The dark academia peeps are going to love this one. This is a story of revenge, obsession and a touch of delusion. This story will sink its teeth into you from the very beginning and it never lets go.

"Boys With Sharp Teeth" is undeniably one of the finest novels in the dark academia genre that I’ve encountered this year! It immerses readers in a richly atmospheric setting, weaving together a gripping tale of vengeance amidst a backdrop of privilege and exclusivity. The story revolves around a tightly-knit group of elite students whose lives intertwine in unexpected and thrilling ways. Just when you think you’ve uncovered the layers of the plot, a haunting twist emerges, leaving you questioning everything you thought you knew. It's a captivating read that lingers in your mind long after you've turned the final page.

*3.5
I LOVED MARIN AND ADRIAN’S DYNAMIC SO MUCH. truly sooo many fascinating dynamics and bonds in this book jenni howell is such a wordsmith and this is such a promising debut especially in a genre so lacking in originality these days aka dark academia…loved the paranormal elements and the magic system did in fact remind me of the raven cycle thank youuuu premise for not falsely informing me. overall such a crazy read

Thank you to NetGalley and Roaring Brook Press for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

Sharp writing, a carefully developed atmosphere, and almost surreal plot twists combine to make Boys with Sharp Teeth a compulsive read. This story absolutely capitalizes on dark academia’s thread of magic, allowing a sense of the paranormal to develop throughout and add to the atmosphere long before the characters—or readers—fully understand it, or are even sure that it isn’t just another lie. This layer of unreality contributed hugely to the appeal of the characters and story; it was often very hard to dissect what was and wasn’t real, particularly with the descriptive prose and metaphors, which created so many questions for the reader.

Howell managed to make the story feel complete while providing very little closure, which left me finishing the book with the same sense of unease that permeated the entire book. It also meant that, unlike many eerie stories that somewhat fall flat once the big reveal occurs, Boys with Sharp Teeth maintains its darkly mysterious edge beyond the final page. Indeed, the writing here is one of the biggest strengths of this book; Howell’s word choice and prose is phenomenal,

Reading this as an advance reader’s copy, I wasn’t able to find the extensive content warnings on the author’s website that the opening note indicated would be present, but I hope that they’ll be updated there as the release date draws nearer, as they are absolutely necessary. In particular, I think that Boys with Sharp Teeth could’ve benefited from a few more sensitivity readers with regard to the somewhat blasé discussions and portrayals of suicide in the second half of the book; if you find this to be a triggering topic, I suggest proceeding with caution through this story.

This is a novel about revenge going very, very wrong. Marin James's cousin, Sam, was dead, and she knew that students at the Huntsworth Academy were responsible for his death. So she assumes a false identity in order to get justice for Sam. She quickly finds herself face to face with forces far darker than what she anticipated and things quickly spiral out of her control. Marin goes from trying to stay detached from the students, to possibly becoming friends with the students she believes to be responsible. Her investigation leads her down a confusing path as she struggles to determine who is really responsible for Sam's death. This novel had promise, but the story simply dragged on far too long.

This was a lush, overwrought, well-written dark academia for teenage audiences. You've got to *like* dark academia in all its pretentiousness - really commit to liking dramatic, self-righteous, arrogant teenagers - but if that's your jam, there's a lot to like about Boys with Sharp Teeth. It's part mystery, part thriller, entirely navel-gazing prose about how hot yet unknowable yet charming yet awful privileged boys can be, and I would have eaten it UP when I was a teenager. Fun stuff.

This was brilliant - twisty, sharp, incisive, and so, so vividly good. My students are excited for their copies to arrive!

Currently reading
I posed another book review by mistake. Will post the review once I finish reading it.

Boys with Sharp Teeth is a atmospheric dark academia novel with mystery and a group of sketchy friends -- need I say more?

Dark revenge YA set at an elite boarding school, Boys with Sharp Teeth is an atmospheric and mysterious read that was really captivating. I would have loved to have felt more of a connection to Marin, Jamie, Henry, and Adrian. It felt almost overwhelming with characters and description, but I still had a good time reading it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75/5

Boys with Sharp Teeth is a dark, twisty YA novel with captivating characters and a propulsive plot.

I loved this one. There were lots of strange, dark moments throughout the story that hooked me. I loved the dark academia vibes and philosophy and contemplation. The romance was *chef’s kiss and written beautifully. The story was brilliant and sinister, with excellent pacing, lovely prose, and an intriguing setting. I am so excited to see where the story goes in book 2!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ARC!

thanks to netgalley & macmillan's children publishing group for the free earc in exchange for a fair and honest review!

this book is extremely ambitious, with an insane premise and characters that are far too philosophical for their own good. but somehow, in all of the introspection and quotes, the book sort of imploded. as i was adding tags to this book, i realized it really wasn't much of anything; it wasn't a mystery, or a romance, or... anything, really. just a story about people who live in a different world, with different problems.
this book is by no means bad, but i think it's a little too big for its boots. it feels as if the author aimed to shove a full, 6-book dark-academia teen suspense series into one ya novel. i dont know; maybe it was just me it fell a little flat for.
jamie is a really good character, with good motivations and a level of ruthlessness that was honestly really refreshing to see in a female ya character. however, i found baz to be very 2-dimensional, and adrian and henry to be simply confusing beyond comprehension.
i also found sam's character to be less fleshed out than i would have hoped. obviously as a dead character there's a minimal amount of expectations regarding scenes that include him, but i really love flashback scenes in books like this, so i was hoping to see a scene with marin and sam, but oh well.
read this if you enjoy books that are too convoluted for their own good, but are somehow still entertaining, and characters that probably do exist somewhere in the world but by no means seem realistic.

A wonderful addition to the YA dark academia canon; perfect for fans of The Raven Boys and The Secret History.

I thought that this was a very interesting dark academia book. I like the idea that the main character is infiltrating this elite school in order to find out what happened to her cousin. It was a very unique premise for a dark academia book. Also I was very excited when I saw that this book was compared to The Raven Cycle which is my absolute favorite series, and I feel as though the book delivered on that. It is full of privileged rich boys and the not so privileged girl who gets in with their group, and tarot magic, and spending time in the woods. But Jenni Howell also delivered in her own way and made a book that is unique. I had a really good time reading this book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Things with sharp teeth that are NOT in this book: vampires.

The prose in this book is beautiful and atmospheric, and the mystery had me hooked from the start. However, I found that the story's pitch set slightly different expectations; while there are queer moments and hints of romance, this isn’t primarily a queer book or a romance. The dynamic between Marin, Jamie, Henry, and Adrian centers on a compelling love triangle fueled by obsession, and I would’ve loved to see this play out over a longer time to deepen these connections. Though there were a few descriptive details that felt a bit unrealistic, this debut is still highly enjoyable. The characters, relationships, and plot were all intriguing, and I’d absolutely recommend giving this a try. I look forward to seeing what this author does next!

I tried really hard to like this book. The main character is probably one of, if not the only, best part of this novel. The other characters just annoyed the crap out of me and the whole fantasy element was not obvious and just plain confusing by the end.

3.5*

Boys with Sharp Teeth filled a void that had been empty since finishing The Raven Boys.

The crafting of the world and the characters was beautifully done, balancing humanity against fantasy.

Though the book doesn't have the strongest opening, and I'm not the biggest lover of love triangles, it was worth suspending disbelief and sticking with it.

I love boarding school books that involve murder and intrigue with a flair of magical realism in them. This one read like a dream; it was the equivalent of biting into something hard and crisp with a soft, melting inside. I love the fact that the main character is not who she says she is, hiding in an untruth to reveal the truth at the boarding school.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved the dark academia vibes of this books. The book was very atmospheric and I was very drawn in by the Raven Boys comparison. However, this is where things went downhill for me. There wasn't very much that happened and the characters fell flat. It felt like I was being told what was happening in a very direct manor and character motivations were told to the reader very bluntly instead of shown.

I also think that book overall was very far fetched from the start. The MC signs herself up to go to a fancy boarding school and writes a check that bounces and they still let her attend and live there? The premise in itself was bit much.

I was really looking forward to this book, it simply did not hit the mark for me. The cover art is super sick though.

This one is a really difficult one to rate! The prose was beautiful and atmospheric, I was hooked with the mystery, and I really loved Adrian and Henry's characters. I think this is going to be a huge hit and will be some the book of the year for a lot of readers. I do, however, think that the story's pitch left me with some mixed feelings because I went in expecting one thing, but got another.