This one is for fans of the dark boarding school novel. Rose, Marta, Sami, and Lloyd are scholarship students and the subject of bullying. Rose narrates this tale of what happens when they decide to fight back. Know that it doesn't go well. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. It was less engaging than I'd hoped but I know there's going to be an audience for this-especially among the YA crowd.

For Fans Of: That’s Not My Name, Perfect Little Monsters
Rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌘
Genre: YA Thriller
Violence: 🔪🔪
Spice: 🔥
TW: Self harm, bullying, assault, mental illness

Synopsis: Tale of four scholarship students at a prestigious English boarding school, whose “free-loader” status marks them as targets. Shocking event compels them to take extreme action to protect one of their own, with far-reaching results.

Thoughts: Not gonna lie: struggling a little with this review. I enjoyed this debut author’s masterful, sophisticated storytelling. And...it is DARK. The mold that originally hooked me on YA thrillers—a good puzzle, engaging characters, violence at a remove—is being joined by a newer trend: darker, more visceral stories addressing timely, important themes. The Four falls into the latter category. The story begins by foreshadowing a death that will occur and which therefore hangs over every scene. The first-person narration, told with the benefit of hindsight, further weights each scene with meaning and foreboding. The pairing of these devices allows the author to reflect on the tumultuous landscape of high school, that liminal place between adolescence & adulthood, with its social hierarchies, vicious bullying, and academic pressures. Particularly compelling is the book’s examination of how behaviors that would be frowned upon (if not considered criminal) in the broader world are normalized within an insular culture, warping ones sense of right and wrong. While I’m leery to suggest the book to teens, given the potential triggers, I would highly recommend it to adults. For anyone with children in their lives, it provides a deeply empathetic view of their mental and emotional journey. And the story ends on a bright not as it highlights what is possible when adults embrace their duty of care.

Thank you to @williammorrowbooks and @netgalley for the #gifted copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Boarding Schools are a different breed. It’s not just the students, but the staff, the traditions …and the realization among students when things don’t go as they’re expected to.

The new school year brings together four scholarship students - Rose, Marta, Lloyd, and Sami. Rose and Marta are roommates. Rose is more socially aware, having attended public school up to this point. Marta, however, has been home schooled her entire life, so her social skills (and most other skills) are near nonexistent.

Almost immediately upon their arrival, Rose and Marta are picked on by the “Alphas” in their class - Gin, Max, and Sylvia. Over time the attacks get worse, even spraying Marta with a horse cleaning hose on full blast.

It all takes a huge shift one day, though, when Gin is pushed down the stairs. There is an altercation between Marta and Gin (no one is overly clear what words are exchanged), Marta shoved Gin, and Gin falls down the stairs - concussion, broken ribs, cracked skull, broken arm - the gamut of injuries. There is even question as to if Gin will “return to normal” given the impact of injuries to her brain.

Marta immediately goes into “flight” mode. Having a horrible relationship with her father, being sent home is not an option. She hides out in a hidden room and her friends not only are able to find her, but tend to her over the next ~6 months.

The question is - Is it better to face the music immediately after a situation like this or does the long the time that passes, make both the initial situation and Marta’s current mental situation worse…due to being alone all the time?

Haunting, intense, and absolutely engrossing - The Four is the new Secret History!

When "The Four," Sami Lynch, Lloyd Williams, Marta Williams and Rose Lawson are recruited to attend the very prestigious boarding high school High Realm, they are excited and anxious and believe that their lives are about to change. They spend time rereading boarding school novels and imagine the magic of Harry Potter.

What they find, however, is a hierarchy of the worst order - in both the instructors and the students, students who have been in school together since they were very young. The Four stick together and support each other as they fight through the violence. But one secret binds them all, and as the time passes, each student buckles under the pressure.

A dark academia, a savage school tale, a thrilling page turner - this book has it all.
This isn't your neatly wrapped up story nor is anyone truly good or bad. Shakespearean and soul stirring- this is a novel for the ages! #thefour #elliekeel #williammorrow

From the description, I thought I would enjoy this book (I’m a big fan of The Secret History), but I just couldn’t really connect with the story or any of the characters, and I found it too dark and upsetting to really enjoy it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a 2.5, I wouldn't say it compares to both of the novels it mentions, a bit disappointing. What starts the whole issue of the 4 scholarship students being put through the trenches was so lackluster and so. . .blah.

If anything can be learned by reading thrillers, it's that boarding school is not a safe place. That is absolutely true of this novel, which is a very dark tale of four scholarship students in a prestigious school. While there are aspects of the tale that I really enjoyed, there were also some I felt could have been better. Some plot developments were jarring, which can be a good thing, but in places it felt like some things were a bit forced. I took them in stride and continued with the journey and all in all it was a good, thrilling, read.

What happens when you and the other misfits at boarding school ban together to overcome bullying and abuse? This book is described as "dark, academia thriller" and that is precisely what it is. You find yourself rooting for the characters as all the trials and tribulations stack up against them. I'm sure there should be some trigger warnings attached, but it was a good read.

Four scholarship students versus the rest of the boarding school. Everyone else at
high Realms shuns the four, leaving them to band together or be alone. These unlikely friendships become a lifeline. Rose and Marta are roommates and become very close, but something is always off about Marta. This is told from Rose’s POV. The dark academia and accepted torture can make it hard to read, but overall this book is well written and keeps you guessing.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Four individuals that were friends at a school have a secret that they hope will stay buried. This book lagged in a few places.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Four.

Dark academia books aren't my jam, though I did love The Secret History. To compare The Four to The Secret History is a huge disservice to famous novel.

The Four revolves around four scholarship students at an elite boarding school. The four of them deal with bullying, cruel pranks, and domineering teachers. And that's just the beginning.

This book is a huge content and trigger warning so readers, please be aware there's a little bit of everything and then some (and not in a good way): self-harm, sexual abuse and violence, rape, incest, bullying, just to name a few.

I didn't like any of the characters, not even the main character Rose, who narrates this pivotal year of her life.

The narrative is long, tedious, and boring, mostly Rose summarizing her activities and how she and her BFF Marta are coping away from home.

When terrible things happen, the narrative still remains stagnant even as secrets are revealed, people are hooking up, friendships are broken, and Rose tries to maintain her loyalty to her friends and her burgeoning feelings for a nemesis..

After I finished this, I couldn't help but wonder: what's the point of this book?

What does the author want me to take away from reading this?

Boarding schools are a cesspool of evil, bullying, and sexual predators?

All you need is a good friend, no matter where you are?

Bad people rarely get their comeuppance?

Life's not fair for women?

Don't send your kids to boarding school?

I never would but this would be a great PSA against it, should anyone be thinking of sending their kids off.

Terrible things happen to people, especially women, but all the atrocities in the narrative was hard to stomach and I couldn't figure out the reasons for its inclusion.

I received a free copy of, The Four, by Ellie Keel, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The four are actually four scholarship recipients at High Realms, they are: Rose, Marta, Sami, and Lloyd, class of 1999. Tragedy happens and one of them does not make it. I found this book to be dark and depressing, I did not like any of the characters at all, or care for the language.

This book is best aimed at young adults I feel- more around the ages of 13-18/19 years.
I felt the writing was good but the story was quite juvenile.
I enjoyed reading it to a certain extent and I enjoyed the dark academia vibe about it but a lot of the character development and relationships seemed quite forced and just didn’t pass that vibe check for me.
I’d recommend this book but to college students rather than to my friends.

Marta, Rose, Sami, and Lloyd beat out thousands of applicants to earn a spot at the coveted school, High Realms. They each have dreams and are ambitious. What will they do to keep their spots there when one of the four reveals a dangerous secret?

This felt like a fan-fiction nod to The Secret History but set on the Devon coast of England. I did enjoy the atmosphere and the writing, but it was a bit long. Overall, I did like it, but I didn't love it.

This book was a thrilling and emotional rollercoaster that had me hooked from start to finish. Set in a private boarding school, "The Four" explores the intricate and darkly captivating dynamics among four scholarship students - Rose, Lloyd, Sami, and Marta, who form a tight bond amidst bullying and abuse from their peers. As the story unfolds, their loyalty and friendships are put to the ultimate test, leading to heartbreak, found family, and a slow burning sapphic romance. The novel delves deep into themes of loyalty, friendship, and the lengths people will go for those they care about. With a writing style reminiscent of dark academia, this book is a must-read for fans of complex relationships and queer romance. I absolutely recommend this engrossing and intense read to anyone who enjoys exploring intricate friendships and emotional depths in a dark academic setting.

I felt like the book took forever to get going and when it did, it didn't end up anywhere great. I didn't think any character reacted or acted in a way I would expect. Sometimes I felt like the wrong character name was used but I don't think that is what happened. I know teenagers can be dramatic and act unexpectedly but a lot of what they did (and why) simply didn't make sense. It almost felt like the book was going in one direction and then was heavily edited to go another.

Sami Lynch, Lloyd Williams, Marta Williams and Rose Lawson are the four scholarship students admitted to High Realm, a prestigious boarding school. They are bullied and ostracized by the other students, but at least they have each other. And then they become bound by a secret that might bring them all down.

Wow. This was quite a book. Definitely not your standard thriller, not your standard dark academia, not your standard anything…it’s far more, far better than that. High Realm is brutal, and I’m sure there are places just like it. Sami, Lloyd, Marta and Rose are rich characters and even the villains are well drawn. There’s a lot to like here. Well done. Recommended.

The Four by Ellie Keel is a dark academia, about four students who have won scholarships to a prestigious school. The four quickly become friends because they are disliked and bullied by the other students. This was well written but just wasn’t for me. I really didn’t like the characters and some of the subject matter was depressing. Thanks to Netgalley for this arc.

This book was all over the place. I was completely lost for the majority of the book. I also could not really connect with any of the characters.

I have mixed feelings about this book, both for myself as a reader and for suggesting it for my students. I think they will relate to it more than I did, parts were interesting, parts were too long and it was overall a slow, depressing read. I would read others by this author as this was a debut