𝐊. 𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐀𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐥 𝟏𝟔, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

Pretty Furious is a YA contemporary fiction novel about a group of five good girls who have had enough. They live in a small town in Ontario, and while they have seen some of the good in their community, they have also witnessed some of the bad. Now, they have decided to come together and bring justice.

I really loved how this book centered around female friendship. Their relationships were complex but I really loved how that was a main focus of this book and their loyalties to one another when they come together. I think this book would be very empowering for a young adult reader. It’s a short read, that I definitely think is worth it!

Perhaps my favorite part was the last chapter titled “A Letter to the Editor.” I found it to be very impactful.

Posted on Goodreads on April 18, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around April 20, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on April 18, 2024
**-will post on designated date

I must admit that I gave a small internal groan when I opened this book and my eyes landed on the lengthy list of characters that appear in the story. I’ve never been good at keeping track of who is who in relation to a storyline, but in this case, I needn’t have worried as all of the names and characters do eventually come up in the story, but not all of them are characters that need to be paid close attention to.

So you already know that in the first few pages of Pretty Furious, we’re given the names of all of the characters appearing within the book, including a group of girls who have been friends for forever and who have birthdays listed next to their name. Birthdays they’ve been looking forward to, but not necessarily for the reasons you might think. Yes, there’s delicious cake and snacks and a night with their friends, but behind the scenes they all have something bigger going on–something they’re not telling anyone about.

Maddie, Mags, Louise, Jenny, and Jen are the five main girls that this story is centered around. They’re all really involved in school and seem very responsible and like the type of girl you’d trust in a sticky situation, or the girl you’d look to when things are falling apart and no one is taking the lead. Each one has her own personality of course, but to me they all kind of ran together a lot of the time. These girls are like sisters, and they trust each other endlessly. So when Maddie, the first of them to celebrate a birthday that year decides to make a major wish as she blows out her candles, all of the girls are on board to make sure her wish comes true.

I don’t know much about small Canadian towns, but I assume they’re similar in lots of ways to small towns anywhere: everyone knows everyone else and is all up in each other’s business. For some people, this isn’t an issue, and they live their lives paying no mind to the things going on around them that don’t affect them. But to this group of girls, small town drama means more than just gossip. And sometimes a little revenge is worth the risk, especially if you’re getting revenge for someone you care about.

Pretty Furious wasn’t as detailed and mysterious as I thought it would be, but it was still an enjoyable read, and not every book can be a perfect fit. Lately I’ve been reading YA that verges on adult to some extent, with a really high level of involvement of teens in crime and murder investigations, which to me is somewhat unrealistic but entertaining. A little break from the heart-pounding thrillers and mysteries was called for and Pretty Furious fit the bill.

Review of a Digital Advance Reading Copy from Penguin Young Readers Group

Pretty Furious by E.K. Johnston is a thought provoking contemporary YA novel.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I thought it was a fun read.
It kept my interest and curiosity throughout the entire story.
This book is wonderfully written; a gripping storyline with strong characters.
The characters are well described and portrayed.

Thank You NetGalley and Dutton Books for Young Readers for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was fine. It felt a little unnecessary to include all of the families in the front matter, and I think the way it was written was a complicated. The characters have very similar names.
I will the ending had been a little more clear in tying up what they did and why - what was the billboard? But it is an interesting idea.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own opinions.

DNF once au realized it took me 45 mins to get through 22 pages I knew it wasn't a book for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"Pretty Furious" by E.K. Johnston is a short and fast-paced book set in a small, judgmental town where five girls navigate the confines of societal expectations and injustices. As young women, they witness the biases and prejudices prevalent in their community, prompting them to take matters into their own hands through acts of vigilante justice when the young women all come together on their individual birthdays.

I really enjoyed the book’s exploration of the girls' frustrations and their desire to challenge the status quo. Johnston skillfully portrays the complexities of female friendships and the bonds forged in adversity, highlighting the genuine friendships that developed among the main characters, friendships that may not have existed due to their differences, but they were able to come together due to their shared experiences. I really enjoyed the strength of the female friendships that were developed as Johnston showcased the strength and loyalty women have when they come together to fight common enemies. The vigilante aspect was also fun in the book, though I almost wish that aspect went a bit further than was shown in the book. However, this vigilante aspect felt realistic with what actual teenage girls would be able to do in real life. I think that pop culture skewed my expectations a bit, though I still enjoyed reading about the actions the girls took as revenge.

While I found the pace to be quite fast, there were times when the plot seemed to be weighed down by unnecessary subplots and side characters. There were just so many names and characters introduced that I found it difficult to keep track of them all. While the book did provide a character guide at the beginning (which should have been a sign for me that I would struggle as I am horrible at keeping track of characters), I still found it difficult to navigate all the characters as well as their different subplots.

Overall, I enjoyed how "Pretty Furious" offers thought-provoking commentary on societal hypocrisy and the power dynamics at play in small communities. If you are from a small town, then you may be better able to connect with the plot/characters. If you’re looking for a quick, fast-paced book focusing on deserved revenge, then you will definitely enjoy this book.

Exit, Pursued by a Bear was such a wonderful book by E.K. Johnston—Pretty Furious doesn't even seem like it came from the same author. The five friends in this small town all felt the same. The only distinctive attribute between them was their parental situation. I'm all about a great friend group, but every girl was exactly the same. It was just boring.

This was a great contemporary YA that dismantled the good girl trope with sensitivity and awareness. I loved each of the characters as individuals and as a collective.

When reading the synopsis the idea of the book is awesome!

This book deals with five girls who use their birthdays as the day to get revenge that's epic!

I enjoyed the book and will recommend

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review

The idea of the book was great. The book itself was less than. The five girls using their birthday as a day to enact revenge seems perfect, but it really could have been any other day. I think others might enjoy this much more than I did, but 3 stars none the less.

This book was HARD to finish. I had high hopes for it, but I was forcing myself to push through to get to the end. There was a lot going on at times and the amount of people made it hard to follow. Parts of this seemed like the author was just trying to reach a word count or just wasn't as interested in the story themselves.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book!

I was really looking forward to this one, having loved another of the author's books. Ultimately, I found this story to just be ok. Nothing great, nothing horrible. The book follows a group of female friends who each use their birthdays during their last year in high school to wish for revenge of some sort against those in their town who have treated young women poorly. This is an awesome premise and I am here for female rage any day of the week, but the things they did to exact revenge were overall pretty tame and boring. Perhaps that is more realistic for what teenagers might actually do, but it made for a less than exciting book.

I'm pretty furious I even read this book. The blurb lied to us and was filled with five girls using birthday wishes to do petty things they could do on a regular day without it having to be on a birthday. The rage was more like revenge and the finale that was supposed to be suspenseful fell flat. a disappointing read.