Customer Reviews

Secret Society Girl: An Ivy League Novel (Ivy League Novels)

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was really looking forward to reading Secret Society Girl. It sounded just up my alley. I settled into a comfy chair and prepared to be swept away.

I wasn't.

Amy Haskel is a junior at Eli (read: Yale) University. Her dream job appears to be working for Glamour, yet she poo-poos her upcoming "posh" summer internship working for a New York book publisher. To bulk up her resume, Amy works on the school literary magazine, as does Brandon Weare. Amy likes Brandon as a friend, and she'll sleep with him as the need arises, but she doesn't want anything more from him.

The story kicks off when Amy is tapped by Rose & Grave (read: Skull & Bones). Only problem is, Amy has no clue why she has been tapped. She is not uber-wealthy (although Amy doesn't seem too concerned about how to pay for Eli, so she's obviously not hurting for cash). She's not uber-smart (although Amy brags about getting into Eli early decision). She's not uber-hot (although Brandon and the class stud are both very warm for her form.) She's also not male. It's the last item that becomes a sticking point, as Rose & Grave (also known as the Diggers) has been a males-only society up to now. The patriarchs, or Digger alums, make a 20th century fuss over girl cooties infecting their precious "tomb" (even the real Skull & Bones first let women in over 15 years ago) and threaten Amy's internship (which she suddenly decides she really, really wants). Will Amy stay in Rose & Grave or go?

Hint: this is the start of a series. In case there is any doubt.

The main trouble with the book, aside from the predictability of the plot, is that Amy is amorphous. We have no idea what she truly wants, other than to someday see her name on a magazine masthead. She vacillates over Brandon. She vacillates over Rose & Grave. She originally decides to join the society just because Brandon tells her she thinks too much & she wants to prove him wrong, instead of actively choosing to belong through a deep motivation of her own.

We have no idea of where Amy comes from; a stereotypical mother pops up now and then to nag about Amy's sex life but what about siblings? Family background? Childhood friends? Aside from a brief mention of a high school prom date, Amy appears to have arrived on Eli's campus like Athena springing from Zeus's forehead, fully grown with no prior development.

Because we never really get to know Amy, we never really invest ourselves in her or her dilemmas. When she decides to be Brandon's girlfriend (again, because he wants it, not because she does), it feels icky instead of sweet, especially as she obviously knows she has a crush on someone else. If Amy were a more fully developed and dimensional character, it might have the poignancy the author seems to be striving for. As it is, Amy comes off as weak and anything but a heroine.

The same goes for Amy's wishy-washy approach to Rose & Grave. It's obvious that the author needed to come up with some conflict to keep the plot moving, but Amy's wisecracking, "I am woman, hear me roar" narration clashes wildly not only with the Brandon situation, but with Amy's continual crawling back to Rose & Grave despite being humiliated, fake-threatened with forced prostitution, and being told she is second choice. I'd like Amy a lot more if she told Rose & Grave where to stick their pin for once and for all, but then there would be no series.

It also doesn't help that all the characters sound alike, despite different socio-economic and regional backgrounds. Both Amy and fellow Digger Malcolm use British slang. Nearly all the female characters address each other as "girl" or "girlfriend." The Hollywood princess and the Park Avenue princess sound identical, despite growing up in very different circumstances. The only character with a distinctive voice is Jenny Santos, and that's because she barely speaks.

Since Amy is concerned about her GPA, here are the grades I've been able to find for her. Kirkus Reviews gave the plot a B, but the heroine and dialogue pulled the overall grade down to a C. The Washington Post gave the book a C-. I'm going to give it a C+ for effort. The result: SECRET SOCIETY GIRL has a GPA of 2.0, far below honor roll.

Amy Haskel is a junior at Eli University. She's an editor of the campus literary magazine. Eli University has secret societies and Amy thinks she is going to be picked for Quill & Ink but she is really picked by Rose & Grave. Rose & Grave is supposedly a very powerful society that runs politics and business in America. They also only take males, so Amy doesn't know if she really was picked by them, or if someone is playing a joke.

This book is okay. Some of the writing is humorous. But the story is boring. Rose & Grave gets into trouble with its alumni because the current members decide to bring in women. So the alumni cause trouble for the members. The members fight back. If you like books where the action is a boardroom argument with privileged people fighting to stay even more privileged, then you might like this.

Amy can be funny and her lists are cute. But Amy's actions don't make much sense. She spends most of the book not sure if she wants to be in Rose & Grave. They play mean and sexist practical jokes on her during initiation and they lie to her. So why does she fight to stay in a club that she isn't sure she even likes? It seems just because the club is prestigious, which doesn't say very good things about Amy, who also accepts help from the society to cheat on her final.

From the title of the book, I was expecting some intrigue or suspense, but there wasn't any. Also, it sounded like this would be a thinly veiled look at the real life Yale secret society Skull & Bones. But Rose & Grave comes off pretty much just like your everyday college fraternity. And you don't learn anything about what makes life special at an Ivy League school either. There is nothing new in this book about university life and fraternities, just the usual drinking and hooking up.

It's hard to get worked up about whether some wealthy college kids get to keep their clubhouse. The club is depicted as pretty much white male elitist & sexist which makes you wonder why any self-respecting female or even male would want to be a member in 2006.

This book is pretty much just for those who think social status is everything. But if you know there is more to life than where you went to college or what fraternity you belonged to, you will want to pass.

For me as for most Americans the Ivy League is some remote planet about which I know little and care less. But Ms. Peterfreund can write, she can plot, she can develop interesting characters. The reader moves effortlessly into and through her quaint world. Maybe not a candidate for the "Great American Novel" but there's a lot to be said for a darn good read.

Diana Peterfreund's "Secret Society Girl: An Ivy League Novel" centered around Amy Haskel, was tapped by the elite secret society, Rose & Grave, in the prestigious Eli University. Amy was perplexed as to why she was tapped as she was just the editor of the school's literary magazine. Adding to her confusion was that her relationship with best friend and roommate, Lydia, who belonged to another secrety society, was strained due to the secrecy of their societies. After the initiation, Amy realized she belong in a society that consisted of the governor's son, the rich, and of course, the powerful.

This was quite an enjoyable read as it was fast-paced, fun, and quite engaging. Initially, I was hesitant about the book as I was not sure if it would be too "teen" like but I was glad that it wasn't. Eventhough the main character Amy appeared indecisive and quick to judge, you can't but help root for her. I realized this was part of a series and I hope that the author would put more emphasis on the supporting/secondary characters so that the story would not be too one-dimensional. Highly recommended.

I loved this book. I read it in one afternoon, and let me tell you, I don't finish 60% of the books I pick up.

But this one hooked me, and for many reasons. Ms. Peterfreund is a smart, literate writer. Her voice is engaging and fun, and her pop culture references and jokes are handled smoothly, without the heavy-handedness I see in a lot of "chick-lit" toned books. Her lists and descriptions and dialogue are witty and wry and make the story move along quickly. I couldn't put it down, to the detriment of my household chores and family's dismay.

Ms. Peterfreund writes with a sophistication that I appreciate and enjoy, and her characters are fun and unique. Plus, I'm in love with Poe.

The adventure is a blast, and I could practically feel myself walking through the campus of Eli/Yale University. The premise is unique and Ms. P carries it off beautifully.

Brava! and I cannot wait for the next installment!

After browsing Diana Peterfreund's blog, I found myself charmed and went and snagged a copy of SECRET SOCIETY GIRL. And though I didn't almost get hit by a car, I did stay 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") was 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 reading War and Peace, sorting writing submissions, and negotiating a very tenuous friends-with-benefits relationship with her assistant editor. Amid all this, Amy is shocked when Rose and Grave, the most prestigious secret society on campus, taps her for their annual initiation. BTW, it's clear from the get-go that Eli is not-so-loosely based on Yale, while Rose and Grave is patterned on the infamous Skull and Bones secret society.

The notion of a secret society is so outside my realm of experience, that that alone made the book interesting. It's hard for me to wrap my brain around the fact that these groups actually exist and have persisted into the present day, albeit in altered and, one would hope, slightly more enlightened forms. In fact, the admission of women forms the backbone of this story as Amy's initiation class is the first to include a female contingent. Rather unsurprisingly, I spent a good portion of reading time railing away in my head at the archaic, misogynist, preposterous ways the men of Rose and Grave viewed the world. Don't even get me started on the so-called "patriarchs" who threaten (and come through on said threats) to make Amy's and the other girls' lives a living hell if they insist on remaining members, aka Diggers. Suffice it to say, I was ready to lose it long before Amy did. And I'm not at all sure I would have made the choice she did in the end.

That said, I sank into Peterfreund's clean, light prose. Just when the whole thing seemed too much to take, she'd include a quiet scene where Amy reminded me why I liked her so much. I like this girl. I just do. I finished the book still conflicted over Amy's choice and that of her fellow Diggirls. Still unsure which (if any) of her male friends can be trusted, particularly the intriguing GHP. Still supremely relieved I'm not living her life. And still satisfied in an I'll have another dish of pie, please, kind of way. I've got the sequel on my nightstand and I'm thinking I'll "dig" right in.

I really enjoyed this book. I just recently reread it in preparation for RITES of SPRING BREAK.

I enjoyed it immensely. My only issue with the book was keeping track of the real names and society names of the characters. More than once I had to flip to the list of the society members to see who was talking. There were a lot of characters, and some got lost in the shuffle. Diana Peterfruend somewhat remedies this in the future books. She focuses more on a small set of characters.

Overall, I thought that this was a fun book, and if you enjoyed it too, you'll really like the UNDER THE ROSE and RITES OF SPRING BREAK!!

I read this book in one sitting! Excellent writing; great commentary on college life! If you were ever in a sorority/fraternity/secret society, you will relate. This is a great book!

SECRET SOCIETY GIRL is witty, clever, and a real joy to read. The characters crackle to life, the storyline is very engaging, and the author kept me glued to the page with her well-written and often quite amusing prose. I can't wait to read its sequel, UNDER THE ROSE, and I'm glad I don't have to wait very long for its release!

I admit I'm far past college age and didn't attend college. I had my doubts as to whether I would enjoy this book. But my fears disappeared very quickly. Amy is a fun and spunky heroine, just trying to get her name out there in the publishing industry. She doesn't expect to be tapped into a secret society full of controversy. As she negotiates the twists and turns of secret society life, I loved reading how real she was. A typical 21 yo, not yet sure of herself or what she wants. Not sure how to navigate the complex relationships with her peers. I love how it turns out, how Amy grows to realize that just as with secret societies, not every person is what they seem to be on the outside.

SSG is a great read with well-drawn characters, a dash of mystery and intrigue. Highly recommended!