The Society For Soulless Girls
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- Create Date：2022-07-22 09:51:35
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Laura Steven
- ISBN：1405296933
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Summary
A dark and funny YA thriller with a supernatural twist。 From the winner of the Comedy Women in Print Prize
Ten years ago， four students lost their lives in the infamous North Tower murders at the elite Carvell College of Arts， forcing Carvell to close its doors。
Now Carvell is reopening， and fearless student Lottie is determined to find out what really happened。 But when her roommate， Alice， stumbles upon a sinister soul-splitting ritual hidden in Carvell’s haunted library， the North Tower claims another victim。
Can Lottie uncover the truth before the North Tower strikes again？ Can Alice reverse the ritual before her monstrous alter ego consumes her？ And can they stop flirting for literally fifteen seconds in order to do this？
Exploring possession and ambition， lust and bloodlust， femininity and violence， The Society of Soulless Girls is perfect for fans of Ace of Spaces， The Secret History and The Inheritance Games。
Ten years ago， four students lost their lives in the infamous North Tower murders at the elite Carvell College of Arts， forcing Carvell to close its doors。
Now Carvell is reopening， and fearless student Lottie is determined to find out what really happened。 But when her roommate， Alice， stumbles upon a sinister soul-splitting ritual hidden in Carvell’s haunted library， the North Tower claims another victim。
Can Lottie uncover the truth before the North Tower strikes again？ Can Alice reverse the ritual before her monstrous alter ego consumes her？ And can they stop flirting for literally fifteen seconds in order to do this？
Exploring possession and ambition， lust and bloodlust， femininity and violence， The Society of Soulless Girls is perfect for fans of Ace of Spaces， The Secret History and The Inheritance Games。
Reviews
sophie mowbray ੈ♡˳
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omg this was amazing！！！！ i loved every second
joschki m
，
3。5
Chloe P-H
，
。5
Joanne
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4。5 Stars。Trigger and content warnings are under spoiler tags。（view spoiler）[ Trigger/Content Warnings: This book features blood， references to using "smudge" sticks （instead of smoke cleansing）， ableism， drug use， sexism， reinforcement of gender roles/stereotypes， animal cruelty， animal death， sexual harassment， reference to rape and paedophilia， intimate partner violence， and suicide。 （hide spoiler）]When The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven was first announced， I knew I had to rea 4。5 Stars。Trigger and content warnings are under spoiler tags。（view spoiler）[ Trigger/Content Warnings: This book features blood， references to using "smudge" sticks （instead of smoke cleansing）， ableism， drug use， sexism， reinforcement of gender roles/stereotypes， animal cruelty， animal death， sexual harassment， reference to rape and paedophilia， intimate partner violence， and suicide。 （hide spoiler）]When The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven was first announced， I knew I had to read it。 A sapphic supernatural thriller meets dark academia retelling of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde？ It's absolutely right up my street！ And I bloody loved it！Carvell Academy for the Arts was closed ten years ago after the unsolved murders of four students。 One of those students， Janie， was known to Lottie's parents， and her death rocked their community。 Lottie has grown up with feeling the impact of Janie's death on those around her， so when Carvell opens it's doors once again， Lottie is determined to go。 She wants to investigate the murders， find out what really happened， and get justice for Janie， but on top of that， it's such a prestigious school， and it's classes are legendary， and she's excited to study English Literature there。 Alice wants to be a judge， and so decides to attend Carvell for it's Philosophy classes， to learn how to think。 She's always been a bit prickly， quick to anger and snap at people， with violent urges， and awkwardly saying the wrong thing and alienating people。So when Lottie and Alice first meet after discovering they're roommates， they don't get off to a good start。 But then strange things start happening。 Lottie starts sleep walking， and always finds herself at the foot of the North Tower， from which the murder victims were pushed， scrabbling around in the dirt， trying to get in。 Even when she's awake， she feels drawn to the tower in a way that has little to do with her investigation， and has waking dreams of an older woman， illuminating manuscripts， and so much pain。 After one sleepwalking episode， she wakes up in pain around her neck; a ruby from the statue of Sister Maria had imbedded itself in her neck。 She starts to wonder if she's being haunted by the North Tower。Meanwhile， Alice realises she's not making any progress with her fresh start and making new friends。 She keeps insulting people， or pushing them away。 When looking for philosophy books for class， she discovers another book， one about soul purification， of a ritual nuns in the past to rid themselves of their anger。 After a few weeks of feeling like there's something wrong with her， she decides to do the ritual， and make the tincture。 But after taking it， following being wracked with excruciating pain and seizures， she feels positively murderous。 She blacks out for several hours， and when she comes to， a student， Poppy， has been killed。 Just like ten years before; pushed from the top of the North Tower。 Lottie is scared she might be next， with how she's drawn to the tower - has the tower chosen her as it's next victim？ Alice is terrified it may have been her， because of the hours she can't remember。 But the ritual worked， she's no longer angry; in fact， she feels almost cut off from negative feelings。 Until it starts to wear off， and her anger comes back faster and stronger， and with the desire to kill。The Society for Soulless Girls is such an incredible story！ I was hooked right from the very first page; Steven's writing is atmospheric and ethereal， pulling you under it's spell， creating a mysterious tension you can't turn away from。 The whole dark academia vibe worked so well with this story， Carvell Academy is just fantastic。 It has such a rich history in once being a convent where a nun， Sister Maria died， falling from the North Tower， and then it's more recent history， of the murders that mirror Sister Maria's death。 As a setting， with all these old religious buildings being reused for the academy， it just adds brilliantly to the atmosphere。 The uni itself is just amazing; I adored the English Lit and Philosophy classes we got to see。 They just sounded so awesome， and being a prestigious arts university， there's the sense of being around intellectually brilliant people。 I just really revelled in it， it was so fascinating， and even though they're background to the main story， I learnt so much from those classes。 There was this really awesome meta moment， too， when Jekyll and Hyde is discussed in Lottie's Gothic Literature classes。 It was just so awesome。I absolutely loved both Lottie and Alice。 I was so intrigued by what was going on with Lottie， considering it seemed obvious Alice was the Jekyll/Hyde character。 What was going on？ Why did she have this constant pull to the tower？ How the hell did a ruby end up in her neck， and how on Earth is it controlling her？ What does she get up to when she's sleepwalking， and what are these waking dreams she keeps having？ And then there's Alice。 I've never read the original story， but I know the basic plot points for Jekyll and Hyde， and it was so interesting to see what Steven did with it。 What is the tincture doing？ Did Alice kill Poppy？ （Or was it even Lottie？） And why does she seem to get worse when it starts to wear off？ Alice is terrified of what's happening to her， because she's so much worse than before。 At least she understood her anger before， but now it's uncontrollable， almost as if something is taking over， and she struggles so much to fight it。 It's absolutely gripping！ There are so many questions， and so few answers， and the more the story progresses， the tighter the tension gets。 Even if Alice didn't kill Poppy， she's likely to kill someone soon。I loved the relationship between Lottie and Alice。 It's only when Alice starts to lose control in front of Lottie， and seeks her help to take the tincture again， that the two confide in each other what's happening to them both。 They form an uneasy alliance in trying to figure out what's happening to them， and who the killer is。 While Lottie worries that Alice killed Poppy at first， there are things that just don't add up。 She's still suspicious， and Alice can't really blame her， but also can't trust her because Lottie may still be investigating her and turn on her。 It's such an awkward and scary situation to be in; they need each other， but they don't trust each other。 But they're both so intellectually smart， and the story itself is so clever， it's wonderful seeing them work together to figure things out， alongside new friend Hafsah。 There's is the slowest of slow burn romances， for obvious reasons， but it was just so gorgeous - especially because Alice is so insecure about herself because of her prickly nature and how she tends to push people away unintentionally， and doesn't feel she's deserving of love。 I just adored the two of them growing closer， despite their misgivings about each other， and with how it was literally dangerous to be in each other's company。 And it's so tropey！ We have athlete/non-athlete， grump/sunshine， enemies to lovers， there's only one bed， hurt/comfort， and maybe others I've missed。 It feels like that should be far too many， and you may potentially be worried about the quality of the story as it may seem like it's trying to tick boxes， but Steven does such a fantastic job of weaving these seamless story together， and it all feels so natural。 And I suppose the focus is more on the enemies to lovers and grump/sunshine tropes because of their personalities and the situation they find themselves in。 Their relationship is just so wonderful。I also really liked the feminist angle of this story。 Ultimately， it's about women and anger， and how angry women are seen。 How it's been believed that anger and aggression were typically male qualities。 How women who weren't calm and quiet and placid have been treated historically; how an angry woman is somehow unnatural， not normal。 And how women's anger， and what that can lead to， is the result of the silencing of women。 How Alice literally thinks there's something wrong with her because she's prickly and so quick to anger。 That she would do better in the world if she could just turn her anger off。 And， surprising to absolutely no-one， it made me so angry。 The Society for Soulless Girls has so much to say on this topic， and I tabbed so many quotes！ There's a whole few chapters towards the end that were just so brilliant， and had me nodding along fiercely。 The ending as a whole just had me raging so much。 When we get to the reveal and we discover what's going on， oh my god， I was so bloody mad。 But it was so brilliantly done， and so clever。 I just loved it。I did have a few quibbles。 I feel the character of Hafsah was underdeveloped。 It's difficult to discuss without spoiling elements of the story， but it kind of felt like she was just there to give another possibility， and someone for Alice to relate to， and a reason for Lottie not to completely doubt Alice。 I know that's vague， but I can't really explain further。 But there would be times when whole scenes would happen， and you would forget she was even there until she says something towards the end of a conversation。 I do feel she was kind of done a disservice。 And then there were times when Lottie and Alice would discover things or figure things out separately， and the conversations where they updated each other were off page between chapters。 I can understand not wanting the reader to read again and again of things they already knew being repeated， but it did mean that we didn't see what the other's reactions to things were。 They're both experiencing weird supernatural things， so it's easier for them to accept things their told， but I feel like even so， there would still be moments of freaking out and， "Hold on， how is this even happening？！" Moments were they were just overwhelmed， or struggling to take things in because it's a lot。 We never really saw that， not when information was shared， we only got how the individual reacted when they discovered something。 For example， there's a chapter when Lottie works something out and comes up with a plan， and the next chapter is from Alice's perspective when they're putting that plan in motion， we don't see Lottie tell Alice and Hafsah， how they react to the new information， what they think of the plan， or any other kind of discussion。 I would have preferred to have seen more of that。But in all， I absolutely adored The Society for Soulless Girls！ It was atmospheric and mysterious， gripping and tense， and even quite frightening in places。 It was such a brilliant， brilliant story， and I can't recommend it enough！ This is the first book I've read by Steven， and I'm so excited to pick up her other books now。 I'll be starting with The Love Hypothesis， her other sapphic YA。 Read this book， it's incredible！ 。。。more
KateAnna
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Weird。。。 and I want an explanation on the cat 😂 Disappointed with the （lack of） content of romantic relationship but the mystery and growing friendship（S） was good， I did read it in one sitting as it’s one of those books I just needed answers immediately， don’t start reading if you have anything other than reading planned
Emily Sarah
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Sapphic， dark academia， Jekyll and Hyde retelling？ Sign me TF up ✨3。8 stars ⭐️ This story was UGH， everything。 I can’t tell you how hard it is finding sapphic dark academia so when I found this I jumped on it like Edward Cullen when Bella gets a paper cut。 The Jekyll and Hyde inspo was really awesome to see， it’s interwoven so effortlessly and I really appreciate the way the author blends feminist themes through the original tale。 It’s incredibly smart and just a breeze to read。 We’ve got colleg Sapphic， dark academia， Jekyll and Hyde retelling？ Sign me TF up ✨3。8 stars ⭐️ This story was UGH， everything。 I can’t tell you how hard it is finding sapphic dark academia so when I found this I jumped on it like Edward Cullen when Bella gets a paper cut。 The Jekyll and Hyde inspo was really awesome to see， it’s interwoven so effortlessly and I really appreciate the way the author blends feminist themes through the original tale。 It’s incredibly smart and just a breeze to read。 We’ve got college roommates， enemies to lovers， a shared bed trope with a prominent WLW romance that’s just there in the peripheral making you grin like an idiot。 （I’m obvi a total sap。） Blend that with witchcraft and spooky academy vibes and well， that was me sold。 Both MC’s are WLW， and the main romance in the book is sapphic centred。 TW’s listed below （skip if you don’t want vague spoilers。） TW//CW// SA themes （no heavily described scenes though） Mention of SA of minor （Brief）， Suicide mentions， Depression， Harm to animal， Police interrogation scenes， Grooming mentions， Strangulation， Violence， Scene with vomiting， Gaslighting。 。。。more
Liv
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added a star for Lottie and Alice's relationship added a star for Lottie and Alice's relationship 。。。more
alessia ೃ༄
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i love how this book portrays and discusses female rage and how the world we live in keeps making us think that to be angry as a woman is basically wrong and considered as madness。 plus the dark academia setting and the sapphics make this book even better ！！
Annine
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Really enjoyed this！ I liked the characters， I liked the plot， I liked the study of women's/girls' anger。 Dark academia， with sapphic and demisexual rep。 CW: killing of an animal， suicide Really enjoyed this！ I liked the characters， I liked the plot， I liked the study of women's/girls' anger。 Dark academia， with sapphic and demisexual rep。 CW: killing of an animal， suicide 。。。more
Riley
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I really wanted to like this book more than I did。 The pros:- The mystery aspect is well-imagined。 Right when I was about to give up on this book， that’s what sucked me in enough for me to finish it。- I admired the parallels within this retelling of Jekyll and Hyde。 I’m a sucker for literary reimaginings， especially when integral constructs are twisted on their heads。 - I enjoyed that it’s not a modern retelling， but based in what I assume to be the early 2000s。 It fit the story well and added a I really wanted to like this book more than I did。 The pros:- The mystery aspect is well-imagined。 Right when I was about to give up on this book， that’s what sucked me in enough for me to finish it。- I admired the parallels within this retelling of Jekyll and Hyde。 I’m a sucker for literary reimaginings， especially when integral constructs are twisted on their heads。 - I enjoyed that it’s not a modern retelling， but based in what I assume to be the early 2000s。 It fit the story well and added a nice layer of nostalgia for me。 The cons:- I hate to say this， but I did not feel the chemistry between Lottie and Alice。 I wanted to so badly， as a lover of sapphic fiction。 But it just wasn’t there for me。 The author promoted their relationship as a slow burn， but it seemed more like a no burn。 These two characters came across more like friends than romantic interests throughout the book， and the “I love you”s exchanged between them felt like they were written by someone who’s entire personal romantic experience begins and ends with mediocre fanfiction。 I was rubbed the wrong way by Lottie’s abrupt journey from self-declared asexuality to falling in love。 Would it not have been more apt to mention aromanticism？ Regardless of semantics， there wasn’t any self-reflection or identity confusion that I could sense， and what is being a teenager if not those things？ - The writing itself isn’t stellar。 There are a lot of cliched metaphors and a great deal of the dialogue felt inorganic， particularly the over-embellished monologues by the various professors。 The characterization generally felt off to me， too。 It wasn’t so long ago that I was an undergraduate student being taught by renowned field experts， and I found the students’ views of the academic professionals off-putting。 I think the author tried to convey a bit of the notion that patriarchal academia is one big self-gratuitous circlejerk （which I agree with） but the way the professors were written from the students’ points of view almost perpetuated it？ I may return to this thought later。- I felt there were inconsistencies within the characterization/plot as well。 I looped back to this many times while reading， and couldn’t figure out Lottie’s thought process when it came to the first ruby。 Why did she not attempt to get medical attention？ Even if fear of expulsion or involuntary psychiatric admittance were at the forefront of her rationale， I can’t find any justifiable reason why a terrified teenager wouldn’t seek help even from another student。 She doesn’t even consider it。 Given that the sleepwalking is brand new to her and she is still completely in the dark， I couldn’t make sense of why she’d just accept it and deal with it alone。 I also found it hard to believe that there would be zero legal repercussions for Mordue。 Although not a murderer， she did cover up and lie about the circumstances surrounding these deaths。 Lastly， I couldn’t make sense of Lottie’s cool acceptance of extreme violence。 I do understand that she represents drastic level-headedness in contrast to Alice’s Hyde， but it was too far-fetched for me。 Falling in love with someone who threatens to murder you on a regular basis？ Who may or may not have snapped the neck of a cat？ I very well may not have fully comprehended the author’s intention here， and that would be on me。 But whether these are critical inconsistencies or false analyses， they took me out of the story。- The big reveal of the story’s overall message made me cringe。 I feel like a specific audience would really love this， but to me it felt a bit cheap。 Maybe I’m jaded when it comes to overarching， substance-less female empowerment in fiction， but it felt like there could have been more to the general intention behind this book。 It rubbed me the wrong way that the author elected to take the route of a fight club as the key means to work out deep， injustice-fueled anger。 I was also bothered by the overtly gendered structure within this resolution。 The characters make a point to dismiss Dacre’s archaic notions of “testosterone = men strong， estrogen = women irrational” as complete and utter bullshit。 Then why does the author lean into this instead of the stance that we are all just people？ Learning to fight and strength training in a reclaimed space is not the resolution I was hoping for。 I think I might just be at a point where I need my heroes to channel that anger caused by injustice into a wild， unrestricted means of dismantling oppressive systems for due process。 Would I read it again？ No。 Would I recommend it to another adult？ No。 Would I recommend it to a gloomy， tortured， misunderstood 14 year old girl？ Maybe。 This review in no way intends to discount the author’s efforts or intentions。 It is just my honest opinion of the story as a whole。 。。。more
Anna Cotrone
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This book was definitely a fun read， I’ll start there。 I enjoyed myself， but the story itself wasn’t extremely structured and it just felt kind of thrown together randomly in some partsThe romance felt very rushed， it was marketed as a slow burn， but it really didn’t meet the slow burn standards in my opinion。Some of the dialogue was confusing and felt unnatural—parts seemed to have American english slang， then the next chapter overwhelmingly British。 And then just some of the lines felt forced This book was definitely a fun read， I’ll start there。 I enjoyed myself， but the story itself wasn’t extremely structured and it just felt kind of thrown together randomly in some partsThe romance felt very rushed， it was marketed as a slow burn， but it really didn’t meet the slow burn standards in my opinion。Some of the dialogue was confusing and felt unnatural—parts seemed to have American english slang， then the next chapter overwhelmingly British。 And then just some of the lines felt forced and borderline corny。The plot felt unfinished in some parts， and some aspects felt as though they were forcing the reader to recognize significance without the story actually providing context。Regardless of my nitpicks， as I said， this was a fun read。 I didn’t want to stop reading at any point， so that speaks for itself。 。。。more
Victoria Alyesa
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A dark fantasy story of power and the lack of for women not only in the past but in this day and age。 Though slow to start and get into the book and characters I would highly recommend if this sounds like a book for you and if this review resonates with you， so stick with it。 This is not just a book about a girl at school trying to solve the mystery of not only her friends death but also her own anger， this is a story about how pain， trauma， and suffering and the feeling of powerlessness that it A dark fantasy story of power and the lack of for women not only in the past but in this day and age。 Though slow to start and get into the book and characters I would highly recommend if this sounds like a book for you and if this review resonates with you， so stick with it。 This is not just a book about a girl at school trying to solve the mystery of not only her friends death but also her own anger， this is a story about how pain， trauma， and suffering and the feeling of powerlessness that it causes physically splits your soul and wounds you deep inside。This is not a book for the faint of heart and I will say now has several trigger warnings including; abuse， bullying， mention of past abuse， anger management and self harm。 But if you are one of those girls that has this sort of trauma in the past where a man made you feel completely powerless then as long as you are in a safe place this is the journey you need to go on。 This is the book that will resonate you from your very soul。 I myself had to put this book down a couple of times to take a breather especially when it came past halfway， but I am so happy that I finished it。 It really does show how even though society may be against you you have the right to feel the pain and anger for what you have gone through and that there are others who love your soul truly the way it is， trauma or no trauma。This is described as a sapphic book， however it’s not a romance， it is more of a coincidental love that comes about due to circumstances， without spoiling， and that develops throughout the book rather than a full on girl girl love romance。 Either way this is a book to empower women and one I personally love。 It is not a book that you need to reread again again every month， instead it will resonate in your soul once read and will stay on my shelf to look at it every now and again to remind myself that my soul is intact and that I do have power and how much this means that I am not alone。 4。5 🌟。Thank you Laura for writing this truly mind enhancing and soul rebuilding book for girls who need their own fantasy society。 I cannot wait for this to be a special addition， and even if it isn’t I might have to persuade someone to do it to myself。 Thank you。 。。。more
Alex
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I think I need to stop reading “ Dark Academia” books。 I either don’t like them or end up feeling just ok about them I though about dnfing this multiple times to be honest。 It wasn’t funny at all and there was barely any romance and I know the plot was a retelling but in this story it didn’t really make much sense。
Diana
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While it was gripping at the beginning I found all the rage to be too much with little explanation。 I mean， I would have liked more in depth knowing of the characters and why they are the way they are。 As it is， vith MC are easily interchangeable， but for one being a goth with anger issues and the other a jock with rubies issues。。。As an idea the book is good， but I wanted more out of it。。。 More plot， more story， more character development。 And the ending wasn't for me。 While it was gripping at the beginning I found all the rage to be too much with little explanation。 I mean， I would have liked more in depth knowing of the characters and why they are the way they are。 As it is， vith MC are easily interchangeable， but for one being a goth with anger issues and the other a jock with rubies issues。。。As an idea the book is good， but I wanted more out of it。。。 More plot， more story， more character development。 And the ending wasn't for me。 。。。more
Mikaela
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Summary:Carvell College of Arts is reopening after being closed for a decade due to a string of deaths。 Lottie has enrolled with motives of finding out how and why the daughter of family friends died all those years ago。 She gets more than she’s bargained for when she becomes possessed by some spirit of the past， who doesn’t want her to leave Carvell。Her roommate， Alice， has grand plans to become a judge one day but is plagued by her own ill-temper and insecurities。 She comes across a ritual tha Summary:Carvell College of Arts is reopening after being closed for a decade due to a string of deaths。 Lottie has enrolled with motives of finding out how and why the daughter of family friends died all those years ago。 She gets more than she’s bargained for when she becomes possessed by some spirit of the past， who doesn’t want her to leave Carvell。Her roommate， Alice， has grand plans to become a judge one day but is plagued by her own ill-temper and insecurities。 She comes across a ritual that she believes could curb the anger within her， however it does more than that， splitting her soul it two。 What is worse is the sedating effects are only temporary and a monster it waiting to break out from within her。Thoughts:You read the summary and it sounds pretty good， doesn’t it？ It sounds like a really exciting and interesting premise…except the book unfortunately never really lives up to it。I enjoyed the first half of the book， learning about Lottie， Alice and the mysteries of Carvell Academy。 I engaged with Alice and the insecurities driving her anger。 I liked these two unlikely friends being thrust together to solve the secret of Carvell and cure Alice’s curse。Then I got to the halfway point， expecting things to ramp up a bit， for the building to some climatic point of the story and it just never came。 In my opinion， the story meandered halfway up the hill and never reached any further。Reading the plot of the story， it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect tension， suspense and peril yet none of it really appeared。 I really felt like the author was holding back， too afraid of employing any real violence or going too far into the dark。The setting of Carvell Academy， a grand old building that used to be a convent， should have been prime for creating oppressive atmosphere but there was none。 There was a murder but it felt incidental and we barely got any details about it。 There were crazed women with their souls split asunder apparently running about the place but it never really felt like there was any real danger。Humour was used often in the dialogue between characters and though I did smile a few times at the banter， light-heartedness was the last thing this ‘thriller’ needed。 It was already barely in the shadows that the humour might as well have been a great big ball of yellow shining on the whole thing。I understand this is a Young Adult Thriller but I do not believe this accounts for any of the toning down this story seems to be victim to。 I believe even young adults would be expecting more。 It’s supposed to be a Jekyll & Hyde retelling， and as far I’m aware that story didn’t shy away from the dark。 （And if you didn’t know it was a Jekyll & Hyde retelling， don’t worry because the author hits you over the head with this fact halfway through the book – just why do this？？ This unfortunately really grated me and I found it very patronising。）Ending: It was an easy， quick read and though I was constantly waiting for more， there was enough to carry me to the end without feeling it was chore。 The ending， however， did remain on the plateau with the rest of the book and had several holes that made it simply unsatisfying。At one point， Lottie says to herself “I’ve had enough。 I was coming for X。” （name not revealed to avoid spoilers） and I thought “Yes， here we go， time for the grit。” …sigh， nope。 She literally climbs a drainpipe and steals a floppy-disk – that is it and we don’t even get to witness it。Then we get to a disappointing wrap-up; Lottie tenuously linking it all to the real baddie and that baddie， though intelligent， keeping incriminating photos of him somehow accessing a locked off building to commit murder。 And yes， it is a ‘him’ because of course it wouldn’t be any of the angry women – no， despite their raging inner monsters， they’re practically as innocent as they were before the ritual。 I’m not sure if it’s some kind of feminist narrative but ultimately， it feels contrived and frustrating。There are references made to Lottie being “Scooby-Doo” rather than “Sherlock Holmes” and in my opinion， ‘Scooby-Doo’ sums up the feel of this story。。 Everything works out so fine and dandy for the girls that it just feels cheesy and not very believable。 It is too ‘happy’ an ending for what supposed to be a “haunting” book。Overall:I was so looking forward to this book based on its premise but after gaining some footing in the beginning， it stopped reaching for further heights。 This story had so much promise and I really do feel that for whatever reason the author held back from really delving into violence and the darkness that was hinted at。 There are holes that stretch the believability of the story， as well as the choice to have such overly positive outcomes for the girls and women characters that makes the ending unsatisfying。I wish I could have given a more encouraging review of The Society for Soulless Girls as I really did actually want to like it。 It had the foundations to be a great story， unfortunately， they were never truly built on and overall， I was left feeling disappointed as I turned the last page。 。。。more
Scarlet Wilson
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Listened to this on audio via Scrbd and stopped at 70%。 Unfortunately I just didn’t warm to either of the main characters。 This book should also have a trigger warning for animal cruelty/violence。 The paperback and ebook might have， but the audiobook certainly did not。
A
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MC Rep: bi/pan female
Jess B
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I loved this book。 It has great representation， a good plot line and amazing main characters who actually have character and depth。 I would 100% recommend this book to a friend。
c
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I LOVED IT。 im always up to some feminist take on these themes and this was pretty good。 alicelottie got me so bad and i can't believe we had to wait 300+ pages for them to kiss but it all made sense and it was really cute。 I LOVED IT。 im always up to some feminist take on these themes and this was pretty good。 alicelottie got me so bad and i can't believe we had to wait 300+ pages for them to kiss but it all made sense and it was really cute。 。。。more
nicole
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a good amount of plot twists to keep me reading and i finished it in one day… and i mean it’s a sapphic retelling of jekyll and hyde so obviously i’m gonna like it🫥
Marlene Bentsen （Boggrippen）
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The Society For Soulless Girls er en-lige-ud-af-landevejen YA historie， der handler om to piger på et universitet。Universitetet， som for mange mange år siden fungerede som nonnekloster， hedder Carvell College of Arts og vi følger to vidt forskellige piger， der skal bo på værelse sammen。Carvell College har været lukket i en del år på grund af fire uopklarede mystiske dødsfald， men åbner nu igen dørene for unge studerende。Lottie har altid været fascineret af dødsfaldene og er fast besluttet på at The Society For Soulless Girls er en-lige-ud-af-landevejen YA historie， der handler om to piger på et universitet。Universitetet， som for mange mange år siden fungerede som nonnekloster， hedder Carvell College of Arts og vi følger to vidt forskellige piger， der skal bo på værelse sammen。Carvell College har været lukket i en del år på grund af fire uopklarede mystiske dødsfald， men åbner nu igen dørene for unge studerende。Lottie har altid været fascineret af dødsfaldene og er fast besluttet på at komme sagen til bunds - samtidig med， at hun forhåbentligt gør sig fortjent på hockey holdet。 Hun er sprudlende og udadvendt。Alice er den diametrale modsætning。 Hun er indesluttet og gal på verden og har en fornem evne til at skubbe alle fra sig。 Hun hader sig selv for det， men hun kan ikke komme af med sine hidsige og voldelige tanker。 Tilfældigt på skolens bibliotek， finder hun en dag en sær gammel bog， der indeholder et lidt dystert sjæle-afrenselses ritual。 Det afprøver hun selvfølgelig og samtidig dør en ny studerende。Historien er lidt lang tid om at komme igang og jeg følte， der blev lagt mere vægt på thriller/krimi delen end på det overnaturlige aspekt。Det er ikke en bog， der kommer med noget nyt til genren。 Tværtimod er det en ret banal fortælling， hvor vores to hovedpersoner （meget typisk og frustrerende） gemmer på deres hemmeligheder og nægter at fortælle hinanden noget。Har man læst mange YA historier， så vil man nok ikke få så meget ud af den （jeg taler her nok mest om mig selv😆）Jeg tror nok den vil falde i god jord， hvis man godt kan lide forudsigelige historier og at blive irriteret på hovedpersoner。Historien havde nogle gode øjeblikke， men de kom altså lidt sent。 Jeg læste dog bogen færdig， så den er altså ikke helt håbløs。Den har en del referencer til en meget kendt og gammel gyserklassiker， hvis titel jeg ikke vil nævne her （jeg synes det spoiler for meget）。 Men man kan hurtigt finde ud af det på Goodreads。 。。。more
Shannon
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Finished reading this tonight and honestly it’s a solid 4✨ read。 This book is a whole vibe。 It’s dark academia with a secret society， a magical atmosphere， and haunting paranormal experiences。 This book explores patriarchal notions of anger — dealing with the societal expectation of women to not display strong emotions， exploring how repressing out anger can eat us alive and have dire consequences。 The author weaves history， philosophy， and theology throughout the story， which really creates the Finished reading this tonight and honestly it’s a solid 4✨ read。 This book is a whole vibe。 It’s dark academia with a secret society， a magical atmosphere， and haunting paranormal experiences。 This book explores patriarchal notions of anger — dealing with the societal expectation of women to not display strong emotions， exploring how repressing out anger can eat us alive and have dire consequences。 The author weaves history， philosophy， and theology throughout the story， which really creates the pretentious dark academia vibe but these references to occult and religious history really make the book a really interesting read I read this in one sitting。 The atmosphere is eerie and it really draws you in， the chapters are short making it a quick and easy read 。。。more
ً
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where do i begin。。。 this was almost awful。 this book is like an even shittier version of my dearest darkest。 for the first 70% of the book， only like three interesting things happened that actually related to the plot， everything else was just nonsense。 it was like the author was trying to fill up a word count。 and this book labeling itself as "humorous" is insane because not a single joke was funny。 also lottie is one of the most insufferable characters i have ever read where do i begin。。。 this was almost awful。 this book is like an even shittier version of my dearest darkest。 for the first 70% of the book， only like three interesting things happened that actually related to the plot， everything else was just nonsense。 it was like the author was trying to fill up a word count。 and this book labeling itself as "humorous" is insane because not a single joke was funny。 also lottie is one of the most insufferable characters i have ever read 。。。more
Laura Heath
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Love itDevoured this book and adored it。 Not just thoroughly entertaining but poignant and thoughtful too。 Would recommend this book。 Excellent。
Lucy
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Devoured this in a single day。 Perfect if these summer months make you long for autumn， dark academia， hauntings， and curses 🖤🔮💖
Margarida
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The Society For Soulless Girls was such an unexpected book full of plot twists that’ll leave you speechless。While having a dark and tense plot full of dark academia vibes Laura Steven also gives us a slow-burn romance that is fluffy enough to make you blush and giggle。Even though I loved this book， I would say it would be better if there was more romance since it happened at the end of it and after that， it felt rushed （I wanted some dark academia smut and I wasn’t given any of that）Anyways… I’m The Society For Soulless Girls was such an unexpected book full of plot twists that’ll leave you speechless。While having a dark and tense plot full of dark academia vibes Laura Steven also gives us a slow-burn romance that is fluffy enough to make you blush and giggle。Even though I loved this book， I would say it would be better if there was more romance since it happened at the end of it and after that， it felt rushed （I wanted some dark academia smut and I wasn’t given any of that）Anyways… I’m living for this book， and can’t wait to see TikTok's about its aesthetic。 。。。more
Ren
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*3。5
Molly
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This book promised a sapphic retelling of Jekyll and Hyde and it definitely delivered， this story produced the perfect dark academia vibes as well as one of the best written grumpy sunshine/forced proximity romances I've ever read。 The mystery plotline in this book was so well written and thought out that everything tied over well in the end and the things you never found out for sure such as what the hell is Salem's deal （？？？） Just heightened the mysteriousness of this story。 The main character This book promised a sapphic retelling of Jekyll and Hyde and it definitely delivered， this story produced the perfect dark academia vibes as well as one of the best written grumpy sunshine/forced proximity romances I've ever read。 The mystery plotline in this book was so well written and thought out that everything tied over well in the end and the things you never found out for sure such as what the hell is Salem's deal （？？？） Just heightened the mysteriousness of this story。 The main characters were written with brilliant depth and seeing the evolution of their characters was so enjoyable to read。 I also loved the supernatural elements to the story but how that was also linked to real things that happened in the past such as hanging as witches and exorcisms and it was a very strong feminist story that really added value to the book。This is definitely my new favorite book of the year and i will definitely read other books by Laura！ X 。。。more
Nicke Pearson
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This book was my most anticipated book of this year and boy did it live up to my expectations！！！！ No it lived past my expectations！ A Jekyll and Hyde sapphic retelling that was so gothic and dark but yet so funny as well。 A feminist book that deals with female anger and the expectations of society for women to hide their feelings because they’re not deemed ‘ladylike’！ I highly recommend this book， it’s friggin’ awesome！
charlotte，
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