Tuesday, August 4, 2020

THEY WISH THEY WERE US By Jessica Goodman - RAZORBILL / PENGUIN TEEN PUB DATE 8.4.2020





Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Razorbill
Pub Date: (August 4, 2020)
ISBN-10: 0593114299

Gossip Girl meets One of Us Is Lying with a dash of The Secret History in this slick, taut murder mystery set against the backdrop of an exclusive prep school on Long Island.

In Gold Coast, Long Island, everything from the expensive downtown shops to the manicured beaches, to the pressed uniforms of Jill Newman and her friends, looks perfect. But as Jill found out three years ago, nothing is as it seems.

Freshman year Jill's best friend, the brilliant, dazzling Shaila Arnold, was killed by her boyfriend. After that dark night on the beach, Graham confessed, the case was closed, and Jill tried to move on.

Now, it's Jill's senior year and she's determined to make it her best yet. After all, she's a senior and a Player--a member of Gold Coast Prep's exclusive, not-so-secret secret society. Senior Players have the best parties, highest grades and the admiration of the entire school. This is going to be Jill's year. She's sure of it.

But when Jill starts getting texts proclaiming Graham's innocence, her dreams of the perfect senior year start to crumble. If Graham didn't kill Shaila, who did? Jill vows to find out, but digging deeper could mean putting her friendships, and her future, in jeopardy.



REVIEW:


I AM OBSESSED!

Jessica Goodman wrote one of the summer’s most anticipated books and I am all here for it. They Wish They Were Us is an addictive YA murder mystery set in the backdrop of one of Long Island’s most exclusive and prestigious school for the most privileged, Gold Coast Prep. This is a book that you will devour for its secret society, hazing rituals, exclusivity, popularity and power of the privileged few.

Jill Newman and her best friend Shaila Arnold were selected to join an exclusive secret society called “The Players” with an incredibly vicious hazing ritual that one would die for, to achieve status and the opportunity to access information that would ensure an Ivy League standing. Well, that is exactly what happened three years ago when Jill’s best friend was murdered at the hands of her boyfriend Graham Calloway, who confessed to the murder.

Now it’s senior year and Jill is determined to make this year the best ever! She is now one of the leaders of “The Players” and enjoying the privilege status everyone is coveting for. Everything is going well until she receives a text message from Rachel, Graham’s older sister that claims his innocence. At this point, through Jill’s POV and flashbacks to what really happened leading up to the murder had my fingers flipping unable to put this book down. Amazing!

I loved that the writing delved deeper beyond the prep-school murder-mystery trope and explores female friendships, loyalty and grief. Goodman explores the harrowing consequences of belonging and keeping up the façade. Don’t miss this one.


AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT:




Jessica Goodman is the author of the YA novel, THEY WISH THEY WERE US, out August 4 from Razorbill/ PenguinTeen. (You can preorder TWTWU right here!)

She is the op-ed editor at Cosmopolitan magazine. She and her team received a National Magazine Award for their 2017 story, How to Run for Office. Previously, she was a Digital News Editor at Entertainment Weekly and an Entertainment Editor at HuffPost.

You can follow her on Twitter and on Instagram.





1 comment:

12/5/2022 WITCHA GONA DO By Avery Flynn

  Publisher: Berkley (December 6, 2022) An unlucky witch and her know-it-all nemesis must team up in the first of a new, hot romantic comedy...