First editions have an exclusive foil design underneath the jacket! “A twisty, deeply satisfying ride.” —Sara Shepard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars In this dark academia young adult thriller for fans of The Female of the Species and People Like Us , a teen girl’s search for answers about her mother’s mysterious death leads to a powerful secret society at her new boarding school—and a dangerous game of revenge that will leave her forever changed. Six years ago, Calliope Bolan’s mother drove the family van into a lake with her three daughters inside. The girls escaped, but their mother drowned, and the truth behind the “accident” remains a mystery Calliope is determined to solve. Now sixteen, she transfers to Tipton Academy, the same elite boarding school her mother once attended. Tipton promises a peek into the past and a host of new opportunities—including a coveted invitation to join Haunt and Rail, an exclusive secret society that looms over campus like a legend. Calliope accepts, stepping into the exhilarating world of the “ghosts,” a society of revolutionaries fighting for social justice. But when Haunt and Rail commits to exposing a dangerous person on campus, it becomes clear that some ghosts define justice differently than others. As the society’s tactics escalate, Calliope uncovers a possible link between Haunt and Rail and her mother’s deadly crash. Now, she must question what lengths the society might go to in order to see a victory—and if the secret behind her mother’s death could be buried here at Tipton. Gr 8 Up—Calliope Bolan's transfer to Tipton Academy to escape the village that can't stop talking about her mom's death—and her own near-death—is not the escape she intends it to be when she gets wrapped up in a secret society. Haunt and Rail is dedicated to righting the wrongs at Tipton through pranks and "larks" and they set their sights on taking down a teacher for his inappropriate relationship with students. But Calliope's time with Haunt and Rail is further complicated by what role the society may have played in her mother's death. Can Calliope unlock the secrets of the past without getting tangled up in the present? Frick brings the campus to life in small, daily tidbits and chapters, and while the resolution to one half of the story is less than satisfying, it feels perfectly juxtaposed by the other ending. The characters' race and ethnicity was not stated. VERDICT A solid campus mystery for readers who want the intrigue of a secret society and a death to unravel, but who don't want the gory details. Add especially to collections frequented by a younger high school crowd.—Aryssa Damron “ Very Bad People has it all: family secrets, mysteries, lies, romance, a secret society, activism, mischief, and more. So perfectly paced, so well-wrought, I was kept guessing until the end. A twisty, deeply satisfying ride.” ― Sara Shepard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars “A multi-layered mystery and a razor-sharp indictment of privilege in all its forms, Very Bad People is a stunning thriller.” ― Kara Thomas, author of The Cheerleaders and That Weekend " Very Bad People is a chilling dive into the dangers of dark academia and family secrets. Kit Frick spins a propulsive tale that twists through hidden rooms and the shadowy wooded edges of an elite boarding school where secrets must be protected at all costs. A startling and addictive thriller!" ― Jennifer Moffett, author of THOSE WHO PREY * "A doozy of a ride, with thrills and chills aplenty." ― Kirkus Reviews, starred review * "Nuanced and startling in turn, this is a satisfyingly smart and thrilling tale." ― Publishers Weekly, starred review Kit Frick is a MacDowell Fellow and an International Thriller Writers Award finalist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She studied creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College and received her MFA from Syracuse University. She is the author of the adult suspense novels The Split and Friends and Liars , the young adult thrillers Before We Were Sorry (originally published as See All the Stars ), All Eyes on Us , I Killed Zoe Spanos , Very Bad People , and The Reunion , and the poetry collection A Small Rising Up in the Lungs . Her books have been optioned for film and television and translated into nine languages. Kit loves a good mystery but has only ever killed her characters. Honest. Visit Kit online at KitFrick.com and on Instagram @KitFrick. Chapter 1 1 We are the Bolan sisters. Calliope, Lorelei, and Serafina. If our names sound like they were plucked from a fairy tale, it’s because they were. Momma wanted, above all things, to live in a fairy tale. We have pale, freckly skin and dark auburn hair, which we refuse to cut. It falls in long jumbles down our backs—thick and wavy for Lorelei and me; wispy curls for Serafina. We are tall for our ages, respectively. We are clumsy. We have mammoth feet and deli