They Wish They Were Us Audiobook By Jessica Goodman cover art

They Wish They Were Us

Preview

Get this deal Try for $0.00
Offer ends April 30, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

They Wish They Were Us

By: Jessica Goodman
Narrated by: Kristen Sieh
Get this deal Try for $0.00

$14.95/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends April 30, 2025 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $22.50

Buy for $22.50

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

TV Adaptation The Players' Table Starring Halsey and Euphoria's Sydney Sweeney Coming to HBO Max

“A pristine infusion of Gossip Girl and Netflix's Elite, this prep-school thriller has it all: plaid skirts, secret societies, and a gripping murder mystery, but paired with an adept critique of the powers and privileges that goeth before the fall.” (Elle)

In Gold Coast, Long Island, everything from the expensive downtown shops to the manicured beaches, to the pressed uniforms of Jill Newman and her friends, looks perfect. But as Jill found out three years ago, nothing is as it seems.

Freshman year Jill's best friend, the brilliant, dazzling Shaila Arnold, was killed by her boyfriend. After that dark night on the beach, Graham confessed, the case was closed, and Jill tried to move on.

Now, it's Jill's senior year and she's determined to make it her best yet. After all, she's a senior and a Player - a member of Gold Coast Prep's exclusive, not-so-secret secret society. Senior Players have the best parties, highest grades and the admiration of the entire school. This is going to be Jill's year. She's sure of it.

But when Jill starts getting texts proclaiming Graham's innocence, her dreams of the perfect senior year start to crumble. If Graham didn't kill Shaila, who did? Jill vows to find out, but digging deeper could mean putting her friendships, and her future, in jeopardy.

©2020 Jessica Goodman (P)2020 Listening Library
Difficult Situations Family & Relationships Friendship Literature & Fiction Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Peer Pressure Thrillers & Suspense Young Adult Fiction Thriller Realistic Fiction For Kids

Critic reviews

"Goodman deftly explores the complex nature of friendship, privilege, grief, and the often crushing expectations placed on teens, all of which dovetails neatly with a twisty murder mystery...A sophisticated and suspenseful debut." (Kirkus Reviews)

"This debut murder mystery is filled with twists and turns that will keep its pages turning." (Booklist)

“Seductive and slick, They Wish They Were Us is a searing novel about power, privilege, and the dangerous pursuit of perfection. You’ll remember the girls of Gold Coast Prep Long after the last page.” (Jessica Knoll, New York Times best-selling author of The Luckiest Girl Alive and The Favorite Sister)

What listeners say about They Wish They Were Us

Highly rated for:

Intriguing Premise Good Character Development Engaging Mystery Twisty Storyline Well-written Fiction
Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    296
  • 4 Stars
    187
  • 3 Stars
    95
  • 2 Stars
    18
  • 1 Stars
    11
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    358
  • 4 Stars
    130
  • 3 Stars
    42
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    246
  • 4 Stars
    162
  • 3 Stars
    88
  • 2 Stars
    28
  • 1 Stars
    11

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Ok- it would not recommend

It was ok, would not recommend to anyone. A fine way to pass the time, but very predictable and at the same time slow moving. They should have spent way more time on the mystery-which is the only interesting part. The rest is just a ridiculous club run by teenagers. It has potential and a good premise, but this was not it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Addicting

Easy to listen and become addicted! Great book and I can’t wait for the series!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Predictable

I knew pretty early on who the killer was, it was very predictable. And so was the ending. Wanted to like this book so much more but unfortunately it wasn’t that great.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting ya read

Mystery was obvious but the character development and atmosphere was excellent. entertaining ya novel.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

All the HS prep school drama

This was an entertaining listen. The story was fun & twisty, and the narration was good. I’ll look for more from Jessica Goodman.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Held my attention the whole time!

Never a boring moment. Really enjoyed listening and kept me on my toes. Would recommend

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Fun YA read, but with a predictable ending

Pretty exciting book, but had a predictable ending. I would recommend to listen to on a long drive, but I’m glad I didn’t buy a paper copy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not good, but not bad

The murder mystery at elite high school is a good premise, but the author didn’t deliver on both. I enjoyed the murder mystery, even if it was fairly formulaic. I really felt Jill’s loss and her struggle between moving on and I conversing the truth.

But the secret society (aka The Players) felt more like a plot devise than a story. In the first half of the book, I think you could drop the secret society without changing much of the book. Even later in the book the secret society did little more than five the main characters reasons to act or feel bad, without adding to the plot.

Overall, it’s not the best book, but it’s not the worst. It works as good background noise for anyone who enjoys YA murder mysteries, but don’t expect much else.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Could of been better

I liked the setting the town and prep school. It wrapped up too quickly, disappointed of the lead character’s ending. Seem she was too stuck on her emotions.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very good.

I was very impressed with this. Very captivating and the narrator is absolutely amazing. I couldn’t stop finished all 10 hours in less than a week.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!