I'm a big fan of the high school murder mystery genre, and this was an excellent example! Iris Henley, top cheerleader, has been trying to move on after the tragic death of her boyfriend, Rocky, and her best friend, Lynette. The two of them had been seeing each other behind her back when the police believe Rocky killed Lynette and then himself in a murder suicide. Prior to her death, Lynette had been having some issues with drugs, which Iris reported to the cheerleading coach, resulting in Lynette being kicked off the team and Iris being promoted. Iris has been doing her best to move on, by texting a friend from camp, Jonah, and hanging with her two best friends, Sophie and Hayden. Unfortunately, a post from rockytruther2001 on the school gossip app, Sekrit, accuses Iris of being a murderer. The police reopen the investigation, meaning that Iris is being questioned anew, and conflicting accounts of where she was the night of the murder make things look not so great. Another post on Sekrit outing some of her friends' drama means that Sophie and Hayden turn on Iris, leaving her feeling more alone and friendless than ever. The only person even remotely willing to be seen with her is her neighbor, Max Fisher. Iris doesn't know who to trust, and the final twist is one that you won't see coming. Iris is a well-developed version of a high school character, and the story really does encapsulate the drama you'd expect. There is a lot of suspense, twists, and turns, and I couldn't wait to see who was behind everything. Fans of the genre will definitely enjoy this story!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Wednesday Books for providing this book, with my honest review below.

The Fall of Iris Henley is a great YA thriller that kept this adult’s attention and will definitely translate to those younger. Iris is a cheerleader just starting to feel like her life and small town are returning to normal after her boyfriend Rocky was found to have been part of a murder suicide with her ex best friend Lynette. Normal until a rumor starts running rampant on a social media message board that she was the one who killed the pair. Iris soon finds out who her real friends are as even her family starts turning against her.

The twist was unforeseen for me, I had some suspicions about a character who was setup pretty clearly as a villain from the start, but how it all panned out and who all played a part in this debacle was quite a surprise. Definitely a nail biter that older teens and adults will be fans of!

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc!
It took me some time to get into it, but I guess that’s the fault of the slump I‘m in :( once I kept reading I had a really good time!
I liked Iris as our mc, she made me laugh so many times with the stuff she said and being able to laugh whilst going through the shit she went through is a huge win imo. This was really creepy and I loved looking for clues with the fmc. The twists got me even though I had an inkling! But I still enjoyed this one! I liked the way the story was told, the characters got a variety of emotions out of me and once I was locked in, I couldn’t put it down! I really recommend this, if you‘re looking for your next mystery/thriller.

Thank you to author Jennifer Graham and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review The Fall of Iris Henley!

The Fall of Iris Henley is a gripping, twisty thriller that follows high schooler Iris Henley. She is a popular, beautiful cheerleader on top of the world and… her life is about to fall apart. But what could cause such a sharp decline? A fight with friends? An embarrassing moment in front of everyone? No. There was a murder.

This is one of those books you do not want to put down until the very end. I had plenty of guesses along the way but none of them were perfectly right. Iris is a strong, likable character surrounded by solid friendships you can root for, contrasted by characters who are insufferable in ways that make you want to shake them. Between the mysteries, secrets, and dramatic twists, this story is anxiety inducing in the best way and I found myself flying through the pages.

At times I was frustrated, thinking how could someone act like that or is that even possible, but for me that only heightened the tension and made Iris’s unraveling life feel even more chaotic and real. I felt out of control and I was just reading about it so I enjoyed that because of that I was able to feel fully immersed into the chaos of Iris’s life.

Overall, this was a good read with an ending I did not see coming.

4.5/5

Devoured this book - it was an easy read and a real page-turner. Iris has been through a lot: her boyfriend's betrayal, the murder-suicide of the boyfriend and her ex-best friend, and now, a random post accuses her of being the murderer of her boyfriend and ex-best friend, causing her to be subjected to cyberbullying, taunts, rumors, and the cruelty of adolescent behavior. The twists and turns weren't that hard to predict by any means, but I could feel Iris's heartbreak with every new reveal and betrayal. Yet she is brave and refuses to be knocked down by her enemies. This girl really couldn't catch a break, and I was really rooting for her to finally feel at peace. I really hope she is able to move far away when she grows up, because that town sucks.

For a mystery/thriller, this was very well-paced and engaging, with action at every turn - I was never bored.

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

This book was better than i had anticipated. It kept you wanting to read more. You always think you know who the real culprit is.. but you’re usually wrong, and i was. Five stars !!

The Fall of Iris Henley is a fantastic young adult novel that perfectly captures the atmosphere of a small Texas town where football is king and secrets are as valuable as cash. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, and found the central mystery compelling enough to keep me hooked. While the plot does drag a little in the middle, the slow burn builds tension and provides a satisfying payoff. The twist at the end felt well-earned and fits seamlessly into the narrative. This is a book I recommend to any of my high school readers looking for a gripping story.

What do you do when someone posts anonymously that you were actually the one responsible for the deaths of your boyfriend (who was cheating on you) and your (ex) best friend?

Well, if you're Iris Henley, high school cheerleader from Texas who is just trying to get your life back on track six months after the fact, you may end up watching those who you thought were your friends start to look at you differently, you might start to suspect everyone around you as being the original poster, and you might just freak out as your life starts to fall apart.

This was a very binge-able read. It truly was unputdownable and I read it in a matter of hours, desperate to get to the reveal of who was behind all the things (Thankfully I had enough restraint not to peek at the last page!).

I had lots of guesses and it was wonderful to see where I was spot-on and where I completely missed the mark.

I enjoyed this very much and would definitely check out other books by this author.

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

I loved this book and finished it in one day! The pacing, characters, and story are all excellent. 100% recommend for any contemporary YA fan!

While this Bring It On-esque mystery doesn’t quite soar, it’s still utterly enjoyable. Some of the twists were predictable, but there were enough quality red herrings to keep the story moving at a good pace. The ending was pretty rushed, which is a shame; I would’ve loved to see more of Iris after the whole mess!! You root for her through every page, flaws and all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a good book! I was glued from start to finished, and really enjoyed the writing style. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced ARC for a honest review. This will be out February 2026.

The Fall of Iris Henley follows Iris after someone posts an anonymous message claiming she killed her boyfriend and best friend last summer. Her life is ruined. She loses everything and mattes are made worse when the police start to reinvestigate what they believed was a murder-suicide. Iris must clear her name and find out who did it before it’s too late.

This was such a fun mystery/thriller. I honestly had so many guesses for the twist, and I was wrong on all counts. But it makes so much sense now that I know! I really loved how the author kept me guessing and on my toes the entire time. It’s super fast-paced and gripping and really well-written. The ending was sooo good and stressful. I really love how it ended.

I really enjoyed Iris as a main character. She has been through and goes through a lot in the book and she still manages to be brave enough to face her classmates and these challenging situations. I really love that she had a supportive friend group and the little romance subplot was very nice. I enjoyed the strained relationship with her family and how she had to overcome that. Everyone was really well characterized!

If you love murder mysteries with a shocking ending you won’t see coming, I’d definitely recommend checking this one out!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the arc!

Iris Henley is a cheerleader at Varda High School. Her cheating boyfriend and best friend are killed in a supposed murder/suicide. Cyber bullying starts taking place and she is accused of their murders. She starts investigating and uncovers deadly secrets and lies.
This was a great story with a good plot and characters. It also had some good twists and had me quickly flipping the pages.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this eARC that will be released February 24, 2026!

A great book I got this as an arc. It’s worth the read. I was surprised by the story, it kept me interested.

I loved this novel and powered through it quickly! Iris is a cheerleader at Varda High School. Her boyfriend, Rocky and new girlfriend, Lynette are both dead; he shot her and killed himself. Now she's getting messages: "Iris is a murderer--she shot both." But that night she had 17 girls over for a sleepover so she's not sure what's going on. Is she being targeted for some reason or is she somehow involved?? It's a wild ride as we see her take comfort in new on-line friend, Jonah who always seems to be there when she needs sympathy. It's one of those books that had my head spinning like the Exorcist!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for sending me an ARC of this book!

Definitely more of a 4.5 stars, I genuinely had such a hard time putting this book down once I started. The writing was super bingeable and I was entertained the whole way through. It reminded me a lot of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson, which are my two favorite YA authors. Some of the twists I saw coming but one of them I definitely didn’t; either way I still had a great time reading. Definitely going to check out more of this author’s work, and highly recommend this book if you’re looking for a good fast-paced YA mystery.

I really, really wanted to love this book, but I struggled to get into it. The beginning was just so slow. Yes, the author did a great job of introducing the characters and the backstory, but there were so many people and so much going on — and even with the introduction of *that* message, it still didn't feel like the plot was moving forward. This clearly was not a fit for me, but I hope other readers connect with it more.

So happy to have received this book!! This is the first novel of Jennifer Graham’s that I’ve read and it will not be the last!

This was super good. I really liked the main character and I liked the writing a lot. The book was easy to get through and it definitely had enough twists to make it entertaining. The plot was great and I was hooked from start to finish.

Thanks to NetGalley for the copy of this ARC! This will be out in February of 2026 so make sure to add it to your TBR!

This was such a good book! I was gripped from start to finish on this book, and really enjoyed it all. The writing style is great!