NetGalley Review – 4.5 Stars

Thank you to Wednesday Books, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the ARC of The Thrashers by Julie Soto.

In this YA thriller, Jodi and her group of friends, infamously known as the Thrashers, find themselves at the center of an investigation after the death of their classmate Emily Mills. The town believes the Thrashers bullied her into suicide. But as strange things start happening and secrets unravel, Jodi begins to wonder if something more sinister is at play.

I adore Julie Soto and will read anything she writes. That includes thrillers, even though I know that genre is just not for me. I started The Thrashers yesterday afternoon and finished it around 1 AM, and this is why I do not read thrillers. I couldn’t stop reading because I needed a conclusion. But once I had that conclusion, I couldn’t stop thinking about it to sleep. So here I am writing a very sleep-deprived review.

Now I say this as an adult who maybe should not have read this particular YA. I was so stressed reading this book because I just wanted someone to take care of these kids. I had a very sheltered upbringing, so I could not relate to most of this book first because of my age, and then again because I had none of these experiences as a young adult. There were drugs, addiction, abuse, assault, bullying, depression, neglect, harassment, and I am sure more that I am missing.

I literally have not been able to stop thinking about this book today. I loved the ending but at the same time I hated it. I am a big romance reader and I wanted to romanticize this in ways but Julie Soto gave us what was needed rather than what I wanted and it was real and heartbreaking but it was right and doesn’t allow us to romanticize bullying which I have seen an uptick in lately and in a YA book I am happy she refrained.

I was not expecting to like this as much as I did. Julie Soto is known as an amazing romance author and now young adult too. This book hooks you in and makes it hard to put down. It showcases all the different sides of friendships in high school and keeps your guessing right until the end. I was fortunate enough to get advanced copy to read.

I really liked this book. Jodi is a great character. She is part of a group that she doesn't quite fit. They are implicated in a girls suicide. Did one of them cause it? Thrown in is a little paranormal. Is it real or imagined?
Jodi has a tough home life. I feel her relatives haven't been there for her. Zach is not what she thinks he is.
I think Emily's sister should have been honest about the suicide. Julian turned out to be Jodi's real friend. He was only one to be punished. It shocked me at the end. Didn't see the end coming.
Thank you NetGalley and Julie Soto.

The Thrashers by Julie Soto
“I slipped away with the hum of a slow dance in my veins.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 WOW Julie Soto, just WOW!! I was so excited to get this ARC from NetGalley and it blew my expectations out of the water. Forget Me Not and Not Another Love Song were two of my 2024 favorites because I just love Julie’s beautiful writing that sucks you in immediately. Her first foray into YA definitely hit the mark for me. A little Mean Girls, a little I Know What You Did Last Summer and a little Heathers, The Thrashers pulled in right away and kept me guessing with every turn of the page. Julie remains an auto buy author for me. Loved!!
#yathriller #juliesoto #pageturner #unsettling #twists

3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I have mixed feelings about this book. I enjoyed reading thrillers a lot even though thrillers can be something you hate it or you love it. Reading thrillers also gives me a break from all the romance books that I read so I decided to pick up this book. Also, I love books written by Julie Soto so I couldn’t wait to read her debut YA Thriller. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect going into this book other than the blurb. The concept of the story reminds me of 13 reasons why - a girl was bullied by a group of kids called “the Thrashers” from school and committed suicide and now we are looking to why and what happened? I thought there were some moments that were very slow and repetitive - especially about how insecure of Jodi was and how she felt like she wasn’t included in the group. It was a little frustrating seeing that things would have been different if Jodi just speaks her mind and the rest of the group just communicate better. There were also some heavy topics discussed in the book - drug abuse, suicide, depression, alcohol use, death of a parent, and peer pressure. What I didn’t expect are all the supernatural things that happened to the group. It was creepy and mysterious that kept me reading to see what’s going to happen next. The ending wraps up the story and I thought mhmm everything makes sense now... then 💥 boom! The epilogue completely threw me off 🤣 and I’m still thinking about it.

I don't usually read YA mystery (I think I've never read one actually) but this book was SO GOOD! It had me in invested from start to finish, I couldn't put the book down.

This book takes place a few months after the suicide of Emily Mills, a seventeen year old highschool student. We follow her classmate and friend Jodi, and her popular group of friends people calls The Thrashers.
An investigation takes place and the police are set on proving Emily was bullied to death. The Thrashers dynamic is disturbed when they find themselves at the center of this investigation.

This book is full of intrigue, lies, secrets, complex friendships and a very light subplot of romance. I haven't been a teenager in a while, but it brought me right back to highschool and I think anyone can relate to one of the characters in this book. The feeling of wanting to fit in and never being enough was very well portrayed. I loved Jodi's character and found her very relatable.

If you liked shows like 13 Reasons Why, Pretty Little Liars and One of Us is Lying, you're going to love this book!

Also THE EPILOGUE??????? My jaw was on the floor. Worth the read (as someone who always skips it lol)

This is one of those books that, based on the synopsis alone, could be so good or so very bad. I was hesitant to pick it up for that reason alone, but once I did I couldn’t put it down. The plot was non-stop action. Every time I thought I got to a good stopping point, something else happened and next thing I know is it’s 2AM and I haven’t moved from the couch in four hours.

Soto wrote such a complex cast of characters. From the beginning, Julian was the most intriguing and quickly became my favorite. Like real life, everything isn’t always black and white and these characters were SO grey. They each had very unique personalities and despite having five main characters, they felt distinct and each held their own.

The ending also did not disappoint. It makes you question and look at events in a new light but also was still satisfying if not necessarily happy. #teamJulian

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

This was an enjoyable YA thriller. There was a whole cast of characters that seemed unlikeable. I thought the plot moved quickly and kept me hooked the entire time. This one ended on such a spooky note!

If The Thrashers were a mixtape, it would be side A: secrets and side B: suspense. What more could you need!?

This book is fast-paced and impossible to put down! Trust me, I tried. But as the saying goes: “Either you’re in or you’re out.” And you definitely want in with this one.

Set in the eerie, elite halls of New Helvetia High, The Thrashers follows a group of students who get pulled into an underground game after the mysterious death of a classmate. Think Pretty Little Liars meets Squid Game with a dash of haunted house energy.

From the first page all the way to the very last sentence of the epilogue, Julie Soto does a fantastic job crafting characters that make you beg for more. And speaking of characters…yes, there’s a romantic subplot. And yes, I ate the whole thing up and left no crumbs. LOVED it.

The Thrashers hits shelves May 6th!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

What a fun YA thriller! At the beginning I was a bit frustrated with how dramatic everything was, but then I remembered what teens are like and I got into it LOL. It was well written and compelling. Some of the characters were a little flat.

Julie Soto the woman that you are!
Like WHAT DID I JUST FINISH READING!
Thrashers is such a work of art. The build up on this story was amazing. Easy to say that I was hooked from the very first chapter.

So we’ve got the famous “Thrashers” clique formed by Zach Thrasher himself and childhood bestie Jodi, followed by Julian, Paige and Lucy. All of these kids whom are rich except Jodi, which doesn’t bother the rest of the clique at all. Except for Julian the asshole (but we later find out he’s rude for different reasons) Then we got an obsessive Emily added to the mix!

We deffinitely have an intriguing murder mystery situation going on with this book.
Did the Thrashes really push Emily Mills to “off herself”? Or was it a plan gone wrong? I don’t knowww, you’re gonna have to read till the end to find out!

Totally recommend! It’s such an easy and fun read, mixed with loads of thrill and suspense! I also had a lot of WTF moments in regard to not expecting certain events to take the turn they took. So with that being said, yes it did keep me on my toes the entire time. And that alone makes this book a 10/10 for me knowing that I wasn’t expecting any of these scenes to unfold the way they did gave me a sense of freshness.

Another round of applause for Julie!

P.S - Julian I love you! You shall live rent free in my head for eternity. <3

I have loved Julie’s adult romances and couldn’t wait to get my hands on her YA thriller. Thrillers are not my typical genre but something about YA ones really do hit for me. While this story feels very textbook (pretty little liars, etc) it was done extremely well! I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and I pretty much binged it in one sitting. I also didn’t mind the paranormal elements in the story I think it was intriguing and leaves the book on a mysterious note.

I do wish we had a bit more drama in the secrets that are uncovered within the Thrashers and I think more time should have been spent on the plot twist at the end and on Emily’s psyche.

If you like books about toxic high school groups with secrets, this is for you. This starts with a mysterious death, followed by odd happenings, and the people in the group, the "Thrashers," aren't how they seem. Right when I thought I knew what was happening, it felt like everything switched. I like that in a thriller.

It’s been a few days since I have finished this book and I genuinely cannot stop thinking about it. A teen thriller that is familiar enough to pull you in yet unique enough to keep you guessing and fully invested page after page.

The Thrashers are a friend group of their school’s most popular students who have earned a reputation of ghosting and destroying many individuals who dare to try and be their friends. Dubbed “Thrashing” this public and brutal ritual might not be intentional, but when a recently classmate has been found dead (by suicide) after being Thrashed, the school and community turn on these promising students.

Told through journal flashbacks and through an unreliable narrator, The Thrashers is teen drama with a new twist and a pretty satisfying conclusion. Also, I will go down for the ship of Jodi and *ahem* well….read it and find out.

Julie Soto releases a new book and everyone is lining up. Julie Soto releases a YA paranormal thriller and we all come crashing through the walls.
This book is not what you expect going on in, and when you're done you sit there and wonder what the heck just happened?!
The Thrashers, aka Zack Thrasher, Julian, Paige, Lucy, and Jodie, take you on their journey of their senior year after tragedy struck at junior prom. Told from Jodie's POV, this book follows what happens when a young, obsessive teen dies and rumors start to circulate of whether or not she was 'Thrashed.' It explores high school cliques, popularity, parental pressures, alcoholism, and asks who really are our friends and can we trust them. Twists and turn with a paranormal flair, The Thrashers has it all. Stepping into a new genre, Julie Soto shows she has multiple tricks up her sleeves and we're all just waiting around too see what she pulls out next!!
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for the chance to give my honest opinion in the form of a review.

The Thrashers
By: Julie Soto
St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books
Pub Date: 5/6/2025

3.25/5 stars – A bit of a letdown, but not a total miss

Now listen… I really wanted to love this one. I’ve loved Julie Soto’s adult romances, so I was excited to see how she’d handle something darker and more YA-leaning. The premise had me hooked—girl dies by suicide after being bullied by a group of “cool kids,” and the story unpacks the aftermath. Sounds intense and promising, right?

But here’s where it lost me a bit: the main girl who was bullied… was honestly one of the most frustrating characters I’ve read in a while. She was overly clingy, constantly trying to mold herself to fit in, and just hard to root for. In a story like this, I really wanted to feel for her, connect with her, but instead I found myself annoyed more often than not.

The ending also didn’t quite land for me. Some threads were tied up, sure, but it still felt a little open-ended in a way that didn’t satisfy me—especially if this isn’t going to be a series.

That said, the book had its moments. There were definitely emotional ups and downs, and the pacing kept me turning the pages. But those two big issues kept it from being a standout for me.

This was a very well written YA book. It was a page l-turner and the writing drew me in. I couldn’t put it down!

The premise of the story isn’t new, but her take on it was well done. Parts of the story get a bit paranormal and I am torn on whether I like that or not. But it all makes sense overall. I did however need more Emily. More character background or more flash backs. I needed her why and I didn’t feel like I really got that.

The other characters were easy to connect with. The story had good twists and I truly didn’t know how it was going to end.

That epilogue, however, is making me want a book two!

High school is tough. Everyone just wants to be accepted, to fit in and at New Helvetia High that means getting in with and being chosen by infamous Zack Thrasher. Welcome to The Thrashers, the elite friend group at New Helvetia High. Zack, Jodi, Julian, Lucy, Paige are The Trashers. The cool kids. Not just anyone can play with them. They're an elite clique that everyone wants to be apart of. But are they as perfect as they seem? Is it even possible to make the cut and not end up thrashed and ousted embarrassingly? Is that what happened to Emily Mills who desperately wanted in? The author did a great job of creating a suspenseful, tense, mysterious atmosphere surrounding the death of Emily Mills and The Thrashers. It was interesting to see the dynamics of The Thrashers friend group play out. An important message in the lengths these high schoolers would go to in order to fit in. How far did they go to protect their personas. For such a cast of unlikeable characters I was into it. We get just enough information to keep you flipping through the pages to find out what happens next. Things are definitely not as they seem. If you love a good YA thriller, mystery with so many twists and turns plus paranormal elements that will have you on the edge of your seat then read this book. Omg, the ending definitely did it for me. It left me shook because everything still wasn't what I thought it'd be. There has to be more....?!
The kids are dealing with a lot definitely check trigger warnings. There are some important but heavy topics covered in this book such as bullying, suicide, child abuse, death of a parent, alcohol and drug abuse, etc.
Thank you, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, MacMillan Audio, NetGalley for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I've been trying to rack my brain about why I devoured this book, despite not being much of a YA reader, and I think I finally settled on an answer. This book feels like all the best of the creepy high school movies of my youth (90s and early 2000s). Like, you can't tell me that this book doesn't give you the same vibes that The Craft does and that is, quite possibly, the BEST compliment I can give.

The book follows a group of high school friends, referred to as The Thrashers by their classmates, in the aftermath of a "friend's" suicide. That friend, Emily, was more of a hanger-on, annoying each of them in turn, and showing an unhealthy devotion to our narrator, Jodi. When the police decide to bring charges against everyone but Jodi for criminal harassment (and other crimes), she tries to uncover what really happened. Did her friends bully Emily and hide the results from Jodi? Why has Jodi remained unscathed? Does she really fit with this group when everyone is keeping secrets?

Soto does a great job of tying Jodi's position in the clique (not rich, not thin, not perfect) to Emily's, with her own mental health being challenged by feelings of being an afterthought to the others.

The book has aspects of the supernatural, as all five of the Thrashers are being haunted by the ghost of Emily, though you begin to question what is real and what is not pretty quickly.

And that epilogue? COME ON. Soto's social media seems to hint that more will come for this series and I cannot wait.

* Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review! *

I’ve been following Julie Soto since her early days. Her writing is fire and she can weave a story that you will not put down. Thrashers is right there with her best. This is a thriller that will keep you turning the pages until late in the night. Highly recommend anything Julie writes!