The Ivies Review

Author: Alexa Donne

Publication Date: 25 May 2021

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers

Page Count: 320

Reading Method: Physical Finished Copy [ Thank you to the publisher ]

Dates Read: May 26 – 28 

Synopsis: 

Everyone knows the Ivies: the most coveted universities in the United States. Far more important are the Ivies. The Ivies at Claflin Academy, that is. Five girls with the same mission: to get into the Ivy League by any means necessary. I would know. I’m one of them. We disrupt class ranks, club leaderships, and academic competitions…among other things. We improve our own odds by decreasing the fortunes of others. Because hyper-elite competitive college admissions is serious business. And in some cases, it’s deadly.

Review: 

I managed to get my hands on an arc of Donne’s previous book The Stars We Steal (review here) so I was super excited to get a copy of The Ivies.  The synopsis makes it sound absolutely chaotic.  I mean, what’s not to love about a group of teenagers sabotaging their classmates to get into the Ivy League? 

Plot: 

The Ivies are a group of girls with one mission – get into their choice Ivy League school at any cost.  But when one of them is found dead, the game changes completely.  Personally, I thought the story would be more about committing acts of sabotage, but it ended up being more about dealing with the aftermath.  Though it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, it was quite enjoyable to watch these girls have to deal with the consequences of their actions.  There were twists, turns, and shocking revelations.  It had me hooked throughout.  

Characters: 

The story is told from Olivia’s perspective.  She is a scholarship student at a prestigious boarding school who finds herself caught up in the group of Ivies.  Understandably she feels a bit out of place with her “friends” and crushing on a guy she “shouldn’t” be.  We don’t see any other perspectives but, as with any good mystery, there is a whole cast of characters that add interest and intrigue to the story.  I think the character I was most obsessed with was Avery – the head mean girl and potential murderer.  You just really never knew what to expect from her.  

Writing: 

This was a big improvement from The Stars We Steal, in my opinion.  Whereas I thought that story had a lot of potential that it didn’t quite live up to, The Ivies was spectacular.  It was everything I hoped for in a young adult mystery.  It was gripping, there were several excellent uses of literary devices to through the reader off the trail, and the characters were each unique and exciting.  I didn’t feel like there was a lull at any point in while reading and truly didn’t guess the ending.  And the setting!  I love a good boarding school setting. 

Overall: 

I quite enjoyed The Ivies. I wasn’t sure what to expect from it but I was pleasantly surprised.  I’ve already got my sister in line to read it next and I am excited to hear what she thinks of it!