What Happened to Those Girls

by Carlyn Greenwald

Pretty Little Liars meets The Blair Witch Project in this harrowing thriller from the author of Murder Land, brimming with betrayal, unsettling town secrets, and a killer lurking in the woods.

Emma knows her friends all lie to her. And everyone knows Emma is the outcast of their group. She's usually fine with that, until her friends go on a camping trip that she planned...without her. The next morning, she wakes up to the news that all three of them died at the campsite.

When Emma starts receiving unnerving videos of the girls the night they died from an anonymous source, it becomes clear their deaths weren't an accident. And if this becomes a murder case, Emma will be suspect number one. Because while everyone knows she had been excluded from the plans, what they don't know is that she went to the campsite that night after all, and someone has proof.

Emma teams up with Beck, one of the victims' sisters, to return to the woods and figure out what really happened the night her friends died, uncover who is behind the mysterious videos she is receiving, and make sure that nobody can pin their murders on her. But stranded in an eerie town that doesn't welcome outsiders with a murderer on their heels, Emma and Beck just might be next…

Genres: Thriller, Horror, Mystery, Young Adult, Mystery Thriller, Summer, LGBT

329 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 30, 2026

About the author

CARLYN GREENWALD is a USA TODAY-Bestselling thriller author for teens and adults. Her books have been featured on Forbes, The Boston Globe, Autostraddle, Horror Fuel, and others. A film school graduate and former Hollywood lackey, she now resides in Los Angeles, mourning ArcLight Cinemas and soaking in the sun with her dogs. You can find her online at @carlyn_gee on Instagram.

Reviews

[Steven]

Thanks to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for the pre-release copy of What Happened to Those Girls by Carlyn Greenwald. Below is my honest review.

This one was a wild ride! From the moment the main character got the text message about how they're all going to die out there that then was unsent to the very end, it was explosive. I couldn't put it down!

It was a well-plotted and twisty mystery thriller, and I was very impressed with the author's ability to give depth to even the characters that weren't alive any more.

Highly entertaining, will read more by Greenwald.

Four stars, definitely recommend to mystery-thriller fans and YA readers who like a dark gruesome murder mystery.

[alexandra .ᐟ]

☆4

⋆ this book has some heavy themes including murder , blood/gore , bullying , panic attacks , abuse , some lgbtq themes, and missing body parts ⋆

now playing:
⤷ bad guy - billie eilish ˎˊ˗
01:16 ━━━━●───── 03:14
      ㅤ ㅤ◁ㅤ ❚❚ ㅤ▷ ㅤㅤ↻    

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ sleepin’, you’re on your tippy toes / creepin’ around like no one knows ❜❜

𓇼 ⋆.˚.𖥔˚

pre-read˚.⛺️⋆
this looks like the perfect mystery , can’t wait !!

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ think you’re so criminal / bruises on both my knees for you ❜❜

𓇼 ⋆.˚.𖥔˚

• ꒰ overall thoughts ꒱ •
oh. just oh. this book was much more horrific than i expected.. but it was still really good ! i read this book all in one day: while eating breakfast , in the car , at starbucks , on the couch , and in my bed!! i couldn’t put this down! now lets talk about the book! first, the plot ! the plot was honestly good!! this is one of those mystery books where you are so confident you found the answer to the mystery, but then on the next page there’s a huge plot twist! i liked the idea of the friendship issues thought it added some depth to the story!! i also think the fact that there were so many plot twists was the reason i wanted to keep on reading! next, the characters! i thought the characters were good! the friend group (harlow, opal, paisley, and emma) had good & distinct personalities! and there were a lot of characters which made the mystery more tricky and more fun to figure out! next i want to talk about the level of horror because oh.. this was scary. normally when i read a murder mystery or just spooky book in general i dont really mind but this was a bit scary!! the author described the girls missing body parts (ears, finger nails, etc. and the characters were touching them and everything..) and she had a lot of bloody scenes. it kind of distracted from the plot a bit!! also just a side note this had a bit of lgbtq scenes between emma and beck (kissing) and i don’t like that in this book especially when i wasnt expecting it. this also distracted from the book a bit!! lastly, the setting! there were a few different settings in the story like the campsite, fast food resteraunt, ghost town, and motel (that’s all i can think of rn) ! i just wish the author described the settings a bit more. for example, at one point they went to a ghost town (dw not a spoiler) and she kind of just said “they arrived at the ghost town” and didn’t elaborate! like you just drop that and then don’t tell me more?! nooo!! but overall this book was pretty good, just not my favorite!!

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ don’t say thank you or please / i do what i want when i’m wanting to ❜❜

𓇼 ⋆.˚.𖥔˚

• ꒰ ratings ꒱ •
plot ♡ 3/5
horror ♡ 3/5
cursing ♡ 0/5

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ i’m only good at bein’ bad, bad ❜❜

𓇼 ⋆.˚.𖥔˚

• ꒰ characters ꒱ •

—▷ emma
she was mid.

—▷ beck
she was a baddie but she needs to figure out a better way of dealing with grief. she didn’t deal with paisley’s death that great, she just got into car crashes and had drugs. that’s not helping the situation. but i love that even though paisley wasn’t very nice to her, she still wanted to try to figure out what actually happened to her!

—▷ harlow
she just pmo she was so mean for no reason. like emma never did anything wrong to you, you’re the problem.

—▷ opal
i feel like she was kind of forced to be friends with them and she clearly seemed uncomfortable. she definitely felt guilty for always being mean to emma.

—▷ paisley
i did not like her .. if you read this book you will understand

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ i like when you get mad / i guess i’m pretty glad that you’re alone ❜❜

𓇼 ⋆.˚.𖥔˚

• ꒰ recommendations ꒱ •
age ⋆°•☁︎⋆ 14+ years old
interests ⋆°•☁︎⋆ camping // friend group // horror // murder
genre ⋆°•☁︎⋆ murder mystery

𓆉⋆｡˚⋆❀ ⋆.˚.

❛❛ i’m a bad guy ❜❜

𓂃𓂃𓂃 𓇼𓂃𓂃𓂃 𓆉𓂃𓂃𓂃𓇼 𓂃𓂃𓂃

thank you so much for taking the time to read my review! i hope it was helpful in your reading experience. if you enjoyed this review, please consider following me to receive more valuable reviews! xoxo, alexandra ୨୧
˗ˏˋ ꒰ ♡ ꒱ ˎˊ˗

[Lexi]

DNF: 5%

I know. I know. I know. How can you determine if you like a book or not by only reading 5% of it?!?! Well, when you are a heavy reader like me and slowly get to know yourself, you start to discover that certain tropes in books (i.e., bullying and unnecessary attitudes among friends) are just not something you have time to read. What Happened To Those Girls is this type of book.

I keep telling myself that I made the “mistake” of reading a few reviews before deciding to start this but, honestly, that’s not true. I purposefully read several reviews because I wanted to find out what was wrong with this and why it has a solid 3.50 rating on Goodreads. What I discovered was that this book centers around the FMC, Emma, who hangs out with three girls (Opal, Harlow, and Paisley) who treat her like crap. I mean, literally within the first few sentences, a reader finds out that her “friends” have spread rumors about her and even lied about her family members dying. Since when does a “friend” catch an attitude with their friend for simply asking if she is okay?!?! Add the fact that Emma’s own mother told her “You’re acting too sensitive” when Emma confided in her about how her friends treat her and I was done.

There is a large amount of disappointment running through my veins right now. Because I am sssoo far behind on my ARCs, I have been trying to play catch up by requesting all of them on Libby. When my library posted this, I got so excited and downloaded the audiobook immediately!!! Unfortunately, after listening to Chapter 1 and hearing how Emma kept saying “I know my friends keep lying to me,” “I know my friends are hiding something from me,” “I can see the nasty text messages that they are writing about me” and yet “I still want to be included and chase after them to make sure that they are okay,” I knew that my low expectations weren’t going to change.

I am really starting to get discouraged about being an ARC Reviewer. I have spend this year DNfing more ARCs than actually reading them. Seriously, next month, I am going to do some serious soul searching and maybe think about deleting my ARC account.

Wishing Carlyn Greenwald all the best on her future endeavors, especially her writing career!!!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for granting my request for an Advance Reader’s Copy in exchange for my honest and personal opinion!!!

[cate]

i like my mysteries fast paced enough to keep me entertained, but not too fast to make me feel like some aspects are getting glossed over. it's a tough balance to find, and unfortunately i don't think that what happened to those girls fully succeeded in doing so.

the characters are fine. emma is a compelling protagonist and you want to see her succeed, even if you're questioning her intentions like beck does: does she want to find out the truth about what happened to her friends because they were her friends or is it because she wants to clear her name? is it both? even though the book is written in first person, there's still a seed being planted that makes you doubt what's going on, and i quite enjoyed that. i did, however, wrinkle my nose at the friendships themselves, as the girls were terrible friends to emma (even opal through inaction), but that just made it all more tragic. you're told from the start that these girls aren't great to her, and maybe that ended up saving her life after all.

the pacing of the mystery itself was entertaining, and it's an easy book to breeze through. unfortunately, some supposedly big things ended up feeling inconsequential or didn't get enough foreshadowing, so it was hard to care about them.

another thing i liked was the constant doubt about there being something supernatural involved in the mystery. it's often not done well, but i think it worked out quite nicely in this one.

overall, if you're looking for a fast-paced, enthralling mystery featuring queer characters, this will be a good read for you.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review

[Carlyn Greenwald]

Hi everyone and welcome to my sophomore YA thriller, WHAT HAPPENED TO THOSE GIRLS. WHTTG sits on the intersection of mystery/thriller with some horror elements, inspired by me asking myself the question "would I have survived a slasher in high school?" and the answer being "I wouldn't have been invited to the party where the slasher took place." This book contains:

- A bisexual, Jewish, autistic (undiagnosed, but has a feeling she is) main character. She has the kind of neurodivergence I have, which manifests as special interests primarily forming around media in a "fangirl"ish way. I've never seen a character quite like the teen (and adult) I was, so I hope Emma helps folks feel seen. :)

- A weird small mountain town in Southern California that's convinced that a witch protects their town from wildfires (and that witch needs sacrifices). Very folklore/urban legend-y and the main aspect inspired by Blair Witch.

- Interstitial chapters that depict videos that take place on the night of the murders. They're the most "horror" I've written and I love them.

- A fair amount of body horror and gore. (think: teeth, fingernails, severed ears, that kind of thing). It's definitely more intense than Murder Land

- A trauma-bonded sapphic romance subplot

- A one-eyed cat named Aemond (who stays thriving the whole book)

As for TWs, this book contains the following:

Murder (on the page), attempted murder, blood and gore, bullying, sibling abuse (verbal/emotional and physical), stalking, gun usage, grief, panic attacks, internalized homophobia and ableism, discussion of disordered eating, self destruction via substance abuse and reckless behavior, mentioned (non-lethal) car crash, vomiting.

No animals are harmed in this book. People are. There is no spice because this is YA.

Hope everyone enjoys!

[Michelle]

📌New Review

Thank you partner @sourcebooksfire for my gifted copy.

📖:What Happened To Those Girls
✍️:Carlyn Greenwald
🖨️:Sourcebooks Fire
📈:4⭐️
🩸:YA Thriller

📝: “While I went into our brand-new group dynamic freshman year thinking we were all driving through life on the same highway, Paisley, Harlow, & Opal were weaving in & out on the side streets.”

Emma is devastated when she finds out her three best friends went on a camping trip without her. What’s even worse is that she’s the one who suggested & did the research on Kingston National Park. Lately she’s been feeling like the odd man out, but this is beyond hurtful.

The campground near Lake Arrowhead is said to be haunted , which is exactly why Emma wanted to go so badly. Obsessing over true crime is HER thing. Supposedly in the 1900’s a teacher took her 5th grade class to this old mining town for a field trip & she was the only one who came back alive. She poisoned them to sacrifice them to the devil.

But when she confronts Paisley via text she’s shocked by the immediate response “I’m doing you a favor, we’re all going to die out here.” But then the message is unsent & disappears into the ether. The following morning, all three are dead.

Emma doesn’t know what to do with herself, so when Beck, Paisley’s sister comes into Mystic Museum where she works they form a pact that they’ll work together to find out what happened to the girls. They’ll pretend they’re regular campers, take a look around; ask the locals questions.

“I wish I could vote for ignorant bliss but my anxiety is only kept tame by knowing things.”

It’s not long before shit gets really real & they realize the horror that takes place is FAR more than just a tall tale…

“It’s like something is waiting in the wings & everyone knows to stay away.”

This story kept me on my toes! Just when I thought I had it figured out, as per usual I had no clue 🤣

💭What’s the most suspenseful book you’ve read in 2026?

🏷️
#sourcebooks #sourcebooksfire #thrillerbooksaddict #thrillerbooks #thrillerbookstagram



Sourcebooks Partner | Book Review | Recent Read | Currently Reading New Release Books Thriller Lover Bookstagram Reader Bibliophile

[cinnamilk]

I love PLL, so I thought I would love this book... that was not the case.

Firstly, I couldn't stand Emma, the main character. Once it's found out that her friends went on the camping trip without her, she leaves a FIVE MINUTE long angry voicemail and then heads down there to confront them, ending up slashing on of their tires. I assumed that this would actually matter but Beck, the one person she admits it to, couldn't care less. The story keeps going on about how Paisley and the others were awful, but we never get to see Emma reflect on the stuff she did. It is mentioned that, if Paisley had lived, she may have had the chance to change but we then find out she killed her friends, so all of that goes out the window, and any introspection Emma may have had is gone.

It also disappointed me that, in the end, Emma's friends were the 'bad ones' and Emma was the 'good one'. There were moments where Emma would talk about selfless things her friends did for her, but then she would immediately switch and say that they were selfish and always treated her badly? In one section, she mentions that one of the only problems one of the other girl had was not sticking up for herself, but then she goes on to say that all three of them were cruel and never saw her as "fully human." I don't know, something about it just wasn't fun to read. Her friends never cared about her and she never really cared about them either, I guess. For most of the book, she only really cares about finding the phone and deleting the message, and neither of them are really sad that Paisley or the others died.

As for the writing in general: it felt off, especially the dialogue. A common complaint with fanfiction is that authors have a tendency to use therapy speak, which I felt was the case here. While it made some sense for Emma's mom to talk like that, the way Emma herself spoke didn't sound teenager-ish in the slightest.

[lils]

10.09.26
DNF @ 30%

[Sam]

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the ARC!
This book sounded like something that would be perfectly in my reading sphere. I love survival YA, especially when combined with mysteries. Unfortunately, this one didn't quite land. The plot twists were really predicatable. I knew the major story arc very early on, and that was definitely a bummer. I also really didn't like Emma. I get that she's ~different~ and struggling, but she was also so frustrating and annoying. The whole story centers around her feeling betrayed when her friends go on a camping trip without her, and that betrayal takes full center stage. It honestly never really felt like she cared that any of her "friends" died horrific deaths in the woods. The dialogue at points is absolutely bizzare. I work with kids, and I cannot image any of them saying "the guys collected us" or referring to a friend group as "Paisley and co." There's a lot of major plot points that don't add up at the end, as well. I've had Murderland on my TBR for a while now, and reading this hasn't compelled me to move it up any further.

[Bree Deitz🗡️]

This book annoyed tf out of me. 😠👎🏼

[Marie Reads a Mystery]

Emma’s anger turns to shock when her friends, who have ditched her to go on a camping trip without her, all end up dead. The book is written in Emma’s POV, with a few flashbacks to her friends from their trip in the woods. Emma and Beck, one of the victim’s sisters, must solve the mystery while trying to stay alive themselves.
This was a great mystery and suspense story with a supernatural feel. There were some sections that felt a bit slow, but once the book ramped up, I couldn’t put it down!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

[Cin (cinsnextchapter)]

I found Emma surprisingly relatable from the start.

Emma is eccentric, a little awkward, and a big Winona Ryder movie fangirl, with references to Beetlejuice, Heathers, and Girl, Interrupted woven in. She’s the black sheep of her friend group, and unfortunately she knows it.

When the weekly sleepover gets cancelled, Emma is devastated to learn that not only have her friends lied to her, but they’ve gone on the camping trip that SHE planned — without her!

What Happened to Those Girls is a YA thriller involving a camping trip that ends in tragedy, a ghost town in the mountains, and friends who don’t make it back alive.

It has slasher vibes, creepy woods, weird townsfolk, a witch legend, and nonstop tension.

I couldn’t put it down.

[Fifi’s Bookshelf]

WAITTT. I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS TO BE THIS GOOD! This ended up being one of the best YA thrillers I’ve read in a good bit! I was a bit hesitant because while that synopsis sounds insanely interesting, I couldn’t get into Murderland and it ended up being a dnf, but I knew from the first chapter that this was going to be one that I was going to like. Also, while this is technically a thriller, this is more horror leaning than most thrillers are. This gets bizarre SO FAST that I truly could not begin to guess how this book was going to end or what the explanation for anything was, until we were well over halfway. This book has LAYERS and oh my gosh I could not stop kicking my feet because the mystery was SO GOOD. Conspiracies, a whole town that’s keeping secrets, and a potential witch?

Emma’s dynamic with her friend group does feel a bit unconventional to begin with, as you get the vibe that Emma (who literally works at a horror museum) is the odd one out in the friend group. But opposites attract with friendships all the time so it isn’t necessarily out of the ordinary. Yet, the other girls zip off and go on this haunted camping trip (that she planned!) without her, for no apparent reason. When Emma calls them out over text that evening, she gets a response saying that she “did her a favor because they’re all going to die out there”. Even though it’s late in the evening, Emma spontaneously drives hours away to this sparsely populated town to go to the campground and confront them, and what happens there is…..strange. That’s when this book really starts to verge into horror territory. Emma drives home that evening none the wiser, despite all the strange happenings that evening, and lo and behold, all 3 of her friends are reported dead the next morning.

I couldn’t wait to get to the end because I desperately needed answers, and my impatient ass was resisting skipping to the end because I HAD TO KNOW. And why is it that every local in that town runs off as soon as there is any mention of a witch? I truly couldn’t even begin to guess where this was going and I’m usually pretty good at guessing.

Sure, some parts are too convenient, like the fact that this whole entire town happens to have basically no service, or the fact that their parents just let two teenagers go on a remote getaway on their own just 8 months after their friends died from a remote getaway traveling on their own, and that the cops are completely incompetent like they’re straight out of scooby doo. Emphasis on the last one. But, I mean, it’s a YA thriller, and all of them are like this to some degree.

This was so close to a 5 star, but it feels more like a 4. The middle does have a bit of a lag. It’s close, but doesn’t quite feel like a perfect 5 star. But, the end is so twisty and just when you think you’ve got the reveal, more twists unravel! This book really gets under your skin and is a stand out read in this genre. Murder mystery lovers cannot skip this one!

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

[Micayla Bothun]

Eh. It was okay, pretty boring if I’m being honest.

[Axellesbooks]

Thanks to Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book!

Emma is part of a friend group, but actually, she's more of an outsider. She's usually fine with that, until her friends decide to go on a camping trip she originally planned. Emma is not included on the trip. When she wakes up the next morning, she finds out that her three friends are dead. Emma starts to get messages and videos of the girls from an anonymous person. Emma now believes it wasn't an accident, but it was a murder. She needs to prove it. To do so, she asks one of the victims sisters, Beck, to help find evidence at the campsite. The campsite where a witch would live and kill people....

This young adult thriller is definitely a must read for fans of Pretty Little Liars and Holly Jackson. It fits exactly those vibes. The story starts off more slowly, but once we get on the campsite with Emma and Beck, the events starts to get really thrilling. The author has done a great job by building up the story and thereby creating a portion of tension.

Emma is not a very likable character, but I felt really sorry for what happened to her. I actually love that she's morally grey and not the perfect main character, she also has her flaws. Bonuspoints for the diversity because Emma thinks she has autisme, but doesn't have the diagnosis yet. You can definitely see her struggling with that throughout the book. In my opinion, the representation was okay, but I'm not the right person to judge that.

The plot twist... Oh my god. What was that?! I was completely shocked by the reveals. I absolutely did not see that coming. At all. So if you're looking for a YA thriller with a very good plot twist, this is your book! I honestly thought I would be getting some regular plot twists that are known in a lot of YA thrillers, but the author did an outstanding job on this.

I highly recommend this book. I don't have anything negative to say about this book, I had to finish this in one day, I couldn't stop reading. Five stars!

[Nao]

Początek książki (to co jest w opisie książki) jest według mnie za krótki i zbyt płytko napisany by czytelnik mógł nawiązać jakąkolwiek więź z główną bohaterką i co za tym idzie : współczuć jej, bądź być smutnym z powodu utraty koleżanek, smutnym z powodu zdrady koleżanek itp itd

Nie znamy jej , nie znamy jej koleżanek - mam trochę nakreśloną ich relacje ale nic głębokiego co nie pozwala nam jako czytelnikom do sympatyzowanie z nią bądź z jej koleżankami. Dosłownie nie mamy powody by przyznawać jej rację 'no bo dlaczego koleżanki ci to zrobiły' jak i też nie możemy stanąć po stronie owych koleżanek bo 'z jakiego powodu się tak zahowałyście' więc tak w dużej mierze nie wiem czy ich zachowanie było słuszne i czymś spowodowane czy tak z niczego bo po prostu są kiepskimi koleżankami - to samo tyczy się głównej bohaterki, nie wiem czy jest dobrą osobą czy też i nie.

Przez całą fabule nie widzimy by tak naprawdę jej na nich zależało a jedynie na tym by usunąć pogrążającą ją wiadomość na telefonie.

Wszystkie emocje wydawały się puste a dialogi sztywne.

Temat wiedźmy był naciągany i mało wiarygodny by miał jakiś sens.

[Nicole Castillo]

2.5 stars, it has potential to be a very good book but kinda falls flat.


(spoilers)

I think the book had a lot of good moments that kept me entertained but the main character (Emma) specifically becomes unbearable whether it be her constant mentions of her not knowing social cues to not understanding peoples emotions. She doesn’t seem to care much about the death of her friends, and I feel like we don’t really get to dive into it. I feel like the book glosses over a lot of stuff especially when it comes to her driving all the way to her friend’s campsite just because they didn’t invite her and slashing the tire of her friends car and sending a 5 minute long voice message. I feel like that was an important part. I honestly just found it pointless I mean literally nobody cared and it was barely really mentioned.

I also feel like we don’t really see any of the characters talk about what actually happened. The end feels kind of rushed where Paisley just basically tells us everything that happened in the woods. It just like a lot of information thrown at you and I wished we dove more into it. I also didn’t like how they treated Ivy in the book and you would think she would be more important but her ending just feels bland. It also seems like Emma cares more about finding the phone and even then it’s just glossed over. There was the part where the little girl wearing the fortnite shirt mentions seeing a bloody lady and I don’t think it’s ever mentioned again??

I feel like there’s so much more that could’ve gone into the book especially about the characters handling the deaths of their friends but we don’t really see it. It’s just them discussing how they hated them. Also the descriptions of the outfits were cringe worthy like I get they’re ALT but ya’ll live in LA. Let’s be for real. The dialogue doesn’t seem like two teens talking either. And I honestly didn’t feel any chemistry between Emma and Beck I could’ve gone without any of that.

I honestly read this all in one sitting, was interesting when I wasn’t constantly hearing Emma talk absolute nonsense and actually focused on the plot.

[Madison]

There's so much about the mystery that doesn't make sense, but the tension is there, and I like how Emma's neurodivergence and queerness are integrated into the narrative.

[Jan (Kavanagh's wifey)]

ARC REVIEW

Rating:- ⭐⭐⭐⭐/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tropes:-

🩸Witchcraft

🔪 Girls' love

🩸Friend's sister

I would like to begin this review by saying WHAT THE HECK??? This book was CRAZY. Like, awesome and crazy.

It's one thing to lead the readers to suspect an innocent person, but this author just played with my thoughts.

In the beginning, this book just feels like another 'high school drama' kind of book, but then you will uncover the secrets and past mysteries. The first 70% of the book seemed almost normal, but then you get to the last 30% and so many things happened all at once. I couldn't keep track of all the events of the book.

I love how the author gave all the smallest details like Emma on the verge of a panic attack, the gore details about the condition of the bodies (which I haven't really read in many thriller books) and their murders (I still can't get those horrible images out of my head), Emma's personality and Beck's personality. I honestly feel very connected to Emma because I've noticed that we are kind of similar.

This book kind of reminds me of the movie 'Fear Street' because of all the witchcraft and the rituals and because of this, I totally loved the book. However, I was NOT ready for what happened at the end of the book. Nothing could have prepared me for it. I honestly want to say so many things about the book but I can't say much without spoiling it, but I have one word to describe this book- supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (extraordinarily good).

Ps:- I also love how the last part of the book takes place on June 29th and the book comes out on June 30th.

[Hayley]

Such a great little murder mystery thriller! It goes from petty high school drama to some pretty dark horror in the blink of an eye. I was feeling proud of myself for figuring out one of the twists at the end only to immediately get hit by a much larger one that left my jaw on the floor. I love when a mystery book can genuinely surprise me in a way that still makes sense for the plot! The dynamic between Emma and Beck was such an unexpected delightful part of the book to follow as well. Their developing relationship offered a softer and brighter spot to counter the genuine horror that is the fates of Paisley, Harlow, and Opal. I flew through this one because it hooked me and didn’t let go. Def recommend!

[Keisha]

3.5⭐️

This was a solid YA mystery/thriller. There were twists that I didn't see coming. Throughout the book, my thoughts kept changing as to what happened and who was responsible. At times, the characters did things I thought were a bit ridiculous. However, I had to remember they were young and dealing with conflicting emotions surrounding grief and betrayal. There were also a couple of plot points I didn't quite understand but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for this ARC.

[Kate | Date With A Thriller]

This was a great twisty YA thriller read, with a touch of horror! 🙌

I absolutely loved the creepy, witchy vibes, which had me hooked! I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy this one after having mixed feelings on the author’s previous book, but I was honestly pleasantly surprised! If you enjoy YA thrillers, definitely check this one out! 👏

Thank you partner Sourcebooks Fire for the gifted eARC in exchange for my honest review! ❤️

[Victoria]

I enjoyed this!  The ending was good and I was invested start to finish. This is very fast paced and I read it in one sitting. This is a good thriller I would recommend! Special Thank You to Carlyn Greenwald, Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

[adriana jinez]

literally read it in one day

[Meg]

2.5⭐️ I was so excited for this one but I did not like the narrator and the whole story was just weird ☹️

[tessa]

2.5. thank god i buddy read this with kathy or i dont think i would have made it thru. not the best ya thriller but it was entertaining to a certain extent. we focused a lot on this being a queer romance and i think the author needed to write a thriller or write a romance but this in between was really not it. pretty gnarly body horror descriptions tho

[Savanna]

This book unfortunately went down hill for me the longer it went on. The romance felt totally misplaced in this case and unnatural. The same words and phrases kept being repeated which got a bit annoying. I didn’t care for our main character Emma all that much and got tired of hearing how excluded she was from her friends, even when she would reflect on the nice things they did for her at times. Everyone in this book seemed a little crappy at some points and it was hard to feel bad for them the more it went on.

When Emma and Beck go to investigate the camping scene where the 3 girls were murdered, there is all this talk of a witch. It was made to be super eerie with no one in town willing to talk about it with outsiders. However it was a total let down for me. The witch barely had a plot line in the end and was basically an excuse. I also thought some of the town people would be part of the plot in a bigger way and they were not. A lot of this book is them traveling through the woods and looking for clues with some things that happen to them. There are some plot holes looking back (they get attacked at one point and I was not satisfied with the guess of who it was and who that was supposed to match up). I’m also confused about how the police barely seemed to investigate if what we find out later is true and murders/deaths/disappearances happen every so often. Because even if the local police don’t do much due to town superstitions, they still have to be reported and get lots of news traction, and I’d think the FBI or state police would have to look into things (obviously I know this is just a book).

Something happens later on where they end up killing someone and they go into shock for a whole page and then right after one of them is like ‘I wish I could kill *that person* again” ?? Huh? These are teenagers in high school and they just don’t always act that way. There are other scenes like this where they move on from crazy events very fast. Having panic attacks after finding a clue from the murdered girls and then next thing you know, they are laughing and having a moment. Very unrealistic and kind of frustrating for me to read. The language of the novel also threw me off. In between some scenes there would be all this description of something that really didn’t matter to the story which took me out of it every time. For example about her thinking’s she’s autistic and going on about how her friends treated her, or something with Winona Ryder, and then throwing us back into the present of them in the woods or whatever.

I did guess a plot twist that ended up happening with a certain character as the book went on. I had totally forgotten that they came here due to a secret texter because it didn’t come up again until the end when we find out who it is, and that person didn’t really seem that important to the case. There was another twist that happened that I didn’t guess that was even more insane to me. Everything at the end was just a lot and is mainly why my rating is so low. We didn’t see much character growth out of Emma or Beck and it felt pretty stagnant due to that. Also there parents are described in a way I didn’t love and we saw them barely reunite at the end and start to act how they wanted them to. We also hear a lot from Emma about her relationship with her older brother Oliver and it’s made out to be more negative now even though she doesn’t seem to go out of her way to put effort in either. Just felt a little selfish to me (which is ironic because that’s how she describes her other friends who are dead, even though she gives examples of how they helped her).

I received a digital copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Sarah]

This YA thriller/horror takes place in the woods when a camping trip among a group of teenagers ends with their death. One of the girls meant to go on the trip is excluded, and when she goes to confront them on the night of, she slashes their tires and leaves a threatening voicemail. When she notices she’s being watched, she flees the scene in a hurry. The next morning, she wakes to the news that they are all dead. Some time has passed, and she gets a text message from someone anonymous with footage from the night from one of the girl’s cellphone, luring her back to the campsite with the sister of one of the victims. Both are there to figure out the mystery of what happened, to get ahold of that message, delete the incriminating voicemail, and to see if the lore of the witch that haunts that area is true.

This book has a little of everything for beginner horror fans, those who love suspense, and the mystery surrounding this town with locals who don’t like to talk about what happened to the girls and the “paranormal” happenings from the witch, especially with outsiders. The town seems to be full of secrets. This has the same feelings you get when you watch a slasher movie, and you’re yelling at your TV when the victims are doing everything wrong and running towards danger. You have your final girl, who you wonder how they even survived the night. There’s gross body horror that is found near the campsite, not located by local police, which adds to the creepiness of the forest. This is a fast paced book is full of dread and mystery, that just happens to release in the perfect time of the year to read it. I did figure out one thing, but the other I was not expecting at all. In fact, there were two twists I didn’t see.

If you’re looking for a YA slasher film type of book with a camp setting, this is your book.

[VeroniCanRead]

4.25 ⭐ ARC Review - Spooky vibes, sapphic romance, and lots of neurodivergence representation in this high school murder mystery thriller!

⛺️ For Fans of:
- young adult thriller horror
- murder mystery thriller
- supernatural ambiguity
- high schoolers
- friends go missing
- amateur detectives
- crimes at national parks
- sapphic yearning
- autism FMC rep
- anxiety FMC rep
- bisexual rep

✏️ Spoiler-Free ARC Review
Emma’s three friends are found dead after they go on a camping trip that they didn’t even invite her to. To find out what happens, and clear herself of being a suspect, she teams up with Beck, her friend’s sister, to find out what happens.

From the beginning, you immediately fall in line with the main character’s intense emotions. It’s easy to connect with Emma, as nearly everyone knows the feeling of being left out and the betrayal and anger that comes along with it. But there’s also the fear that creeps in and builds as the creepy evidence mounts.

The supernatural ambiguity reminded me a lot of Riley Sager where you’re not sure if it’s a ghost/demon or a real killer, and a storyline in which aren’t sure which is scarier.

I absolutely loved how the two girls, the friend and the sister, are forced together, become friends, a lowkey romance blooming, and that they ultimately share in the truths and emotions of guilt and grief that come with death.

This book was a wild ride of grief, shock, creepy vibes, neurodivergent struggles, and lots of healing.


🖤 This is a review of an advanced reader copy (ARC). As always, my reviews are honest, my own, and voluntary!

📚 Book: What Happened to Those Girls
📅 Release Date: June 30, 2026
⭐ Rating: 4.25 out of 5

[Gianna Rossillo]

This was sooooo bad. I simply could not get over the romance the author forced into this horrific murder book. Your friend/sister just got murdered but yes let’s start dating?

Aside from that, why didn’t we ever find out what happened with paisley the night at the diner? Are we supposed to just think it was something funky with the ritual she started?

The Evan reveal seemed so out of place. Oh you think it’s a girl following you? Nah, actually just some long haired dude. How did we not know the difference??

Paisley ??????? Girl what is going on. Kinda confused at the timeline of her fingers because why are her fingers still bandaged if she ripped off her fingernails 8 months ago? Surely she would have grown nails back, or the infection would have gotten way worse in that time and killed her? Also knew from the jump she wasn’t really dead. Honestly, I hate reading the synopsis of a book because this being “pretty little liars mixed with Blair witch” made it pretty obvious she wasn’t dead if you’ve watch PLL before.

Also, did Emma hallucinate running over someone when speeding away from the campsite the night of the murders? Did she actually run over someone? Or did I make that up?

Other random tidbits I hated: Emma’s entire personality was that she was gay, neurodivergent, and loved Winona Ryder.

All in all, I hated this 🫠