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The newest student at the elite St. Ambrose School for Girls must navigate a sinister social clique and the treachery of her own mind in this “complex psychological thriller” (CrimeReads) that is perfect for fans of Megan Miranda and Layne Fargo.
When Sarah Taylor arrives at the exclusive St. Ambrose School, she’s carrying more baggage than just her suitcase. She knows she’s not like the other girls—if her shabby, all-black, non-designer clothes don’t give that away, the bottle of lithium hidden in her desk drawer sure does.
St. Ambrose’s queen bee, Greta Stanhope, picks Sarah as a target from day one, and she is relentless in making sure Sarah knows what the pecking order is. Thankfully, Sarah makes an ally out of her roommate Ellen “Strots” Strotsberry, a cigarette-smoking, devil-may-care athlete who takes no bullcrap. Also down the hall is Nick Hollis, the devastatingly handsome RA, and the object of more than one St. Ambrose student’s fantasies. Between Strots and Nick, Sarah hopes she can make it through the semester, dealing with not only her schoolwork and a recent bipolar diagnosis, but Greta’s increasingly malicious pranks.
Sarah is determined not to give Greta the satisfaction of breaking her. But when scandal unfolds, and someone ends up dead, her world threatens to unravel in ways she could never have imagined in this delicious, “riveting, twisty read” (Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author) that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.
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I DNF'ed this and am giving it one star which is very unusual for me. Normally with DNFs I will give them at least two Because I feel like I haven't given them the benefit of the doubt. However, this author has done NO RESEARCH into the subject of her writing.
As a person who went to boarding school and was kicked out for trying to kill myself, I feel uniquely positioned to have an enhanced perspective on this topic given that that is what this main character's whole MO is. The plot is rife with holes and over-simplifications (gasp! Someone will discover I'm on lithium! Gasp! I cant even look at the bottle of Tylenol! I have to take my long sleeves off and everyone is going to see my scars!) The author does not treat the topic with the respect that it is due, and she obviously didn't do any character research. Beyond that, this book is billed as dark academia. It is not. Just because something is set in a school does not make it part of the genre.
An insensitive, problematic, shitty book.