A twisty, pacy YA thriller with plenty of attitude, this book shines a light on the dark world of privilege. A bunch of messy friends locked in a country estate with an unknown murderer on the loose, a ticking clock, and Ben Dean's signature style and humour - what's not to love?

Wow. Just--wow! I am going to try very hard to write this review without spoiling anything about the plot, which is particularly difficult to do when it comes to any thriller/mystery novel like this one. Nevertheless, I shall do my best.
I was hooked pretty much from the first page of this, and developed an attachment to our main character, Noah, within the first few chapters, his friends Cam and Wim a little further in. Most, if not all, of the latter half of the book had me nervously biting my fingernails as the story progressed, on the edge of my sofa. I was shocked and horrified and saddened over and over again-- and that ending, the revelations?! I did *not* see it coming, which is a rare occurrence for me, as I usually figure at least a few things out by about the halfway mark. When I got to the very end of the book, I stared at the final page for a short while before reading it again, and going "That-That's the end?! But I want to know what happened in the aftermath!" In the knowledge that there is unlikely to be a follow-up novel (though I would looove it if there were) I let my imagination run wild, which is what I love about novels that have the sort of ending this one does; they give the reader the opportunity to draw their own conclusions about how the story either ultimately ends, or how it continues in the case that the book is part of a wider series.

I am usually a big fan of Benjamin Dean's books but unfortunately this one fell flat for me. I managed to guess the baddie from the beginning and in some ways the whole locked in the house aspect felt drawn out and didn't work for me as a reader. In many ways, it reminded me of Five Survive by Holly Jackson, which again didn't work for me due to the drawn out narrative of being locked in one place over hours.

Saying that, there were interesting conversations about privilege and the things one will do for fame.

Noah and his friends have just graduated from the prestigious Woodthorn academy and are celebrating their results at Blackstone - a huge family estate belonging to three of them - children of the former prime minister. Apart from Noah, a scholarship kid relying on his upcoming TV show release they are universally rich, spoilt and privileged with varying degrees of awareness. Suddenly they find themselves held hostage by a mysterious killer demanding every hour, one person must be evicted from the house or someone inside the house will die.

I rarely read this kind of thriller, usually because I find them a bit surface and disposable but that’s why I love Benjamin Dean. There is all the decadence and addictive gossip girl nature, the drama of the nepo babies but he always brings an undercurrent of social commentary, an edge of racial commentary an threads it through seamlessly in a way I just love. I will say there are a lot of characters to get to grips with although it doesn’t take long and they do start getting bumped off throughout which helps! And a lot of the characters are varying degrees of unlikeable but in gloriously unlikable ways. Baby with her social media outing of herself as an ally was just brilliant. But you do also root for Noah, the only teen whose had to make a success of himself but you’re never quite sure for large parts of this if you should trust him or not. You know from the first line that things are going to go south and the reveals are very well judged. The killer reveal in this was so satisfying. Even if I sort of guessed who then why, now that was something. II devoured this in a weekend and it would be a perfect summer read. Just not if you’re 18 and in a country house with a bunch of friends for the weekend.

Loved everything about this book, took me completely by surprise, the story was well write, the characters were amazing and the pace was quick. Amazing read!

Woodthorn Academy is a school for the elite, nepo babies of all kinds from children of the Prime Minister, children of actors and a talented tennis player destined to win Wimbledon.

To celebrate their graduation and the beginning of their bright futures, Noah and his friends decide to have a weekend getaway to Black Stone. It’s quiet, low-key and exclusive the perfect combination for their party, and for what a killer has in store for them.

This was my first read of anything by Benjamin Dean, and it seriously won’t be my last. He’s proven himself to be amazing at building up suspense, even if I had a few ‘wait is this gonna happen…?’ moments along the way.

Releasing on 14th August, perfect for fans of Holly Jackson’s ‘Five Survive’.

Woodthorn Academy is a school full of elite teenagers, including children of the Prime Minister, children of famous actors, and even a budding tennis star destined for Wimbeldon. A summer party results in two of the students, Noah and Patrick, going missing, but Noah reappears several days later, in dramatic fashion at a memorial service for Patrick, with no recollection of what happened.
Despite Patrick still being missing, the rest of the group decide to go ahead with their A-level results party at the country house of the now ex-prime minister. However, during the evening, it becomes clear that things are about to take a very dramatic turn for the worst when they discover a killer in the grounds of the house; one who has control of the central electronic operating system for the house, and who is demanding that the friends evict one person every hour or someone inside the house will die. Suddenly, the party atmosphere is gone and everyone is fighting for their lives. With no phone signal and no way out, how many will survive until morning?

I have to admit that I'm a little biased when it comes to Benjamin Dean's books, especially his YA novels as I absolutely love them. Finding Bury Your Friends on Netgalley was a huge plus for me, especially as it fell at the start of my holiday so I could read it almost uninterrupted round the pool!

The book is a dark and brilliantly gripping who done it with great dollop of scandal and twists thrown in for good measure (imagine Made In Chelsea on a murder weekend!). The ten friends realise that this could be their last hurrah together before they all go their separate ways so had planned to reveal their results and onward plans together at a dinner at the country pad of triplets Hugo, Verity and Wim, whose father just happens to have been Prine Minister until a recently leaked video of Wim forced him to resign. Although Patrick remains a missing person, the group are determined to go ahead with the celebrations. There is money in this group (with the exception of Noah who won a scholarship to the school) and this is evident from the start. Their privilege oozes from the page in and there are characters you will love, and definitely some readers will find themselves shouting at!

The book is gripping and creepy, and you never know quite what's going to happen.
Once the 'game' has begun things ramp up and you definitely won't want to put the book down but equally may find yourself reading from behind one hand whilst screaming at the characters on he page! With elements of humour woven in, this is a book that will enthral and captivate readers in equal measure.
However, it's not one to read in a house alone on a dark night unless you're feeling brave.

Publishing on the 14th August (just in time for readers to gobble it up before A-level results day!) , Bury Your Friends is another guaranteed hit for Benjamin Dean... just don't read it alone in the dark!

Noah and his best friends are finally graduating from Woodthorn Academy with the world and all its promises laid out before them. To celebrate exam results day, they’re hosting a party weekend at Black Stone, an opulent country estate, for the whole school to attend. But for one night only, the ten friends will have a low-key celebration – after all, it’s how the upper echelons begin their futures.

But things take a sinister turn when they find themselves in the crosshairs of a killer making one simple every hour, one person must be evicted from the house or someone inside the house will die.

With nowhere to run and a killer on the prowl, choices must be made. But, as people inside the house start to go missing too, it soon becomes clear that nobody is safe. By the time morning comes, who will have survived the night? And is the killer much closer than they realised . . .

I do enjoy a cheeky YA thriller every now and then and I did enjoy this one but certain parts of the story didn’t keep me interested. I think for me, I struggle reading stories with lots of characters and the fact there’s 10 friends, I kept forgetting who was who. Would I read it again? No, but I’d definitely give another book by this author a chance.

Ten friends, almost all privileged rich brats, select a luxury location at which to celebrate their imminent graduation from the prestigious Woodthorn Academy. But before the main celebration - in which all the other students will participate - takes place, the smaller friend group plans to enjoy the venue for a little while.

Except things don't quite go according to plan! When it seems as though a killer is on their trail, they find themselves instructed to send one person out every hour or risk someone inside the house being killed. It's not much of a choice - least of all when it seems the killer may not keep their word anyway...

An engaging and suspenseful piece of story telling, this one will entertain most readers very effectively! It gets 3.5 stars.

don't usually like ya thrillers, but i really enjoyed this one
bury your friends surprised me in the best way it's gripping, emotional and full of tension without being over the top. i went in expecting something light, but ended up staying up late because i had to know what happened next. the mix of mystery and friendship drama was so well done. the characters actually felt real, flawed, and relatable and i kept turning pages and found myshelf hooked since the beginning.
if you're into character driven stories with secrets, twists .....this one's worth picking up

A fantastically creepy book from Benjamin Dean. I didn't want to put it down.
Something happens to Noah and his friend Patrick at a party. They both disappear and only Noah returns, but he can't remember what happened.
Weeks later, to celebrate the end of school, the friends gather at a country mansion. Noah starts to question his guilt over the disappearance of Patrick and friends start to die.
Full of suspense and mystery, this was a great book, highly recommend.

This is a brilliant YA thriller, and it will have you reading with all the lights on and the doors unlocked!
It has the “I know what you did last summer” vibes with a group of friends involved in something dark and then coming together for an epic house party. Friends throughout school, there are cracks in the veneer of them…and it isn’t long before punches are thrown and a kid is murdered.
Noah is at the centre of this, believing himself to be the killer of another friend a few months before. His amnesia is masking the truth but before the sun rises, it will all come out. But how many will need to be murdered first?
Thrilling, darkly funny and filled with a brave and bold cast of characters,
I need to go back and read more from Benjamin Dean- he is quite the weaver of fear!