Boys with Sharp Teeth is an eerie and gripping book about a girl who infiltrates the ivied gates of an elite school. Marin has lived in the shadows of Huntsworth Academy for years, but its not until her cousin is found dead that she steps into the limelight. She has a clear mission- to seek justice by getting close to Adrian Hargraves and Henry Wu, the two boys she blames for the death. But her mission is not quite as simple as she first thought. She is distracted by the dark secrets she uncovers and the boys themselves. Part murder-mystery, part thriller, part supernatural tale- this is a captivating dark academia story.

I enjoyed reading about the darkness inside of Huntsworth Academy and learning more about our main characters (or should I say suspects?). The book keeps you interested with plenty of plot twists and reveals. Both the protagonist and the reader are kept in the dark, so the book feels like a great puzzle that we have to solve. Similarly, Adrian and Henry are like riddles. Marin isn’t sure whether she wants to pull them close and solve them or shove them away from her and escape. This book is full of unhealthy but fascinating relationships.

However, I would say that the plot could be too convenient and predictable at times. For example, Marin (or ‘Jamie’) is conveniently placed close to all of her suspects at the start of the book. It’s also true that some of the clues that Marin finds make it quite easy to guess the direction of the plot. I often find in mysteries written for a YA audience that the author is too heavy handed with their foreshadowing. I like it more when they trust the reader to pick up on very subtle clues rather than repeating important information over and over again. But, once again, this writing style is characteristic of Young Adult mysteries.

I would recommend this book if you love dark books about mysteries, old institutions and obsession. There is also a hint of the supernatural for fans of fantasy books.

I am so disappointed lol.

This had so much potential but I did not like the execution at all nor did I like the ending or the characters. The writing is also very much not my cup of tea and felt like too much at times.

When Marins cousin, Sam, is found dead on the grounds of the illustrious Huntsworth Academy, she just knows the 'friends' he made while he worked there were responsible

So what does Marin too, the obvious, lies her way into the school year to infiltrate the group and find proof they killed Sam

However, she cannot do this as herself so goes in as Jamie Vane and finds herself immediately drawn to Henry, Graves and Baz

With the intent of getting in with them to get to the bottom as Sam's death, Marin (well Jamie actually) fits herself in the group in any way she can

But Marin could never expect what she would find, and to what end....

I loved the dark vibes of this, and fell in love with easy messy character here. I was invested with Marin but also drawn in like she was, not knowing what her new 'friends' were capable of

One of the MMCs being inspired by Hyunjin definitely made this an even better reading experience for me so sharing this fact incase you love it too!

Will be living in the vibes of this one for a bit!

Thank you to NetGalley and Scholastic for the review copy, all opinions my own

Despite being VERY hyped for this (loved the cover, description, and vibes - thought it was giving The Raven Boys... Sadly mistaken) This was a real miss. Characterisation was lacking, characters changed moods and opinions with little to know explantation, it felt like the author lost touch with who was who. The violence felt forced. The romance also felt forced. Definitely read as though the author felt no trust with her readers and could not allow any nuance or subtlety. Was so excited for it but unfortunately this was not for me. I will not be formally reviewing it beyond NetGalley.

This was a highly accomplished debut which kept me turning the pages right to the very end. I found myself thinking about the book in between reading sessions, eager to jump back in to Marin's/Jamie's, Henry's, Graves', and Baz's dark, emotive story. I saw this described somewhere as 'peak dark academia', and that certainly fits - I was reminded of The Secret History with its murder mystery, Saltburn with its imposter among the elites, and We Were Villains with its charismatic, complex characters. The author did an excellent job of making me care about the characters and want to know more about them, particularly Adrian. As a former BA and MA student of philosophy, I also personally loved the philosophical themes, quotes, and debates. My only issues with the book were 1) I felt it was longer than it needed to be, some scenes seemed to be making the same point and could be combined/cut, and overall it could perhaps have done with a firmer edit/cut, and 2) the supernatural aspects, while very cool. were slightly unclear to me. I would have liked a plainer explanation of what was going on there. OH - almost forgot - I LOVED the enemies-to-lovers romance. The chemistry between them was top-tier. Bravo!

🩵Boys with Sharp Teeth stars off impeccably, but the story descends into chaos. There was a bit too much chaos and it was a little too slow for my taste, but the opening academic tension was perfection. Please write more dark academia 🙏

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC.

The vibes were here, but the plot and characters disappointed me. Nearly all the characters felt flat and very one-dimensional, while the plot was predictable and lots of telling instead of showing. The writing gave gothic dark academia, but this book wasn't for me.

There is just something so gripping about a dark academia novel, and this one does not disappoint. With morally grey characters and beautiful prose, this book had me on the edge of my seat. It was tense and mysterious, and the fact that it was a debut novel still blows my mind.

Our main characters were written so well. They are incredibly flawed and messy, yet you find yourself loving them and depsite this. In their author's note, Howell touches upon this, and it was something that really resonated with me since reading it. I really liked getting to see the story unravel and seeing how each of them played their part.

This story is dark and gritty, with paranormal elements sprinkled throughout. I did not see a lot for the twists and turns coming, and I found myself hooked. Full of obsession and revenge, I absolutely recommend reading this one. Just make sure there are no mirrors nearby

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

✧ Dark Academia
✧ Paranormal
✧ Ghosts/phantoms
✧ Love/hate triangle


They are wicked. She is worse.
Welcome to Huntsworth Academy.

It was akin to a fevered reverie, a phantasm woven from delirium.

When I first saw any information about this book I was delighted, primarily because it falls into the genre of "dark academy", and there are not so many such books, in fact.

The main character, blinded by the idea of ​​revenge for her cousin who tragically died. Or… was he murdered? This book reminded me of The Secret History, in the best possible way.

In addition to the murder mystery that the main character is trying to solve, we encounter thoughts and reflections on the concept of death and life, as well as small references to classic, mostly philosophy as a subject. As someone who is studied Greek and Latin, seeing small phrases was very lovely. But despite this, the book is diluted with hilarious dialogues, so it never felt boring.

Morally gray characters

"All of us deserve to burn"

"Liars, every one of us"

Each hero is dark in his own way, but each of them does not have a typical "right morality" and in a modern setting this is revealed completely differently than in fantasy or other genres.
Both love interests are wicked (in different ways) and wild choices, and I don't even want to choose a side, because their love triangle of obsession is so weird, it is almost perfect.
Somewhere very deep down I hope for a possible polyamorous line between them, which would be very interesting to read about (for me).

The story theme develops correctly slowly, consistently absorbing and dragging on to know what is hidden behind the mask of each character, what is wrong with the ghosts that should not exist and how will this whole story end?

Speaking about the ending… Thanks for putting me through the meat grinder. I liked it.

I can't wrap my head around the fact that this is the author's debut.

The writing was SPECTACULAR, both dark and living for the drama, so detailed, so twisted. Absolutely amazing.
I think the story is perfect for those YA readers who love the dark academia ambience with morally grey characters and some mystery.

Although the author's writing pulls you right into the story, the plot feels somewhat slow and predictable if you've read more books of this genre. But if you enjoy stories that draw from *The Secret History* and are filled with lies and games, it's a good book to spend the afternoon with.

Unfortunately this book didn’t work for me. It took me longer than usual to finish the book due to the slow plot. The dark academia vibes were good, but could’ve been better. Furthermore, I found it strange at how such a renowned school accepted a cheque and a letter just like that?

It took some time for me to get into it and I felt that the MC’s POV might’ve been more interesting if other characters such as Henry or Graves’s POV was added aside from the prologue.

Thanks for the eARC! Hope fully this book works better for other readers.

Boys With Sharp Teeth is a fever dream of a book, and a reading experience I find hard to review, or even to articulate. I've never read anything quite like it. The prose is - there's no other word for it - feverish, the dialogue elegant and subtext laden, the character work rich and layered. It definitely won't be for everyone, but I loved it - and especially loved how clear it was that Howell is comfortable taking creative risks, and is trying to create ART with her writing rather than simply a commercial product. If this is her debut I can only anticipate the heights she'll fly to over the course of her career. I can't wait for her next book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

3.5 stars rounded up

Boys with Sharp Teeth is a vividly atmospheric story with a central murder mystery plot and speculative fiction elements. Using gorgeous prose and razor-sharp characterisation, Jenni Howell is an author to watch.

The first 40% of the book made me feel incredibly nostalgic. The main trio's interpersonal relationships and discussions of philosophy reminded me of my time reading John Green novels as a teenager (even though this story was of a totally different genre!). The setting of the boarding school only added to this, with lush descriptions allowing me to picture Huntsworth while I read.

After the halfway mark, I felt that the plot started to slow down and drag slightly. I can't pinpoint exactly why, but I felt less compelled to continue reading after such a strong start. However, the central mystery was interesting enough to pull me through to the explosive finale, which I enjoyed. Overall, this was a good read and a worthy addition to the dark academia genre.

DNF @26%

This book and my current mood and mental health situation don't go together. It's mostly because of the writing. It's hard to keep track of everything that's going on. It's hard to understand what is happening. These characters have discussions at an interesting intellectual level, but my mind is currently not healthy enough to keep up with it. Reading this book goes slow and I notice that my mind wanders and isn't focussed on the book. For now, which is fair towards the author and the publisher who granted me a review copy through Netgalley, and myself, it's better to not finish this book. I won't be able to experience it as it should be experienced, which means I won't be able to enjoy it. Maybe I will come back to this book in the future, maybe I won't. We will see if there's a moment my curiosity gets stronger than myself!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

When I saw the blurb say “When We Were Liars” meets “The Raven Boys” I knew I was cooked. Girl dinner for the romantasy/dark academia soul. I devoured this!!

Howell really said… here’s some beautiful, sad boys, now watch them burn. Twisty, delusional, and full of tension that you can taste. I was loving and loathing every character all at once—wanting a happy ending, wanting revenge, wanting Marin to burn it all down and walk away smiling.

The setting? GORGEOUS. Huntsworth Academy and that surrounding forest felt like a living, breathing thing. Isolated and eerie, like the real world just… stopped existing. Just vibes and consequences and plenty of broken mirrors 🪞.

Also—philosophy? She really gave us the existential dread we deserve. What is a dark academia book if it’s not flirting with death and questioning everything?

If you like your stories sharp, strange, and dripping in atmosphere and you are a huge fan like myself of The Raven Cycle series by Maggie Stiefvater … Boys With Sharp Teeth is ready for you to sink in to.

This was a dark and compelling read, it had me hooked right away with the gothic feel. I felt invested to find out the truth.

The writing was so atmospheric that I was completely sucked into the story. I had no idea what was going to happen next which kept me hooked. Described as a gothic/horror/dark academia, themes I don’t typically read, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this.

The story begins with ‘Jamie’ who arrives at Huntsworth, a boarding school for the rich, after her cousin Sam dies. She is determined to make those responsible for Sam’s demise pay. After carefully orchestrating herself in the lives of Baz, Henry and Graves, Jamie tries to figure out what happened the night of Sam’s death and why he was killed.

Initially, it was the cover which drew me to this book, it is stunning. The writing was so atmospheric that I was completely sucked into the story. I had no idea what was going to happen next which kept me hooked. Described as a gothic/horror/dark academia, themes I don’t typically read, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this.

Gorgeous writing with a Raven Boys esk story. This is less of a whodunnit and more of a whydunnit (very topical with the recent release of Adolescence).

I liked the setting, the characters and the general vibe. To be honest I can find dark academia A LOT. I am not a philosophy girly so I did appreciate the Tempest references because I knew what was going on but generally the vibes were good.

The main issue I had was with plot, I thought a lot was predictable and the bits that weren't made little sense and weren't explained well 🫣

I did have fun with this though so thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC

Thank you to Scholastic UK for providing an eARC via NetGalley. This is my honest review.

Buzzwords: dark academia, secrets, revenge, hidden identity, boarding school setting, secret notes, outcast main character, dark (surprise) ending, friendship group, flirts with the paranormal (not vampires)


Boys With Sharp Teeth is advertised as a dark academia mystery about a girl who secretly enters a boarding school to prove who killed her cousin, but she begins to be seduced by the killers as her lines for right and wrong blur. This is all true. It is a story of a girl who shouldn’t be at Huntsworth Academy. Part danger, part thrill to her. Yet, these feelings are ultimately clouded over by her grief. But something was underwhelming about this book as a whole. Whilst I admired the author’s natural skill with words and characters, providing a unique dark tone to the story, I’m not sure the lines ever got under my skin the way they should have.

Before we discuss my feelings in more depth, I need to start with a warning, if you will. This book features no vampires. I have seen it labelled as such under Goodreads. People saw a gothic mention of sharp teeth and their minds went straight to Edward Cullen. Alas, this is not this book. There is a paranormal aspect, but it is only tiny. I would describe it as paranormal vibes to bring forth morality vibes. Nothing deeper than a peck
on the cheek. No teeth; you’ve been warned.

“Only shame, the poisonous tip to grief’s arrow, sinking deep in my centre.”

This book is about a normal girl, Marin James, aka Jamie. She grew up in a small town, feeling distant from most people. She was an outsider. Her cousin was the only one who brought her out of herself. The one who wanted to know her and be known by her. When he dies and the justice system fails to hold the killers accountable, she decides to take matters into her own hands.

As with many YA mystery stories, people question how teenagers get roped into crime scenes and murderers. Boys With Sharp Teeth provides a girl in deep grief with an air of hopelessness that leads her straight into becoming roomies with the murderer. This terrible decision is one that I could potentially believe a teen would make. After all, the confidence of not being wrong is likely to be found in youth, and her careless attitude towards her own life and future can excuse the foolhardiness of this decision. However, I did find it hard to relate to her calm demeanour in these situations. Any risk to her life was merely a passing thought, and Marin never seemed to doubt what could happen next. For the main character, she almost felt dead inside with little emotional impact. This is ultimately the biggest downside to this novel. If she felt more present, whether in anger, bitterness or sadness, I think it would have strengthened my reading experience.

Marin James fulfills her outsider identity by being the newbie (and impersonator) to the other students. The Huntsworth Academy students, specifically three of them. With the love of eat-the-rich* stories and Pinterest’s resounding devotion to the Dead Poets’ Society aesthetic, this group held the power. Both for the story and the audience.
*eat-the-rich: specifically, the new version. To dine luxuriously on their lives before taking everything they have. Breath, soul, wealth. Admire and devour. Love-to-Hate. Hate-to-Love.

Henry Wu – the one with the extravagant leader-type personality, is free from the shackles of societal constraint. He finds true feeling in the outrageous.
Adrian Hargraves – the moody biker boy with a shaved head and leather jacket. All emotions are hidden but real, aka depth. Arguably a version of “Ronan Lynch” but with a missing backstory. If found, please return.
Baz Hallward – the people pleaser. She goes with the flow for ease, potentially the most genuine of them all? Not a boy with sharp teeth, but a girl with kind eyes? Unfortunately, it did not get her a place on the cover.

It was clear the novel’s purpose was not a mystery to solve but to experience the dangerous game Marin (aka Jamie) has entered with these characters and the seduction of the academy itself. Through her, we experience these characters, fed by her biased opinion of believing them to be murderers.

The lure of the story is the emotional tension from her investigation of each character. Rather than the investigation itself or the fear for her life (clearly too basic), the palpable feeling of the tension draws readers in. It is a living thing that circles the characters, bringing, no, forcing, them closer. The intimacy of a lover paired with the hate of an ex, all to be found in the eyes of a stranger. It is this energy that the book truly celebrates. This proximity to danger provided the thrill and rewrote the tone of darkness for a YA mystery. Marin James was not letting them go. The pages were dipping with lines that showcased this specific kind of tension.

“I hate how not a single inch of him escapes my notice.”

I thought the author had a knack for crafting this atmosphere, but I’m still waiting for the substance to back it up. Many lines would catch my eye on social media and make me want to know more, but this feeling of wanting lasted until the very last page.

The characters feel real in how they handle themselves and react, but the backstories and depth were missing. The person behind the mask was never really shown, as if the book was too in love with their shroud of mystery to ever uncover it. The same can be said for the main character, to an extent. As mentioned earlier, her emotional presence was lacklustre. However, as the book went on, we got more from her. Glimmers into her past and her desires. How she viewed herself and what she wanted from other people. These parts were slowly uncovered and proved that Howell has the potential to write rich characters, but this book didn’t cross the line for me.

“I thought I wanted a dissertation, enough words to match mine one for one, to prove their worth by striving to outdo them, but it turns out all I really needed was to be seen, and wanted.”

Boys With Sharp Teeth is a change of pace for YA mystery stories and sticks to its own path. It created intimate tension with ease (but it is not a romance story (for that I personally say “thank you, thank you)) and began to delve into a darker main character (it’s not always about doing what is right, but making the justice she wants). These highlights are exciting in their own way, but they don’t make up for some crucial elements needed for a strong execution. The missing character aspects, an all-too-obvious surprise reveal, and the failure to create sufficient ebbs and flows in the story made this book forgettable.