SECRETS OF THE BLUE HAND GIRLS, by Rowana Miller, Sourcebooks Fire, Oct. 7, 2025, Paperback, $12.99 (young adult, ages 14 and up)
A girl’s induction to a secret society comes at a price in Secrets of the Blue Hand Girls, a mystery by Rowana Miller.
When the first letter appears in Kay Anderson’s locker, it carries one instruction: dye your hand blue.
She definitely shouldn’t follow it. Kay doesn’t have time for secret societies: as a scholarship student at up-and-coming Manhattan prep school Davison High, she knows her job is to work hard, get into Northwestern, and ignore her wealthy classmates’ fun-filled Instagram stories. Besides, her first and only real friend at Davison died suddenly freshman year.
Still, Kay’s intrigued, so she stains her palms with ink to join the mysterious Blue Hand Girls, sharing an unspoken thrill with the classmates who do the same. More letters show up, assigning risky initiation tasks, and Kay realizes the group is set on exposing the shady business that Davison’s founders would rather keep hidden―things that her dead friend might have known about.
But the anonymous instructions also demand the girls reveal their own secrets, bonding them all too close to abandon the society. Soon Kay doesn’t know who’s more dangerous: the powerful people who run her school, or the Blue Hand Girls themselves. And then there’s Zola Wolfe, the beautiful redhead in Kay’s Calculus class, who’s never been seen with a blue hand, and who just might become her girlfriend. Yet Kay can’t help but wonder, even as she kisses her on the roof of Davison High, if Zola is the most dangerous of them all. —Synopsis provided by Sourcebooks Fire
Secrets of the Blue Hand Girls a strong debut for author Rowana Miller, who takes readers on a wild ride full of suspense. I found myself unexpectedly sucked in to a world of wealth, trying to belong, and doing whatever it takes to succeed.
At the center of the story is Kay, a scholarship student who generally keeps her head down and breaks the curve whenever possible. Kay is still recovering from the loss of her best friend during freshman year and hopes that joining the Blue Hand Girls will help her find her footing. Kay is book smart and fairly street smart, and is a compelling enough character to push the story forward.
The star of Secrets of the Blue Hand Girls is the society itself. The mystery surrounding its lore and members is etched in every chapter, making you, along with Alex, question everything.
There are romantic elements laced throughout Secrets of the Blue Hand Girls that are mostly successful with Miller excelling in capturing the first moments of a budding relationship. This particular storyline thread is OK, but, especially later on, it feels more like a plot device than an authentic bond.
Secrets of the Blue Hand Girls is a page-turning thriller with strong queer representation and lots of intrigue. It’s an entertaining read.
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