Confessions From the Group Chat by Jodi Meadows: Review

Welcome to my review of Confessions From the Group Chat by Jodi Meadows! I love You’ve Got Mail-esque storylines (although I’ve never seen the movie), so I had to jump on this book when I read the description.

Title: Confessions From the Group Chat
Author: Jodi Meadows
Genre: MG Contemporary
Publisher: Holiday House
Pub Date: 10/21/25

Description

What happens in the group chat stays in the group chat… until it doesn’t.

Virginia Vaughn just wants to fit in with her super-popular friend group. That means she doesn’t let them know how much she loves the library, she never speaks a word about her massive crush on tragically unpopular Grayson, and she says nasty things she doesn’t actually mean. But only in the group chat, so it’s harmless, right?

But when she has a blowout fight with her clique—specifically, with the Queen Bee herself—her mean texts are posted online for the entire school to see! And, suddenly, Virginia has no one but her cat to talk to.

Cue “Knight Errant,” a mystery boy at school who texts Virginia by accident—and who quickly becomes her closest confidante. Though they send messages back and forth for hours every night, Virginia doesn’t want him to know which classmate she is (because then he’ll connect her to the mean texts ALL OVER THE INTERNET). She likes him, but she really likes Grayson, too. Can she find the strength to tell Knight who she really is? And will Grayson—who has become her only ally at school—give up on her when the awful things she’s said about him are finally posted?

Confessions from the Group Chat is the second middle-grade romcom from New York Times bestselling author Jodi Meadow (Bye Forever, I Guess; My Lady Jane, now a streaming series). Sweet, funny, and authentically messy, this is an ultra-cute story about middle-school misbehavior, innocent first love, and the inner life of a repentant mean girl.

Review

Reading Confessions from the Group Chat was like watching a train wreck about to happen and being powerless to stop it. Realizing someone you thought was your friend actually wasn’t is a canon event for girls I fear, but social media definitely made everything much more volatile in this story.

I truly felt for the main character Virginia because who amongst us hasn’t said something we probably shouldn’t in the group chat. I could not imagine how I would have dealt with the sanctity of the group chat being destroyed though, so it was very interesting watching Virginia navigate that and seeing the support and lack of support she got.

Although the book is full of some captivating drama, it’s also full of hope, forgiveness, and fuzzy feelings that left me hopeful. Even if middle grade isn’t your go-to age category, if you love mess, you’re going to want to check this one out. This was my first book by the author, but I definitely plan to check out more of her books.

*Thank you to the publisher for the finished copy. All opinions are my own.*

Author

Jodi Meadows wants to be a ferret when she grows up and she has no self-control when it comes to yarn, ink, or outer space. Still, she manages to write books. She is the author of the INCARNATE Trilogy, the ORPHAN QUEEN Duology, the FALLEN ISLES Trilogy (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen), and the NIGHTRENDER duology and BYE FOREVER, I GUESS (Holiday House). She is also a coauthor of New York Times bestsellers MY LADY JANE, MY PLAIN JANE, and other books in the Lady Janies series (HarperTeen). She lives in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia.