Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

Jun 12, 2008

Angie rated it:

So I stayed up too late two nights in a row finishing this one. I found myself alternately morbidly fascinated by and completely frustrated with a world that (though "real") so utterly alien to the one I experienced at college. More to come on that further down.

Amy Haskel is your average overachieving junior at Eli University. Editor of the school's lit magazine, she's up to her elbows in a reading of War and Peace, sorting writing submissions, and negotiating a very tenuo More...

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

May 11, 2008

Jennifer rated it:

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com

Meet Amy Maureen Haskel, a junior at prestigious Eli University. As editor-in-chief of the campus literary newspaper, Amy's a shoe-in to be tapped for Quill & Ink, the literary senior society, home to writers and scribblers of any and all degree. After all, it's a part of her master plan: get tapped into Quill & Ink, do her summer internship at Horton, make it through the Russian Novel class, decide what to do with her "friend with benefits," More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 23, 2008

Tiffanyy added it

Secret Society Girlby Diana Peterfreund
Deltacore Press 2006,291pp., $10.00
ISBN:978-0-440-24389-2

When I first picked up the book, I thought from the cover and the title that it would be something like the series of cliques and the life of a rich girl in an Ivy League school, with the money and the beauty, glamorous and rich. As I open the book to chapter 1, it was different from what I anticipated. I knew that there will be something more to the book than what is expected. More...

3 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 06, 2008

Sara rated it:

Blech. The plot of this sounded good - a girl joins a secret society on campus and gets in over her head - so I checked it out of the library. I am sooo glad I did not waste money on this! It is poorly written, for starters, and the pacing is absolutely horrible. I did not once feel excited about anything going on, just bored. Lots of characters are introduced briefly, and then the reader is supposed to remember them and care about them. Riiiight. The characters are really self-centered a More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Mar 11, 2009

george rated it:

Amy Haskel is a junior at Eli University, the editor of the Literary Magazine, and waiting to be tapped into Quill & Ink--the literary society. Her interview, though, is rather strange: she can't see any of her interviewers, the girl she assumes is her sponsor is sitting in the class Amy is currently skipping, and the panel seems to know everything about her. Things get even stranger when she receives a note. This note isn't decorated with the Quill & Ink colors and the seal is that of Rose & Gr More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 13, 2008

Dana rated it:

LOVED IT - Couldn't wait to get started on the sequel. It's been a few years since I was in college - and I didn't go to a University - so I missed out on a lot of the "society" life.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Mar 22, 2009

Jenna rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 10, 2009

Steph Su rated it:

Amy Haskel is a junior at the esteemed Eli University, editor of the college literary magazine…and not much else. Which is why she is utterly surprised when she is “tapped” by one of the famed Eli secret societies—in fact, by THE most notorious secret society of all, Rose & Grave, for which admittance promises eternal job security, prime networking, and lifelong happiness, more or less.

Encouraged by her friend-with-benefits Brandon Weare to stop overthinking for once, Amy accepts Ro More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 25, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

I read this book while my husband was attending Yale. Light, fluffy and really nothing to add to the advancement of society- and yet, I enjoyed it. It was a great distraction read.

Secret Society Girl (An Ivy League Novel) by Diana Peterfreund is the story of the first female "taps" at Eli Univeristy's super, ultra secret society, Rose & Grave. Main character Amy is surprised to find out that she has been chosen to join the most top secret and talked about secret societies More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 01, 2009

Reba rated it:

MY REVIEW ON MY BLOG

I've mentioned this book in an earlier post as a step on the path that has led me to enjoy and appreciate Chick lit for, what I think, it is meant to accomplish - Shall we say a bit of romance, relationship intrigue, bff drama, and perhaps some good ol' "Girl Power"?

I find it funny that I have never given the theme "girl power" [sounds trite, don't know how else to phrase it:] much thought until recently. It first really hit me in t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 18, 2009

Susan rated it:

The unpretentious editor of the school's lit magazine, Amy Haskel is an overachieving junior at Eli University. She spends her time drowning in War and Peace (she calls it WAP - not an acronym, but onomatopoeia - for the sound it makes when she drops it on her desk,) finalizing her plans for a summer internship, and working out a sophisticated friends-with-benefits relationship with her assistant editor. When she's "tapped" by the most elite and mysterious society on campus, Rose & Gra More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 02, 2009

Brittany rated it:

How I Came To Read This Book: On Black Friday 2007 I was in the ol' US of A, and, determined to make the most of our strong dollar & cheap US book prices, I bought this book and its first sequel - Under The Rose.

The Plot: Amy Haskel is a middle-ground member of Eli University's general population. She is not particularly exceptional, other than being on the lit mag, and is not expecting much as the school's annual 'Tap Week' happens to induct juniors into one of the school's many sec More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 22, 2007

Amanda rated it:

Once again, I find that the minute I say I don't like "chick lit," a book comes along that is totally entertaining. Like this one. Though not a deep read, this series opener takes a fun turn and a look at the workings of a secret society.

At Amy's Ivy League college, one of the most important things that can happen to a student is to get "tapped" or invited to join one of the several secret societies on campus. Think fraternity or sorority but on a bigger, more co More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 06, 2009

Haley rated it:

This is a classic case of "don't judge a book by its cover". Yes, the head/eyes cropped off thing is a little reminiscent of Gossip Girl and has gotten a little old.
But read it and your doubts will be vanquished of a whir of wit, intrigue, snarky humor and allusions.
This is one of those rare books that belongs on two (debatably) opposite shelves: Academia( A Separate Peace, Erich Segal, etc.) and chicklit(Charmed Thirds, Fourth Comings, Perfect Fifths etc.). Not one to miss More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 05, 2009

Jodie rated it:

College junior, Amy Haskel, is stunned when she gets "tapped" into the elite secret society, Rose & Grave. The country's most powerful & notorious secret society has always been known to be a "boy's club" but this year the Diggers have voted to initiate women into the mix. Controversy spikes and Amy is suddenly friends with people she thinks to have nothing in common with until she realizes that she's just as good as them.

I really liked this story. I've always be More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 03, 2007

Tamara rated it:

Secret Society Girl takes us into the heart of the Ivy League's
ultra exclusive secret societies when a young woman is invited to join as one of their first female members. Elite Eli University junior Amy Haskel never expected to be tapped into Rose & Grave, the country's most powerful--and notorious--secret society. She isn't rich, politically connected, or...well, male.

Eli University, of course, is really Yale, home to both major-party 2004 presidential candidates as well as t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 29, 2008

Rachael rated it:

Wow, what a great novel. That's all I can really think of to say about this book. It was just phenomenal.

Diana Peterfreund has woven a creative story that incorporates secret societies, college life, brotherhood, and the importance of sticking up for your friends.

This novel is narrated by Amy Haskel (a.k.a. Bugaboo), an insider in the Rose & Grave secret society. As she is introduced into this society, you learn about her love life as well as her studies. I have to say th More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 07, 2007

Julia rated it:

Chick lit meets secret fraternal society at Eli University. (founded in the 1700's to compete with Harvard). Amy Haskel is surprised to be "tapped" into the one the most secret societies on campus, the Rose and Grave. Modeled after Masonic/Templar groups, it's one of the more powerful secret societies, one that hadn't tapped women until now. Amy is part of an elite group of Eli women who join the Rose and Grave, only to have the patriarchs of the club threaten job/class/internship More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 18, 2012

KatiD rated it:

I've been wanting to read this book for a while, ever since Lusty Reader told me she'd read them and enjoyed them. I just finished a slew of erotic romances, so decided I wanted something a little lighter. This book filled the order perfectly.

Amy Haskell is a junior at prestigious Eli University, which is an Ivy League school. She's busy getting excellent grades, and working on the Eli Lit Magazine as its editor. She's got a boy, Brandon, who is VERY interested in her, but who she just More...

0 comments like

Dec 03, 2011

Christina (Reading Thru The Night) rated it:

Love me some secret society stories. Uh, hello, I can’t be the only one who saw Joshua Jackson in The Skulls. This book is totally a pleasant summer read. It’s got the love interest, although not over the top to call it a romantic drama; it’s got the hype of college life (uh, hello, did you not hear me when I said SECRET SOCIETIES?); and, some serious friendships developing. Plus, I totally dig the drama of the old folk wanting to keep tradition and keep women out. There’s all this “I am wo More...

0 comments like

Aug 01, 2011

Mlle. rated it:

I guess that SECRET SOCIETY GIRL is supposed to be a kind of fantasy - about a magical and far-away place called the Ivy League. I know there's a term for these books, about the high society New York teenagers and popular cliques and such - wish lit or something. I didn't go to Yale (Elihu Yale founded Yale University and the elite New Haven school is called Eli in this series), but I went to a different Ivy League school where, like the protagonist here, I staffed the lit mag and schemed to wor More...

0 comments like

Dec 27, 2010

Jim rated it:

Amy Haskel, editor-in-chief of the campus lit magazine at Eli university, is confidently expecting to be 'tapped' into Quill & Ink, the literary society there. She certainly doesn't think she'll find herself in Rose & Grave, the notorious - and hugely powerful - secret society. She's not rich, she's not famous, and she's definitely not male, which would previously have been the sticking point for R & G. But this year, the society members have decided to bring five women into the fold, which hasn More...

0 comments like

Dec 22, 2010

Alissa rated it:

Snarky intellect. Charming, diverse characters. And an entertaining plot that progresses smoothly.

Secret Society Girl might appear to be a typical school soap opera, but in actuality it’s a cleverly disguised journey of finding oneself … with the help of a society most people only dream of joining, and an unsolved mystery. I’ve never before read such a successfully integrated mystery in a school setting; it kept the story unique and never permitted a dull moment.

The chara More...

0 comments like

Feb 24, 2010

Erica rated it:

Hard to get through this one. Writing was awkward; contained super long paragraphs and unrealistic dialogue. The main character wasn't fleshed out enough and I just didn't care for her--she's unlikable and unrelatable (not to mention the other characters, who were flat, stereotypical, and forgettable).

I also didn't like how the author had to throw in every SAT word she ever learned as if to prove that she graduated from an ivy league school (which she did. Yale, apparently). It was v More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 18, 2010

Pikachu rated it:

I pre-read books for a high school English teacher and decided to check 'em out. Two of them were Zoey Dean's A-List books and another was Gossip Girl, neither of which I really cared for. But the younger girls love them: whatever gets the kids reading, right? So, by the time I got to Secret Society Girl, my expectations were understandably low.

Boy, was I COMPLETELY blown away.

Secret Society Girl is all about a prestigious Ivy League college (not a high school! Hurrah!). More...

0 comments like

Jul 20, 2009

Katharine rated it:

Fluffy, guilty-pleasure fun is the bottom line for Secret Society Girl. The premise is simple and the title pretty much covers it. The appeal is... not terribly intellectual, although there are some nice zingy lines based on typical college study content. And the plot twists are a bit predictable. Given "first girl to join an all-male secret society must fight against prejudice" it was pretty much guaranteed that there would be one of those movie moments when our heroine gives an impas More...

0 comments like

Dec 10, 2010

Lisa O. rated it:

This book - this series - was recommended to me by a blogger in reply to a comment of mine on how much i had loved the Jessica Darling series. She told me i would love this series just as much and not to stop at the first installment 'cause the other ones are better.
I think she might be right.
This book is not an unputdownable but the premises and potential to be a great series are there.

I like Amy, she a strong, singleminded, witty character. She is the editor of a Lit Ma More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 24, 2008

Kristine rated it:

This is one of my guilty pleasure books. I always walk around BN to find some interesting new books and this was one I came across. I thought it was intriguing to have a woman be initiated into a secret society that was for males. I loved the movie "The Skulls" and this is right up that same alley only for females. It was a great quick and fun book to read that didn't require much thinking. Definetly a good read before trying to tackle Atonement.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 25, 2008

katayoun rated it:

it was fun, and i must admit that if it was not pushed (!!) i would never have read it. i would love to avoid new series as trying to find the next and the next and .... just is too stressful :) but this was good, as it also finished while left you wanting to read more of bugaboo's adventures. lovely just because of that and also it was fun, really fun, and you could like the people there. thanks, t, it was a good recommendation

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 28, 2008

Genevra rated it:

Surprisingly intelligent and nonromantic, for a teenage chick novel. I opened it when I was shelving at the BN where I worked, and ended up devouring it on my breaks for the rest of the day. The main character is perky, but smart enough to not fill me with annoyance, and the side-characters are well thought out and interesting. A good way to spend a couple of rainy hours, but don't go hunting for any extreme depth out of it.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

reviews