The It Girl
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- Create Date：2022-07-28 09:52:24
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ruth Ware
- ISBN：1398508365
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Summary
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of One by One returns with an unputdownable mystery following a woman on the search for answers a decade after her friend’s murder。
April Coutts-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford。
Vivacious， bright， occasionally vicious， and the ultimate It girl， she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit。 Together， they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends—Will， Hugh， Ryan， and Emily—during their first term。 By the end of the second， April was dead。
Now， a decade later， Hannah and Will are expecting their first child， and the man convicted of killing April， former Oxford porter John Neville， has died in prison。 Relieved to have finally put the past behind her， Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent。 As Hannah reconnects with old friends and delves deeper into the mystery of April’s death， she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide…including a murder。
April Coutts-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford。
Vivacious， bright， occasionally vicious， and the ultimate It girl， she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit。 Together， they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends—Will， Hugh， Ryan， and Emily—during their first term。 By the end of the second， April was dead。
Now， a decade later， Hannah and Will are expecting their first child， and the man convicted of killing April， former Oxford porter John Neville， has died in prison。 Relieved to have finally put the past behind her， Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent。 As Hannah reconnects with old friends and delves deeper into the mystery of April’s death， she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide…including a murder。
Reviews
Lisa
，
While Hannah is a college student， her best friend and roommate is murdered。 Ten years later on， married and pregnant， she has questions she can't let go of。 As with Ware's books， there is a tight circle of people and you just know its one of them。 Red herrings are flipping up on the deck everywhere！ 🐟I like a nice tidy ending， and this one leaves everything solved。 （Its a murder mystery， not literary fiction with an ambiguous ending，） I NEED THE ANSWERS！ And thankfully， Ware gave them to me。 I While Hannah is a college student， her best friend and roommate is murdered。 Ten years later on， married and pregnant， she has questions she can't let go of。 As with Ware's books， there is a tight circle of people and you just know its one of them。 Red herrings are flipping up on the deck everywhere！ 🐟I like a nice tidy ending， and this one leaves everything solved。 （Its a murder mystery， not literary fiction with an ambiguous ending，） I NEED THE ANSWERS！ And thankfully， Ware gave them to me。 I recommend for mystery， thriller and dual time line lovers， with a smattering of dark academia。Favorite line from book。。"Who do you think you are？ A pregnant Miss Marple？？" 😂 。。。more
Eyre_i_breathe
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When it comes to auto-buy authors， Ruth Ware sits at the very top of the suspense genre for me。 When I discovered months ago that she had a new release coming out only a couple days before our vacation， I knew right away what I'd be packing in my carry-on bag。 And， boy， did she deliver！ 🙌The It Girl had that campus atmosphere that I so love in a book， and I was immediately transported to those old ivy-covered buildings and that step back in history that Oxford inspires。 I would say this When it comes to auto-buy authors， Ruth Ware sits at the very top of the suspense genre for me。 When I discovered months ago that she had a new release coming out only a couple days before our vacation， I knew right away what I'd be packing in my carry-on bag。 And， boy， did she deliver！ 🙌The It Girl had that campus atmosphere that I so love in a book， and I was immediately transported to those old ivy-covered buildings and that step back in history that Oxford inspires。 I would say this is a bit of a slow burn mystery， but so completely addictive that I struggled with only getting to read snippets at a time on our busy holiday。 😅 I've seen many readers compare it to In My Dreams I Hold a Knife， which I wholeheartedly agree with。 I personally liked The It Girl a bit better。 I'm curious to know what you think if you've read both！ Now my my only question is how long must I wait for my next Ruth Ware binge？ 😆 。。。more
Kate
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A very Ruth Ware fare。 Super fun and twisty — a really enjoyable thriller， as always！
Barbara Sheets
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Not as good as some of the other Ruth Ware books
Ketsy Resendez
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Ruth Ware is a staple in modern female-led thrillers。 Big fan and always looking forward to her books。I will say for this one， the title needed a change。 This was just not it。。。 No pun intended。
Vanessa {Book ♥ Soulmates}
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It was pretty slow at first but it picked up and I thoroughly enjoyed it。 I kept trying to figure out “who dunnit” and I’m genuinely happy to say I couldn’t figure it out and couldn’t figure out the why。 Love that！
Linda
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The last half of this book could have been much shorter。 Much too much agonizing…。。
Erin Ellis Lane
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4。5 ⭐️ Everyone seems to hate on this book， but I absolutely loved it！ Was it long？ Yes！ But I feel like it was intentional and actually quite necessary。 I only docked a half a star because of how unrealistic a bit of it was （I won't elaborate for fear of spoiling） Btw--if you aren't listening to Ruth Wares books， you are absolutely missing out！！ She uses one of the best narrators ever。 I probably read half and listened to half。 It takes a minute for the story to really get going， so I'd recomme 4。5 ⭐️ Everyone seems to hate on this book， but I absolutely loved it！ Was it long？ Yes！ But I feel like it was intentional and actually quite necessary。 I only docked a half a star because of how unrealistic a bit of it was （I won't elaborate for fear of spoiling） Btw--if you aren't listening to Ruth Wares books， you are absolutely missing out！！ She uses one of the best narrators ever。 I probably read half and listened to half。 It takes a minute for the story to really get going， so I'd recommend eyeball reading at least the first few chapters。 🙃 。。。more
Joan
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Hannah Jones is at Oxford。 She is not one of the very rich， entitled kids。 Her roommate is the very rich， entitled， it girl April Clarke-Cliveden。 April and Hannah become best friends。 They have a group of college friends。 Will is April's boyfriend but Hannah falls in love with him。 The book is told in two time periods， the present and ten years ago when April was found dead in their room。 In the present， Hannah is married to Will and pregnant。 It is the ten year anniversary of Hannah's death a Hannah Jones is at Oxford。 She is not one of the very rich， entitled kids。 Her roommate is the very rich， entitled， it girl April Clarke-Cliveden。 April and Hannah become best friends。 They have a group of college friends。 Will is April's boyfriend but Hannah falls in love with him。 The book is told in two time periods， the present and ten years ago when April was found dead in their room。 In the present， Hannah is married to Will and pregnant。 It is the ten year anniversary of Hannah's death and the press is taking an interest in the case。 Neville， the odd man who went to jail for April's death has just died in jail。 He always claimed he was innocent。 Hannah is starting to question her testimony and is talking to the press but Will tells her to stop。 Good mystery but it was hard for me to believe Hannah thought Will could have killed April。 。。。more
Jen
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Slow…400+ page story that could have been wrapped up in 300。
Daphne Rogozinski
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3。5 stars。 This would have been a 4 star if it had not been so long for NO REASON！ It could have been edited about 150 pages and still told the same story。 I did connect with the main character， Hannah， though and I felt her pain over her life being affected by the death of her friend。 I didn’t solve the mystery before the end and I always appreciate novels like that。
Catherine McKenzie
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Ruth Ware never disappoints。 A twisty exploration of a 10-year-old murder case at Oxford where the It Girl turns up dead and the wrong man was convicted。 Or was he？ Highly recommend。
Sarah
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Fantastic and thrilling。
Katie A
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I loved this mystery novel。 A longer slow burn kind of murder （17 hours in audiobook form） but was engaging throughout。 The narrating voice was tremendous （Hannah）。 She felt very relatable and responded to situations in what felt like a rational but human manner。 I also loved April's character， and November Rain and Neville。 However， I would say Will's character felt quite bland。 The switch between past and present was done very well and made the plot more engaging。 The other aspect I loved abou I loved this mystery novel。 A longer slow burn kind of murder （17 hours in audiobook form） but was engaging throughout。 The narrating voice was tremendous （Hannah）。 She felt very relatable and responded to situations in what felt like a rational but human manner。 I also loved April's character， and November Rain and Neville。 However， I would say Will's character felt quite bland。 The switch between past and present was done very well and made the plot more engaging。 The other aspect I loved about this novel was the way you saw character development from Hannah and how she'd changed。 "She will never really be ok again。 Something broke in her the night of April's murder。 Something nothing will be able to mend。。。 not the fragile peace she has constructed in Edinbrugh。""She stands for a moment looking at the shadow of the girl she left behind bidding her goodbye。 She lets the door close and turns to face the present。" The ending （critical to any mystery） was strong。 I didn't see it coming and really felt it tied many aspects together （I will stop there to avoid spoilers）。 The biggest negative for me was how Hannah's pregnancy was handled。 I loved that our main character and narrator were pregnant， but this wasn't the only plot line to her character （this is so rarely done）。 However， her pregnancy was used to show her weakness and vulnerability。 Like it was used to justify her husband trying to tell her to stop pursuing her desires （as it could risk the baby's health）。 I also am not that knowledgeable on fetal health （so I could be wrong）。 But I don't think asking around and learning about your old friend's murder case is actually going to impact a baby's health？ Like I wish the mother and baby were shown to be a little stronger than that and less needing of protection。 。。。more
Abby
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This was approximately 2x longer than it really needed to be and the whodunnit portion was painfully obvious from the jump。 I believe I’ve read all of Ruth Ware’s books at this point and this one is definitely one of the least favorites。 I felt like this could have been a very cool， dark academia-esque book but didn’t utilize the historical college it takes place at enough。 Every aspect of this fell flat。 Extremely disappointing。 I want to say “I hope Ware’s next is better” but I’m not entirely This was approximately 2x longer than it really needed to be and the whodunnit portion was painfully obvious from the jump。 I believe I’ve read all of Ruth Ware’s books at this point and this one is definitely one of the least favorites。 I felt like this could have been a very cool， dark academia-esque book but didn’t utilize the historical college it takes place at enough。 Every aspect of this fell flat。 Extremely disappointing。 I want to say “I hope Ware’s next is better” but I’m not entirely sure I want to pick up another book from her。 。。。more
Miriam
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The It Girl by Ruth Ware （author of The Woman in Cabin 10， In a Dark Dark Wood， etc）- Known for her suspense and psychological thrillers， Ware takes on the world of academia （Oxford） and a murder that everyone thought was solved。 Party loving and wild April was truly the "It Girl"- she had everything- wealth， beauty and brains- but was murdered ten years ago and her roommate Hannah provided the evidence to put the killer behind bars。 Now he is dead in prison and someone comes forward to question The It Girl by Ruth Ware （author of The Woman in Cabin 10， In a Dark Dark Wood， etc）- Known for her suspense and psychological thrillers， Ware takes on the world of academia （Oxford） and a murder that everyone thought was solved。 Party loving and wild April was truly the "It Girl"- she had everything- wealth， beauty and brains- but was murdered ten years ago and her roommate Hannah provided the evidence to put the killer behind bars。 Now he is dead in prison and someone comes forward to question whether he was the actual killer- which sends Hannah reeling with doubt。 Did she help to send the wrong man to prison？ Chapters alternate with Before and After and I really liked with what Ware did here- as you read， you slowly realize that any one of a dozen people had motive。。。 thought this was a clever plot device as the reader is the one who starts to put the pieces together。 。。。more
Marissa Marlborough
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3。5 rounded up I preorder every Ruth Ware thriller on Audible and eagerly count down the days until it’s mine。 Imogen Church narrates all of her books and always does a stellar job。 This new Ware is decent but is not one of my favorites of hers。 Hannah is a happily married pregnant wife， shook by the news that the man she testified against for killing her college roommate has died in prison。 As she grapples with the finality of this， a journalist contacts her and raises questions about his innoc 3。5 rounded up I preorder every Ruth Ware thriller on Audible and eagerly count down the days until it’s mine。 Imogen Church narrates all of her books and always does a stellar job。 This new Ware is decent but is not one of my favorites of hers。 Hannah is a happily married pregnant wife， shook by the news that the man she testified against for killing her college roommate has died in prison。 As she grapples with the finality of this， a journalist contacts her and raises questions about his innocence。 This sparks Hannah to re-examine everything surrounding her beloved roommate April’s murder。 The reader gets a second timeline of Hannah at university with her group of friends leading up to April’s murder。 I loved the dark academia timeline and felt the book really shined here， capturing the complicated youthful friendships。 In the present， I was often annoyed with Hannah。 I found her INCREDIBLY naive， bordering on unbelievably dumb。 I also lost count of the amount of times “Hannah went cold” upon finding out something about her past。 Come on Ware， there has to be another way to convey this！ Lol。 I found the twists in this interesting and I didn’t predict several of them， but this was about 100 pages too long and meandering。 But I will keep preordering her books， as Ruth Ware is the modern masterful Agatha Christie IMO。⚠️Trigger Warning: Pregnancy， Murder， Assault， Infidelity 。。。more
Jennie
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I finished this yesterday in one fell swoop。 I'd read sixty something pages before yesterday and then， I picked it up and couldn't stop。 I made a pot of decaf coffee and set out to uncover the secrets between these six friends。 Ruth Ware often writes characters who are part of a glamorous circle but not actually glamorous themselves。 This is what she does so well with Hannah。 She's happy with Will， expecting their first baby， working at a bookshop far away from the site of her best friend's murd I finished this yesterday in one fell swoop。 I'd read sixty something pages before yesterday and then， I picked it up and couldn't stop。 I made a pot of decaf coffee and set out to uncover the secrets between these six friends。 Ruth Ware often writes characters who are part of a glamorous circle but not actually glamorous themselves。 This is what she does so well with Hannah。 She's happy with Will， expecting their first baby， working at a bookshop far away from the site of her best friend's murder and the media circus aftermath。 Ware also shows the darker side of true crime obsession， which I appreciated。 It's a fantastic mystery and， if you like dark academia， you'll likely be hooked！ 。。。more
Tory
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A page-turning psychological thriller， with twists and turns that kept me guessing until the end。 The characters were well-developed and Ware's depiction of first-year life at Oxford created a good sense of place。 A great， fast read。 A page-turning psychological thriller， with twists and turns that kept me guessing until the end。 The characters were well-developed and Ware's depiction of first-year life at Oxford created a good sense of place。 A great， fast read。 。。。more
Linda
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Ruth Ware keeps getting better and better。 Her newest long， detailed murder mystery of a beautiful popular college girl captured my attention from the beginning and never let up。 I listened to the audio and the narrator was terrific。 The characters were well written and believable。 The plot moving between before and after the crime was crisp and clear。These time-slip stories can be tricky and difficult to get right without confusing the reader; no problem with this story。 And no twists or gimmic Ruth Ware keeps getting better and better。 Her newest long， detailed murder mystery of a beautiful popular college girl captured my attention from the beginning and never let up。 I listened to the audio and the narrator was terrific。 The characters were well written and believable。 The plot moving between before and after the crime was crisp and clear。These time-slip stories can be tricky and difficult to get right without confusing the reader; no problem with this story。 And no twists or gimmicks at the end。。。hurray！All in all， a terrific book。 5 BIG stars。 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 。。。more
Shelby
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Okay so this probably isn’t actually a 4 star book， BUT I am a huge sucker for dark academia vibes and this gave them to me。 This is not literature but it is a page-turning， entertaining thriller and I enjoyed it。
Preslava
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It was definitely one of the better Ruth Ware books。 Love how atmospheric it is in the beginning。 You can really feel like you're there。 It just didn't like the villain of the story too much。 She could have done better。 It was definitely one of the better Ruth Ware books。 Love how atmospheric it is in the beginning。 You can really feel like you're there。 It just didn't like the villain of the story too much。 She could have done better。 。。。more
Lynne
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Buckle your seat belt for an amazing ride。 Six people meet opening day of Pelham College at Oxford。 The story is told in two parts Before and After。 There is a murder and it takes 10 years for Hannah to solve。 Her initial testimony puts someone in prison but she always has doubts Everything you think you know is not what it seems。 The ending is well worth the wait。 I loved this book！
Lauren
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I’m calling this Ware’s comeback。 Her writing has become extremely formulaic。 I remember being thrilled by Woman in Cabin 10， but much to her detriment， her stories have become cookie-cutter copies of themselves since then。 This story was dark and unpredictable。 I really enjoyed the academic setting。
Alexis
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Good book but it really dragged on！ I kept following the authors leads thinking about who done it and then thought it was Will…bc I think that’s what the author wanted but then the change in story and it made sense。 There were hints dropped along the way that I could place and they finally fell in place。 I thought maybe April was having an affair with the john Neville character and one of her other lovers found out but then as the plot thickened （finally） it made sense with the drugs and why Hug Good book but it really dragged on！ I kept following the authors leads thinking about who done it and then thought it was Will…bc I think that’s what the author wanted but then the change in story and it made sense。 There were hints dropped along the way that I could place and they finally fell in place。 I thought maybe April was having an affair with the john Neville character and one of her other lovers found out but then as the plot thickened （finally） it made sense with the drugs and why Hugh was so nervous around her。 I don’t really find the title of the book fitting。 I know it is the name of the podcast at the end and all that， so I guess it does make sense。 Maybe I’m still piecing everything together。 Might have to add to my review later on down the road。 Just wanted to put my initial thoughts down for now。 Character development was good， storyline was good but really took too long。 Mystery was great！ 。。。more
Anne
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The It Girl by Ruth Ware is the story of a woman whose life changed after her college roommate was murdered。 It was written in mostly alternating chapters: Before and After。 To say she was profoundly affected would be an understatement。 It was almost not on her mind daily， when the man convicted of the murder died of a heart attack while he was in prison。 True， he had been creepy， but was he a murderer？ She saw a photo online that showed him as the broken old man he had become。 He had been convi The It Girl by Ruth Ware is the story of a woman whose life changed after her college roommate was murdered。 It was written in mostly alternating chapters: Before and After。 To say she was profoundly affected would be an understatement。 It was almost not on her mind daily， when the man convicted of the murder died of a heart attack while he was in prison。 True， he had been creepy， but was he a murderer？ She saw a photo online that showed him as the broken old man he had become。 He had been convicted on circumstantial evidence， given by her。 Had she done him wrong？ She had to know。 She tried to talk to her husband， Will， about it but he didn’t want to hear it again。 Will had been April’s boyfriend， although the romance had been waning。 He had never been a suspect because he was out of town。 Maybe she could talk to Hugh， their friend， who lived here in Edinburgh。 She could try。 With Neville dead， she started getting calls and emails from reporters again。 She never responded to any of them。 Her friend， Emily， from college， called her about one who was apparently a friend of another of their friends。 He ambushed her with April’s much younger sister， who looked exactly like April。 She was living in a nightmare。 What to do。This was a fine thriller， keeping me guessing right along with Hannah until the very end， and then some。 Hannah was a woman with a conscience。 She still felt bad about so many things。 She had left college after April’s murder， never to return。 She had moved as far north as she could get: Edinburgh。 She couldn’t work in a library or publishing house with no degree， so she compromised and worked in a bookstore。 She loved it。 Three months after she left， Will turned up。 They date， lived together， got married， got pregnant。 Then it all started again。 Her blood pressure was high， not good for her unborn baby。 Should she do as Will recommended， try to put it behind her？ Should she return to counseling？ That had helped for a while。 This story had a plot done so well that Ware should be celebrated。 Her primary character， Hannah， was developed and laid out before us in all her glory。 Her husband and friends were less developed but it was not as necessary。 The whole thing kept me on the edge， feeling Hannah’s pain every step of the way。 This was an excellent book。 I recommend it。I was invited to read a free e-ARC of The It Girl by Simon and Schuster， through Netgalley。 All thoughts and opinions are mine。 #netgalley #simonandschuster #ruthware #theitgirl 。。。more
Kathleen
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Wish goodreads would let us rate with half stars。 I’d rate this 4。5 ⭐️ honestly I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this book so much。 I was absorbed in the story and while it was a lengthy one I really was entertained。 It’s not your typical mystery it’s more psychological and contemplating。 The reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is because the ending seemed a little rushed for me and I guessed the killer pretty early on。 Overall I really enjoyed it and am looking for other similar books。 Any suggestions？
Lily
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Another solid Ruth Ware work， very gripping and enjoyable， although there were some issues with padding throughout。 While I enjoyed that Hannah and Will had a lot of communication throughout the book and refused to lie to each other， often this ended up being a mini recap of what had just happened。 A few of the chapter endings felt like the same goal of Hannah’s restated in order to feel appropriate to end on， and some of the AFTER chapters felt unnecessary， or just like something to happen so t Another solid Ruth Ware work， very gripping and enjoyable， although there were some issues with padding throughout。 While I enjoyed that Hannah and Will had a lot of communication throughout the book and refused to lie to each other， often this ended up being a mini recap of what had just happened。 A few of the chapter endings felt like the same goal of Hannah’s restated in order to feel appropriate to end on， and some of the AFTER chapters felt unnecessary， or just like something to happen so that the story could get back to BEFORE。 I wondered if having all of the BEFORE chapters together at the beginning might’ve worked better。 I also disliked the weird angelicizing of Neville at the end， which didn’t mesh with Hannah having to accept that he’d been actively terrorizing her throughout the BEFORE part。 I also wish the author had dug a little more into Hugh’s motivation， because summarized neatly by Hannah at the end it felt impersonal when it was anything but。Overall though， I loved this book！ I loved the group of friends （minus April） and how they worked together， I loved that they reunited at the end， to maybe try being close again。 I loved Will and Hannah’s relationship， and their open communication。 I loved the setting of Oxford， and how it’s traditions were seen by both April and Hannah。 It was impossible to put down at times， or to stop wondering just who did it， and the whole time I was going back and forth on every character。 All of them worked really well， especially April， who managed to be unlikable but at a point where it made sense that people gravitated towards her。I recommend this book if you enjoyed other Ruth Ware works， especially The Lying Game， which this reminded me of。 Can’t wait to read In a Dark， Dark Wood。 。。。more
Martha Hudson
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Absolutely brilliant， I loved this book！ Really draws you in to the character's world， just the best plot。 I felt this had real Christie vibes， the clues were there but because the story moved along so smoothly you focused on where it was going， rather than trying to work it all out。 Excellent reveal， it worked so well。 Something I really liked was that the characters felt very believable and that it all could have actually happened。 I enjoyed the dual timeline of 'before' and 'after' which also Absolutely brilliant， I loved this book！ Really draws you in to the character's world， just the best plot。 I felt this had real Christie vibes， the clues were there but because the story moved along so smoothly you focused on where it was going， rather than trying to work it all out。 Excellent reveal， it worked so well。 Something I really liked was that the characters felt very believable and that it all could have actually happened。 I enjoyed the dual timeline of 'before' and 'after' which also helped to give an insight into Hannah's state of mind during each time。 Thoroughly readable， thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend！ 。。。more
Mimisu77
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The middle part of this book seemed to last forever and by the end， I legit did not care and was ready for it to be over。 The twist was more a curve， nothing that you couldn’t see coming。 I’ll forget the characters before I’m done writing this。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The It Girl
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The It Girl&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The It Girl&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0