The It Girl

The media could not be loaded. The first half of the book was good, but slower ... if it would have continued at that rate, I would have given it 4 stars. However, the second half picked up in speed, with multiple twists that took it to a 4.5 or even 5 star.Dual timelines - college days in Oxford with their friends, and then 10 years later.Back then: Hannah meets April in the dorm room when she discovers that they are roommates. They have a shared main room, and separate bedrooms. It's not just April's helper that makes it obvious how different they are, it's the pure luxury of her clothes, the champagne that she pops to commemorate the event. Differences aside, the two become fast friends.Their other close knit circle of friends includes April's boyfriend Will, Will's best friend Hugh, Ryan and Emily. Together, they get through hours of study, parties, pranks, and drama until the night when it all changed and April is found dead.10 years later and Will is now with Hannah and they are expecting their first child.The man put behind bars for the murder of April died a natural death in prison, claiming innocence until the end. Hannah decides to analyze what really happened that night - did she help convict the wrong person?

3.5 stars rounded to 4 for Amazon.Ruth Ware novels are some of my favorite thrillers to delve into when I've burnt myself out on fantasy, so this did fill that niche for me quite well. Would I say it's the best thriller I've read? No, not really. But it doesn't err on the side of predictability like I originally would have thought, so I enjoyed it more than I expected. The plot twists in this book are sometimes expected and other times seem to have come completely out of left field. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for an interesting thriller that is also a quick and easy read.Writing Style: 3/3I really enjoy Ruth Ware's writing and have always seen her books as really stellar modern thrillers. This book was written beautifully as always, no complaints here!Plot: 2/3The It Girl was a fascinating thriller, BUT while I blew through this book and enjoyed the ride, I couldn't get past how drawn out the middle of the book was. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed the multiple plot twists and the ever-changing theory behind the killer's identity...but it felt like this book could have been 50-75 pages shorter without losing any detail. I also find pregnancy tropes in books to be a bit of an annoyance, though I know that wouldn't necessarily bother everyone.Characters: 1/2Ruth Ware's characters do typically tend to fall a little< flat for me, and this cast was no exception. I feel like the pregnancy was relied upon too heavily at times. Some of the plot twists that left you feeling like you'd discovered the REAL killer also fell flat due to characterization that just felt slightly off. I can't really pinpoint why the characters don't fly off the page and live in my brain, but something in this book left me feeling just a bit disconnected.That Extra *Spark*: 1/2This book gets half points for this section due to the unpredictability of the plot twists alone. It's not a novel that lives rent-free in my brain or that I will remember the names of the characters years down the road, but it's a solid read that I would recommend to anyone looking for a unique thriller.

JULY 2022 : 3 STARS.DESCRIPTION: April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford.Vivacious, bright, occasionally vicious, and the ultimate It girl, she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit. Together, they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends—Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily—during their first term. By the end of the year, April was dead. Now, a decade later, Hannah and Will are expecting their first child, and the man convicted of killing April, former Oxford porter John Neville, has died in prison. Relieved to have finally put the past behind her, Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent.REVIEW: First book by this author for me was The Turn of the Key (‘19 - Read ‘20 - 3 Stars). It was heading towards a 4 or 5 star rating, but hated the ending soooo much dropped my rating from a 4 to a 3. Thought it was time to give this author another chance.Good writing always makes for a smooth read. Enjoying the pace especially since my last two reads were fast-paced thrillers. This was not a thriller but a good mystery - love, friendship & betrayal. I did like the reveal of how the killing happened. I went with 3 stars because of the slowness of the story.

The character development was so good and I loved the pacing of this book. It had me guessing until the end and I just didn't see it coming! I highly recommend this book, The It Girl was a fun ride!

Very tense mystery, pure Ruth Ware style, which holds you until the end- and then surprises you again. So many red herrings along the way. An exciting read which will not disappoint you!

Not really, a little predictable and waaaaaay too descriptive.

It's well printed and has nice paper, but the story itself is one long drag of repetitive emotions by the protagonist. As thrillers go, there is not much to thrill, only 3/4 in the book it starts to go somewhere. However, as a bedtime story to go to sleep, it is fine. I wonder about the reviews of other authors on the back cover, did they actually read this?

The book was amazing and in good n well condition and I am also satisfied with delivery and packaging 👍👍

I devoured this novel, almost in one sitting. I couldn’t wait to pick it up again. The backdrop of Pelham College and the detail about life as a student at Oxford is just delicious as this classic whodunnit plays out. The storyline was really well crafted, with a cast of colourful characters, who could all have been plausible killers. The ending was tense and dramatic and a very fitting denouement. Loved it!