They Wish They Were Us (2020)
Author: Jessica Goodman
Pages: 336
Review:
I’ve become an avid reader of these “who done it?” YA thriller novels so when They Wish They Were Us was recommended to me, I knew I had to give it a try. To give a brief summary, They Wish They Were Us takes place in Gold Coast, Long Island, where houses are like museums and every kid attends a private school. The book follows Jill Newman who tragically lost her best friend Shaila, who was killed by her boyfriend, Graham. Three years later, Jill is a senior and is a member of The Players, the school’s secret society. Word floats around the school that Graham is actually innocent, which causes Jill to investigate who killed her best friend, leading to a very messy senior year.
I would place this YA novel right towards the higher end of my grading scale because the plot develops very nicely and the reveal towards the end of the book is quite impressive. Usually with books like these, it’s hard to curate a good and sensible ending, but Jessica Goodman does a great job of setting herself apart from other YA thrillers. Something different about this book is that it takes place in a wealthy neighborhood, which reminded me vaguely of Gossip Girl, which I quite enjoyed. It’s very interesting how the characters carry themselves morally due to the fact that they are so well off. The book also jumps between different time periods to provide more context, but I wasn’t really a fan of this style of sectioning the book because I was left aimlessly reading words.
If you are looking for a plotline that takes multiple turns and surprises, this book won’t be for you as the book follows a basic path. (Another thing to add on: this book addresses a multitude of sensitive topics so I would recommend searching up possible triggers in the book before pursuing it) Overall, this book was a classic thriller novel with a well-developed set of characters and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in a standard murder mystery novel.
Nice review! – Mrs. Long