In the author’s bio, she comments on having discovered Agatha Christie in her teens, and you can see that reflected in this book. The ‘cosy crime’ vibe that makes Christie so popular is well captured, and turned into a young adult novel, perfect for those first entering the murder mystery department as well as long standing sleuths.

Jess is a very likable character, and I felt a lot in common with her. I am white, however I was also a scholarship student at a major private school, and the pressures to do and be everything perfect was huge. I could relate hugely to that aspect of her struggles, and it was a total throw back to being a teenager all over again (although thankfully there were no murders to solve in my year!). In this case, it puts her at both an advantage and disadvantage for investigating: it works in her favour as she can exist in the back ground, but puts her at a loss trying to get other students to speak to her.

The dynamics that shift and change throughout the pages, with the discoveries made and suspicions growing are fascinating, and well plotted. The characters feel real, as do the ways in which they behave and react, in all their eccentricities and flaws. Guron’s clever writing makes this an accessible, intriguing mystery, leaving you to wonder at the darker side of academia, and what exactly people might be willing to kill for.

Overall, this was an easy, enjoyable read, and one that will certainly go down on the list of books – and authors – to watch when it comes to young adult mysteries. A very welcome addition to the shelves, and I look forward to what the author produces next.

*4.5 Stars*

Jess Choudhary is one of the two students of her year with a scholarship, she's always felt like an outsider but, at least, she has her best friend, Clem.
When the richest and most popular guy in their year, Hugh Henry Van Boren, gets murdered and Jess's story is used as inspiration for it, she has to do whatever she can to find out what happened. Especially since Hugh was Clem's boyfriend and death threats are coming Jess's way…

What's better than a boarding school story? A murder mystery in a boarding school of course!!
I really liked that story. I really do enjoy books set in boarding schools and this one was a good one. It did take me some time to fully get immersed in it but once I was in, I was IN. I finished it at like 4am, I could not stop reading. I just had to know and that's the sign of a good mystery. I kept guessing at it, but I wasn't sure until the actual reveal. I also loved how the main character was layered and so interesting from the very first chapter. She also grew a lot throughout the book and I loved that.
The book also talked a lot about racism, social status and how we should eat the rich (not really but kinda) and I loved that. It truly brought yet another layer to this.
To summarize, this had a very good plot, a great main character, interesting secondary characters and great multiple intrigues. I really loved it and I think you would too.

Why oh why didn’t I read this book sooner??
It’s phenomenal!
I’ve not read many YA Murder Mystery books, but I love the whole murder mystery genre and this book is up there with the best of them! (Well, in my opinion, anyway!)

This is fantastically written. I was hooked from the start.
Immediately I adored Jess. She is witty, shy, unassuming and likeable. It felt like I was in a race against time WITH Jess to solve the murder before she became the next victim.

This is a story full of twists, turns, scandals, corruption and plenty of red herrings.
Yet amongst all this we also see beautiful new friendships forming and character growth.

The characters are brilliant. I love how it shows the ever changing nature of people. That we are different versions of ourselves depending upon the company. This is very clever and plays a key role in unraveling the mystery.

One aspect that was so unique was just before the reveal you get asked about who you think the killer is. Not only is there a dedicated area for you to write your thoughts down, but also a QR code where the author does a recap of key points to refresh your memory before deciding who YOU think killed Hugh. I loved this. It made it even more immersive. Putting you firmly in the role of amateur sleuth.

Honestly, I cannot recommend this book enough. Next time I’m in town I’ll be buying myself a physical copy.

Thank you, NetGalley & Usborne Publishing, for the arc in return for an honest review.

I really struggled to engage with This Book Kills and I thought I would love it as it ticks so many of my boxes. But I couldn't connect to the voice at all.

Trigger and Content Warnings: Death, Murder, Car Accidents, and Racism.

This review may contain spoilers.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley, however, this in no way influenced my opinion. Thank you to the publisher Usborne Publishing for providing me with a copy.

The premise of ‘This Book Kills’ is what drew me to it, so I requested it on Netgalley and I was so happy to be approved. This was a great read, from the very beginning I was drawn into this story and the characters. My favourite aspect of this was definitely the plot, it was gripping, and the pacing was great, I also found this hard to put down as I wanted answers about what happened to Hugh. Honestly, I had a few theories about who killed Hugh and none of them were right, the plot twist in here took me by complete surprise and I was heartbroken for Jess when she found out the truth. Another aspect of this that I loved was the writing style, it was very humorous which gave us an insight into Jess's character which made the reading experience even better. I also really loved Jess, our main character, as I previously mentioned the writing style of this book gave us an insight into her humorous and sarcastic character. This book also deals with some very important topics including classism, privilege and racism.

Overall, this was a fantastic YA Mystery/Thriller novel with an interesting premise that drew me in from the beginning and a humorous writing style. I will definitely be reading more of this author's work in future.

Jess Choudhary is a student at the exclusive Heybuckle school. As one of the few scholarship pupils she is under no illusions that she fits in- Indian, from a poor family, but very bright! However she is aware of the advantages she has been given & tries to keep her head down! She is pretty much a loner apart from Clementine- an outgoing & amusing member of her year. When Hugh Henry Van Boren- one of the richest & prominent of the students is found dead in the woods Jess finds herself in the spotlight. Along with another pupil she had written an assignment & the murder scene was exactly the way Hugh was found! It's going to take some explaining!

I loved this book! Jess was an amazing narrator & the characters were many and varied (I could have done with a few less hyphenated names!) I did guess 'whodunit' as it approached the end but that did not detract from the huge enjoyment I got from this book. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book- it was a cracker!

I enjoyed the book and I think the mystery aspect was well done in the first half of the book. During the second half it became quite obvious who had done it so the reveal was not surprising.

When I say I loved this book, I loved this book! It had me hooked from the very first page and I just haven’t been able to get it out of my head! It has been flying off the shelves - so it clearly can’t be just me!
Highly recommend this mystery!

A decent murder mystery needs an interesting hook to lure the reader in, and Guron has created something a bit different in this tale of privilege. The idea of a piece of creative writing being the inspiration for a murder of a classmate is deliciously dark and very compelling. I liked how swiftly Jess pivoted from inspiration, to a potential victim while she plays at being a detective, trying to unravel the truth as danger lurks ever closer.

Some of the students of the school grated on my nerves, more than I think was expected, as they felt more of a pastiche than genuine people in Jess’s world. This was a distraction as it kept bursting the bubble of the world within in the pages. The plot twists were good and will delight the target audience. Jess was a decent character that you really feet for throughout, however the school was such a dreadful place that I was urging her to leave.

I wanted to give this a higher rating, but overall it felt uneven with the subplots and supporting characters.

Welcome to a very exciting review! I was SO EXCITED to receive this book, and it didn't disappoint! This is a YA murder mystery, guaranteed to shock you and keep you intrigued until the very last pages. I had very high expectations for this book, as it was marketed as being for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen. M. McManus, the murder mystery queens of YA. I love their books, and if Ravena Guron continues on this track then she will be joining them!

Firstly, the pacing of this book is absolutely spot on. I could not put it down and there were so many twists and turns so I was always second guessing the facts that had been presented. The writing was great, and the story really well laid out.

Jess as a main character was just wonderful. She is flawed and in a society where she is in the minority, in several ways. This book really plays on prejudice and expectations and I loved that. The way that the plot is influenced by diversity and privilege at an elite boarding school added a real part to the story. Jess really develops as a character, going from a quiet girl to a young woman with a story to tell and an opinion to speak.

One of my favourite parts of the book was where there was a section to write who you think the murderer is. I stopped to have a think and just didn't know at this point (I'm really not the best investigator!), but I remember thinking "well, it can't be ------, -------- or ---------", and of course one of them turned out to be the murderer. I was completely in awe of the way this was done and just wanted to reread the whole book to finally see the breadcrumbs.

Something else that I really appreciated was the way that the side characters also had their say and played just as important a role. I also loved the romance and the way that the whole story threads together.

From a few other reviews that I have read, the setting didn't seem realistic to some, but to me, this was an accurate representation of private schools in the UK. I have a friend who goes to a private school, which from the front literally looks like a castle or mansion! I have also had interactions with students from private schools in my area at a competition and some of them do have that air of entitlement and feeling of being above others, which was definitely represented in the novel.


Ravena is a powerful new voice in YA murder mysetery and definitely one to watch - I will be!

CW: racism, death, mentions of suicide,

Rating 4.5 stars

"We're going to be fine, because we're going to outsmart them. We can do this, Jess, together."

This Book Kills is a fantastic rollercoaster of a book that follows the murder of a high-class boarding school student, Hugh and a secret elite society that needs to be stopped before they do more harm to the school, and its students, than good.

Jesminder (Jess) Choudhary, the main character, is on a scholarship at this school and is stunned to hear how the student died when it is exactly like the story that she and her co-author and co-scholarship student, Summer wrote for their Gifted and Talent class.

But when the police get involved, as well as anonymous text messages being sent Jess's way, thanking her for the method of murder and threatening that she is a target, can the police find the suspect in time or will Jess have to get her own hands dirty and put herself at risk to discover the truth?

This murder mystery is set to keep you on your toes and keep flicking to the next page. There were so many twists I didn't expect and I was baffled by the ending. On top of the murder mystery, this book talks about diversity and privilege in a school where rich kids don't have to worry compared to Jess and Summer who are on scholarship and have to be careful with everything they do.

But now here is the question, can you solve the mystery of who killed Hugh, or will it be too late?

I really enjoyed that there was an interactive part in this book to try and take notes and figure out the murderer for yourself. It was a fun addition!

This will be a definite reread for me as I want to see if I can spot any of the clues after now knowing who killed the student all along!

Thank you so much to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review. I genuinely hope that the author Guron has plans for writing more books because her style is very addictive and I would love to read more from her in the future!

this book kills is a unique and exciting addition to the diverse young adult thriller canon of books, and is perfect for fans of books such as one of us is lying. admittedly, at times it felt like some of the characters and dialogue were too comically written, and the aspects on class/sexism were not as neatly incorporated into such a vast storyline as they could have been— but given that this is a middle grade/young adult novel I think the plot points overall were really interesting, and there is undoubtedly lots to keep you hooked from start to finish. jess is also an easily likeable main character, and it was great to see a wide cast of side characters that who all played such prominent parts over the course of the novel. 3.5✨

a really nice paced thriller which however did have the cliche scholarship girl in a rich school trope but brought a completely new story.
every moment in the story had me gripped and the ending left me shocked !!!
this is for anyone who enjoys a fun little , will keep you at the edge of your seat ya thriller .

For any readers who enjoy Karen McManus' novels, this is another title to be enjoyed and I would thoroughly recommend it as a read.

I did think that the main characters were quite stereotyped to start with (poor scholarship v rich entitled), though they developed and there were lots of interesting plot twists that I did not see coming. I was not keen on the school setting and did not always find the way it was described to feel authentic, though it worked and some of the story would not have been possible without it. It is hard to believe that with so many murders the school would have been allowed to continue educating and housing its population. The three way relationship between Clem, Millie and Hugh felt clunky, too.

Jess and Summer's story was a little too convenient for the motivation for the murders which take place, but it does offer a good distraction technique.

If you like school based murder with amateur detectives, this is definitely a story you will enjoy. Lots of cliches and coincidences but also some entertaining well-plotted twists.

I loved this YA murder mystery so much and I'm very proud of myself for figuring out who the killer is (even though I couldn't figure out the motive, but we won't talk about that 😬)!

I loved every part of this book, from trying to figure out who the killer is, to the discussions of diversity in environments where the majority of people are very well off, to the consideration of toxicity of wealth in families. Ravena's writing is incredible and engaging, and her character development was so spot on and satirical.

When the killer is revealed you can connect all the dots, I think this would be a fantastic book to re-read and see all the hints you'd missed before. I can't wait to read what else Ravena publishes, this book was so brilliant!

Shout out to this fantastic cover, I haven't seen a YA cover this fantastic in a long time!

Thank you again NetGalley, Ravena Guron and Usborne Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Just finished reading This Book Kills by @RavenaGuron on #NetGalley, & OooOoo was it a page turner! I had guessed who it was though #SmugFace #UKYA @Usborne

Blog post on TeenLibrarian

Wow, this was an incredible debut novel!

This Book Kills is a fantastic murder mystery set in a boarding school. It follows Jess as one of her classmates is killed but its a murder she planned, her short story was stolen and now she is a suspect. This book is a perfect mystery, if you are a fan of a good girls guide to murder. It is full of twists and turns and I did not see the ending coming at all (I was in shock) The plot is so well written and relationships in general are so well displayed.

Thanks to Usborne Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC

"This book kills" will definitely have shelf appeal for Teen and YA readers. A decent murder mystery with plenty of plot twists, a scattering of red herrings and a variety of characters, both likeable and thoroughly dislikeable. While the story is at it's heart a murder mystery, the plot contains many more themes than just that. This includes the pervasiveness of the British class system today, privilege of both wealth and race, coercive control and toxic friendships, which could have come across as very heavy for young people to read about. However, due to the setting of the book (an elite boarding school in England), these issues appear in the book quite naturally and without being forced. The way that the main character faced and dealt with some of these issues was nicely depicted, especially the toxic friendship that she shared with her best friend and the way that looking back at the friendship with the benefit of hindsight at the end of the book highlighted the coercive and interdependent nature of the entire relationship.

Overall, I did enjoy this murder mystery, although there were moments where sadly the tension and suspense fell away or was broken. This would be enjoyed by those readers who cannot get enough of murder mystery novels at the moment.

When Jess is tasked with a story writing task at her boarding school she never dreams that her murder mystery will be used as inspiration for a real life murder. When one of her classmates is found dead Jess is determined to find out what happened, especially when she realises that the police aren't investigating properly and other students are at risk.

I don't read a lot of young adult novels as I find they sit in a bit of a grey area - they aren't childrens books but also aren't adult books. I know this is stating the obvious, but it's something that I struggle with as a reader, so avoid more often than not. That said the blurb for this one intrigued me so I had to give it a go.

I think Ravena Guron has done a brilliant job with this one. I found the characters relatable, although a lot of them weren't overly likeable. Jess is a great protagonist though, Guron does a great job of showing how she struggles to fit in with the rich kids and those who don't care about their grades.

There's some quite severe bullying discussed throughout this book, and for the most part the perpetrators all get away with it. It's not physical violence, but still has a strong impact - I've always hated bullies, and some of the characters in this book evoked a powerful reaction.

I paricularly liked the section towards the end of the book where readers are given a chance to solve the murder themselves, by scanning a QR code and entering a competition. I'm not sure if that will be an arc thing only or whether it will be there on publication day, but it was something different. I had no idea who the killer was though, too many red herrings!

The one thing that didn't sit too well with me was the romance aspect. I did see that coming, but almost would have preferred if it didn't. That's vey likely a me thing though - I have an issue with books always feeling the need to have some romance in them, I find it often feels forced or unnatural. I think this one would have been just fine without it.

All in all a great read though, and one I expect to see hitting the socials hard over the next month or so.

Thanks to NetGalley and Usborne Publishing for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

A simple writing assignment has devastating repercussions for Jess, as the school's alpha male is murdered in the exact circumstances imagined in her story. A playful whodunit, exacerbated by the usual school angst of bullying, privilege, popularity young love and friendship. Jess has the brains, but will she be a match for the power of the elite and is she prepared to put her academic career at risk by uncovering the truth.

An enjoyable page turner that will be enjoyed by fans of Karen McManus