Here Lie All the Boys Who Broke My Heart by Emma Simmerman is a YA thriller that follows Sloane, a senior at Pembroke who has a group of pretty tight friends who are all very into partying and having a good time. Sloane is a messy narrator, who often gets blackout drunk at parties, forgetting parts of the evening’s events. She also is trying to recover a bit in her senior year. Last year she was in a relationship with a married professor, and the news broke, damaging her reputation. But the year is off to an even weirder start when Sloane’s high school boyfriend ends up dead in a freak accident. And then her next ex-boyfriend dies mysteriously at a house party. Did I mention that as part of Sloane’s grief process when she breaks up with a guy, she writes a fake eulogy to them in her journal? And copies of these eulogies are found near her dead exes.

This is a unique and twisty-turny mystery. Like I said, Sloane is a super unreliable narrator. In some ways you can tell she is smart and observant, but then she just keeps making messes by drinking waaaay too much. She also lies – a lot – to her friends trying to save face. Her friend group is definitely a mixed bag. Wes is her crush that she really wants to turn into more. Asher is Wes’s cousin, and has dirt on Sloane that he uses to blackmail her into getting something he wants. Annica is spicy and driven, and has a number 1 rule that no friends in the friend group should date because friendship over love. Dani is sweet and kind and is sort of in a relationship with Charlie, but doesn’t want to make it official. Jake is another guy in the friend group, who besides getting really drunk, I don’t remember much about. Sam is also a friend – other than being part of a big plot point he’s kind of just there. Anyway – there are a lot of shenanigans in this book. There’s lying, cheating, stabbing, stealing, hiding, covering tracks, kissing/sex, problem-solving, and a decent smattering of fear throughout this book. I will say I was surprised by the main twist, not as surprised by a secondary twist, and overall thought this was an entertaining read. I really enjoyed reading the scenes with Sloane and Asher, and found their bickering enjoyable. If you like messy narrators in YA thriller type of books, I’d recommend checking this out. Solid 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Avon and Harper Voyager, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. It just released on February 3, 2026.