🪦 ┊ “ the night i died was supposed to be my prom night. ”

The Thrashers is about a group of popular and (mostly) rich friends dubbed the Thrashers, named after Zack Thrasher, the so-called leader of their super exclusive circle. The other members, Paige, Lucy, Julian, and Jodi orbit around him, and fiercely guard the group from newcomers. After Emily Mills, a girl that desperately wanted to be a part of the group, kills herself, strange (possibly supernatural) events begin to unfold around them.

One thing this book does a really good job of is holding your attention until the very end. I read it all in one sitting because I was so interested in finding out just what was going on behind Emily's death. Everything with the detectives, the unsettling texts from an unknown number, and all the near death experiences, made me all the more interested.

The Thrashers were all pretty distinct and felt multi-faceted; they made both kind and cruel choices that made them feel all the more human. I kept going back and forth on whether I liked a character or not because they were just so unpredictable. The side characters were all right, though we didn't get as close to them as we did the Thrashers. I think we were supposed to like Oliver and Nikita but they didn't really feel like good friends. ALSO, the main detective was such an asshole. She spent pretty much all of her screen time trying to get Jodi to crack by insulting her and telling her that she's the obvious outlier of the group.

Okay, I think I can officially say that Julie Soto can do no wrong. She writes Kylo Ren inspired love stories, YA thrillers and even has a highly sought after Romantasy I am about to devour?! She’s just flexing at this point 😆😍 (I haven’t read Rose in Chains yet but I’ll be back with that review soonish)

Expect 👉🏼 YA thriller, Cliques/Cool Kids/High School Bullies, Ghosts, Who is Guilty, Friendship

Jodi is only cool by association. Her best friend Zach Thrasher is rich, popular and the one every girl wants. She exists on the outskirts of her cool-kids, friend group. But she’s a Thrasher. Everyone wants to be a Thrasher. When Emily—a girl who desperately wanted to be a Thrasher—dies, things start to change. Weird things start to happen and a journal surfaces. Jodi will have to figure out who is lying and where her loyalty belong.

This book was so much fun. Ask me if I turned it off once while I was listening… I didn’t 😆😍 I loved figuring out what was going on. I didn’t trust anyone!

I thought Jodi could have picked up on things a little quicker but if I were 17 and in her shoes, I probably would have been a little clueless too 😆

The whole friend group was such a fun dynamic. Add in some possible super natural elements and it just ups the ante.

My only complaint is that I would have loved a little more romance *hint hint* *cough cough* 👀🙏 because I think it would be sooooo good. I am hoping we get more of this world in the future.

4.5/5

This was a GOOD TIME! Julie Soto proved she can be a versatile author and I am here for it. The Thrashers felt like a thriller with lots of teenage drama and some other elements and it really is addicting. These characters are so morally gray (we love) and there is a lil romance that I found myself routing for. Definitely recommend this one — so much fun. I predicted some of the twists but it didn’t make it any less enjoyable.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy!

Ok, here me out. I absolutely loved this book. Like, could not put it down. Everytime I thought I knew what was going on, I was wrong. I thought I knew things, but I was wrong. I did not want this to end. When it did end, I was so sad. I do wish there had been a little more... "closure" but I suppose that's how she wanted us to feel in the end. Overall, I highly recommend. It was my first book by her, and I can not wait to read more. READ THIS!! Read it NOW!

I was so excited to get this ARC because I love Julie Soto’s contemporary romances, and this book was a fun change of pace from my usual reading! It took me until about 30% to really get hooked, but after that the story really took off. I would have gobbled up this YA book in high school, and even as a *ahem* 30-something adult, I still found it unputdownable. This book captured a lot of nostalgic and relatable elements of the high school experience. The thriller storyline was compelling and at times genuinely creepy. And what even was that ending?!?

4 ⭐️

TW: suicide, abuse, alcoholism

Thank you to St Martin’s press and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced digital reader’s copy of The Thrashers!

This was just okay. It’s very YA (which makes sense, given that is the genre), but the plot was just all over the place. There are snippets of jealousy between the group of five friends, hints of romantic connections, and lots of melodrama (alcoholic parents, parents’ death, etc) and all of that distracts from the mysterious death of Emily Mills. The book started out fast-paced but lulled in the middle and it became a bit of a chore to pick it up. The story did finally pick back up in the last 70-80% though. Gossip Girl/Cruel Intentions/PLL vibes throughout. Easy read overall.

This was one of the best books I have read in 2025. I was hooked from the first moment and it kept me on the edge of my seat, wondering what would come next. Jodi was an excellent protagonist and I enjoyed seeing her character growth. I also thought that the rest of the Thrashers had great character development and I liked seeing each layer be peeled back and reveal just a little bit more. This book was twisty, mysterious, and a little spooky and I enjoyed the supernatural elements like the medium and Ouija board. This book is perfect for teen readers looking for a good mystery and I can't wait to recommend it to my patrons when it comes out.

The Thrashers by Julie Soto is a sizzling, fast-paced romance that crackles with tension and undeniable chemistry. Set in the high-energy world of professional hockey, it delivers the perfect mix of sports, passion, and emotional depth. Soto’s characters are vibrant and complex, making every interaction feel electric. If you love a sports romance with heart, heat, and just the right amount of angst, this one’s a winner.

This was a good little YA thriller.

It deals with some tough themes and handles them very well.

The story is highly suspenseful and I really needed our MC to make different friends. I was worried for her!

Expect some real heartbreak, a little sweetness, and some great thrills.

Excellent read!

* ARC via Publisher

One of those "i can't sleep i must know what happens" kinda books.

We follow Jodie and her group of friends, the thrashers, popular kids, ofc. & them reeling from the loss of a classmate, Emily. She committed suicide and the thrashers are at the middle of the investigation.
I don't want to say too much bc you must read it for yourself but it's giving 13 reasons why/paranormal vibes, and that's all I'll say! I also wanna note that while it's YA, you kinda forget about that as you're reading! Bc you are legit so hooked.

I loved the way it ended, like praying there's a 2nd book to this series bc it left it open with so many questions!!

Thank you Julie Soto and Netgalley for this ARC, all thoughts are my own. <3

INCREDIBLE! Also very spooky. I absolutely could not put this down and was thrilled to get the eARC. I was on the edge of my seat so many times and couldn't believe how things turned out. Don't want to say much more for fear of spoilers! I'd recommend to mature readers in my class & adults too!

Julie Soto's YA thriller debut, The Thrashers, delivers a blend of Pretty Little Liars intrigue and 13 Reasons Why gravity, seasoned with a hint of the paranormal. This high school drama is an exploration of social dynamics that illustrates the power of hidden secrets.

Plot -

We're dropped into the world of Jodi Dillon, a member of the coveted "Thrashers," a five-person clique orbiting around Zack Thrasher, the undisputed king of Helvetia High. When the tragic suicide of Emily Mills casts a dark shadow over the school, the Thrashers find themselves under the microscope; accusations of bullying swirl, forcing Jodi to question her loyalty and confront the unsettling truths within her own circle.

Themes -

Soto deftly navigates the treacherous terrain of adolescence, tackling weighty themes like suicide, bullying, and the relentless pressure to conform.

Thoughts -

As an adult reader, The Thrashers evoked a powerful sense of nostalgia, reminiscent of series that I read as a teen, like The Clique (oh the good ol’ days). Jodi's relatable struggles—balancing academic pressure, navigating family complexities, confronting body image issues, and grappling with her place within the social hierarchy—resonate deeply.

Some of the character actions occasionally stretch the bounds of believability, which did pull me out of the story a bit, however, this is true for my experience with most teen-centric dramas.

This first installment lays a solid groundwork for the sequel – I’m looking forward to more time in this world with these characters.

Thank you to the team at St. Martin's Publishing Group for providing me an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley ebook arc. I have only read romance books by Julie Soto so I was blown away with the suspense and story of this YA book. I was drawn in at the beginning and binged the whole book in one day.
This book should have a TW for suicide or suicidal thoughts is the only negative this that I have
A so call friend commits suicide the night of prom leaving a journal stating how her group of friends bullied her into suicide. They end up all posting bail and not understanding why they were being blamed when they never hung out with the girl.

I'm not really sure how this managed to make me giggle, cry, laugh and feel scared all in one book but it sure did! I absolutely LOVED this! Julie Soto's writing is just beautiful. This was addictive, fast paced and I could not put it down, even though I was really creeped out at night, I continued reading 😂 I had to take a full day after the last page to just think about what I just read. Honestly I'm gonna think about that ending for a long time and just occasionally cry about it 😭 5 stars! No notes!

Super fast paced book that hooks you and makes you want to "solve" the "mystery" to find out what happened to Emily Mills and how she died. It is Mean Girls that goes a bit further with a death. It could be triggering for some with suidice topics.

Thrillers aren’t usually my first choice.

But a thriller written by Julie Soto? Sign. Me. Up.

This is one of those “I don’t want to put it down, life needs to pause because I need to just keep reading to see what happens” books.

What a delight! I was so locked in from the start. The Thrashers are that friend group- we all knew one like it in high school, but seeing the inner workings and different dynamics between them while they were *going through it* was so much fun.

Do not miss out on this one because it’s a must-read.

Thank you to Wednesday Books for the early copy!

3.75
I truly never really knew what was going to happen next. This book was super fast passed and really sucked me in.
I love flawed characters and almost every single character in this book has their flaws. I think Jodi was an interesting viewpoint to read from. The way she views herself makes the story even more confusing in the best way.

The ending did feel sorta unfinished, so I'm hoping for another book.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, for the eARC.

This book was absolutely fantastic! I preordered it but I also loved getting the arc for it and it didn’t disappoint. The book was twisty, the characters were great, and I felt that you never knew quite what was going to happen or who to trust. Writing thrillers these days can be tricky; to have to create a good enough backstory to be able to make it twisty, thrilling, unpredictable, and yet not feel totally out of the realm of possibility is so hard, but Julie Soto did all of that and more! I hope there’s a sequel because with that ending, I wanted more!!!

The Thrashers is solid evidence that Julie Soto’s captivating writing easily transcends genres. Her writing is so compelling that I spent this entire book unaware of where I stood with the main characters. I found myself simultaneously mistrusting but also liking the main cast of characters (yet feeling conflicted for liking them because they’re also portrayed in a way setting you up to not like them). This complexity added another layer to this heart-pounding paranormal thriller. I was hooked from the epilogue through the last page (and finished it in a day because I HAD to know how it ended!).

I personally think this is one that’s better if you jump into it without reading a summary. Just trust that it’s a page-turner and sit back and enjoy the ride!

Huge thank you to Julie Soto, Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, & NetGalley for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

I am not usually a fan of thrillers but absolutely adored this story. From the very first chapter this book had tension and I couldn’t put it down. This book dives deep into high school dynamics—popularity, power, and the consequences of wanting to fit in—while keeping you on edge with its eerie mystery.

The story follows a tight-knit, elite friend group known as the Thrashers—Zack, Julian, Lucy, Paige, and Jodi—who seem to have everything. But when Emily Mills, a girl desperate to be accepted by them, dies under tragic circumstances, things start to unravel. The guilt, the secrets, and the fear of being exposed make for an intense, psychological read. As mysterious messages start appearing and strange events unfold, you’re constantly questioning who can be trusted.

One of the things I really loved about this book was how well Julie Soto captured the emotional weight of teenage friendships. The characters aren’t just stereotypes—they’re layered and flawed, making their choices feel real, even when they’re making terrible ones. The way Soto portrays social pressure and the blurred lines between loyalty and self-preservation felt so authentic. The suspense builds perfectly, with twists that kept me flipping pages late into the night. I had theories, but I was still caught off guard more than once.