“Nice girls can do bad things…

When Ambrosia first arrives at prestigious college Wesleyan, she’s desperate to fit in. But Amb struggles to navigate the rules of this strange, elite world, filled with privileged ‘nice’ young women – until she meets the charismatic but troubled Sully, with whom she forms an obsessive friendship.

Intoxicated by Sully’s charm and determined to impress her, Amb finds herself drawn deep into her new best friend’s dangerous manipulations. But if she wants to play Sully at her own game, Amb has no idea just how devastating the consequences will be…

Deeply unsettling and compulsive, The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a gripping exploration of the brutal lengths girls will go to, to take what they think they are owed.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to be sharing my review of The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn. The Girls Are All So Nice Here was published in hardcover, audio and digital formats by HQ on 1st April 2021. I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Girls Are All So Nice Here which has in no way influenced my review.

I wanted to read this book because I’m struggling a little with my reading mojo at the moment and I was looking for something different to my usual fayre (of police procedurals and blood soaked horror). I was keen to shake things up a little and oh boy, this book was a perfect pick! The Girls Are All So Nice Here is an intoxicating tale of obsession and manipulation which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Ambrosia ‘Amb’ Wellington is ready to do whatever it takes to fit in at college: the exclusive Wesleyan. Her dream is to become an actor so she knows how to change her personality to fit in. She’s been doing it throughout her high school career so it’s no big deal. When she meets Sloane ‘Sully’ Sullivan, Sully’s charisma pulls Ambrosia into her web. Sully is different to everyone she knew back home and Amb can’t get enough of her magnetism. Ambrosia is desperate to stay in Sully’s orbit, she craves her approval, so transforms herself into Sully’s mirror image. But Sully is a deeply troubled young woman whose constant manipulations push Ambrosia to the limit. Reunited for the 10 year reunion, will Sully’s hold over Ambrosia still be as strong? And what exactly did happen that fateful night…?

Wow! Some of the characters in The Girls Are All So Nice Here are truly horrible people but I couldn’t help but enjoy their darkness (just a little). The author has created some devastatingly cruel and vindictive characters and I lapped it up! I found Ambrosia to be a fascinating character who despite not being solely responsible for her actions, seemed happy enough to accept her new life and just go along with everything Sully suggested. I still haven’t worked out if she’s insanely needy or if she arrived at Wesleyan with a dark streak of her own.

The story is told in the past – leading up to the devastating event which changed the lives of those living in Butts C – and the present – as Ambrosia reluctantly prepares to attend the 10 year reunion with her husband. Amb believes she’s not the same person she was in college, she doesn’t want to return to Wesleyan (she certainly doesn’t want her husband to discover her secret!) and refuses to even consider the reunion. Until an anonymous card arrives telling her she must attend as ‘they’ need to talk about what they did that night. I really enjoyed both the flashbacks and watching as Ambrosia’s present-day, perfect life began to unravel and the realisation of what really happened starts to take hold. I found everything about the book so intriguing and utterly compelling. I was desperate to find out what had happened to leave such a catastrophic mark on these young lives.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. The Girls Are All So Nice Here is a well-written exploration of toxic, poisonous friendships and the lengths some people will go to to belong. The control Sully has over Ambrosia is very unsettling, makes for uncomfortable reading at times and I loved it! I found it interesting to see the same characters 10 years later as, despite Ambrosia’s claims, nothing had really changed. They still went to extreme lengths to cover their own backs. Brilliantly done. Utterly irresistible. Bold and fearless. Shocking, dark and full of menace. I’m still thinking about this one days after finishing it. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Girls Are All So Nice Here. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn was published in the UK by HQ on 1st April 2021 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | Book Depository | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop |

Laurie Elizabeth Flynn is a former model who lives in London, Ontario with her husband and their three children. She is the author of three young adult novels: Firsts, Last Girl Lied To and All Eyes On Her, under the name L.E. Flynn.

Her debut adult fiction novel, The Girls Are All So Nice Here, will be released in 2021. It has sold in eleven territories worldwide and has been optioned for TV by AMC.