In 2016, Ruth Ware’s The Woman in Cabin 10 was a big hit, and I was among those who enjoyed it – a LOT. 2019’s Turn of the Key was a 3-star “meh” for me, then 2020’s One By One was a solid 4 stars. So I was eager to see whether her latest, The It Girl, would make me a solid Ware fan again – thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley , (for providing a copy in exchange for this honest review) I am once again a fan of Ms. Ware. 

Hannah was a student at Oxford when her best friend and roommate April was murdered. The main suspect was convicted largely as a result of Hahnnah’s testimony, and the whole experience left her traumatized to the point she dropped out of school. She receives a phone call about the murderer, John Neville, who has just died in prison. The past comes back to haunt Hannah, even making her question whether what she thought she witnessed was truly Neville leaving the murder scene, and if she may have contributed to an innocent man going to prison. 

The story is told in alternating timeframes, both present day and back in her college days. Once again, Ms. Ware has written a terrific thriller with lots of possible suspects and motives. There is a nice slow buildup of tension until the  murder (which is revealed early on in the book). The resolution is perhaps surprising, but made perfect sense.

I admit I did wonder why Hannah viewed April in such a positive light, years after her death. April wasn’t very nice – in fact I found her selfish and cruel. April’s status as the “it girl” dazzled Hannah when they were young college students, but she seems to not ever change her mind about her “best friend” (as she still refers to her, after all the years and time for reflection/growing up. But it was a fine way to escape the news for a day or so. Four stars.