This was the first Cat Clarke I read, which is shocking as she's a mainstay of UKYA. I absolutely loved it. It's described as a queer boarding school book, which is the perfect description. It's about toxic friendships in a very enclosed, inter-dependant environment, where your peer relationships are quite literally a matter of life or death.

The characters are grieving in different ways, and that emotion muddies the water with every interaction. I particularly loved the friendship between Rowan (lesbian) and Harper (bisexual). Both queer roommates, this seemed the inevitable friendship-to-romance dynamic, but things were both more complex, realistic and enjoyable than that. I would love to read a sequel set in their first year at university, when they are at different schools and struggling to maintain a friendship long distance.
The passionate-turned-mysterious Kirsty is an excellent character, who I have a lot of sympathy for. I didn't find her as interesting as Rowan, who I would have liked to see more of, but I guess that wouldn't have made the book as exciting! Kirsty's scenes were incredible dramatic - there's a moment with a shotgun which made my heart race, and all the priest hole hiding scenes were brilliant.

The boarding school is an expensive, Hogwarts-style Scottish castle, and I really enjoyed that element of the book. Harper's family won the lottery (the day after her twin sister died, in the most bittersweet twist of fate imaginable) so she comes from a very average background, compared to her friends, who have grown up in wealth. The experiences she went through felt very realistic. There's also a student-teacher relationship handled with a very expert touch.

Cat Clarke is a huge talent in YA, and I can't wait to make my way through her extensive backlist.

This was interesting and guessed what Kirsty was doing from fairly early on. It was interesting to see this story line from the point of view of someone who was so taken in by Kirsty and who just couldn't see how creepy and manipulative she was being.

What I think I liked most though, other than the beautiful friendship group, full of diversity, was the fact that this isn't a story about destroying and losing friendships. It's a story about second chances. It's about redemption and moving passed grief. Harper is so filled with grief and guilt over the death of her sister and it's all about her and her family needing to move on from that.

I also felt the boarding school atmosphere was accurate at showing the good and bad sides of boarding school as well. It showed the bitchiness and grudges that students can get in that intense, all girl atmosphere as well as the fun that Harper and her friends get from their close friendships. It shows how friendships can be lost and how hard that is and also how to move on with that.

In general, it just had a lot of great messages and lot going for it.

Harper can’t escape the guilt she carries over her twin sister’s Jenna death. She has even tried to run away to and expensive boarding school, Duncraggan Academy, to try and forget her past. She hasn’t yet met anyone who understands what she’s going through. That is, until Kirsty arrives. Kirsty understands exactly what she’s going through because she lost a sister too. The two become close, but Kirsty erratic and manipulative behaviour puts Harpers current friendships at risk.

I really enjoyed Girlhood. It was a dark and atmospheric read, but it also had a happier feel to it at times. I loved the setting, it was in a secluded Scottish boarding school by the sea which added to the eerie atmosphere of the novel. One of my favourite things about this novel was the friendships – which were complicated, to say the least.

Girlhood featured a bisexual main character, which was stated on the page. I appreciated Harper as the protagonist. She had some good elements, she was funny and witty at times, and caring and kind. However, she did make some… questionable choices at times. BUT, she can’t be fully blamed as her and Kirsty’s relationship was really toxic and Kirsty was a pro at manipulating.

One of my favourite characters was Rowan. Rowan was Harper’s best friend. She and Harper went through a lot of conflict throughout the novel, but their relationship was a pleasure to read. Above everything, they were supportive and caring towards each other and their friendship was very important to the both of them. Rowan was a joy to read because she was funny, smart, and charismatic – a wonderful character. Bonus points – she was also a lesbian and a woman of colour (It was stated she was east-Asian and she attended boarding school while her parents moved to South Korean, so I’m assuming she’s Korean but I don’t know for sure). They were other friendships present, and I loved their group dynamics.

I loved the twin relationship in this (even though Jenna was dead at the beginning of the book, she died from anorexia.) Harper struggled to cope with the guilt she felt over her sister’s death as she felt partly responsible because she was the one who suggested the diet. But I felt like Cat Clarke understood that relationship between twins, and I really appreciated that. I’d have just loved to have seen more of the Harper and Jenna’s relationship.

“You can’t separate the belongings of twins – it’s just not possible. Things that started out as mine became hers, and vice versa. We were always very good at sharing; it’s probably the number one life skill you learn from being a twin.”

Overall, Girlhood was an atmospheric, female & friendship-driven read that was compelling and thrilling. I’d highly recommend.

I loved this book for it’s complicated friendships, ominous relationships and the sense of being pulled further in to a web. It was compulsive reading and I sat up until the early hours of the morning unable to put it down. It’s exactly the kind of book to disappear into on a gloomy, rainy day.

‘Harper has tried to forget the past and fit in at expensive boarding school Duncraggan Academy. Her new group of friends are tight; the kind of girls who Harper knows have her back. But Harper can’t escape the guilt of her twin sister’s Jenna’s death, and her own part in it – and she knows noone else will ever really understand. But new girl Kirsty seems to get Harper in ways she never expected. She has lost a sister too. Harper finally feels secure. She finally feels…loved. As if she can grow beyond the person she was when Jenna died. Then Kirsty’s behaviour becomes more erratic. Why is her life a perfect mirror of Harper’s? And why is she so obsessed with Harper’s lost sister? Soon, Harper’s closeness with Kirsty begins to threaten her other relationships, and her own sense of identity. How can Harper get back to the person she wants to be, and to the girls who mean the most to her? A darkly compulsive story about love, death, and growing up under the shadow of grief.’

Thank all that is bookish and beautiful for Cat Clarke. Openly gay and bi characters, friendship struggles, snarky girls, secrets, and lies. It’s all here in Girlhood. What I would have given for this book when I was a teenager trying to find my place in the world – in a girl’s school – feeling like the only gay in the village. I grew up reading boarding school stories and it’s a joy to return to one now. Especially a contemporary one filled with beautifully diverse characters and lots of nods to modern politics.

A fast-paced and fierce celebration of friendship not to be missed. You can get your copy here.

Source – kindly provided for review by the publisher.

Clarke sets up all the necessary elements for a gripping psychological thriller but a lack of tension/menace means it doesn't really deliver. Not her best but worth a few for fans.

"I do believe in forgiveness - for other people. If only it were as simple to forgive yourself."

* * * *
4 / 5

Girlhood was a bit of a surprising read. It's less thriller than I thought it might be, but still had that compulsive quality where I found myself flicking pages as fast as possible to find out what was happening. In some ways, Girlhood is a very typical girl's boarding school tale about a group of female friends that starts to fall apart as secrets are revealed, in other ways it's a very good and frank examination of loss, grief, friendship, and family, and one that I highly recommend.

"You don't need a best friend when you're a twin, because you have something better and closer and unbreakable. But it turns out there's no such thing as unbreakable."

Harper moved to Duncraggan Academy, a boarding school in remote Scotland to escape her family, her past, and all the memories that come with her home. Duncraggan is full of rich kids and Harper's family aren't rich - just fortunate enough to win money, mere days after Harper loses her sister, Jenna, to anorexia. We meet Harper when she is in her final year, at about eighteen, three years after her loss. She still carries her sister with her, wearing her necklace but also having to make peace with her parent's who decided to make her sister's memory into a cautionary tale by talking to the media.

Years on, Harper has a tight friendship circle that includes her roommate Rowan, head girl Lily, and her roommate Ama. They're all looking forward to their last year, but all starts to go a little sour when Harper befriends new girl Kirsty after the group subject her to the routine boarding school initiation. At first, Kirsty and Harper bond over early mornings and swimming, but then Kirsty reveals that she too lost a sister. As Harper turns to her for emotional support, to talk about Jenna, Kirsty becomes slightly strange.

I thought the character's were written quite well. I did keep confusing Lily and Ama, however, but each girl had their own plot or arc from Lily's illicit relationship to Ama's dreams of being a pianist. Harper was a curious girl; the atmosphere of the book really got to me, with the secrets and uncertainty, so whilst some of her actions were quite wild, it definitely felt understandable. Rowan was also a favourite of mine. Harper's parents also felt quite real to me - struggling with their loss of Jenna and then their only other child wanting to run away to remote Scotland.

"Clearly my parents have been hiding their hopes and dreams form me. Or perhaps it's that I've never asked."

Jenna's necklace goes missing and Harper's classmates seem to know secrets about her that Lily, Rowan, and Ama have kept for months. This is where the slight thriller aspect comes in. Kirsty is certainly strange - she starts to imitate Jenna which weirds Harper out, but also drives Rowan away - and whilst the plot is reasonably predictable (I guessed the twist a little early on) I did find it very gripping. I would say that Girlhood is mostly about change, female friendships, and learning to manage grief. I think Clarke wrote very realistically and respectfully about anorexia.

Girlhood also discusses sexuality a little. Rowan is East Asian and a lesbian, whilst Harper is bisexual. Both are pretty confident in their sexuality and it only comes up a couple of times (at one point I did think it might be used as a plot point), but it's a nice nod to the sorts of issues that non-heterosexual girls might face in an all girl's boarding school. One the heterosexual side, Lily has a crush on the Academy's groundskeeper, a fact which ends up tearing the friendship group apart.

Overall, Girlhood was a wonderful more adult YA book that I definitely recommend if you like boarding school settings or friendship drama.

Little did I know until I picked up Girlhood three days ago, that my heart was yearning to read a boarding school book. Having loved Mallory Towers when I was younger and secretly wishing I could go there (as I think everyone who read it did!), a book set in a grand old boarding school in Scotland was the perfect fit for me straight away!

Girlhood follows the life of Harper who lost her twin sister to a battle with anorexia, as she struggles with the grief of moving through life without the person who she thought would be by her side for everything. It's a heartbreaking read in that sense because it's something that really does affect a lot of people and doesn't get a great deal of attention in the sensitive way that it should, this book looks at it as well as any book can, in my opinion.

A new girl comes to the school, called Kirsty, she and Harper seem to share a lot of similarities as the discussing having both lost siblings and how they are dealing with grief. Throughout the book it becomes apparent that there is a lot more to Kirsty's story than she's saying and as things gradually come to light (to the reader if not to Harper!) a great sense of mystery arises which meant I was absolutely whizzing through the pages, I needed to know what had happened!

The other thing that I loved about Girlhood is that it features a bisexual main character who is written super duper well and who's validity isn't questioned other than occasionally by other girls who don't quite understand yet (as is the way in real life). There is also a lesbian character too and the bi girl and the gay girl aren't a couple because they're the only non-hetero main characters, they're friends and it's so refreshing to see.

Overall, Girlhood is a brilliantly quick read which deals with a lot of difficult issues in a way that's respectful. Without spilling a lot of spoilers, it demonstrates the value of friendship and the importance of showing kindness towards people even though they may not wholly deserve it. Grief is a horrible thing and certainly a tricky subject to write about but Cat Clarke manages to represent both the differences and similarities between two characters' experiences in a way that is both intense and truthful. I truly enjoyed every page and I'd really recommend that everyone gives it a go.

When reading the blurb of this book, it reminded me of the 2008 film Wild Child, starring Emma Roberts. It was set in a boarding school and there were catty friendships and backstabbing. It all sounded a bit cliché, to be honest. Boarding schools have this tendency to be portrayed in a very bitchy way... But I decided to give the book a shot anyway because I enjoyed reading Cat Clarke's The Lost and the Found.

Harper has tried to forget the past and fit in at expensive boarding school Duncraggan Academy. Her new group of friends are tight; the kind of girls who Harper knows have her back. But Harper can't escape the guilt of her twin sister's Jenna's death, and her own part in it - and she knows no one else will ever really understand.

But new girl Kirsty seems to get Harper in ways she never expected. She has lost a sister too. Harper finally feels secure. Then Kirsty's behaviour becomes more erratic. Why is her life a perfect mirror of Harper's? And why is she so obsessed with Harper's lost sister? Soon, Harper's closeness with Kirsty begins to threaten her other relationships, and her own sense of identity.

First off, let me just say that my favourite character was Rowan. She stood up for her friends, let Harper know when she was in the wrong (which seemed to be all the time), but she knew that friendship was important and couldn't just let it go like it didn't mean anything. Harper just seemed ... I don't even know... she just didn't seem to care about anyone but herself. I know that she was going through a difficult time, I completely understand that, but the way she treated her friends as soon as the new girl came along was horrible. (FYI, new girl is called Kirsty which is fab because I never see my name in anything 🙌🏼)

I did really like the thrilling atmosphere of it and I found that the storyline wasn't predictable. I was guessing what was going to happen or what the secrets were, to find out that I couldn't have been more wrong. However, when we did find out the secrets at the end of the book, I was a little disappointed. I thought the secret would be... more, I guess? I also didn't really like *minor spoilers ahead* that the girls gave Kirsty a second chance. I mean, c'mon! She ruined everything! She was so manipulative, she was a liar and she was selfish. I'm sorry, but I would not give someone like that a second chance. She nearly tore apart the friendship group with her lies and backstabbing!





"Sometimes I wish they could cut open my brain and scoop out the broken bits"

- Cat Clarke, Girlhood





The one thing that I really did like about this book was the friendship between Harper, Rowan, Lily, and Ama. They knew that it was Rowan and Harper and then Ama and Lily, but that didn't stop them from being a close-knit, four-person friendship group. I will admit, there were definitely a clash of personalities in there because they were so different from each other. Another thing that I really liked about this book was that Harper was bisexual (and also our protagonist, which you don't see often in YA!) and then there was also Rowan who was a lesbian. So having that kind of dynamic within a young adult novel was definitely a good thing to see. At times, I got the sense that maybe Rowan liked Harper, but it was never expanded on within the novel.

Overall, this was a thrilling book that I could have enjoyed until the very end if it wasn't for the slow middle and the ending... But it is a good story about losing someone you love, friendship and family, and even better... THERE IS NO ROMANTIC LOVE INTERESTS! WHOOOO!

Disclaimer: this book was sent to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Released 4th May

A dark YA contemporary story exploring the dynamics of a female friendship. Need I say more? It's outstandingly written with a captivating plot. The story looks at grief, forgiveness, friendship, and sexuality at a deeper level. It is about growing up and finding yourself. There is a nice mystery element present as to why the new girl Kirsty is behaving the way she does. I was flying through the pages. Readers of Megan Abbott should not hesitate to check Girlhood out!

I like Cat Clarke because she broaches subjects in her novels that often go untouched (and can a get a hell yeah for a bisexual main character?! With the actual word "bisexual" being used!) A relatively quick read about some heavy topics.

It's been a long time since I read a boarding school novel and since finishing Girlhood I've been wondering, why? The intensity of emotions, the independence and the mystery that comes with boarding schools make them excellent scopes for novels.

Girlhood is about Harper, who lost her twin sister Jenna to anorexia and ended up going to boarding school. She has a wonderful group of friends but a new girl, Kirsty, is about to change everything. Harper thought she was coping with everything pretty well. She's not as rich as most of the other girls and she's holding her grief in tightly. But, Kirsty has questions and secrets of her own. You know what they say, nothing stays secret in a boarding school.

The friendship dynamics make this story. Lily, Rowan, and Ama aren't particularly amazing or likeable characters, but it's their humour and their bond that makes them attractive. I rarely laugh out loud whilst reading but these girls had some serious wit. Their fast-paced dialogue and complete confidence made them a joy to read. They also provided a really interesting contrast to Harper, who bridges the gap between the girls and Kirsty.

Kirsty, more than anyone, seems to get Harper. She understands and she's a great listener. Something is not quite right and no matter how (frustratingly at times) Harper overlooks it, it's undeniable. I would have liked to have heard more about Kirsty's backstory and her behaviour because I didn't find the answers satisfying enough. I had more why questions. The same goes for the way Harper told Jenna's story. Jenna's life seems to start with her death and I liked how the novel kept flickering back to reveal more information but halfway through this stopped. I was waiting and waiting to hear more about the deterioration but it never came.

Grief is such a huge topic to take on and, overall, Cat Clarke does it well. There's one point when Harper talks about how when the worst thing has already happened to you, you should be able to go through anything, but it's not true. Small things can still get you down. Messages like that, and about nullifying blame, embracing acceptance and the importance of memories, make this a novel that I hope will help many young people.

When you're that age, you are often experiencing grief for the first time. That loss can affect everyone close to you, like your friends and family, and it can be really tough to find someone to talk to. For Harper, she feels like she can't go on and on about Jenna's death to her friends, like they will get sick of it. Her misguided paranoia and the development of her grief was exactly right, even though it was predictable. Sometimes you want a story to do exactly what you expect from it.

I hope many people pick up Girlhood because it was an absolute page turner and an eye opener to the contrasting ways grief is experienced.

Harper is struggling to come to terms with the death of her twin sister. She relies heavily on her group of friends at school, but there's plenty that isn't shared. Throughout the book we learn the details of what brought Harper to this school, and we come to understand a little of why she acts as she does. When new girl Kirsty appears Harper is pleased to have found a friend-but nothing is quite as it seems. What follows was compelling reading (if stretching our credulity a little).

Now it has to be said I’m a bit of a sucker for school/college/university type stories, that dig deep into friendship dynamics, Cat Clarke has written a page turner here that also happens to have a dark heart and a strong emotive tone. Looking not only at themes of grief, female friendship and sexuality, it also has a realistic edge to it that is highly compelling.

I’m not sure I’d call it a thriller – the relationships between the girls who have been a tight knit group for a long time, when faced with an incomer are at the heart of this, especially in the case of Harper who has suffered a loss her friends cannot even comprehend. The shock to their close relationship when she finds someone who may well understand her better is brilliantly done and keeps you just turning those pages.

There are thriller elements – Kirsty is an oddball for sure and her motivations are murky and coming to the truth provides the little twists here, but ultimately I felt this story was more about coming to terms, reassessing life as you grow up and how this both pushes you closer to those you love and pulls you apart. The ultimate resolution to Girlhood was emotional and heart warming yet melancholy and considered. Which I thought was pretty perfect.

I’d definitely recommend this – I’ll have to track down more from Cat Clarke.

Girlhood is a dark and emotional YA novel about friendship, grief, and whether things are really as they seem. Harper goes to a boarding school in a remote part of Scotland, but she hasn’t always: before, she lived at home with her twin sister Jenna and her parents. After her sister’s death, however, she went to Duncraggan Academy and found a tight group of friends who have her back. When new girl Kirsty turns up, it seems like somebody might understand the secrets Harper keeps hidden. Kirsty is not quite as she seems, though, and Harper finds herself falling down a hole, unsure who she is anymore and what is true.

Clarke’s novel is gripping, exactly the kind to read in a day or two, devouring the narrative. It is full of emotional tension, dealing with teenage problems of all sizes whilst also having a thriller-like sense of mystery. Harper’s first person narration gives an insight into someone dealing with guilt and grief, and how these issues help to blind her to the lies that start to appear. The intense friendships throughout the novel feel very real and varied, showing how groups of friends can be very different people and still get along, whereas when somebody seems exactly the same, that may not be the case after all. Indeed, they are the kind of characters that make the reader want to continue reading after the words are over and find out what they do next as they grow up. Harper and her best friend Rowan’s relationship in particular was a highlight, showing how falling out doesn’t stop a person caring and how sometimes the stakes end up bigger than realised.

Girlhood is a fantastic novel, not only for teenagers but for anyone who enjoys books centred on tension and female friendships. It is incredibly difficult to put down and manages to deal with big issues in a light and often funny way whilst also having a darkly compulsive narrative.

It was a pleasure to revisit the world of girls' boarding schools through Cat Clarke's <i>Girlhood</i>. It's a realm of ritual hazing, intense friendships, midnight feasts, and a strict code of honour yet somehow it manages to charm us completely. Clarke's characters are everything we come to expect of boarding school stories and more. They are charming, emotional, and endearingly complicated human beings.
<i>Girlhood</i> is Enid Blyton all-grown-up, for those of us who grew up reading Enid Blyton.

3.5 stars

Girlhood turned out to be a huge surprise; I was so sure I knew what was happening and how the story would unfold, only to be proven wrong at the end. I have to admit I was expecting more mystery and darkness, although now I think about it the title gives it away – Girlhood is about just that, being a girl, dealing with growing up, and finding your place. Even though it wasn’t quite what I expected, it was compulsive and compelling reading from start to finish. It deals with the intensity of boarding schools and friendships that develop between teenagers (girls in this case), but it becomes so much more than that – the importance of friendship, good communication, grief, and seeking help when you need it.

The story opens at Duncraggan, a boarding school for girls in rural Scotland. The protagonist, Harper, has a solid group of friends – Rowan, Ama, and Lily – but is suffering after the death of her twin sister, Jenna, a few years previously. Their close-knit group is disrupted by the arrival of new girl Kirsty, who has something in common with Harper: she’s lost a sister, too. The narrative simultaneously explores Harper feelings of grief and her enjoyment of school, finally finding a group of friends she fits in with, and her confused feelings when Kirsty arrives as she feels like she suddenly has someone who understands her, even if Kirsty seems a bit strange and quiet.

In terms of plot, there isn’t really one outside of the girls – Girlhood is all about the characters and their relationships, and how being together all the time can be both intense and wonderfully rewarding. They live in each other’s pockets entirely with Rowan and Harper in one room, Ama and Lily in the one next to them, and I loved their friendship. Rowan was my ultimate favourite and if you read it I think it will become obvious why. The girl’s lives are not always sunshine and daisies, especially after Kirsty’s arrival, but they are realistic – being a teenager is hormonal and messy, people are flawed and make mistakes, and Clarke has captured that entirely. Kudos to her for a bit of diversity, as well.

I like how Girlhood showed that problems can happen to anyone and money doesn’t always equate to happiness. Every girl is wealthy but they all have their own problems, which is something I feel people often forget. Just because the characters have money doesn’t necessarily mean they have better lives; Harper and Kirsty especially deal with grief that threatens to consume them and causes them to make bad decisions. There is also an air of mystery that is not resolved until the end of the novel, which had me constantly questioning motives – what happened to Jenna? Why is Kirsty’s behaviour so bizarre at times? Who is revealing secrets?

Ultimately, this book is about five teenage girls and their experiences at a boarding school, but it touches on so much more, especially the power of grief, friendships, and forgiveness. This is definitely one to be read on a quiet day, when you can devour it in one or two sittings and get caught up in the messiness and intensity of being a teenager.

Having previously read and enjoyed all of Cat's books, I'm so excited to share a review and overview of this book with you all!

Set in Duncraggan Academy, an expensive boarding school, Harper is trying to get on with her life after the death of her twin sister, Jenna who died because of heart failure as a result of a post Christmas diet of Harper's suggestion.

Harper has a key group of friends at the Scottish boarding school, Ama, Lily and Rowan. Kirsty becomes a talked about 'legend' after surviving initiation which the four friends make her undertake as it's essential for new students.

Kirsty and Harper both bond over their shared loss of each one's sister, Kirsty's sister died as the result of a car crash in which Kirsty is now scarred on her body from.

The girls games, truth or dare and the like result in an awkward situation and Rowan and Harper become distanced over Kirsty. Harper really likes Kirsty whilst Rowan seems very off towards her and wary.

The title being Girlhood shows it's true of the novel as we see Harper becoming distanced from her core group of friends as she becomes closer to Kirsty.
However, the truth surrounding Kirsty and her past comes to light and the girls have to help Harper realise before anything can happen to her, after all Kirsty likes shooting at the Clay pigeon's, would she shoot Harper?

You'll have to read it to find out what happens!

In the book, Harper is bisexual and rowan is lesbian, the sexual themes are unique as in older boarding school books I can't recall a same situation where it has been pointed out. Also, the girls are accepted and not outcast for being their true selves. It also shows that death can be a bonding opportunity over recent losses at the same time even though it's a bittersweet deal.

Cat Clarke has written another stellar book and is sure to be an essential teen read this year, pick it up when it's released!