I absolutely enjoyed this read! I was rooting for those girls, even during the times I questioned their innocence. Megan and her severe panic attacks I can relate to.
The narrator did a wonderful job bringing the characters to life!

Thanks to NetGalley and RBMedia for this arc.

This was a pretty decent YA thriller. I was able to finish it in basically one sitting while doing chores around the house. This kept my attention and I found myself engaged the whole way through. Solid four stars.

I’ve been so addicted to YA Mystery/Thrillers lately, like 👀🍿 I’m so nosey lmfao. I lowkey knew who it was, but the way Alex redirected everything was 🤌🏽 Like yessss, keep me guessing lmfaoo. I loved each character too, their personality really shined through Tamika’s narration. The whole being a girls girls narrative was so strong, even though they weren’t friends. I was fr rooting for them the whole time though & the way it ended just 🥰 I love when the girlies win lol. Moral of the mf story? DON’T CHEAT. The ones who can’t relate are the lucky few lol!! Also, Bria’s sister? That was foul. Good intentions at first, but wrong… I felt so bad for Bria. Meghan’s sisters on the other hand? RIDE ORRRR DIEEEES frfr 🫡
Overall, this was such a fun time. I hope Meghan & Robin are happy 🤍 And I hope their friend group of 3 overcomes all odds!! The dark humor at the end?
Same Bria, SAME lmfao. At the end… I just fr can’t believe he did it. I mean, I can ‘cause he was at the top of my list lmfao, but damn… Say it ain’t so 💔 He seemed like such a good kid, but that’s what they all say 🌚 lmfaoo.

“Nate may have been #9, but he will always be #1 in our hearts.” - Coach
Hardest line in this book fr ☠️

Thank you NetGalley and RBMedia for this ALC.
Tamika Katon-Donegal does a decent job narrating.
This story did nothing to capture or keep my attention. I kept waiting. I was left wanting.

A good thriller with a great underlying message. All the high school drama with a sprinkle of attempted murder and I didn’t see the culprit coming. The narration was good. 3.5 ⭐️ because the first half was definitely slower going and I wasn’t fully invested until about that point.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a whodunnit in high school with the victim being a high school sports star that was playing 3 girls.

The suspects are the 3 girlfriends.

They team up to try to figure out who did it but was it one of them.

This was a decent suspense thriller. I figured it out pretty early on or I should say I had my high suspicions.

The narrator was good. I just thought the story was basic. I did not like how the story wrapped up and how there was barely any backstory on her prior incident especially with how much it’s mentioned.

4⭐️ Second Read-ALC (audio)
3.75⭐️ First Read- ARC (ebook)
Update: I requested this as an ALC from RB Media so I could review the narrator and the production as I did enjoy reading it the first time.

Most of the time I enjoy the book equally or even more when I read it again as an audiobook and this is no exception. I find you get more of the nuances of the prose as well as being able to focus on the smaller details.

I really enjoyed the narrator Tamika Katon-Donegal. She really brought the book to life especially since the main characters are people of color and Ms. Katon-Donegals voice inflections celebrated said characters. She spoke at a good pace for 1x and the production was clean and well done. I was easily able to slowly speed it up and listen to the majority comfortably at 1.75x speed. I am so glad I listened to it as it increased my rating to a solid 4⭐️


Original review:
This drew me in from the start and kept my interest throughout albeit with a few bumps along the road.

I am thankful to have gotten a complimentary eARC from Sourcebooks Fire through NetGalley to read which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

I loved the queer and black female representation that also spoke to social issue of today but without sounding like the author was preaching. It came off for the most part like authentic high schoolers in an atypical situation that only YA thrillers can offer.

The book did get a bit repetitive at times and while it pays a nod to movies like John Tucker must die, it does take place in modern day. The issue is some of the language is not what a teen would say. The biggest stand out was calling a recording a “taping”. It took me right out of the story. I thought maybe the author was an older Gen Xer when I read things of that nature but that doesn’t seem to be the case. There are some other minor similar outdated terms but they didn’t bother me as much.

I liked the tension and suspense despite figuring out who the culprits were. The more surprising aspect was the “why”

I think teens will eat this book up and enjoy the ride. This book comes out April 1.2025.

My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

So much is happening so quickly, and it has really captured my interest! I ended up finishing it in one sitting. Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and RBmedia | Recorded Books for this ARC.

#ThePaybackGirls #NetGalley