Good Girls Lie

by J T Ellison

• ISBN10: 077833077X
• ISBN13: 9780778330776
• Publish Date: 30 December 2019
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Mira Books
• Edition: Original ed.
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 464
• Language: English

Reviews

[Kim Deister]

Good Girls Lie is a twisty, thriller that was much darker than is usually found in young adult books, and I loved every bit of that.

The story takes place in an elite, all-girls, private boarding school, a school that comes with an interesting history to say the least. The school’s honor code is the most important covenant to the school community, and to break it is virtually unheard of. But there are exceptions… the secret societies that are a barely hidden secret.

The atmosphere of the book is very gothic, giving the story a deliciously creepy feeling. The old buildings of the school, the iron gates, the sometimes dark history of the school. And that atmosphere really underscored the dark aspects of the story. From the very beginning, there is the overwhelming realization that things are not what they appear in the school and with some of the girls. There are secrets at every turn.

Perhaps even more than the atmosphere, the characters drove the story. The Goode girls, by and large, came from wealthy, powerful families. They are smart, driven, used to getting their own way. And the education they get at Goode is at a much higher level than one might expect, as most of the girls are Ivy League-bound.

This is a twisted tale of manipulation, secrets, broken trusts, and revenge!

This book kept me interested, but it’s probably not one I’ll remember too much about as time passes. It made me uncomfortable because the characters behaved so badly and some of it felt a bit over the top. Bottom line is it was a quick read and kept me interested, but I was expecting more.

[whisperingchapters]

Good Girls Lie gripped me from the very beginning. That first chapter sure sets the atmosphere for what's to come. The characters were complex and flawed, which added so much to the story. Even with all the crazy twists, I actually believed this could be real. That's how JT Ellison's writing is: makes you believe anything.

I mean, wow. Did not see that one coming at all. It definitely had my heart racing. At times, it felt slow-ish, but the execution of the story, the world-building, the characters, it all added to the story to flow seamlessly. It was definitely an addicting and exhilarating read.

I was glad when I read the author's note and found out how quite a few details of the story happened in real life. It just added to the eeriness of the story. I cannot wait for more by this author.

[Nadz@Totally Addicted to Reading]

When the publisher offered me an eArc, I was happy to accept as I found the synopsis intriguing. After reading the first couple of pages, I was optimistic for the book. However, I found that it was not as engaging as I hoped it would be and I found myself putting it aside on several occasions.

I found the pacing slow for a thriller. Based on how the story started out, I was looking forward to a fast-paced thriller. Unfortunately, after the exciting start, the story fizzled out, and it was not until I was at about forty percent into the story that the pace picked up and things became interesting.

The story, which was set in a prestigious boarding school, was riddled with lies, murder and secrets. It had its share of twists, but it did not have the expected shock factor as I had my suspicions prior to the revelations. As, a result, the story failed to deliver nail biting feeling one would expect from a thriller. However, despite this, I felt compelled to continue reading, as I was curious to know how the story would end. The ending thrilled me as it delivered the perfect reward/punishment. The level of angst was what one would expect from teenage girls who feel the need to fit in with their peers.

The characters, except for the narrator, failed to wow me. I felt no connection to them and frankly, I did not care what happened to them. They all deserved whatever was served to them. The narrator proved unreliable and her actions and words added to the complexity of the story. I had my doubts about her and as the story progressed, my uncertainties increased. She struck me as being someone smart but diabolical. I enjoyed getting to know her.

Conclusion / Recommendation
Overall, Good Girls Lie was an interesting story, which highlighted the ins and outs of life in an all-female boarding school for the rich. Although it did not deliver as expected, I still had a good time with the story. I believe that this book would appeal to fans of young adult mystery.

[Veronica 🦦]

B | This is a solid thriller/mystery book that had me on the edge of my seat half the time. It’s a dark and twisting tale. It has elements of Gossip Girl tossed into the mix, although this is certainly more grown up. From the very first page, this book refuses to let you go. It makes you go back and forth, making you question what is truth vs. lies.

The first impression I had with the book was that it has a very Gossip Girl like vibe. Except, you know, this book opens with a death. Now, this is one of those books (well, eARC in my case since I received this book as part of the blog tour, but you know, schematics) that I can honestly say I enjoyed it. But while it captured my attention from the start, it wasn’t until I made it to about the middle of the book where I truly started to devour the book, even then I felt like the moon — waxing and waning in interest. Before that, I was only really interested in certain parts of the book because they were so — different.

Strange? Well, let’s just say that it had to do with the tone of some of the chapters written in 1st POV. I won’t say anything more than that.

But tone is one of the biggest strengths in this book. While I didn’t care for Ford or any of the other characters presented to us in 3rd POV, every character had their own distinctive tone and voice. That’s part of the reason why certain chapters caught my attention more than others. My interest waxed and waned until I reached the middle part of the book, and then I was all in.

Still, while it took me a while to get into the groove of things and care — I did like Ash. Her POV chapters were mostly interesting and the more I read, the more I needed to know.

Another strength with this book is the writing. Ellison’s writing is to the point. It is straight forward and doesn’t weigh you down with nonsensical descriptions. While I tend to appreciate the worlds around the characters described in sci-fi/fantasy novels (or hell, even historical fiction) because they are different worlds/times after all, I don’t like to see it very much in contemporary fiction. This was a “wham, bam, thank you ma’am,” sort of book which I’m happy for — at least in this case.

However, where there are strengths, there are weaknesses. One of the biggest weakness was pacing. The book felt stretched out — like things were added in just to add more pages. There were times where I told myself to just keep going and reading. Yeah, the plot is interesting, but even an interesting plot can be maimed by bad pacing.

Another weakness are the other characters. Yes, Ash is an interesting character and her chapters in 1st POV made things even more cool because I ended up wondering if she was a reliable narrator. But, aside from Ash, Becca was the only other interesting one. Everyone else felt — boring? A bit dull, really. They were just there.

Overall, I still say that this is a solid thriller. I recommend that you give this book a try.

I received this book as I am taking part in a blog tour for this novel. Thank you to Harlequin Mira for a chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Quirky Cat]

I received a copy of Good Girls Lie in exchange for a fair and honest review.

J.T. Ellison has come out with a brand new thriller to captivate their audience – Good Girls Lie. Though I’ll confess that it’s also the first novel I’ve read by them – so my review will not be making comparisons to their past work.
Good Girls Lie is a complex and disturbing novel, one that combines thriller elements with an in-depth study of human nature and the various extremes that come from the bonds of friendship.
The Goode School is one of the most prestigious all-girls schools in the country. Designed as a place to send the daughters of the influential, this is one of those stereotypical schools that only take the best of the best. And one has to continue to earn their place, once they’ve made it in.
Naturally, this is a highly competitive environment, with all of the girls seeking to go on to greater and bigger things. And that means they’re willing to do anything to get ahead – and create trouble in the process.
The Goode School has faced its fair share of scandal in the past. But they’re not prepared for the level of chaos that is about to be brought down on them. And it all starts with the death of a student. Though really, things were set in motion quite a while before that.

“If you spend your life apologizing, you’ll never gain any confidence.”

Warnings: Good Girls Lie is a classic thriller, in that it doesn’t shy away from some of the more graphic things human beings are capable of doing to one another. There are some graphic murders included, along with abuse, suicide, and scenes depicting hazing.

Good Girls Lie was a thrilling and intense tale of epic proportions. Have you ever picked up a book and found the web so tangled that you couldn’t look away? That is exactly the sort of story that’s taking place at the Goode School.
Honestly, it’s been a hot minute since I read a thriller that got to me as much as Good Girls Lie did. It had all of these brilliant – yet disturbing – elements in all of the right balances. I just couldn’t get it out of my head. Actually, it’s been a day since I finished reading it, and I still can’t get it out of my head.
What really impressed me about this novel was the level of detail that J.T. Ellison was able to weave into the story. Each scene felt so rich and alive, which certainly added to some of the more disturbing scenes.
Almost the entirety of the book is set at the Goode School, and yet the world was carefully thought out and expanded to its fullest. It’s almost hard to believe that this one school could contain so much intrigue and drama. Though I doubt that the Goode School would actually be proud of that fact…
There was a strong sense of mystery surrounding the thriller elements. This was not a clear cut story by any means. You couldn’t just pick up the book, read the first chapter, and know who did what. There were hints dropped along the way, of course, but nothing was clear. And that made plenty of room for shocking twists.
I loved every minute I spent reading Good Girls Lie. I almost wish that I could go back and read it again for the first time. But I can’t. On the bright side, I now have a new author (well, new to me) to go and read through their backlog. And that sounds like a win to me.

For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks