coming November 4, 2025
preorder now
Five close friends have played a secret game for decades. When a small fortune awaits the winner of one final round, deadly consequences emerge from old lies in this unputdownable debut thriller.
Harvard promised them everything.
Bright futures, friends who become family, and an education that would open doors for the rest of their lives. As college roommates, Sara, Bee, Dina, Allie, Wesley, and Claudine felt like they were on top of the world—until their senior year, when Claudine’s tragic death changed everything.
Twenty years later, the five former roommates still indulge in a secret tradition they’ve kept alive since their campus days: the Circus, a harmless elimination-style “killing” game played across the private rooms and hidden alleys of New York City. The game is a nod to their younger selves and a tribute to the sixth roommate they lost too young. But this year, Sara keeps catching unexplainable glimpses of Claudine, and she wants out of the game—until Sara discovers a small fortune awaits the winner of this final round.
As the Circus unfolds, Sara begins to suspect that the others aren’t playing by the rules, and as the danger turns real and old friends start pointing fingers, she discovers that even those closest to her harbor secrets of their own…secrets that could destroy them all.
Reviews for With Friends Like These
"I loved this deliciously twisty tale of friendships unmoored and a game gone way too far for comfort. A heady mix of dark academia, spiraling stakes, and tangled loyalties."
– Ruth Ware, New York Times bestselling author of THE WOMAN IN SUITE 11
"A terrific debut, the kind of smart mystery that grows ever more suspenseful as we watch a group of longtime friends begin to confront a haunted past."
– Jess Walter, #1 New York Times bestselling author of BEAUTIFUL RUINS and SO FAR GONE
"Readers of Dark Academia, take note: Alissa Lee is a bold new voice to watch. With captivating prose, she spins a tale of privilege, ambition, and buried secrets as former Harvard classmates find themselves caught in a dangerous game long after graduation. WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE left me breathless until the very last page."
– Lauren Ling Brown, bestselling author of SOCIETY OF LIES
"An intricate, tightly plotted thriller that explores the complexities of female friendships stretching over decades—and the long-lasting impacts of a dangerous game. WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE will enthrall fans of Dark Academia, but at its heart are the relationships that shapeshift with tragedy, time, and distance. Alissa Lee expertly weaves themes of identity, ambition, and regret into her immersive, page-turning debut."
– Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, USA Today bestselling author of TILL DEATH DO US PART and THE GIRLS ARE ALL SO NICE HERE
“In Alissa Lee’s fast-paced debut novel, WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE, what’s supposed to be a game among friends spirals into something sinister when the stakes are raised by a million-dollar prize pot. Fault lines in these friendships are revealed, buried secrets surface, and misplaced trust proves deadly in this slick thriller you’ll read in one sitting.”
– Francesca Serritella, New York Times bestselling author of FULL BLOOM
"WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE hooked me with its stunning prose and kept me up late with its simmering tension. . . . Smart and satisfying, I flew through this debut and can't wait to read more from this breakout author!"
– Carinn Jade, author of THE ASTROLOGY HOUSE
"Fast paced and tightly plotted, Lee’s novel explores the complexities of female friendships against a quietly unsettling backdrop of privilege and ambition. An immersive novel that delivers suspense with style and intelligence."
– Kirkus Reviews
"Readers will be clawing their way through this story to find out who is doing the blackmail and how it all ties together. Mystery is abundant and the characters’ paranoia will leak into readers’ psyches."
– Library Journal