Mischief Girls

by Aashna Avachat

Every school has its secrets—but at the exclusive Ellison College, the past might prove deadly—in this twisty puzzlebox mystery perfect for fans of Maureen Johnson's Truly Devious series.

THIRTY YEARS three students walked into the woods surrounding Ellison College, and only one came out. They became known as the Mischief Girls, and their case was never solved.

HALLOWEEN WEEK, MODERN Ellison freshman Raina isn’t interested in digging into the past. To combat her personal demons, she volunteers at Night Walk, a campus program dedicated to helping students get home safely. Until one night, Raina escorts a fellow freshman to her dorm...only to learn that the girl disappeared before she ever made it through the door.

With the help of the missing girl’s stepbrother, Raina begins to investigate. But when the pair of them discover that she’d been looking into the Mischief Girls murders prior to her vanishing, the case suddenly becomes much more complicated.

From professors’ offices to state penitentiaries, Raina relentlessly hunts down the truth. But if she wants to find it, she’ll have to accept that maybe what happened to the missing girl didn’t begin the night she disappeared.

Maybe it all started thirty years ago, in the woods.

Genres: Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Young Adult, Thriller, Fiction, Romance

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication September 29, 2026

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC for review. To be published September 28, 2026.

3 stars

This was described as a “puzzle box mystery” which had me excited but, meh. No puzzle box here. It’s YA and dark academia, kind of, in that it takes place on a college campus, but academics aren’t involved at all and it doesn’t really offer anything new to the genre.

So, you’ve got your school (Ellison College,) you’ve got your old mystery (Mischief Night, 30 years ago, three students head out, one survives,) and you’ve got two current students working to solve a present day disappearance which has shades of that old crime.

You’ll likely guess the culprit fairly early on (if you are an adult reader, anyway) but YAs may enjoy this. One thing that really bothered me…why is the FMC always walking back by herself in her volunteer job? Shouldn’t they go out in pairs? How is SHE safe? Makes no sense. Very bad idea.

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

genuinely could not put this downnnnnnnnn i was devouring it

[Rosi Colmenares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC via NetGalley.

Thirty years after two students disappeared in the woods, another girl goes missing while looking into what happened. Raina was the last person to see her, so she teams up with Anika’s stepbrother to figure out how both cases are connected.

This pulled me in right away. I liked that we didn’t spend forever getting to the mystery and that both timelines felt important to the story. Raina and Rohan were also such a fun team to follow, and I really enjoyed their dynamic.

I did figure out a few things before the reveal, but I was still invested and wanted to know how everything would come together. The ending definitely left me curious, so I’ll be keeping an eye out for whatever comes next.

[Nat’s Bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel was pretty good. I like the overall concept, but the ending didn’t make any sense to me. The case was essentially shut and everything had an explanation. I liked the relationship between Raina and Rohan, and they were a fun duo together.

I would recommend this to people who like to sift through clues and who enjoy a faster paced mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children’s Books, and the author for letting me be part of this ARC. Please note all reviews are my honest and unbiased opinion.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

A murder mystery without copaganda?! Count me in!!

[Saloni Porwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book went beyond my expectations in so many ways! The plot is a mixture of mystery and romance, and I gotta say that the experience felt quite a bit like reading A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. The writing however, is very different. I loved the setting and how real the premise felt. With a relatable university setup and backstory that feels realistic, I felt pretty close to the MCs. While most thriller and mysteries create a level of eeriness that has it's own power, Avachat focused on humanizing every character and truly grounding this story in the reality.

I'm not sure how satisfying the resolution was because I was just so captivated by the urgency of the writing and construction of the MCs Raina and Rohan's quest to find his missing stepsister. Like I said, this book is not typical in the least and has it's roots in real systematic injustices. Here I loved that Raina's study of sociology for university manifested as acute observations and commentary on what this does to people. The author's love for law and philosophy also shines in the writing. All of this made the ending a definite curveball though I do think there is room for improvement in the writing of how the reveal unfolded.

A lot of this may be my inner Desi girl babbling, but I can't not applaud the beautiful representation with detailing across many characters and age groups. I hope non South-Asian readers also give it read. And of course there's the fact that it feels so damn good to read about MCs from your culture, especially with Raina even sharing my mother tongue. That little touch made it feel all the more special!

Everything said, I highly recommend this book as a unique YA multicultural thriller. And I'm pretty sure from the ending (that leaves an open end for follow up) this book is part of a series and there will be more to come, so this likely isn't a standalone mystery. Nevertheless, I'm gonna get my hands on anything written by this author!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished Mischief Girls by Aashna Avachat and overall, I really enjoyed it. The story follows Raina, a freshman at Ellison College who volunteers for Night Walk, a campus safety program helping students get home safely at night. But when a girl Raina escorts to her dorm disappears before ever making it inside, she gets pulled into an investigation that connects back to the infamous “Mischief Girls” case from thirty years earlier, when three students entered the woods surrounding the college and only one came back out alive.

This was definitely a slow burn for me in the beginning. It took a little while to fully hook me, but once the second half picked up, I flew through it. The mystery became much more layered than I initially expected, especially as Raina and the missing girl’s stepbrother started uncovering how deeply connected the present day disappearance was to the original murders.

One thing I really appreciated was how the book explored race and its relationship to the criminal justice system. It added a depth to the story that made it feel more meaningful than just a standard college thriller. The discussions around who gets believed, who gets protected, and whose stories are ignored were woven into the mystery in a really effective way.

I also liked that the ending wasn’t the typical college mystery twist I thought it was building toward. It ended up going in a much less predictable direction than I expected, which made the payoff even better. That said, be advised: this book absolutely ends on a cliffhanger with a very obvious setup for book two. And honestly? I’ll definitely be looking out for it because now I need to know what happens next.

[inmyreadingera321 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh I really enjoyed this!!! I wanted to read it once I saw that the author was someone just out of law school and who wanted to write a story that reflected a more realistic look at mysteries and thrillers and, really, the incarceration system. As someone who just finished law school herself, I was immediately hooked. That being said, regardless of the motive behind the book, the book itself was just such a fun ride. It was definitely something that A Good Girl's Guide to Murder fans would enjoy, with the past mystery/crime interweaving with a present day search for answers.

I loved Raina as an FMC. She was smart and competent and really put the pieces together in a way that felt realistic. Did I put some things together before her? Sure, but I didn't mind that. It actually got me more excited for the reveals. I wish we had gotten more of Anika, in a way, because I love the idea of her actually figuring things out without any assistance and doing everything she could to put things to right. As a whole, with the mystery, I really like how there were so many layers and, with those, misdirects that really kept you guessing. A really well-done mystery with characters that felt easy to root for because they were NOT idiots.

I don't know that there really NEEDS to be another book, in the sense that this could have easily been a great one-off, but with the way that things ended, I'm definitely intrigued enough to want to read book two!

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Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for the ARC!

[Znowaira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's Books for sending me this eARC! I had so much fun reading "Mischief Girls", especially because the dreaded reading slump got to me. It just felt easy to vibe with: the characters were chill, the story was interesting, and I wasn't left begging for crumbs of some woeful character history until 2/3 of the way into the book. The mystery in itself was already enough to keep me invested, but that rollercoaster of an ending made me 100% sure that this book deserved 5 stars. The plot twists were insane, and just as I thought all the drama had settled, the last few chapters rolled in and said "psych!".

I liked that this wasn't like other stories of the same genre where a rumored secret society is mentioned, and it turns out that it actually exists, with weird rituals and backstories to boot. Societies were only mentioned briefly to allude to typical college experience. Speaking of which, it's cool to see a YA book set in college/uni since it's quite uncommon.

Finally, I can't believe that after all of this, there could be a book 2?! Sign me up, immediately.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

**Thank you to Net Galley for the advanced reader copy**

I love a good YA thriller and was excited to get a chance to check this one out before publication. Upon starting the book, I was not aware that it was going to be the first of a series which left the ending feeling a bit unresolved. The plot involves the disappearance of a missing college freshman and the parallels between the current disappearance and a possible link to a similar case of two murdered girls on the campus thirty years before. The story was suspenseful and while I did guess a couple of the twists before they were revealed, I will still surprised by the resolution. I enjoyed the many diverse characters in the book including the main character. However, I struggled with the plausibility of how easily the protagonist accepted the alternative theories and arguments revealed throughout the book. Overall it was an enjoyable 3.75 read and I would recommend it to teens who might be interested in starting a new mystery series.

[Kenzie Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley, random house children's book, and the author for the opportunity to give my complete and unbiased opinion.
A girl goes missing, and the university and police aren't getting involved. The last person to see her was a girl who had a job at night walk. A university program that makes sure you get to your destination safely. She takes responsibility and inserts herself in the search with the missing persons stepbrother.
I would like to give this story a lovely 3/5 stars
The plot was interesting, but the story altogether did not captivate me as much as I was hoping. For me, there were a lot of unnecessary filler sentences, but again, that's just me being picky with personal preferences. All in all, it was definitely a fun, easy, and fast-paced read! Perfect if you like Ya mysteries and thrillers.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

i absolutely DEVOURED this book! i found it on tiktok and so glad i did because i was very hooked from the beginning. the story follows raina who is the last person to see anika before she goes missing. with the help of anika’s brother and raina’s halloweekend crush they unlock lots of secrets about their college. something i really enjoyed in particular was getting flashback perspectives from other characters to help solve the mystery a bit more. i thought it was so fun to get those 3rd person POV to help carry the story. one note i will make is that there was over description in the book. there were times were everything was being told and i didn’t feel like it was necessary- especially when writing about raina’s routines or daily life. aside from that i enjoyed it and cant believe the cliffhanger we got left on- very excited for the next book!

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got to read an eARC of this.

You get a little bit of a lot with this one. Older sister guilt (mostly self-imposed). The way trauma can reverberate through decades. How privileged populations are protected from the law. Violence against women. Romance. The cruelty of a "justice system" that would rather punish than rehabilitate.

One stylistic choice that did bother me (and perhaps it'll change by the time it's released) is the overuse of italics. This is a complaint I have about a lot of recent books.

This is a YA thriller mystery and even though I don't read YA often, I thought this was a really interesting and fun one!

[Ari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Delacorte Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm going to take a wild guess based on the ending of this book and say that it's the first in a possible future series of books. Because if that's how a standalone ends, I'm going to be pissed off.

That aside, it's an enjoyable mystery. It kept me on the edge of my seat, it kept me guessing, and while some of the culprits were a little obvious, the reveals were still worth experiencing. The writing is a little dramatic at times in characters' reactions to emotional moments, and/or dialogue--but that wasn't a deterrent from binging the novel.

[Bobbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an avid reader of whodunits, mysteries, and thrillers, I absolutely loved Mischief girls. I really felt seen in the book by the artful way that the author portrays the weight that oldest daughter's/sisters carries for their younger sibling. I really appreciated that the author did not glorify the incarceration system, but described it realistically. They portrayed the police system in an accurate way, which is rarely found in mystery books. As an abolitionist, I really appreciated how this author showed the justice system. I only knocked a star off because the twist was okay, but I saw it coming. Overall, 10/10 would recommend.

[Kendall Arlasky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aashna Avachat's Mischief Girls is a fast paced mystery novel set on a gothic prestigious liberal arts campus nestled in the dark forests of the East Coast. I read this almost in one sitting and thoroughly enjoyed gathering clues alongside Raina.

Fans of dark academia will love Aashna’s thoughtful take on what is truly sinister in these ivory tower institutions. This is not a salacious whodunit, it's an examination of the corruptive nature of power and the dangers of entitlement. Thank you to Netgalley for the Advanced Reader’s Copy!

[Emerald Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for access to this ARC!!
I think this was fun! I'm always down for a good mystery.
The beginning did feel a little slow to me, and some of the dialog felt unnatural for college age characters, but it wasn't bad enough that it was distracting.
Not going to lie, the end of this made me laugh. I know it's a lead in to a book two (which I will be excited to pick up) but it had the vibes of Marvel movies ending with "insert character will return for Endgame"
Anyway! This is a good chill read, nothing too groundbreaking but it was fun!

[Zoe Lipman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another one of those books with a great overall tension but with very little actual action. I think this book starting so fast but then immediatly slowing down is what really hurt it (in that regard).

This book is more about the looking into the mystery (if that makes sense) than the actual mystery.

I also couldn't get into these characters all that much and I think that also really hindered my reading experience. I didn't feel enough for any of them.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

[Roop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved "Mischief Girls," and cannot wait for it to officially be on shelves later this year!!! The book follows a sharp and determined main character named Raina as she navigates Ellison College and uncovers the truth behind the College's suspicious past. This mystery unfolds like a perfectly constructed puzzle. I finished this book in less than 24-hours, and I can't wait for more books by Avachat!!

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This thriller taps into that genre where unsolved murders from decades ago, surfaces bc there is some sort of revenge about to take place. Filled with twists and turns, Raina and Rohan, first connect over tacos, and then over his missing sister. What comes out, is that Anika, was investigating the murder of two college women, decades ago. This was a fun read but I did side eye the ending.

I received an arc from the publisher but all opinions are my own.

[Sydney Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

Such a fast-paced read that was impossible to put down. There were some predictable moments, but there were also moments that I was second-guessing my thoughts. The ending was wrapped up a little too nicely, but I love that it left the door open to continue this book as a series.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.*

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️ This was a quick, easy read. The characters were likable and I enjoyed the relationships and chemistry between them. However, I felt like the main mystery storyline felt a little all over the place and didn’t keep me that intrigued. Overall, it was a fun read and assuming by the ending that there will be more books related to this one I will probably give the next book to try.

[Alex H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Random Houde for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.
To be honest, I have very mixed feelings about this book. I loved the characters and the setting. The premise was also very exciting. However, it didn’t meet my expectations. The pacing was slow and I didn’t like the ending.

[Heather Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got to read the ARC of this book through NetGalley, and let me say, it was so good! It had plenty of mystery and intrigue to make me not want to put it down. While sometimes the foreshadowing was a bit obvious and made it easy to piece some things together, I still felt surprised as the twists unraveled. I am interested to see what a sequel may look like!

[reece t]

huge thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review!!

I honestly could not finish this. It just felt like the author was trying so hard to be on trend and politically correct that instead it felt awkward and clunky.

[Katherine Nguyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for accepting my ARC request.

I actually don’t read mystery books that often, but I really enjoyed this one! I always say that in order to write mystery, you have to be a pretty smart person in order to come up with the lore and execute it in a way that keeps people engaged and guessing. I originally found out about the premise through one of the author’s TikToks, and I knew immediately that I had to get my hands on this. The plot was very clever, the main characters were likeable, the twists were gripping, and the blossoming romance was very sweet. I really appreciated the exploration of PTSD and broken family dynamics throughout the story, and that it didn’t shy away from, but rather, dug deeper into the issues and failures of the criminal justice system. I read in the acknowledgments that the author went to law school and a lot of her frustrations with systems of incarceration inspired the trajectory of this book, and that rang true to me. It felt very authentic and earnest. I am very excited for more!

[Victoria Hall-Palerm]

A charming YA cozy mystery (with the added bonus of sort of interrogating the carceral system, which as a public defender who somehow also loves crime novels, I greatly appreciated). I don’t read a lot of YA, but this was a lot of fun.

[Anna Combrink Chianese · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC from NetGalley and I am SO thankful I did. This story was incredible. So many twists and turns. Everytime I thought I knew where the story was going, we went on another path. Kept me guessing the entire story. Easily one of the best books I've read this year!

[Jaclyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

If I still taught 8th grade, man would this do numbers in my classroom. Nice seeing a book set in college made for teens. Fun twists and turns but I think the third act reveals are a mixed bag. Now if I read this as a teen? Easily 4 star.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

yall are not ready for how gooood this mystery is 😍😍