A thrilling first instalment from a new partnership of Zoe Sugg and Amy McCulloch

The Magpie Society is a secret. In fact very few students at Illumen Hall have heard of it but after the mysterious death of Lola, one of the most popular students, Ivy and Audrey start to investigate and suddenly everything starts to point towards this sinister group.

With a podcast at the very heart of this story, the book is reminiscent of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder with a touch of Mallory Towers thrown in.

My students will absolutely love this book and I can’t wait to introduce them to it.

The Magpie Society: One for Sorrow is a young adult mystery novel set at an elite boarding school, when two unlikely friends investigate a student's death. The previous summer at Illumen Hall, one of the students fell to her death during a party, and the police deemed it misadventure. When Audrey starts at the school's sixth form, fresh from the US and a secret in her past, she doesn't want to get drawn into the mystery. She immediately doesn't get along with her new roommate Ivy, who was friends with the victim, but soon they find themselves drawn together into trying to work out what happened, and why someone has created a podcast to expose the killer.

The novel is told from alternating first person point of view, which works well for getting the perspective of both someone new and someone more tied up in the drama, though it isn't used for suspense as much as might be expected considering the genre. The vibe of the book is good, a bit old school Point Horror and a bit dark boarding school, but trying to update these for a more current audience with elements like the podcast. As it's the first in a series, the ending is a bit disappointing, and it perhaps needed to strike a better balance between wanting you to read future books and feeling like a satisfying read in itself. However, it will probably draw plenty of readers into the world of Illumen Hall, and it has a fun, gothic atmosphere.

“I KNOW WHO KILLED LOLA … AND ONE OF YOU IS NEXT”

Audrey is the new girl at Illumen Hall, a prestigious boarding school a world away from her old life and the memories that haunt her. She’s sharing a room with Ivy, who doesn’t seem to want anything to do with her. It isn’t long before Audrey learns that Lola, one of Illumen Hall’s most popular girls, died recently.

The police have closed their case but there may be more to the story than meets the eye. While the students and staff are still coming to terms with their loss, a new podcast raises the question of whether Lola’s death was an accident, suicide, or something more sinister. It turns out that Audrey isn’t the only one at Illumen Hall that’s keeping a secret.

I probably would have been slightly obsessed with this book if I’d read it when I was 13. I’ve always loved stories set in boarding schools and the mystery of the death of a student, combined with a school that has such a rich history and a potential secret society, would have been all I needed. Even as an adult I found this book easy to get into, but I found myself questioning things that wouldn’t have even registered on my radar as a kid.

The podcast transcripts were an interesting way of building the mystery and introducing theories, although none of them had enough content to last more than a couple of minutes. I had a lot of trouble believing a Detective would discuss any details of a case, no matter how briefly, with an anonymous caller.

A time stamp on a photo is believed to be accurate by the people who see it, with no questions raised about its authenticity. Although there’s nothing in this book to indicate that the time stamp had been fudged, it seemed strange that it wasn’t even a consideration. The resolution in this book that related to the person concerned was too easy for me.

I liked the idea of Ivy and Audrey’s points of view being written by different authors but if I didn’t already know this book was written by two people I never would have picked it. Usually I would think that this was a good thing, as the transitions between chapters felt fairly seamless. However, in this instance, I thought there should have been something obvious about the writing styles to differentiate the girls’ voices.

After the initial mystery was introduced the investigation didn’t move quickly enough for me for much of the book. I didn’t feel the urgency of the investigation. Towards the end of the book the pace picked up and I was really starting to look forward to getting some answers, but then the book just ended. Right in the middle of a scene.

There is a planned sequel, ‘Two for Joy’, currently scheduled for release in 2021. I knew ahead of time that this was the first in a series so I suspected I wouldn’t learn the answers to all of my questions here but I don’t feel like I got any of the answers I was seeking. Unfortunately, while I expected to be excited about the answers that will hopefully be revealed in the second book, I’m left frustrated by the lack of resolution.

There’s a website mentioned in the book that I obviously had to look up. The website doesn’t currently exist but perhaps it will by the publication date. Likewise, I tested out an email address but it was undeliverable.

‘I won’t cross the magpies, and the magpies won’t cross me.’

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Children’s UK for granting my wish to read this book. I’m rounding up from 3.5 stars.

I was so excited when my wish on netgalley was granted for this book. I was looking forward to reading Zoe's new book in collaboration with Amy after enjoying reading the girl online series. Murder mysteries aren't my normal go-to books, but I do enjoy a murder mystery tv show so I thought I'd give it a go. I really enjoyed reading the book and at points I was gripped and couldn't put the book down. Even though the chapters alternate between characters, and as a result writers, you can't tell that they are written by different authors and it flows really well because of this. But you can tell that they are about different characters.

The Magpie Society Is a great read especially for this time of year it makes the perfect Halloween read while snug indoors especially if you are a fan of pretty little liars etc . The main characters Audrey and Ivy grab your attention well and offer enough to make you want to keep turning the page .I read this book in full within two days and it kept my interest with my suspicions of the story pulling me more and more into the world . Overall I give this a 4 stars and look forward to seeing if anything more comes from Amy and Zoe in the future

Lola, a beautiful young girl, dies under mysterious circumstances at an exclusive English boarding school during their end of year party. The following term, new girl Audrey arrives at the school amid growing speculation about what really happened, but she is determined to stay out of the drama surrounding the tragedy. However, when she discovers that she is residing in Lola's room and an anonymous podcast is released, riling staff and students of Illumen Hall up even more, Audrey and her roommate Ivy are drawn deeper into the mysteries of the school than either of them wanted.

The premise for this book was really promising but the execution just didn't work for me.

I'll start with what I liked about 'The Magpie Society'. The setting. Wow, the setting! Illumen Hall is a creepy, old boarding school by the coast in England. The grandeur of the school seeps through the pages and creates such a cosy feeling as you are reading. The plot ticks so many boxes for me. Mystery ✓, secluded setting ✓, a possible love triangle ✓ and so much more. It has all of the elements for a book that I just can't put down, and I did race through it, finishing it over two nights.

And then, what I didn't like so much... The two main character's voices were not distinct enough, despite being written by two different authors. I often found myself double-checking which character's POV I was reading from. I didn't feel like I connected to either Audrey or Ivy. Finally, we are left with way too many unanswered questions. I understand they are setting us up for a sequel but the reader isn't given enough answers to make for a satisfying ending to this book. It seemed like it was ending prematurely and I just felt disappointed.

Thank you #NetGalley and Penguin Random House Children's UK for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.