Society of Lies is a dark academia which started out really strong for me. There came a point when there was so much going on, with the jump between past and present, and a lot of pieces that I felt could have been left out from a story perspective. It did finish strong in the last 1/4 though and it had me gripping my seat in anticipation of what was going to happen. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I was wrong!!

Overall it was a good book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this arc in return for my honest review.

Pub Date: 01 October 2024

Society of Lies was a perfectly fine thriller and would be a great pick if you're looking for something quick, familiar, and easy to read. It tells the story of a woman whose sister dies suspiciously at Princeton... a decade after the same thing happened to her friend while they were at the same university together.

It follows three different POVs – the older sister in the past, the older sister in the recent past to present, and the younger sister in the recent past. Set across the Princeton campus, mountains in the northeast, and New York City, the books' settings were immersive and interesting, giving dark academia vibes. The characters were surface level and the plot was fairly predictable, so don't expect to be shocked by any kind of twist, but it was still an interesting enough story that hooked me quickly at the beginning.

There were 3-4 different timelines in the book, and the tenses kept switching between past and present (even for events that were all in the past), which I found frustrating to read. The time jumps were also confusing at times and it took a while to orient myself in each new chapter because they mostly involved the same characters and location, just at varying times.

What a wild ride! I really enjoyed this book. I loved the alternating viewpoints between sisters, but sometimes got confused between past Maya and current Naomi, as their experiences were similar relating to Princeton and the secret societies. Overall, I thought this was a solid read.

Thank you to netGalley and Random House Group Ballantine for the eARC

This book started out so strong, I felt so hooked. But as I continued to read I just found that it slowed down, it was a bit underwhelming and just wasn't what I wanted it to be. Not bad, but not great.

Loved this book! The flashbacks between sisters and the twists and turns were gripping. It was initially hard to keep track of all of the characters for essentially two worlds but they did eventually merge which made it easier. While I did guess who the culprit was, I only did in the last moments before the reveal. Definitely recommend!

📖: Society of Lies-a standalone

✍️ By: Lauren Ling Brown- debut author

📃 Page Count: 366 eBook

🗓️ Publication Date: 10-1- 24 | Read 10-21-24

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing - Ballantine | Bantam, and Lauren Ling Brown for this ARC❤️! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions expressed are my own.

🌎Setting: Princeton, NJ

Genre: Women's Psychological Fic, Mystery, New Adult, Multicultural Interests

Tropes: secret society, sisterhood, wealthy, dark academia, interracial relationships

☝🏾POV: dual 1st person, switches from past to present each chapter

⚠️TW: murder, physical abuse, racism, child neglect, blackmail, grooming

💭Summary: Maya is in town for her sister Naomi's graduation from her alum mater Princeton. They are also members of an elite "eating club" aka secret society called the Sterling Club (SC). When Naomi is found drowned to death, Maya goes back in time when another girl died under similar circumstances both members of the SC.

🚺 Heroine: Maya Banks (28) had a Chinese mother and AA father (both deceased)-was a SC member, in Princeton for sister's graduation. Married to Nate (AA) and has a 5-year-old daughter Dany.

🚺 Heroine: Naomi Mason (18) - had a Chinese mother and AA father (both deceased). At 14, was sent to live with Aunt Ella but was neglected & CPS got involved. She became a ward of Maragaret St. Clair-a wealthy family with ties to SC.

🎭Side cast:

• Margaret St. Clair-Naomi's guardian since she was 14, introduced by Cecily-Maya's college friend

• Matthew DuPont- was a behavioral economics professor @ Princeton 10 years ago, mentors the Sterling Club

• Sara Vail -Matthew's fiancée

• Marta-a maid who cleans at Sterling Club, was sponsored and employed by the St. Clair family

• Ben Wong-Asian, a Sterling Club member/treasurer, hooks up with Naomi

• Liam-Naomi's ex-boyfriend, an alcoholic and drug addict in the SC

•Lila Jones-from Maya's college time, part of Sterling Club, died 10 years ago

• Amy and Zalikah-Naomi's roommates

•Daisy, Cecily, and Kai-Maya's college friends from SC

🤔My Thoughts: This was a great story of history repeating itself. Both Naomi and Lila were part of the SC and died suspiciously. This made me think of the movie Skulls with Joshua Jackson. SC was under secret investigation, and its members did everything to make it all go away. The book addressed sisterhood with Maya trying to protect Naomi by leaving her with the St. Clair family for a better life. Racial undertones were addressed with biracial heroines in a wealthy, white man's world. This was a tale of privilege-what you do to get it and keep it, and can you live with what you've done?

Range of emotions: 😬🤔🙄
🌶️: Spice 3/5
😭: Emotion 5/5
❤️: Couple n/a
⭐️: Rating 5/5

I went down an internet rabbit hole looking at secret societies and eating clubs at Princeton. So that was fun. I appreciate the multiracial rep in the main characters. I also enjoyed the two points of view of both sisters. The thriller aspect had some nice twists all the way to the ending.

This book is about two very different sisters, each Black and Chinese, making their way through the dark and twisty world of secret societies at Princeton and trying to get ahead among those already born with privilege.

I loved a lot of things about this book. I liked the exploration of multiracial identities at an elite Ivy League school, the complicated relationship between sisters Maya and Naomi, the twisty dark academia vibe. The mystery fell flat to me though and I struggled with the writing style.

I found it confusing how each chapter hopped in time from Maya in the past to Maya in the present to Naomi in the past, all in first person with similar voices between the characters. Their personalities and interests were different but they sounded alike in first person.

I found their relationships with the men in their lives to be frustrating; both fell too hard for men I never felt like I really knew or trusted, and they forgave them too easily. Naomi was far too gullible for someone so smart. The ending left me feeling unsatisfied with unanswered questions, but at least it wasn't as predictable as I feared... just predictable enough. Even Maya's female friendships felt shallow, like there was no one she could ever truly trust, and that was frustrating.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Really enjoyed this book. Told in alternating time lines it follows 2 sisters and their time at Harvard. Both are dealing with external pressures related to a club they both belong to. As the story goes along we learn their 2 problems are interlinked and questions abound. Fast paced and kept me reading to find out the whole story

The first half of the book was captivating and fun, especially switching between 2 povs in 2 different settings. The mystery aspect and the characters made it fun to read and the unsettling vibe I got from everything kept me interested. The pacing was a little too slow for the story they were trying to convey. The second half of the book also started to lose itself making the whole experience fall flat.

Wow! I requested this book from NetGalley and was approved before it was chosen as a Reece Witherspoon Book Club pick and I was so excited to read it! It had all the elements that I love in a book and it did not disappoint. After a strong beginning it did falter a bit in the middle but picked back up in the end. The characters were well rounded and they all made me visualize being on the Princeton's campus right long beside them! I thought I had it figured out several times but I was always wrong. These are the best books…the ones that keep you guessing!!! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC which I thoroughly enjoyed!!!

I was hooked on this book right away. I was looking for a new thriller to read this month, this book understood the assignment. Maya’s sister is found in a lake the day before her graduation. She knows it wasn’t an accident. She’s determined to find out how this happened. In order to do that she needs to dive back into the secret society she belonged to at Princeton. So many possible suspects, who can she truly trust.
Dual POV, past and present made the story thrilling. Definitely recommend this if you are a fan of suspense.

Dark, creepy, twisty, and suspenseful, but a little slow overall! This book solidifies my opinion that I’m just not a dark academia girly — so my rating is probably more so my own shortcomings in taste than the author’s writing. 🩷

Society of Lies has such an intriguing plot. I loved how the author portrays the dark campus feeling and overall suspense to the story.

Brown does a fabulous job of incorporating that dark and creepy aspect of the campus. I fell in love with this! What I also loved most about this story was the aspect of privilege and race in education. Don't we all know that this is so common. It's not just in education but is everywhere we turn. Powerful!

What I struggled with was the pacing of the story. It was so slow. I struggled to keep my attention on the story. I also felt that there was a lot of repetition going on between the characters. So, this left me feeling bored and also extremely confused.

Also... the miscommunication in here yikes. Not a fan of this between the sisters.

I was a bit disappointed and felt this had such potential to be good but just missed the mark for me.

3/5 stars

Thank you to the publisher for my copy.

If you love dark academia this one’s for you!

Maya and Naomi are sisters who attend Princeton ten + years apart from each other. When Maya learns her sister has died right before graduation, she is confident this wasn't an accident. She knows too much about the secrets and lies from her own time at Princeton. As Maya begins to investigate Naomi's college life, she learns her sister was hiding more than she led on. Throughout the story, we learn about the corruption and lies of Princeton's secret society, the Sterling Club, and how money can attempt to sweep their secrets under the rug. Maya will stop at nothing to find answers and get the justice Naomi deserves.

How did Naomi die? Who can be trusted? Did Maya's involvement with the secret society lead to Naomi’s death?

Wow- this was a gripping, fast-paced page-turner from start to finish! A book rarely hooks you in from the beginning, but this one surely did! The second half of the book had twist after unexpected twist! I almost want to reread some parts because there were some twists that I didn't pick up on initially and would love to see the clues that brought us to the ending. I thought I knew exactly what was happening, but I did not predict the ending (I love when this happens)! I thought this story was creative and unlike most suspenseful books I have read. I am impressed this is Brown's first novel! I am excited to read more from her in the future!

My only critique of this book was that I occasionally found the dual POVs and alternating timelines a little confusing to follow. There were several characters and I found myself thinking, "Wait, is this Maya or Naomi's point of view?" "Is Amy Maya's friend or Naomi's?" or "Was this in 2011 or 2023?"

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this arc.

Sisters Maya and Naomi both attend Princeton a decade apart. Maya had a traumatic experience while there and did not wish the same experience for her sister. Naomi doesn't understand why Maya isn't proud of her for following in her sister's footsteps, but they've never been exactly close, have they? Maya's world is turned upside down when Naomi is found dead on the day of her graduation, and something about it seems...eerily familiar. Maya may have failed Naomi in life but she is hellbent on getting to the bottom of Naomi's death, even if she ends up in prison herself.

Ok, I kind of had a love/hate with this book. I wanted to like Maya & Naomi, but I didn't. Maya was...annoying. Detached yet overbearing; strong but whiny. Naomi, despite her childhood, still kind of ended up being...a snotty brat. And their bond, practically non-existent, made it difficult to believe the "search for the truth' was even authentic. On the flipside, I love the dual timelines with multiple POVs. But I didn't love all the freaking characters that came with it. Seriously, there were SO MANY...and while some of them added necessary context, some of them didn't. I liked the end though...so I guess there is that.

Basically, if this hadn't been a dark academia [I hesitate to even call it a] thriller, dripping with privilege, secret societies, and fucked up family dynamics, I would've abandoned it.

I was hooked on this book right away. I was looking for a new thriller to read this month, this book understood the assignment.

Maya’s sister is found in a lake the day before her graduation. She knows it wasn’t an accident. She’s determined to find out how this happened. In order to do that she needs to dive back into the secret society she belonged to at Princeton. So many possible suspects, who can she truly trust.
Dual POV, past and present made the story thrilling.

Definitely recommend this if you are a fan of suspense. I can see why @reesesbookclub picked this book for October.

This book had an interesting premise, but the execution didn't really work for me. I feel like I've read this kind of story before and this one didn't really hold my attention as much as others did. I liked the characters well enough though and there were a couple semi-interesting twists and turns.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

"Society of Lies" by Lauren Ling Brown presents an intriguing premise that unfortunately falls short in execution. The story attempts to tackle themes of deception and morality within a societal framework, but it often feels superficial and lacking in depth.

One of the most significant drawbacks of the book is its character development. The protagonists are not particularly relatable or compelling, and as a result, their motivations and conflicts feel unconvincing. This lack of depth makes it difficult to stay engaged with their journeys, leaving me feeling disconnected from the narrative.

Additionally, the pacing of the story is uneven, with some sections dragging on while others rush through critical developments. This inconsistency disrupts the flow, making it hard to fully immerse myself in the book.

The writing style, while occasionally evocative, sometimes veers into overly simplistic territory. This detracts from the gravity of the themes being presented, causing moments that should carry weight to feel flat instead.

In summary, "Society of Lies" had the potential to explore fascinating ideas but ultimately missed the mark. With character development and pacing issues, it earns a rating of two stars. While some readers may find value in its themes, I wish it had offered a more nuanced and engaging experience.

This book was so fun!!! In this book, two sisters attend Princeton 10 years apart. The older sister, Maya, didn't really encourage her little sister Naomi to attend Princeton, join the prestigious dinner club she was in. Naomi doesn't understand why, unless her sister just doesn't care about her. But then Naomi goes missing right before graduation, and Maya is pulled back in to her Princeton memories. It seems her sister was digging into something related to Maya's past.

The story includes sections from Maya's current POV and time at Princeton, as well as Naomi's time at Princeton. I really enjoyed getting both perspectives to see how these sisters keep misunderstanding each other when they clearly love each other. The mystery itself was really good too! I thought the characters were really developed and the pacing was tight - I almost skipped out on a conference to finish reading.

I am a huge sucker for stories about secret societies at prestigious institutions, sisters, and stories that show how a past mystery informs a later one, so I devoured this. Can't wait to read more from the author. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!