For a ya this was much darker than I anticipated, all I could think was it’s hungers games/the inheritance games with scream queens thrown in and I didn’t know how much I needed to read that. I sat and read the whole book in 1 sitting I could not put it down.

Adina has lost her admission to Yale, and is willing to go to extreme lengths to get it back. Cue a deadly competition that pits her against 11 other girls.

In theory this book sounded amazing, but I had real trouble with it. The events just kept getting more and more ridiculous and I wasn't connecting with the characters enough to ignore it. Not a book for me!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

This was an adrenaline fueled nightmare from start to finish (in a good way!)

12 girls are chosen to participate in an event called The Finish, where they compete to win the money and influence that the Remington family can offer.

Adina, who lost her space at Yale and wants to win it back, is invited by Pierce Remington to compete in The Finish. She thinks ita series of competitve rich-people events, like horse riding etc.

However, it's much more deadly than that, and she will be lucky to survive.

This book was honestly so exciting and gripping from the very beginning. I couldn't put it down. The dynamics between these girls, who are thrust into this competition against each other, is simply put, delicious. Right from the very first night it thrusts you into the danger of the situation, and it very soon becomes life or death for these girls.

It keeps you on the edge of your seat, as you don't know what is going to happen next, just like the girls. You don't know the events of The Finish until it is revealed to the girls competing, so it is very exciting watching it all happen in real time with them.

While this, on the surface, is a competition to receive riches and influence, the book perfectly delves into the monstrous acts that humans can commit when pushed to their limits. Everyone has the capacity for heinous acts in order to survive, and that's what this book shows in bloody detail.

It's a story about class and race, about what those with power believe they can get away with and what it takes to stand up to make a difference.

Adina was a great main character. She has her morally grey moments after being forced into awful situations in order to survive, but she never loses sight of who she is at her core.

I loved this one and highly recommend it.

I don’t know what was in this book but I could NOT put it down! The twist at the end was so unexpected and actually carried the story to a way better finale than I could have ever imagined.
I found the first 10% of the book hard to get into but it all starts to make sense and tie together the more you read on - I absolutely loved the character developments in this book! The suspense was incredible and I definitely found my heart rate elevated at a lot of points in this - especially everything around the maze trial. I will 100% be recommending this to the people around me and as my first step into this sort of genre, I can’t wait to read more like this in future!

What a mess. This book was hyped up so much and for what? I'm glad I saw on Goodreads before I started reading that the author had said this was satirical because honestly I wouldn't have known otherwise, and even reading it knowing it's satire, the story was told really badly. I don't think the satire genre should lead an excuse to bad writing. E. Lockhart can do it, so can Joelle. But this was honestly one of the worst books I've ever read and I was so gripped by the first 15% or so! It had so much promise and it was just a shambles.

Here's some of the notes I made as I read:

'Alpha Enemy Number One. Esme Aldridge.' - this is before the Finish is even mentioned and Adina is acting like a psycho. We all have girls we used to be friends with and now hate but 'alpha enemy number one' is so childish it makes me hate the character. Grow up.

'"You and your poor townie trash friend aren't wanted here." There's a remarkable silence as I realise that's me. I'm the poor townie trash. Esme has always been a wordsmith.' - 2 things here. 1: who actually speaks like this? I mean outside of a low budget Netflix series? and 2: a wordsmith???? for calling someone townie trash???? did I read that right? Shakespeare is quaking in his boots, Joelle is about to replace him.

'"Your parents aren't built for jail. Might cry if they break a nail," I retort. I learned to spit venom from the best.' - is the venom in the room with us? I've heard five year olds with better insults than this. Venom??? is this a joke

'I flip a middle finger at her because I can' - ooh wow this character is soooo badass, is that what I'm supposed to think? it's so cringe I want to throw up.

'A twang of not-right shoots up my spine' - right, this phrase 'not-right' is used on I think at least five occasions throughout the book and it is so jarring to read. It is lazy writing. I might let you get away with it once, but it was overused and there are a million better phrases to use. Not to mention that these sentences don't even make grammatical sense but with such a messy book, who cares, right?

'"You should be honoured that I'm sharing my scent with you, Margaret. The Finish can be really overwhelming, but I'll take care of you, all of you, I promise.' - again, who talks like this? Esme acts like if she thinks she is the queen bee, that everyone else will just bow down at her feet, which is exactly what happens. In real life we know what happens when a girl acts like this: she's labeled as the bitch she is and everyone else shuns her.

'"You think you're so different from them? Why? Because you're 'self-aware'? I can promise you ... you're not." Graham laughs. "I'm not?"' - Let's not act like Adina wouldn't hate him if he was a self-righteous prick. Instead he is the humble brother, the one who believes this is all wrong. And she attacks him for it anyway. What does this scream? Performative. Shut up Adina. You're so hard done by because you're trapped here? So is every other bitch but they aren't wasting time kissing all the Remingtons brothers. Also don't give love interests old man names. Ew.

'"The Finish is about the Remington men, because one of them is the prize. This is part of it. Proving that we'd die to have them. Proving that we'd kill." - as if a single girl in the world thinks a stupid rich white man is worth dying for. Please. BFFR.

'"The caviar is good too," she says. "It's a bit fishy. A bit salty." "Like ocean water," Hawthorne adds.' - I thought these girls are supposed to be intelligent. Getting into Harvard and whatnot and here they are talking about caviar being fishy and salty like ocean water. That's like me saying 'wow this cat is furry and warm, like a living mammal.'

'It's Jacequeline. She's kneeling on her horse's back, her arm looped through her rings to keep her steady. And in her outstretched hand, she has... a gun.' - give me a break. what can I even say about this one. Jesus Christ. she's 'kneeling' on horseback??? I'm no equestrian but I know people that are and I think even they would say you aren't going to be kneeling on horseback while crossing what is essentially a horse obstacle course designed to kill people and horses, not to mention she's supposedly not only holding a gun but aiming it as well at the same time? I must have missed this episode of looney tunes.

'Poison is such an abstract way to die. It happens on a chemical level. You don't see it happening so much as you see the aftereffects. But a bullet. That burns through flesh, destroys sinew, and explodes outward, ending life. That bullet is real.' - Thank you Adina for explaining to me what a bullet is. I never would have known if it weren't for clever scholarship girls like you.

'"Aren't you going to eat?" he asks. "I don't like salmon." Another lie. "What do you like to eat, then?" "The rich." I glare, daring him to sneer." - ..... shut the hell up. me too but how dumb do you sound saying it.

'"You strike me as sneaky." "I have that air about me," Saint deadpans. Pierce does not seem to find her nearly as funny as I do, frowning as he passes her the rapier and dagger.' - where was the humour??? Saint hasn't said a single funny sentence in this whole book, especially not in that quote. Is Adina on shrooms?

'I grab the grip and point the empty gun directly at Jacqueline, and I can't help the sick flare of satisfaction when she staggers back, hands held up over her face. "Pew, pew," I say, voice flat, before I turn back to Pierce.' - this is so embarassing. Adina I am so embarrassed for you. Everyone in the room is embarrassed.

I stopped making notes after this point because I started reading faster because I honestly wanted nothing more than for this book to be over. All I can say is it got worse and worse towards the end. It was like a weird dream. It was stupid, is the main thing that comes to mind to sum up this book. It was literally one of the stupidest things I've ever read.

I'm just so disappointed because I was really, really enjoying it at first. Joelle could have taken this in a really interesting direction and instead we brought horses, mazes, guns and kissing stupid side characters into this.

I won't be publishing this review publicly because it is so harsh and I don't want to influence people into not picking up the book. I am very, very aware that as a white girl, this book isn't for the likes of me, but I've still read many better books by black authors with the same subtext who at least actually know how to write.

First of all I would just like to thank NetGalley, Joelle Wellington and Penguin Random House UK Children’s for an ARC of “Their Vicious Games” in exchange for an honest review.

WOW. This book had no business being that good. I honestly don’t even know where to begin. With an unexpectedly deep and heart-wrenching plot this book took me through a range of emotions- ranging all the way from anger to tears.

The inexplicable rage this book made me feel is hard to put down in words. No one should be treated that foully. Joelle manages to use a YA plot of a dystopian-esque game in which the player wins a supposed prize of dreams, to ultimately convey a tale of class, race and gender discrimination in society.

This book features a female POC protagonist whose attitude I one day hope to aspire to. Adina is powerful and strong and I couldn’t help but love her, Saint and Penthesilea.

Even the most initially hated characters have their own story to tell, that can’t help but draw sympathy from the reader. NO ONE deserves the hell these girls were put through- and this story helps you to realise that.

The writing is brilliant and I was utterly gripped whilst simultaneously wanting to look away at times due to the disgusting nature of the games. (No spoilers but I almost lost it at the Simon Says bit) It’s so vivid that at times I forgot I was reading and not actually watching a film.

It takes an extreme amount of talent to draw that much emotion from a reader through words alone. I can’t commend Joelle’s writing and imagination highly enough.

Squid Game meets Ace of Spades meets Ready or Not. Loved it! 4.5 stars rounded up. It wasn’t perfect but it was a great satire, I had a great time and loved the characters!

Their Vicious Games is a story with a wild premise. Desperate to regain her acceptance to Yale, our protagonist Adina, a black scholarship kid amongst the richest of the white rich, enters into a competition that turns out to be violent and fatal, pitting young women against each other. It is dramatic, shocking and full of twists.

Immersion in the story all hinges on whether you can suspend disbelief enough to buy into this dystopian madness happening within what appears to be our normal, contemporary world. It becomes slightly less unbelievable when you think about who these people are; richer than sin with power that can make or break others. The men in this story are manipulative and seem to relish in this barbaric tradition. They are seen as untouchable, influencing everything around them, and the author did a great job at making me hate them! When it came to the three challenges that the competitors have to complete, I found it hard to believe everyone was so complicit in it, which took me out of the story a bit, but I still enjoyed reading it and the ending was gratifying.

Recommended for those looking for a high stakes thriller, who don't mind a little (ok a lot) of violence.

4 stars.

With this book being compared to media such as Squid Game, The Selection and Mean Girls, I went into Their Vicious Games with fairly high expectations, and I'm so glad to say that it easily exceeded them. It had an action-packed plot and a cast of characters who were all well-developed, and the writing style was great, which meant that it was difficult to tear myself away from this book. I also found the discussions of class and race within academic spaces to be incredibly insightful, all perfectly encapsulated within a deadly games setting.

A sharp whirlwind of a book that had me hooked until the very last page. I would love to see what Joelle Wellington goes on to write in the future.

“A Black teen desperate to regain her Ivy League acceptance enters an elite competition only to discover the stakes aren’t just high, they’re deadly, in this searing thriller that’s Ace of Spades meets Squid Game with a sprinkling of The Bachelor .

You must work twice as hard to get half as much”

This is such a thrilling and fast paced book, the action had my heart pounding and there were so many twists that kept my interest piqued throughout. The discussion of real topics such as class, racism and sexism is something I really admire. I love Adina’a character and was rooting for her, she’s such a strong willed individual who always spoke her mind. Her growth during the book made the ending that much better. (The Royale was intense, my jaw was literally on the floor, and I loved it). Her friendship with Saint was also a great addition, it was nice that the girls had someone else they could trust. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would love to read more from Joelle because her writing is amazing in this! Thank you to @netgalley @penguinukbooks @penguinrandomhouse @jowellington for the e-arc of this book, all opinions are my own.

I was super excited about this book and was definitely not disappointed - quite the opposite!
Their Vicious Games is a YA thriller that features high society, squid games, and criticism of privilege (of various kinds). This mix worked exceptionally well for me in this book.

Their Vicious Games takes us into a world of the ultra-rich and privileged, where a human life is hardly worth anything and power as well as influence are the most important things.

The writing style was right up my alley - easy to read, young, and brutally honest. (Plus occasional swear words) There was enough description without everything being laid out in too extreme detail and the focus remained on the plot.
The plot itself was well constructed, had a few exciting twists, and kept me rooting for Adina, the main character, throughout. Her role as the only Black woman in the field of contestants was also super on point.
In general, I thought the characters in the book were great, both the main character and the other protagonists. Many were not just good or evil, but morally gray. All of the girls had their motives why they wanted to participate in such a dangerous competition.
I found the handling of the romance plots to be particularly positive, with just the right dose and a resolution that I thought was very cool.
Only the ending could divide a few minds. I found it extremely good and satisfying, but can imagine that for some people it might be too much / too wild. I, however, liked it. A lot.
Definitely one of my top reads in 2023 so far.
Big recommendation!

I really enjoyed this! It's very much eat the rich vibes and the games aspect reminds me of The Inheritance Games (which I also loved). The characters are rich despite the big cast and the challenges itself were so unexpected. I didn't know how it would end and what was coming but I was satisfied with the turn it took and I particularly enjoyed the friendship between Saint and Adina.

I think this is definitely one for those who want a fresh thriller!

Hunger Games meets The Selection except more unhinged! I couldn’t put this book down until I found out how it was as going to end. It was riveting. Every character was whole, you wanted to know more about them, who would survive and what winning might mean for their soul.

It’s a five star book and I’m a fan of this author now and can’t wait to see what’s next.

Wow, this book exceeded expectations in every way. I was expecting it to be a hunger games rip off but it was so much more - think Hunger Games mixed with The Selection but a bit more unhinged and you are halfway there. I sped through it and stayed up half the night to read it.

Alina was a scholarship student at an exclusive private school with early acceptance to Yale, everything seems to be going well for her until she ends up in a fight with another student and suddenly finds her university offers rescinded and the ladder pulled up from her. Her only hope is to manipulate herself an invite to a competition for sponsorship from the wealthiest family in town. But there’s more to the competition than it seems…

This is a solid 5 star read, it’s a pulpy dark academic horror with lots of twists and turns. It is new adult and I would recommend it to anyone who likes dystopian fiction or horror by authors like Riley Sagar.

I would describe ‘Their Vicious Games’ by Joelle Wellington as “ S.T.A.G.S meets The Selection meets Ready or Not (the movie)”. It was an enjoyable, satirical, thought provoking read that I devoured in one sitting and helped to revive me from a short slump. My rating is 4.45/5 stars ⭐️

As a young black woman, I am always incredibly eager to read more diverse stories, particularly stories where the main character looks like me, as growing up, that wasn’t something I saw a lot of. I found Adina to be someone that I could relate to a lot during the beginning of the story, however as the story progressed, I admit to relating to her less and less. She definitely goes through a very interesting character arc, and there are moments, particularly in the middle of the novel, where I question her judgement and her thought process. There were definitely a few moments where I found myself thinking “sis I’m not sure if I’m rooting for you right now because WHAT are you actually doing?” but she does manage to bring it back in the end and I’m back on side and rooting for her!

The relationships throughout this novel were very complex and, for the most part, very well done. I absolutely loved the friendship and the bond between Adina and Saint. It kind of reminded me of Meredith and Christina’s relationship from greys anatomy a little bit with the “twisted sisters” aspect. I feel they definitely gave dark and twisty vibes sometimes (in the best way, I love Meredith and Christina!). Toni and Adina’s relationship seemed really sweet too and I almost wish we got to see more of it (I love a good strong girl friendship) but I completely understand why we didn’t.

There were some complex characters like Esme and Hawthorne whom I feel like Adina can’t decide how she feels about and that kind of made me a little confused also. I found myself questioning what the author wanted us to feel about these girls. I found it a lot easier to feel sympathy for Hawthorne but I truly despised Esme in every shape or form. At times I felt that perhaps the author wanted us to sympathise/empathise with Esme and not see her as purely a villain, but honestly I didn’t think that the glimpses of humanity we saw was enough to negate the horror of her actions. Yes, Esme was another victim of their viscous games but, realistically, how much of a victim was she really?

This novel was an enjoyable read and gave me a lot of food for thought. Thank you to the author for sharing her work with the world and thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review. It was a pleasure.

Joelle Wellington is going to be a new go to author for me. This book made my jaw hit the floor so many times at the shocking twists and turns!

Every character had an important role to play and their interactions with the main character Adina throughout the book were so well written. I need this to be a movie, or another book showing the original finish would be ideal!

I would recommend this book for anyone who has read and enjoyed the hungers games. It is described as squid games meets inheritance games with a dose of the bachelor.