Nice Girls: A Novel

by Catherine Dang

Overview

“Darkly delicious . . . Nice Girls is about the girlhood we never really leave behind, and what happens when we dare to confront our past demons. A pulsating mystery with a narrator you won't soon forget.” — Laura Dave, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of The Last Thing He Told Me

"If you’re a total true crime addict, Catherine Dang’s debut novel will have you hooked real fast." — Cosmopolitan

Recommended by New York Times Book Review • Entertainment Weekly • Cosmopolitan • Los Angeles Times • Harper's Bazaar • New York Post • E! Online • Bustle • Popsugar • CrimeReads • The Nerd Daily • PureWow • Mystery & Suspense Magazine • Criminal Element • and more!

A pulse-pounding and razor-sharp debut with the emotional punch of Luckiest Girl Alive and All the Missing Girls that explores the hungry, angry, dark side of girlhood and dares to ask: Which is more dangerous for a woman—showing the world what it wants to see, or who she really is?

What did you do?

Mary used to be such a nice girl. She was the resident whiz kid of Liberty Lake, Minnesota—the quiet, chubby teen with the scholarship to an Ivy League school. But three years later, “Ivy League Mary” is back—a thinner, cynical, restless failure who was kicked out of Cor­nell at the beginning of her senior year and won’t tell anyone why. Taking a job at the local grocery store, Mary tries to make sense of her life’s sharp downward spiral.

Then beautiful, magnetic Olivia Willand goes missing. A rising social media star, Olivia is admired by everyone in Liberty Lake—except Mary. Once Olivia’s best friend, Mary knows better than anyone that behind the Instagram persona hides a willful, manipulative girl with sharp edges. As the town obsesses over perfect, lovely Olivia, Mary wonders if her disappearance might be tied to another missing person: nineteen-year-old DeMaria Jackson, whose case has been widely dismissed as a runaway.

Who is the real Olivia Willand, and where did she go? What happened to DeMaria? As Mary pries at the cracks in the careful facades surrounding the two missing girls, old wounds will bleed fresh and force her to confront a horrible truth.

Maybe there are no nice girls, after all.

“Complex characters, questionable choices, and conflicted feelings about who we are and the people we leave behind combine in a compelling thriller that will have you flipping pages to discover how it all fits together.”— Darby Kane, #1 internationally bestselling author of Pretty Little Wife

“Nice Girls finds itself among the most haunting of mysteries, those that resonate with our current affairs, like Alyssa Cole’s When No One Is Watching and Rumaan Alam’s Leave the World Behind. Perfect for the millennial armchair detective, Nice Girls will satisfy your true crime addiction and intensify your desire for justice.”— Paperback Paris

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063027565
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	09/20/2022
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	482,494
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 5.20(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Catherine Dang is a former legal assistant based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota. Nice Girls is her first novel.

Editorial Reviews

Catherine Dang's darkly delicious debut, Nice Girls, is about the girlhood we never really leave behind, and what happens when we dare to confront our past demons. A pulsating mystery with a narrator you won't soon forget.”

Laura Dave

"Mary isn't always a sympathetic narrator . . . adding to the edginess as readers are gripped by the story's provocative twists and turns. . . . Compelling."

Booklist

"Dang captures the surface cynicism a young college student like Mary would adopt to mask the flameout of potential, itself the product of simmering rage against multiple forms of alienation, particularly of a class variety. . . . But Dang smartly pivots the novel into a greater reflection of savior complexes and the ways we can be blinded by projected images rather than remaining true to ourselves."

New York Times Book Review

"Nice girls don't get kicked out of college in their senior year, they don't move back to the hometown they swore to escape from and they definitely don't get involved in the disappearance of their childhood frenemy. But that's exactly what Mary does in this engrossing and sharp debut that true crime fans will devour faster than an episode of My Favorite Murder."

E! Online

Complex characters, questionable choices, and conflicted feelings about who we are and the people we leave behind combine in a compelling thriller that will have you flipping pages to discover how it all fits together.”

Darby Kane

"True crime fans, this one is for you."

Books You'll Want to Read ASAP Popsugar

"If you’re a total true crime addict, Catherine Dang’s debut novel will have you hooked real fast. It follows a nice girl turned cynical failure who mysteriously got kicked out of college her senior year. When she meddles in the cases of two missing girls, she ends up facing a devastating truth."

15 Compelling Fall 2021 Books to Add to Your Readi Cosmopolitan

"A thriller that offers a tongue-in-cheek take on the idea of "Minnesota nice," this story is about a girl who moves back to her Midwestern hometown and finds herself wrapped up in the murder of a local social media star."

Entertainment Weekly

Catherine Dang is an asset to the woman’s suspense genre. She layers the story so it builds and slowly lets the reader in . . . It was hard to put down and easy to imagine myself in the dark and gritty setting, with two specific parts of town. Nice Girls talks about anxiety, depression, and the importance of mental health. It points out racism in the police force and the media, and inequality in the way crimes are investigated. It brought up many important points while also being an exciting and mysterious read. I recommend this debut to lovers of All The Missing Girls and Luckiest Girl Alive.

Mystery & Suspense Magazine

A refreshingly original and intriguingly written mystery with a flawed, yet relatable protagonist at its heart. Nice Girls drew me in and I found it hard to put down as the tension rose to its I-didn’t-see-that-coming end. A highly recommended and brilliant read.

Karen Hamilton

"Mary isn't always a sympathetic narrator . . . adding to the edginess as readers are gripped by the story's provocative twists and turns. . . . Compelling."

Booklist

09/27/2021

Mary, the narrator of Dang’s fine debut, became known as Ivy League Mary in her hometown of Liberty, Minn., after receiving a scholarship to Cornell. In her senior year, she’s asked to leave the university due to an unpleasant incident involving a younger student. Ashamed, and still occasionally simmering with rage at the injustice, she returns to Liberty, where she takes a grocery store job. When her grade school friend Olivia Willand, now a rising social media star, disappears, the police and townsfolk immediately rally to locate their missing celebrity. Meanwhile, Mary discovers that 19-year-old DeMaria Jackson vanished a few months earlier. The police quickly dismissed the Black single mother as a runaway and did no follow-up investigation. Mary’s convinced that the two cases are linked and sets out to prove it. The suspense builds as the uncomfortable secrets of the well-drawn and varied characters gradually emerge. Dang provides a full complement of thrills and suspense while addressing status inequities based on looks, race, and wealth. Readers will eagerly await her next. Agent: Eve Attermann, WME. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"Dang captures the surface cynicism a young college student like Mary would adopt to mask the flameout of potential, itself the product of simmering rage against multiple forms of alienation, particularly of a class variety. . . . But Dang smartly pivots the novel into a greater reflection of savior complexes and the ways we can be blinded by projected images rather than remaining true to ourselves." — New York Times Book Review

"A thriller that offers a tongue-in-cheek take on the idea of "Minnesota nice," this story is about a girl who moves back to her Midwestern hometown and finds herself wrapped up in the murder of a local social media star." — Entertainment Weekly, 15 Must-Read September Books

"If you’re a total true crime addict, Catherine Dang’s debut novel will have you hooked real fast. It follows a nice girl turned cynical failure who mysteriously got kicked out of college her senior year. When she meddles in the cases of two missing girls, she ends up facing a devastating truth." — Cosmopolitan, 15 Compelling Fall 2021 Books to Add to Your Reading List

"Nice girls don't get kicked out of college in their senior year, they don't move back to the hometown they swore to escape from and they definitely don't get involved in the disappearance of their childhood frenemy. But that's exactly what Mary does in this engrossing and sharp debut that true crime fans will devour faster than an episode of My Favorite Murder." — E! Online

“Complex characters, questionable choices, and conflicted feelings about who we are and the people we leave behind combine in a compelling thriller that will have you flipping pages to discover how it all fits together.”

— Darby Kane, #1 internationally bestselling author of Pretty Little Wife

“Catherine Dang's darkly delicious debut, Nice Girls, is about the girlhood we never really leave behind, and what happens when we dare to confront our past demons. A pulsating mystery with a narrator you won't soon forget.”
— Laura Dave, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of The Last Thing He Told Me

“A refreshingly original and intriguingly written mystery with a flawed, yet relatable protagonist at its heart. Nice Girls drew me in and I found it hard to put down as the tension rose to its I-didn’t-see-that-coming end. A highly recommended and brilliant read.” — Karen Hamilton, international bestselling author of The Last Wife

"True crime fans, this one is for you." — Popsugar, Books You'll Want to Read ASAP

“Catherine Dang is an asset to the woman’s suspense genre. She layers the story so it builds and slowly lets the reader in . . . It was hard to put down and easy to imagine myself in the dark and gritty setting, with two specific parts of town. Nice Girls talks about anxiety, depression, and the importance of mental health. It points out racism in the police force and the media, and inequality in the way crimes are investigated. It brought up many important points while also being an exciting and mysterious read. I recommend this debut to lovers of All The Missing Girls and Luckiest Girl Alive.” — Mystery & Suspense Magazine

"Mary isn't always a sympathetic narrator . . . adding to the edginess as readers are gripped by the story's provocative twists and turns. . . . Compelling." — Booklist

“Dang has created a thriller that is gripping both in the sense of its genre but also due to its cultural relevance . . . Both woke and riveting, Nice Girls finds itself among the most haunting of mysteries, those that resonate with our current affairs, like Alyssa Cole’s When No One Is Watching and Rumaan Alam’s Leave the World Behind. Perfect for the millennial armchair detective, Nice Girls will satisfy your true crime addiction and intensify your desire for justice.” — Paperback Paris

"Jessica Knoll’s Luckiest Girl Alive meets Cruel Summer in this engaging thriller. . . . A page-turning, multifaceted mystery with emotional depth and a thrilling conclusion." — School Library Journal

"A gripping tale of small-town drama, clandestine trysts, and secrets gone too far." — Mpls St Paul Magazine

“Missing girls, overlooked girls, smart girls, ambitious girls emerge in Catherine Dang's scintillating debut novel . . . Expertly character-driven, Nice Girls shows Dang is a talent to watch.” — Shelf Awareness

"The suspense builds as the uncomfortable secrets of the well-drawn and varied characters gradually emerge. Dang provides a full complement of thrills and suspense while addressing status inequities based on looks, race, and wealth. Readers will eagerly await her next." — Publishers Weekly

"Engaging, edgy, and packed with suspense, Dang’s debut is sure to appeal to any fans of true crime." — Book Riot, 8 Stunning Debut Novels to Read

"True crime addicts and armchair detectives will gobble up this razor-sharp debut in one sitting. Full of twists and turns, small town drama, edge-of-your-seat suspense and insightful social commentary, it just might be the book of the season." — Zoella.co.uk

From the Publisher

"True crime addicts and armchair detectives will gobble up this razor-sharp debut in one sitting. Full of twists and turns, small town drama, edge-of-your-seat suspense and insightful social commentary, it just might be the book of the season."

Zoella.co.uk

"Engaging, edgy, and packed with suspense, Dang’s debut is sure to appeal to any fans of true crime."

Book Riot

Missing girls, overlooked girls, smart girls, ambitious girls emerge in Catherine Dang's scintillating debut novel . . . Expertly character-driven, Nice Girls shows Dang is a talent to watch.

Shelf Awareness

Dang has created a thriller that is gripping both in the sense of its genre but also due to its cultural relevance . . . Both woke and riveting, Nice Girls finds itself among the most haunting of mysteries, those that resonate with our current affairs, like Alyssa Cole’s When No One Is Watching and Rumaan Alam’s Leave the World Behind. Perfect for the millennial armchair detective, Nice Girls will satisfy your true crime addiction and intensify your desire for justice.

Paperback Paris

"A gripping tale of small-town drama, clandestine trysts, and secrets gone too far."

Mpls St Paul Magazine

08/01/2021

Jessica Knoll's Luckiest Girl Alive meets Cruel Summer in this engaging thriller. In high school, Mary seemed destined for great things. Dubbed "Ivy League Mary" for her admission to Cornell, she left her small town and all the bullies behind for a brighter future. But as a college senior, she is forced from Cornell in disgrace. With no other option, she returns to her hometown and does her best to stay under the radar. She finds a minimum wage job and connects with the townies who, unlike her, never had reason or means to leave town. Then her former friend, beautiful Instagram influencer Olivia, goes missing. What is first assumed to be a publicity stunt turns more serious when human remains are discovered. Mary becomes distracted with the details of why she had to leave Cornell, as well as the pain of bullying that led her to leave her hometown to begin with. What all these tangents have in common is the shared thread of female rage, and how it can curdle and become stifled in a world that won't allow it. Racial issues are also touched upon when the disappearance of DeMaria, a woman of color, is treated with less care by police and townfolk than the white Olivia. Mary and most characters, other than DeMaria and Mary's Vietnamese friend Madison, are assumed white. VERDICT The inclusion of high school flashbacks, along with the experiences of college-age characters, are likely to appeal to older teens who enjoy thrillers. A page-turning, multifaceted mystery with emotional depth and a thrilling conclusion.—Ann Foster, Saskatoon P.L., Sask.

School Library Journal