Sometimes I like to break up my fantasy reads with a good mystery or thriller and hope that the characters are fascinating and complicated. Goodman delivered on that so hard in The Meadowbrook Murders. Amy and Liz are two very complicated characters that are the heart of this story and drive the plot in some interesting and twisting directions. While the characters are YA aged, the story is written so well and reads at a much higher level.

This had potential but I’m afraid it was just a little boring for me. The book started off right away with a murder and I just didn’t engage with it from the jump.

Meadowbrook Murders: 🎓🔪👧🏻⁣
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Thank you @prhaudio @penguinteen #PRHAudioPartner for my gifted copies! ⁣
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If I’m ever in a high school dark academia read, I will always search if I’ve read all of Jessica Goodman. The answer is yes, I have. 😂 I love the way she makes the most flawed characters but they’re so real. I know every single one of them when I was in school (100 years ago) ⁣
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I loved Liz and Amy. They were very different characters and I thought their little tag team was perfect. It gave me Mean Girl vibes when Gretchen yells about Cesar and Cady is just crossing off the list. Honestly, Sarah is cool and all, and I know we shouldn’t talk ill of the dead, but was she really all that? I dunno, she kinda sounded lousy to me, but that’s just me. Why we giving her so much credit for being amazing when she was just.. entitled? ⁣
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Audio is perfect. It’s a tag team of two favorites: Sophie Amoss and Jessie Vilinsky. I’ll listen to any of their audiobooks, so definitely highly recommend the audio!⁣
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The mystery part was great, easy to spot the culprit but you know it’s a fun and entertaining ride to get there. Quick and to the point, a good one to binge if you need to get into a palette cleanser with a YA thriller. ⁣
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QOTD: What are your weekend plans?

Once again, Jessica Goodman delivered another twisty thriller that had me guessing until it's conclusion. Every time I dive into one of her books, I never know what secrets will be uncovered or how the plot will resolve. Even though the beginning started slow, by the end I was on the edge of my seat. I look forward to more of this author's books in the future.

I'm not as much of a thriller reader as I used to be, but find ones that are intriguing enough to get me to jump back in - This was definitely that. What I liked about The Meadowbrook Murders was the dual narrators. One of the narrators is the roommate of the two students who were murdered, and the other was a student journalist. Their stories/narrations overlap, but they also have unique perspectives and spins on the story. There were some solid twists and just good suspense building and twists. Thanks to NetGalley for the look at this February 2025 release!

Young Adult mysteries are often so difficult to rate because readers are frequently required to balance out a value judgment between entertainment and pacing with quality of mystery.

It’s disappointing, because we’ve seen enough YA mysteries where the quality doesn’t suffer in exchange for snappy pacing and writing (Maureen Johnson, Kathleen Glasgow, Robin Stevens, etc.) to know that we don’t necessarily have to demand less from these than we do from an adult mystery.

Ive been up and down on Jessica Goodman’s books, all of which are well paced and compelling but most of which also have some pretty significant structural flaws and plot holes. This is one of her best offerings as far as being a compelling read, but the solve felt a bit obvious as to the “who” (the Chekov’s Gun of it all), and messy in terms of the “why” of it, for which absolutely no clues are offered prior to the big reveal.

This is frustrating because the story could easily have avoided this, as well as the numerous plot holes and inconsistencies that befell it. And I know Goodman is capable of writing a more soundly structured and plotted mystery, as I thought The Counselors was quite well done in this regard.

That aside, the pacing was of course excellent, the premise was fine, and the setting is both immersive and enjoyable. In all, an entertaining read that does, for all its structural shortcomings, at least add up in the end.

3.5 rounded up! Definitely a fast paced YA thriller and one that started strong but fell flat when it came to the ending. However, if people are looking for a quick read, I will always recommend Goodman.

The story takes place at a prestigious boarding school, Amy wakes up to find her roommate Sarah and her boyfriend murdered. Amy and her
townie boyfriend are initial suspects, so Amy works to try and clear their name. The story started off strong, but the ending fell flat for me. There was not enough backstory on the characters for me to care anything about them and the ending just seemed convenient.

I love a good YA thriller and I know I can get a great story from Jessica Goodman.
While this wasn’t my favorite from her, which I truthfully had high expectations for this one because the dark academia vibes are always a good time, and it was. But it was also a bit surface level with the characters and some of the scenes that I wish we could have dove a little more into. This one was also a bit on the slower side. However didn’t ruin the overall vibe of the read.
I’ll always recommend Jessica to anyone looking for a thriller.

At the prestigious Middlebrook Academy, what should have been the perfect start to senior year turns into a nightmare when Sarah and her boyfriend are brutally murdered. As suspicion falls on Amy, Sarah’s roommate and supposed best friend, journalist Liz begins her own investigation, uncovering secrets the victims never wanted exposed. But with a killer still on campus, the truth may come at a deadly price.

What I Liked
This gave me A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder vibes but with a stronger YA feel. The suspense kept me engaged, and I loved how Liz took her role at the school newspaper seriously, determined to uncover the truth. There were some genuinely tense moments that had me hooked.

What I Didn’t Like
Some of the dialogue felt surface-level, making the characters seem one-dimensional. The pacing was slow at times, and I wish the investigation had kicked off sooner to keep the momentum going.

Who Would Enjoy This?
YA thriller lovers who enjoy boarding school settings


Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for this ARC.

Senior year at Meadowbrook Academy was supposed to be perfect for besties Amy and Sarah. But everything changes when Sarah and her boyfriend, Ryan, are found murdered in their dorm room. Amy, who had a very public argument with Sarah the night before, suddenly finds herself at the center of the investigation. With her room now a crime scene, she's forced to move in with Liz - the school's ambitious newspaper editor, who sees this as her chance to break the biggest story of her career.

As the hours and days pass, gossip spreads like wildfire through the halls. Everyone has a theory, but no one knows the truth. Amy and Liz both want answers but for very different reasons. When suspicion starts closing in on Amy, the two form an unlikely partnership, determined to uncover what really happened that night.

This was another incredibly well-written dark academia mystery that takes place at an elite boarding school, and I loved how Amy and Liz went from reluctant roommates to full-on investigative partners. I had my suspicions about who the culprit was early on, but that didn't take away from the suspense. I also really appreciated that every clue had to be earned, and nothing came too easily. Jessica Goodman has officially solidified her spot on my auto-read list - I've devoured everything she's written so far, and I cannot wait to see what she does next. Overall, I gave this book 4 stars!! If you love YA thrillers with secrets, high-stakes drama, and strong female leads, this one needs to be on your TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group, and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

At an elite boarding school, two students are murdered in the middle of the night and the victim's roommate doesn't hear a thing. Amy must defend herself and help locate the killer before someone else is killed or someone she loves is accused. When she is moved to share a room with journalist Liz, she must also decide whether she'll be information for Liz's reporting or if she can help her find the killer.

This is told from alternating perspectives of Amy and Liz, which I liked except for that they both had three letter, common names, and I had a hard time keeping them straight. I liked this YA mystery, and it was an easy and entertaining read. It will be a good suggestion for the teens in my life. However, I'm not sure it will stick with me. It did not have any surprising twists or anything too memorable, yet it was a solid YA book.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

Power can be earned. It can be stolen or seized. But privilege is something you’re born with, something you can wield like a scepter.

I can't believe my eyes are getting misty right now! This was an amazing book. It's everything you could hope for in a YA/Dark Academia story.

I only say this occasionally, even about books by my favorite authors, but this was a near perfect book. It wasn't too long or short, it never dragged on, it wasn't overly descriptive on silly details to lead you on a wild goose chase. I had a few suspects from the start and it was great seeing it unfold. I wasn't left with any questions. It was a really satisfying read.

Amy and Sarah have been roommates at the elite Meadowbrook Academy (and besties too) since freshman year. After a drunken fight, Amy wakes up to find Sarah and Sarah's boyfriend Ryan, dead in her room of their shared dorm. Amy is heartbroken and confused. She didn't hear a thing. When did this happen and who could have done it?

Our other main character is Liz, a scholarship kid and a student journalist. She's aiming for the Page One scholarship so she's hoping to find a scoop on Meadowbrook sometime this year and this tragedy has fallen right into her lap.

Liz doesn't really know the people involved so that makes it easier to report on the murders. She's on the outside of things, that is until Amy has to bunk with her. Amy hates the press and sees Liz as the enemy but as time goes on, Liz and Amy see that they have more in common than they initially thought and with Liz's investigative skills and Amy's insider knowledge, they may be able to crack the case before anyone else gets hurt.

I loved seeing Amy and Liz grow as people. They were fantastic characters and this book delivered from the start to its final, thrilling conclusion.

This was an interesting and enjoyable YA mystery thriller. I would call it half way between a cozy mystery and a mystery thriller. The main characters, Amy and Liz, tell the story of a murder at an exclusive boarding school. The seniors have gathered for their beginning of their last year when Amy wakes in her dorm room to discover her roommate and roommate’s boyfriend dead in the room next door. Liz is the editor of the school newspaper and is looking for a big story to report to increase her chances for a prestigious fellowship. Amy is one of the popular crowd while Liz is a scholarship student who really hasn’t been included in the social world of the school. When Amy is moved out of her room while the murder is investigated, the only available room is as Liz’s roommate. These two not only have little in common but Amy is angry at Liz for breaking the story. The most interesting aspect of the book is the development of these two and their uneasy alliance to find the killer. There is some good character development and I thought the pacing was well done. It was a fast and fun read - it kept me up reading to finish it!

Thanks to Netgalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I recently finished reading The Meadowbrook Murders and while it was an engaging, fast-paced read, it didn’t quite hit the mark in terms of suspense. The plot moved quickly, making it easy to get through in a short time, but I found myself not feeling as drawn into the mystery as I’d hoped. The twists weren’t as unexpected as I wanted them to be, and I didn’t feel that constant sense of tension that typically makes a good thriller so gripping.

The characters were decent, but they didn’t have the depth or complexity that would make their motives truly fascinating. It’s a fun read if you're looking for something light and easy to breeze through, but if you’re after a mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat, this one might not deliver.

The Meadowbrook Murders by Jessica Goodman is a fast-paced and thrilling YA murder mystery. I had been in a reading slump all of January, and this book helped to get me out of it. 

One of my favorite parts about the book is the setting. Taking place at an elite boarding school, the novel appealed to my love of dark academia and hidden passageways. The concept of wealthy teens partying in a boathouse was fun and interesting and really helped develop the world. 

It was also exciting to see Liz’s character growth. She starts off as a school reporter hungry for recognition and without any ties to her community. I liked seeing her grow as a person and as a reporter throughout the story. 

I will say, that I did see some of the plot twists coming; however, I think predicting the twists are part of the fun of reading a mystery.

I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves a fast and easy murder mystery to read! Thank you to Netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

While I had high hopes for this book, I was a bit disappointed with how slow the story unraveled.

In a YA thriller, you typically look hard for the thriller part. This one sort of fell flat, and landed more into a murder mystery territory. Which, by all means, is still a great premise for a book. I think the pitfall here was the pacing. It unraveled so slow, you end up in a position where you're turning the page and wondering when something else is going to happen. There was huge potential to dip into the dark academia theme (I'm not sure if the author intended to, this is just an opinion) but that also seemed to be a road the novel didn't take.

Overall, it is a good YA book.

The Meadowbrook Murders is a murder mystery novel set at an elite east-coast boarding school. Amy awakes to find her roommate and her roommate's boyfriend slain in their beds. She joins forces with the school's newspaper editor in chief to try to figure out what happened. The book was a bit of a letdown. I've really enjoyed Jessica Goodman's prior novels but this one really fell flat.

This was such an intriguing idea because of love mysteries that take place in boarding schools. However, this just felt like a lot of talk. There wasn’t really anything exciting about the story. Even the ending felt anticlimactic.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the advance copy of The Meadbowbrook Murders!

At the elite Meadowbook Academy the seniors have gathered to prepare for the start of their final year.  Arriving a week before the rest of the students, they have that extra time to settle in and prepare for the beginning of the end of their innocence…and party with less risk of getting in trouble. Amy and her best friend/dormmate Sarah have a huge fight at one of the parties and in the morning when Amy attempts to chat with Sarah and smooth things over, she discovers Sarah and her boyfriend Ryan dead from apparent murder in Sarah’s bedroom.

Liz does not run in the same circles as Amy…or any circle, really. As editor in chief of the student paper, her sole focus is getting a good story that will set her aside from the rest and get her into a great college or placed with a great internship.  The problem is that there’s never anything scandalous at Meadowbook. Until now.  Even better, the sole (maybe) witness (maybe) suspect Amy was just re-assigned to room with Liz. Now Liz has her toughest assignment yet, covering the murder of two of their own while remaining unbiased and respectful.

I loved this one. I love dark academia and YA thrillers, but I also find myself being super particular in what I really enjoy within those two genres. Jessica Goodman nailed it. I’ve got several of her books on my TBR, and I obviously need to push them towards the front of the pile.

I thought the popular girl / recluse school paper ‘nerd’ angles were great, and I really liked that it was different from just a bunch of Sarah’s friends POVs which would’ve been repetitive and probably not as interesting; this gave the view of the us vs. them from two sides: Liz as the outsider from the jump, and Amy who becomes the outsider based on how the crime looked.

One of my favorite things was as we got closer to discovering who was behind the murders, the chapters got incredibly short, swapping between the POVs every couple of pages. The suspense increased tenfold by Jessica choosing to go that path.

I absolutely love when a book has some bits of social commentary, but it doesn’t overshadow the story. It’s not forcefed with the author’s opinions, but rather presented throughout the story as something to consider one way or another.

The main topic being reporters & how the media handles tragedy and true crime in today’s world. It’s no secret that true crime has become a top ‘interest’ for many (mainly) millennial women. I blame all of the shit we saw unfold in the early ages of the internet to be the reason we hold this obsession, personally. Regardless, so often these people and their lives are reduced to stories that we can gossip over and fixate on trying to solve…and then go to bed with smiles on our faces at the end of the day, when the reality is that we sometimes forget that true crime is TRUE, not fiction  While armchair detectives and reporters are great and have helped solve some major cases, there’s also a level of dehumanization that goes into it that is (not always but often) overlooked.

There’s also some running commentary about how even though Sarah’s boyfriend died, no one is talking about him - even their friends. They’re all focused on the pretty, rich, smart dead girl and no one cares about Ryan dying. It got me thinking because of course there’s been a stigmatization around dead white girls versus dead Black girls, but Jessica raises a good point here. I’d assume it’s our subconscious thoughts of ‘men are stronger and women need protection,’ but I found it very interesting and not something that I’d thought of before, even as a true crime fan who has ingested hundreds upon hundreds of stories.