Already playing catch up – get ready for a bunch of reviews!
Thanks to Penguin Teen for the gifted copy
THE MEADOWBROOK MURDERS – Jessica Goodman (Released February 4th, 2025)
Book Description:
A page-turning murder mystery set at a prestigious New England boarding school and the dark secrets a killer desperately wants hidden.
Secrets don’t die when you do.
It’s the first week of senior year at Middlebrook Academy. For Amy and her best friend Sarah, that means late-night parties at the boathouse, bike rides through their sleepy Connecticut town, and the crisp beginning of a New England fall.
Then tragedy. Sarah and her boyfriend are brutally murdered in their dorm room. Now the week Amy has been dreaming about for years has turned into a nightmare, especially when all eyes turn to her as the culprit. She was Sarah’s only roommate, the only other person there when she died—or so she told the police to cover for her own boyfriend’s suspicious whereabouts. And even though they were best friends, with every passing day, Amy begins to learn that Sarah lied about a lot of things.
Liz, editor of the school newspaper and social outcast, is determined to uncover the truth about what happened on campus, in hopes her reporting will land a prestigious scholarship to college. As Liz dives deeper into her investigation, the secrets these murdered seniors never wanted out come to light. The deeper Liz digs, the messier the truth becomes – and with a killer still on campus, she can’t afford to make any mistakes.
The Meadowbrook Murders is a gripping mystery about the inextricable way power, privilege, and secrets are linked, and how telling the truth can come at a deadly price.
My Thoughts: 4/5 stars
If you’re looking for a quick and bingeworthy dark academia YA thriller, Jessica Goodman is the author for you! In her newest, The Meadowbrook Murders, we have a girl and her boyfriend murdered, her roommate was the only one to survive in the room, and a student dying to find her big hardhitting story as a journalist.
Sarah and Amy are roommates and are back for their senior year at their boarding school, and what should have been a fun year turned into a nightmare when Sarah and her boyfriend were brutally murdered and Amy was the only other person in the room and came out unharmed. But she claims she didn’t do it. She knows Sarah had some secrets she was keeping and is doing what she can to protect her friend, but with the mounting pressure, it’s getting harder and harder to. Liz is an aspiring journalist and sees this story as her opportunity to get into a great college if she can crack the case open.
Secrets, drama, and murder among the privileged and spoiled rich kids at their boarding school – dark academia is always fun for that reason. Everyone always has some dark secrets, and there were a few good red herrings in the mix. You might guess the killer, but it won’t take away from the big reveal. If you need a fast and fun murder mystery, this is the one!
Jessicamap Reviews 