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People Are Talking
Desperate to find a plot for her second novel, author Mallory Shepard attends her estranged best friend’s wedding in Austin, where she and six friends try to settle old scores—with unexpected deadly consequences—in this debut for fans of Veronica Mars, Tara Isabella Burton, and Tana French.
In PEOPLE ARE TALKING, the debut novel by Amanda Eisenberg, Mallory Shepard has her back against the wall. Her girlfriend dumped her, her landlord wants to evict her and her literary agent is about to drop her—unless she can come up with a compelling follow-up to her debut novel. A book deal would solve her problems, which is why she agrees to attend an estranged college friend’s wedding in Texas. It’ll be the first time she’s seen that friend group since an incident tore them apart nine years earlier, and Mal intends to secretly squeeze her ex-friends for information. The plan is nearly foolproof, except that her still-raw hurt and righteous anger threatens to expose her agenda, as does her weakness for her college nemesis: Andrew Rosen.
Danit Leibowitz is—was Mal’s best friend. Together they transformed the Newts, a secret society, into a group that tracks alleged rapists long after they graduated from the prestigious halls of Weston College. Now a rising lefty political star, Dani is asked to come up with another plan to reinvent the Newts, which Gen Z deems out of touch amid ever-changing gender and sex politics. When she learns Mal will be there, Dani hatches a plan to appease the Newts and win back her friend, all in 72 hours.
Crammed into an Austin rental for the weekend, the six friends seek to settle old scores and win back ex-friends and lovers. But when the Newts infiltrate the wedding, with deadly consequences, Mal and Dani are forced to consider whether they’re willing to separate the personal from the political—even at the expense of protecting the people they love.
Author Amanda Eisenberg is a writer and adjunct professor based in Manhattan. An award-winning journalist, her writing has been featured in Politico, InStyle, and the Washington Post, among other outlets. She has written extensively about women’s health issues, with a focus on health care access and sexual misconduct. Amanda grew up in Bergen County, New Jersey, and graduated from the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
In PEOPLE ARE TALKING, the debut novel by Amanda Eisenberg, Mallory Shepard has her back against the wall. Her girlfriend dumped her, her landlord wants to evict her and her literary agent is about to drop her—unless she can come up with a compelling follow-up to her debut novel. A book deal would solve her problems, which is why she agrees to attend an estranged college friend’s wedding in Texas. It’ll be the first time she’s seen that friend group since an incident tore them apart nine years earlier, and Mal intends to secretly squeeze her ex-friends for information. The plan is nearly foolproof, except that her still-raw hurt and righteous anger threatens to expose her agenda, as does her weakness for her college nemesis: Andrew Rosen.
Danit Leibowitz is—was Mal’s best friend. Together they transformed the Newts, a secret society, into a group that tracks alleged rapists long after they graduated from the prestigious halls of Weston College. Now a rising lefty political star, Dani is asked to come up with another plan to reinvent the Newts, which Gen Z deems out of touch amid ever-changing gender and sex politics. When she learns Mal will be there, Dani hatches a plan to appease the Newts and win back her friend, all in 72 hours.
Crammed into an Austin rental for the weekend, the six friends seek to settle old scores and win back ex-friends and lovers. But when the Newts infiltrate the wedding, with deadly consequences, Mal and Dani are forced to consider whether they’re willing to separate the personal from the political—even at the expense of protecting the people they love.
Author Amanda Eisenberg is a writer and adjunct professor based in Manhattan. An award-winning journalist, her writing has been featured in Politico, InStyle, and the Washington Post, among other outlets. She has written extensively about women’s health issues, with a focus on health care access and sexual misconduct. Amanda grew up in Bergen County, New Jersey, and graduated from the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
336 pages, Paperback
Published April 22, 2025
8 people are currently reading
3741 people want to read
About the author
Amanda Eisenberg
1 book18 followersAmanda Eisenberg is the debut author of PEOPLE ARE TALKING. She's the person her friends call for a shopping recommendation. A former Politico reporter, Amanda is interested in exploring the personal and the political. She also teaches journalism at New York University. Amanda lives in Manhattan and loves going for long walks around the city. You can find her on Instagram at @amandaeisenbergauthor.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
January 3, 2025
For fans of LISTEN FOR THE LIE, do I have a book for you! Amanda Eisenberg’s PEOPLE ARE TALKING is a stunning debut following a group of estranged college friends during a wedding weekend where secrets are meant to be uncovered—no matter the cost. Once I started this ARC I couldn’t put it down. I’ve loved Veronica Mars since I was a teenager so seeing that this was compared to VM I knew I was in for a good time.
Told from a dual POV with alternating timelines of before and after, PEOPLE ARE TALKING is one of the best books I’ve read after the #MeToo era. As a survivor of sexual assault I found the scenarios to be heartbreakingly accurate through the turmoil of the aftermath and questioning if what happened to me was my fault for not being a good enough girlfriend or if my consent actually mattered in that situation. I cannot wait to have more people read this and cannot wait to see what Eisenberg writes next!
Thanks again for sending me this ARC; my opinions are my own!
Told from a dual POV with alternating timelines of before and after, PEOPLE ARE TALKING is one of the best books I’ve read after the #MeToo era. As a survivor of sexual assault I found the scenarios to be heartbreakingly accurate through the turmoil of the aftermath and questioning if what happened to me was my fault for not being a good enough girlfriend or if my consent actually mattered in that situation. I cannot wait to have more people read this and cannot wait to see what Eisenberg writes next!
Thanks again for sending me this ARC; my opinions are my own!
May 15, 2025
This book was an absolute delight from start to finish. The author’s writing style is engaging, vivid, and easy to follow, making it hard to put the book down. The story is well-paced, with a perfect balance of character development, plot twists, and emotional depth. Every chapter leaves you wanting more.
December 22, 2024
ARC Review: This books starts off as a pretty slow burn. You’re left out of the loop for a bit on what event left this group of people seemingly isolating Mal, however the needing to know is what hooked me and kept me reading. The characters are incredibly flawed and at times hard to root for; I found the whole perspective of that very palate cleansing. People aren’t their best selves, people aren’t always what they seem, and the topic is a plague at most college campuses. The dual voices of Mal and Dani paired with the dual timelines helps build the intrigue and overall helps keep things moving; as questions arise and you get a glimpse into the answer in the next chapter. The author kept you guessing till the very end. I would definitely recommend this read. It was absolutely a quick and hard to put down read, and I just HAD TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. Curious if there will be a follow up book or two to this one.
November 11, 2024
Great read that keeps you guessing!
The characters feel so real with highs and lows that feel like you are listening to your messiest friend tell you about her latest exploits. And the ending!! I’m both shocked and satisfied — a rare combo for a debut novel.
Can’t wait to see what this author writes next!
The characters feel so real with highs and lows that feel like you are listening to your messiest friend tell you about her latest exploits. And the ending!! I’m both shocked and satisfied — a rare combo for a debut novel.
Can’t wait to see what this author writes next!
April 9, 2025
Incredible! I couldn’t put it down!
March 26, 2025
i'm so grateful for this ARC! a great debut novel with complex and relatable relationships. loved the feminist commentary and i'm excited to see what's next!
May 3, 2025
A great read that I could not put down! The characters are well-developed and the dual timeline keeps you guessing on what will happen next. Can’t wait to see what this author has in store next.
November 22, 2024
5 stars! It has intrigue, drama and important social commentary all in one. An amazing author debut.
January 16, 2026
This is a really important subject and I applaud the author for wanting to tackle something so complex and in an interesting way. I liked the secret society angle. Unfortunately, the story itself is just not compelling as its premise sets it up to be. Every major character was wildly unlikeable, and not in an interesting way. Mal and Dani, the two main characters, are both manipulative and conniving, and throughout the story they are pitted against each other in various different ways. These conflicts are set up in a way where you can see both sides, but you don't actually want to root for either of them. Neither of them handle any of the conflicts well, nor do the other main characters.
On top of that, it just wasn't consistent. Early on we're told that Dani is self-conscious about her familial wealth and tried to hide her Israeli name, but then we find out that most of the other characters in the book are Jewish or wealthy (or both, sometimes suggested in ways so casual that it feels uncomfortable). The characters seem to be used as pawns just to accomplish plot points, rather than any of them being consistent and understandable. Once, we're told that Mal has to blend into the background and she will never be a "main character" type (because she's a writer), and then like two chapters later we're told that she would never be able to just blend into the background. The Newts are a secret society, and yet no one seems to question what this giant building on campus is being used for—even the men never question where their girlfriends are all the time. While all of these are smaller things, they break the immersion in the story because no one feels real, believable, or likeable.
I wanted to like this book, because I like the premise, and it's important that books covering these topics are written and shared. Unfortunately, though, this book just did not do its job. You don't feel compelled to root for any of the characters, so the only thing you have to root for is justice. And while there's kind of sort of some level of justice in the end, it's entirely unsatisfying and just leaves you angrier. I feel like I should give it one star, but I'm giving it two because the general overarching story at least held my attention in a few places, and I like the overall subject.
On top of that, it just wasn't consistent. Early on we're told that Dani is self-conscious about her familial wealth and tried to hide her Israeli name, but then we find out that most of the other characters in the book are Jewish or wealthy (or both, sometimes suggested in ways so casual that it feels uncomfortable). The characters seem to be used as pawns just to accomplish plot points, rather than any of them being consistent and understandable. Once, we're told that Mal has to blend into the background and she will never be a "main character" type (because she's a writer), and then like two chapters later we're told that she would never be able to just blend into the background. The Newts are a secret society, and yet no one seems to question what this giant building on campus is being used for—even the men never question where their girlfriends are all the time. While all of these are smaller things, they break the immersion in the story because no one feels real, believable, or likeable.
I wanted to like this book, because I like the premise, and it's important that books covering these topics are written and shared. Unfortunately, though, this book just did not do its job. You don't feel compelled to root for any of the characters, so the only thing you have to root for is justice. And while there's kind of sort of some level of justice in the end, it's entirely unsatisfying and just leaves you angrier. I feel like I should give it one star, but I'm giving it two because the general overarching story at least held my attention in a few places, and I like the overall subject.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 24, 2025
If you like literary suspense with flawed characters and complicated friend group dynamics, if you liked Rebecca Makkai’s I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU, keep reading:
In the present timeline, Mal is a writer in desperate need of another book to follow her highly acclaimed debut. She decides to join her estranged college friends for a wedding weekend in Austin, TX, in the hopes of getting dirt from them for her next novel. And do we get the dirt!! We also dip into the past, during the friends’ time in college, to see how they bonded—and how they broke apart.
My favorite part of this novel is the characters. Amanda Eisenberg gives us frank depictions of real people, with real wants and desires and flaws and problems, and it’s so refreshing. Yes they make terrible choices. Yes they fight and backstab and lie. It makes for fascinating reading.
Amanda also doesn’t shy away from tough topics. Sexual assault and consent and who benefits from upholding archaic good ol’ boys clubs are major elements of the story and are discussed and explored heavily on the page. It’s heavy stuff, but (unfortunately) still so timely.
#MeToo went viral almost a decade ago and yet we are still dealing with these issues (we always have, ofc). It can feel really discouraging, especially in the wake of news like who is back in the White House and, most recently, Neil Gaiman. Books like PEOPLE ARE TALKING are facing this head on.
I read this novel in some of its earliest iterations, and it’s my absolute pleasure to read it again in its finished form. I can’t wait to get my preorder in and hold it in my hands!
(CW for sexual assault)
In the present timeline, Mal is a writer in desperate need of another book to follow her highly acclaimed debut. She decides to join her estranged college friends for a wedding weekend in Austin, TX, in the hopes of getting dirt from them for her next novel. And do we get the dirt!! We also dip into the past, during the friends’ time in college, to see how they bonded—and how they broke apart.
My favorite part of this novel is the characters. Amanda Eisenberg gives us frank depictions of real people, with real wants and desires and flaws and problems, and it’s so refreshing. Yes they make terrible choices. Yes they fight and backstab and lie. It makes for fascinating reading.
Amanda also doesn’t shy away from tough topics. Sexual assault and consent and who benefits from upholding archaic good ol’ boys clubs are major elements of the story and are discussed and explored heavily on the page. It’s heavy stuff, but (unfortunately) still so timely.
#MeToo went viral almost a decade ago and yet we are still dealing with these issues (we always have, ofc). It can feel really discouraging, especially in the wake of news like who is back in the White House and, most recently, Neil Gaiman. Books like PEOPLE ARE TALKING are facing this head on.
I read this novel in some of its earliest iterations, and it’s my absolute pleasure to read it again in its finished form. I can’t wait to get my preorder in and hold it in my hands!
(CW for sexual assault)
April 23, 2025
This book kept me guessing until the very end. An easy, engaging, satisfying, and entertaining read full of all the things we find hard to talk about — friendship conflicts, falling outs, sexual misconduct, and blurry lines — yet the writing managed to stay lighthearted while touching on difficult topics. A really great debut novel.
April 20, 2025
Sucked me right in! A super unique campus novel with dual timelines and a tense af college reunion that kept me guessing until the last 10 pages. Go Amanda!
April 23, 2025
The messy Jewish collegiate bicoastal bisexual disaster representation WE CRAVE!!! A MUST READ!
November 25, 2025
the premise of this book was better than its execution. I was sort of confused by the initial focus on her breakup with her girlfriend when the rest of the book highlighted her history with a man with no further discussion of her queerness
August 2, 2025
Millennial slop
December 13, 2024
People are Talking by Amanda Eisenberg is a Dark Academia story told by the two main female characters, Mal and Dani, in the Before and After. This dual narrative in dual timelines helped to keep the book moving at a very steady pace, and kept me wanting to read “just one more chapter” to find out what would happen next.
While Mal and Dani were very well developed characters, I did feel like some of the other people in their little group were less defined, and a bit more stereotypical. Not that it was necessarily a detriment to the story since it was focused on what had happened to Dani and Mal, but I think some parts (like the scavenger hunt) felt more breezy and not as interesting because of this.
You can read this at face value and see it as a story of friends getting together for a wedding and the fallout of their lives since The Incident. But, for me, it was an interesting study in feminism and how women interact with men, even when they are, or consider themselves to be, feminists. How the world is not black and white, and how even the strongest feminists still find themselves doing what they need to do in order to survive in a male dominated world.
From reading the synopsis I was hoping there would be more information about the Newts, the secret society the women were in. I was looking for more information on the history of the society, more of the initiation, you know, all the things that make secret societies intriguing.
And like so many suspense and thrillers, the ending did feel a bit rushed, but I really enjoyed the epilogue and how Eisenberg left a very intriguing idea that could make for an interesting read… especially if Eisenberg put a world domination or horror spin to it.
All in all, a very good debut, and I’m interested to see what Eisenberg comes up with next.
While Mal and Dani were very well developed characters, I did feel like some of the other people in their little group were less defined, and a bit more stereotypical. Not that it was necessarily a detriment to the story since it was focused on what had happened to Dani and Mal, but I think some parts (like the scavenger hunt) felt more breezy and not as interesting because of this.
You can read this at face value and see it as a story of friends getting together for a wedding and the fallout of their lives since The Incident. But, for me, it was an interesting study in feminism and how women interact with men, even when they are, or consider themselves to be, feminists. How the world is not black and white, and how even the strongest feminists still find themselves doing what they need to do in order to survive in a male dominated world.
From reading the synopsis I was hoping there would be more information about the Newts, the secret society the women were in. I was looking for more information on the history of the society, more of the initiation, you know, all the things that make secret societies intriguing.
And like so many suspense and thrillers, the ending did feel a bit rushed, but I really enjoyed the epilogue and how Eisenberg left a very intriguing idea that could make for an interesting read… especially if Eisenberg put a world domination or horror spin to it.
All in all, a very good debut, and I’m interested to see what Eisenberg comes up with next.
December 31, 2024
My thanks to LibraryThing and to the publisher, Three Rooms Press for my print ARC.
Under pressure to submit a plot for her next novel, Mallory(“Mal”) accepts an invitation to a college friend’s wedding. Sharing a rental with her college gang serves as a reunion and fodder for her book. Is it unethical and an invasion of privacy? Yes! But, she’s desperate and on a deadline.
The narration alternates between “Mal” and “Dani” with time shifts from “Before” to “After” the incident.
This was an okay read for me. There was too much crammed into one book Too many characters and their interpersonal relationships that were hard to keep track of. Too many sub-plots. It just felt disjointed and entirely too long.
Under pressure to submit a plot for her next novel, Mallory(“Mal”) accepts an invitation to a college friend’s wedding. Sharing a rental with her college gang serves as a reunion and fodder for her book. Is it unethical and an invasion of privacy? Yes! But, she’s desperate and on a deadline.
The narration alternates between “Mal” and “Dani” with time shifts from “Before” to “After” the incident.
This was an okay read for me. There was too much crammed into one book Too many characters and their interpersonal relationships that were hard to keep track of. Too many sub-plots. It just felt disjointed and entirely too long.
December 28, 2024
This book was very slow for me except near the last few chapters as things really start to happen. All of the characters were deeply flawed and not very likeable.
It does cover very current topics and events and if you are still wanting to focus on the #metoo movement you will love this book. It was too much for me and it took me a long time to read. I kept putting it down and making myself finish it. I might not be the target audience though.
The writing is good and you will need to pay attention to where/when each chapter takes place.
If you like to read a story based on the current moment and what's happening on some college campuses you will enjoy People Are Talking.
It does cover very current topics and events and if you are still wanting to focus on the #metoo movement you will love this book. It was too much for me and it took me a long time to read. I kept putting it down and making myself finish it. I might not be the target audience though.
The writing is good and you will need to pay attention to where/when each chapter takes place.
If you like to read a story based on the current moment and what's happening on some college campuses you will enjoy People Are Talking.
January 3, 2025
The advance readers copy of this book kept me company on a trip to Portugal. From the start I was invested in the intricacies of Mal and Dani’s friendship and soon after became obsessed with the larger friend groups drama, simultaneously wishing I was part of it and also relieved I wasn’t. Invoking nostalgia for my college years (or maybe the ones I wish I had, sort of) halfway through I was so absorbed in the twists and turns I couldn’t put it down and spent a very late night finishing it on the deck of our Airbnb in the Algarve. This is a funny, mysterious, and beautifully written novel you won’t want to put down. I can’t wait to see what this author does next.
November 12, 2024
An intriguing premise that's executed while highlighting female friendships and the whirlwind that is a wedding weekend ..... can't wait to see where it goes next!
December 31, 2024
Thank you to LibraryThing, the author and the publisher for this ARC.
I didn't get this book at all even though the plot seemed interesting and simple enough but it wasn't for me. It was a dnf.
I didn't get this book at all even though the plot seemed interesting and simple enough but it wasn't for me. It was a dnf.
January 2, 2026
3.5 stars
I found one of the main characters extremely unlikable but the subject matter is fascinating and very relevant
I found one of the main characters extremely unlikable but the subject matter is fascinating and very relevant
July 11, 2025
Eisenberg crafts a master class. A page turner you won’t be able to put down.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews