Goode girls don’t lie…or do they?
The Goode School is a prestigious all girls prep school nestled in the picturesque town of Marchburg, Virginia. Known as Silent Ivy, the school only accept the very best and brightest girls, the daughters of the rich and influential. But when a stranger comes to Goode, the ivy turns poisonous.
Appearances are everything, especially at Goode where the girls are being groomed for Ivy League educations. As long as you follow the strict honour code and stick to the rules, you will succeed. In fact, people will even turn a blind eye to the cruel and calculating hazings of the secret societies and the unsavoury attitudes of the spoiled and privileged rich girls to keep the school's reputation and its students' reputations in tact.
Ash Carlisle is an import from England. After witnessing both of her parents dying, she is trying to reinvent herself as a Goode girl. Only it isn't that easy. Ash is not only struggling to fit in—especially with being targeted by popular senior, Becca Curtis—but also with trying to keep her past hidden, as well as the many other secrets and lies that seem to be piling up.
When a popular student is found dead, the truth can't be ignored. Rumours are suggesting that the girl had a secret that drove her to commit suicide. But was it suicide, or was it murder? You see, there are truths, lies, and what actually happened in between.
This propulsive character driven novel is well-sculpted and sublimely atmospheric—the setting was absolute perfection! What is it about boarding schools that is so intriguing? Can't you just picture the stone walls, ornate wood, climbing ivy, and secret tunnels?
Ellison's writing is hypnotic, detailed, and consuming. The solid narrative is framed by equally strong characters. Told from multiple perspectives, the majority of the story is told from Ash's point of view, with a few other perspectives in the mix. This works exceptionally well, the reader experiences a lot of what Ash is as a newcomer.
Good Girls Lie is devious and delightful. There is plenty of back-stabbing, double-crossing, and plot twists. J. T. Ellison will have her readers engaged until the very last page.
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J. T. ELLISON is an award-winning New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 20 novels. She is published in 28 countries and 16 languages.
Ellison lives in Nashville with her husband and two cats.
Q & A with J. T. Ellison
Do you plan your books in advance or let them develop as you write?
Both. Sometimes the story just unfolds, and sometimes I have to relentlessly work on themes and turning points and characters’ points of view. Every book is different, every book has its own unique challenges. I’m always thinking about what’s next, and sometimes even what’s after that. But when it comes to actually sitting down to write, I like to let the story unfold a bit, let it stretch its wings, before I try to lash it to the mast and conform it to my vision.
What does the act of writing mean to you?
It’s a sacred contract with me and a mythical “someone” who might read the words at some point in the future and find them entertaining or moving. It’s sheer magic on my end, creating, and sheer magic on the readers’ end, when they get to experience what was in my head as I was writing. It’s the most incredible mystical experience out there.
Have you ever had a character take over a story, and if so, who was it and why?
All the time. Oh my gosh, all the time. Honestly, if the character doesn’t run away with things, I know there’s a problem. Ivy, in Lie to Me, is a particular favourite. She’s just so nasty...
Which one of Good Girls Lie’s characters was the hardest to write and why?
Ash, for sure. She was so elusive and aloof with me. The Britishisms, the secrets, the lies, she was always just out of reach. Of course, that was because I’d written her in third person. When I switched her to first, she wouldn’t shut up.
Which character in any of your books (Good Girls Lie or otherwise) is dearest to you and why?
Oh that’s an impossible question. Taylor. Sam. Sutton. Vivian. Ash. Aubrey. Ivy. Juliet. Lauren. Becca. Gavin. Baldwin. Xander. They are all me, on some level, whether it’s a fear or a triumph, a flaw or a heroic action. A moment of love or a moment of animosity. It’s like asking me to choose among my children, which one is my favorite. (I don’t have kids, by the way, but I couldn’t pick my favorite of my kittens, either.)
What did you want to be as a child? Was it an author?
I desperately wanted to be Colorado’s first female firefighter. When that job was taken, I cast about. Doctor. Lawyer. Fighter Pilot. Spy. International business maven. Olympic swimmer. Poet. In the end, being a writer was my only choice. That way, I get to experience all the lives I could have led.
What does a day in the life of J.T. Ellison look like?
It’s rather blissful. It starts rather lazily, with the cats cuddled into my arms and the newspaper on my iPad, then progresses to kicking the lazy beasts out, pouring a cup of tea and handling email. I am not a morning person, so I tend to do business in the morning and writing in the afternoon, when I’m sharper. I’ve always wanted to be the writer who gets up at 5 am to write whilst the birds chirp and the house sleeps, watching the sun rise and running five miles before the rest of the world is awake, but alas, it was not meant to be. You need to go to a concert that starts at ten p.m., I’m your girl.
What do you use to inspire you when you get Writer’s Block?
It depends. If it’s a genuine block, a I’ve lost faith in myself and my work block, I will step away from the manuscript entirely, read, walk, golf, yoga, go out for margaritas with my husband, anything to remove me from the situation. But 90 percent of the time, it’s just a story issue, so I work it out with some of my creative partners. Lots of texting and phone calls and what ifs, until it shakes itself free.
What book would you take with you to a desert island?
Hmmm… my knee jerk is the Harry Potter series – I know, I know, that’s seven books, but I’m sure there’s an omnibus edition somewhere. The fight for good and evil never ceases to amaze and comfort me. Knowing love conquers evil is a big deal in this world. And Hermione kicks ass. If I’m forced into a single title, Plato’s Republic. I’ve been obsessed with the allegory of the cave my entire adult life.
Favorite quote?
“Do. Or Do not. There is no try.” – Master Yoda
Coffee or tea?
Loose leaf earl grey. Making tea is a meditative experience for me.
Best TV or Movie adaptation of a book?
Clueless, hands-down the best adaptation of Austen’s Emma ever, and I’ve been enjoying A Discovery of Witches, based on the fabulous books by Deborah Harkness. Outlander isn’t bad, either. And Game of Thrones… obviously, I don’t include anything past the second episode of the final season of that, though I did enjoy the whole Deanarys-Drogon airborne apocalypse. I mean, talk about a girl who had reason to be aggravated with society.
Do you have stories on the back burner that are just waiting to be written?
So. Many. Stories. I will never get to them all. At last count, there are 49 in my “Story Idea” folder, with several more floating around in my head.
What has been the hardest thing about publishing? What has been the most fun?
The hardest is staying in the game, juggling the necessary mix of creativity and business, finding new paths to reach readers and leveling up the writing so it’s possible to grow my career. It was much easier to write, to focus, before our constant connections to the internet consumed us. The most fun is that email from a reader, when something I’ve written strikes a chord with them and they write to tell me they love a story, or a character, or an ending. It doesn’t get better than that.
What advice would you give budding authors about publishing?
Stay as much in a vacuum as you can while writing. You don’t need a platform, you need an excellent, groundbreaking book. And read everything. Everything you can get your hands on. You learn writing through osmosis as much as writing the books themselves. Find your writing habit and hold it sacred. If you respect your work, your people will, too.
What was the last thing you read?
I just finished Holly Black’s The Queen of Nothing, the finale of her Folk of the Air trilogy, and just finished listening to Bag of Bones by Stephen King. Both were exceptional.
Your top five authors?
Diana Gabaldon
J. K. Rowling
Deborah Harkness
Leigh Bardugo
Sarah J. Maas
Book you've bought just for the cover?
That’s how I found the Holly Black trilogy – I adored the cover of The Cruelest Prince.
Tell us about what you’re working on now.
I’m writing a novel about a destination wedding that goes very, very wrong. It has loose ties to Rebecca, and it titled Her Dark Lies.
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