Thank you for my copy of this book to review.

I’m a big fan of Ruth Ware and have read all of her previous work, so I was looking forward to this latest book.

However, it just really didn’t grip me. I didn’t particularly like any of the characters, I found the whole thing a bit slow and I really had to force myself to keep reading til the end.

I did enjoy the dual timeline and the college setting but this one, unfortunately, just wasn’t for me.

I have read some of Ruth Ware's books before but I would say this is the best by far. What a brilliant premise for a storyline. It totally blew me away and I was turning those pages so quickly to find out more. A thoroughly absorbing read.

Thanks to Netgalley et all for the opportunity to read this book I love Ruth Ware as a writer and was excited to read this. Unfortunately it wasn't for me. It wasn't as good as her other books & the story didn't grab my attention. The characters were a bit boring & I found it hard to care about them. It just wasn't as good as her other books which are superb.

With complex characters and a dark academic atmosphere, The It Girl is a clever and well-developed contemporary thriller.

The story is told over two timelines - before and after - as we get to know Hannah and her friends at university and understand their conflicts, ultimately leading up to the reveal of who killed April, why they had motive, and how they got away with it.

I find Ruth Ware such an intelligent writer. Her stories are always well constructed with fully-fleshed characters and plenty of development. The structure here works really well to build up suspense and I got a strong sense of each person, relationship, and of their surroundings. However, I wasn't as gripped as I usually am with her books.

I suppose my issue was that the plot felt similar to others I have read and the pace doesn't really pick up until the end. And while I did guess who did it and how, there were many possibilities so I still really enjoyed the build-up and action-packed ending.

Overall, I didn't love this but I do love Ware so I would definitely recommend this, especially if you love an academic setting and sleuthing mystery.

I love everything Ruth Ware writes, and this was no exception - expertly threading together the past and the present, I loved this peek behind the Oxbridge curtain. I really felt for Hannah as a character, and loved that the narrative through so many moral dilemmas her way. Not one to miss!

This book just blew me away. It was my qst time reading Ruth Ware and I will definitely be back to read more after this one. I loved the interesting and complex characters and although it was a but sloe in places, it got under my skin enough that I couldn't put it down and just had to find out what had happened. The twists and turns in this book are just another level and I loved every second of it

Although I didn't felt the characters were very interesting and the story started a bit slowly for me, it did kept me going to the end. Not the best I've seen from this author, but still an interesting read.
Thanks for the opportunity to read this ARC.

My first Ruth Ware book and I've no idea why it's taken me so long - twistier than a helter skelter!

When Hannah heads to Oxford she makes fast friends for life. There’s handsome Will who she is instantly attracted to, serious Emily , joker Ryan and studious Hugh. At the centre of the group is April- the It Girl who almost immediately becomes Hannah's best friend and who also happens to be Will's girlfriend. When April is murdered, Hannahs evidence helps convict the killer.

Fast forward 10 years and prompted by the death of April's killer, Hannah wonders if she got it right. Could the killer have been someone else? Now pregnant and married to Will, she tries to uncover what happened in that Oxford University room and everyone including her university friends are suspect….

Great story and I loved the setting of Oxford & Edinburgh. There’s something I love about being able to recognise the places mentioned in a book.

The plotting and pacing of this story was spot on. Tension and atmosphere builds as the chapters alternate between past and present day and I think this worked really well. I was so sure I had it all worked out several times but the twist definitely got me.

Will certainly be trying other books from this author

Huge thanks to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for the chance to read an early copy

This woman can really write. I was lucky enough to get this book from NetGalley and I’m so grateful! I love this author and know when I pick up one of her books the rest of my life standstill for a few hours every single day till I’ve read it. More books please !

THE IT GIRL by Ruth Ware
Published Date: 4 August 2022

Well....not sure where to start with this review! I was excited at the beginning, lost interest and then it was up and down till the end. Characters were annoying (is that good or bad?) Chapters move back and forth between present and ten years before in Oxford in the past and Edinburgh in the present., concerning a group of students and their life after Oxford. The writing style was not for me, I found my mind wandering.
Why was I continuing? Curiosity kept me going but my reading journey was not a happy one. I found the book too long.

I give a 3 start rating

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADVANCED COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

I have a particular soft spot for books set in Oxford, I blame my parents and their love of shows such as Morse, Lewis and Endeavour. So, I was rather excited to realise the the latest novel from Ruth Ware in partially set in the city.
There are two timelines to this novel: 'before' and 'after'. 'Before' refers to the events of approximately 10 years earlier when our protoganist Hannah was a first year student at a fictional school at Oxford University. Hannah finds herself a room of thr beautiful, talented and ultimate IT girl, April Coutts-Cliveden. April is easily the star of any room and through her, Hannah becomes friends with Will, Emma, Hugh and Rob.
The "Before' chapters as narrated by Hannah, chronicle vary events in their lives throughout the months leading to April's murder.
While the 'After' chapters are set in the present day: Hannah is married to Will, living in Edinburgh and expecting their first child. She has struggled to put the events of a decade previously behind her. Then she hears that John Neville, the man convicted of April's murder has died in prison. And once again, she is the subject of intense media interest.
Hannah has always struggled to recall exactly what happened that night but she does remember seeing Neville and he was convicted on her evidence. Now Hannah is starting to wonder and decides to reinvestigate the affairs of her time in Oxford. She quickly realises that her few memories may not be accurate at all.
This is a fast paced novel and I enjoyed the move from the past to the present as this technique gave the reader the opportunity to understand all of the actions of the characters and also the victim. Ware is the Queen of the plot twist and every time that I thought that I had guessed the truth, there was another unexpected twist to throw me!
A fun and twisty read.

I have been looking forward to this novel since I first knew about it and it didn’t let me down. Ruth Ware does write exciting novels that draw you in and hook you. This is another thriller that twists and turns, great characters and well written.

April Coutts-Cliveden and Hannah Jones met at Oxford and were very soon best friends. Together they formed a tight friendship with Will, Hugh, Ryan and Emily and were inseparable. But by the end of the second term, April was dead.

The novel is written from the two timelines of before and after April’s death.

Ten years after April’s death, Hannah is pregnant and together with Will are expecting their first child. John Neville who worked as a porter at the university was convicted of killing April but has recently died in prison. Hannah now feels she can let go of the bad memories but when a journalist contacts her to discuss new evidence that Neville may have been innocent it all starts again. Hannah makes contact with her old group of friends and discusses April’s tragic death which sparks fears that one of them may have something to hide, even murder.

I did enjoy the novel but didn’t feel it quite lived up to some of the previous novels by this author. Still very entertaining but I didn’t feel the grip held by her other books. Dragged a little at times but perhaps I am being too picky.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Hannah is happily married and expecting a baby with her husband will. Thing is, Will is her murdered best friend Aprils ex boyfriend. This isn’t a problem in the present day, but when April’s accused killer dies in prison, new information is brought to light. With this new info, Hannah starts to become unsure she actually named the right guy, and wonders why whether has she sent an innocent man to his death.
Only way to find out is to do some investigating of her own. But will she find more than she bargained for?

I’ll start off by saying I’m a massive Ruth Ware fan, and unfortunately this book didn’t do it for me. I did have high expectations as I love her writing, however the story fell flat. The first 50% I thought was boring, and didn’t grip me in any way. I felt Hannah’s character quite mundane, whilst Aprils very irritating. As for everyone else, they didn’t really make an impact at all. The big reveal was okay as reveals go, but nothing that hasn’t been done before.
I will still be reading her next novel as she is a fabulous story teller, this one just wasn’t for me.

I have read all of Ruth Ware’s thrillers and The Turn of the Key (2019) is an absolute favourite of mine so I was excited to get a proof of her upcoming novel.

The premise – a murder and a hedonistic group of friends at an elitist college – feels very The Secret History by Donna Tartt or The Lessons by Naomi Alderman so lacks some of Ware’s usual originality. Maybe its my general aversion to undergraduate halls life. I also missed getting a real sense of Oxford as a local: the action really unfolds inside the fictional Pelham college and you forget you’re in Oxford at all.

The characters are interesting and individualised and the plot does twist and turn. There isn’t much to like or sympathise in April though, who is far from an innocent victim and instead plays with lives and hearts at a whim.

Whilst I didn’t get the full motive right, unusually for a Ruth Ware novel I guessed the who and the when half way through and was so (correctly) convinced that it took the fun out of the rest of the read as I lost the thrill of the chase.

Whilst this was more of a hit than a miss for me and I didn’t rate One by One (2020) as highly as her first four novels, I’m still excited to see what Ruth Ware brings us next.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

“The It Girl” by Ruth Ware, tells a story of the murder of murder of a popular, pretty, and wealthy Oxford Student – April; through the lens of her suite-mate Hannah, who finds April murdered within their suite at the end of the first year at Oxford. Ten years later – now married to April’s ex-boyfriend – following the death of the accused and convicted murder reconsiders the night in question. The book therefore takes on a ‘cold-case’ aspect of the what if the murderer was wrongly convicted, more elaboration of the plot point (in this review) would ruin the story.

However, “The It Girl” was enjoyable read, well written and the dual timeline of before April’s Death and - after April’s Death / Hannah’s life a decade later in Edinburgh was well done. Ware does a good job of misdirection, and whilst planting seeds, I certainly was wrong with who I thought did it! The majority of the characters were relatively fleshed out and none of the friendship group characters were particularly deplorable but all of them had their moments.

A good read and a definite for fans of the genre!

My thanks to NetGalley and Simon and schuster Uk for a copy of “ The It Girl “ for an honest review.

I always look forward to a new book release by Ruth Ware and she never lets me down..
Her books are so readable , with well written characters and inventive and suspenseful plots.
I immediately felt involved in the storyline , and even though I didn’t want the book to end I couldn’t wait to see how it would finish.
I loved “The It Girl “ and it’s high on my list of recommendations for my library users.
Hopefully it won’t be too long for her next release.

I feel like this was a story I've read before, cold case being revisited by Central character and finding new info leading them to suspect everyone.
I enjoy Ruth Ware's writing enough to believe she would do it well.

By about half way through I was sure I knew who had done it, though not why.
Not unless you can kill someone for not being an annoying character. (Many have been killed for less I suppose)

I enjoyed the dual timeline, and the setting, and the close knit group of friends that slowly reveals maybe not so close knit.

It enjoyed it, but was never fully drawn in by it.

An absolute page turner going from the past to present. IT Girl April has it all, looks, money & a place at the most prestigious university in England, best friends who do love her. What could possibly go wrong?
Grab a nice cold drink, sit in the sun and prepare to not move for a while.
Thank you Netgalley & Ruth Ware for the advanced copy of this book

The It Girl is simply outstanding. It reads like a beautifully constructed puzzle and is surely Ruth Ware’s best book, although The Death of Mrs Westaway is right up there.

It is a murder mystery told through a Before and After structure in alternating chapters. The central character is Hannah: a student at Oxford University in the Before and an assistant in a bookshop in Edinburgh in the After.

Many years have passed since she came upon the murdered body of her friend in Oxford. Hannah is now married to Will, one of that same group of friends, and she is pregnant. But neither she nor Will have got over those events of many years before.

The story of the novel is triggered by the death in prison of the man convicted of the murder. A journalist is pursuing the story, testing the original evidence because he isn’t convinced that the right man was convicted.

April, the murdered girl, is an enigmatic figure. She is strikingly beautiful with a larger than life personality that draws people to her, but a powerful insecurity that she takes out on those around her. As the details of her last fortnight are revealed, it is clear that most of her friends had a motive to harm her.

The characters are drawn sensitively as the pieces of the puzzle emerge. Hannah, Will and Hugh are the main players and each is entirely credible. Ruth Ware somehow captures the essence of friendship in their loyalty to each other through the changes in their lives.

The settings of the novel are expertly described. Oxford scenes capture the surreal world of university in a place utterly removed from real life and yet existing in the middle of it. The insecurity felt by the students captures exactly the Oxford experience, where so many talented young people struggle with living up to the enormous expectations created by their success in winning a place. Ruth Ware’s characters are competitive and ambitious young people living with the ever present fear of failure. The novel evokes the end of innocence beautifully.

The Edinburgh scenes make the city emerge as a minor character in the novel. Anyone who knows Edinburgh, even as a tourist, will recognise the locations.

The novel builds to a dramatic climax and the reader remains unsure of the killer even as the final scenes play out. The final chapter lays bare the underlying motives at last. Like the best puzzles, this one makes perfect sense when you can see the whole picture. It’s masterfully done - sure to be one of the best novels of the year.

Hannah is friends with April at Oxford. The book is in two sections before and after the murder. Hannah has to question whether she has accused and had an innocent man convicted for a crime he didn't commit. Cleverly woven plot and you really feel you are in the friend's world. A book I couldn't put down. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.