Reviews

Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

vmillswood's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

maddsmann's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

2.75

I listened to the audiobook expecting a mystery thriller that was much more suspenseful, but was quite boring until the climax in the last half of the book. There were a few spots throughout that I enjoyed finding the mysteries out with the main character, but the character repeated things so much and honestly got a bit annoying. After the climax, the book got very repetitive and boring again. 

dowryofbooks's review against another edition

2.0

2/5 stars

If you were also disappointed in this & wanted this concept except a little darker go read [b:The Murders of Molly Southbourne|34417038|The Murders of Molly Southbourne (Molly Southbourne, #1)|Tade Thompson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495129861l/34417038._SY75_.jpg|55520132] (so good!)

I just wanna say that this cover is one of my favorite book covers of all time. And Rory Power's writing is just as beautiful as this cover. However, this story wasn't for me.

I didn't hate it, I just got pretty bored. I was expecting more horror vibes and imagery similar to Wilder Girls and less family drama with a little mystery that gets very slowly dragged out until the last few chapters. I just wasn't connected enough to any of these characters to care about them or the family dynamics going on.

Also, the twist/explanation is weird. But not an ambiguous weird if that makes sense without spoiling the ending right here. We were given enough of the details to need a little bit more of a logical explanation. I feel like the author just threw out an impossible scenario and didn't elaborate further. I don't know I honestly would have preferred an open ending over what happened.

cobaltbookshelf's review against another edition

2.0

Beautiful cover and I liked setting and atmosphere but as for characters they all got two character traits. I liked Wilder Girls more.

jilliand19's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

fallonheartss's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

fangslibris's review against another edition

3.0

After how much I loved her debut, I couldn't wait to read Burn Our Bodies Down. And now I'm having a hard time deciding how I feel about this book because the whole thing was frustrating.

I expected a strong mystery/horror based on the premise of maternal relationships. What I ended up reading was a book about maternal trauma with splashes of "scares." It's definitely not what I expected, and all of the gaslighting made it very, very hard to read personally. All of it just touched too close to home and without the payoff of true horror, it ended up being not the book for me.

I think the point where I fully gave up on enjoying came near the end with a scene intended to be scary, but it just left me with a bad taste in my mouth. Heartbreaking and horrifying aren't the same, and this was definitely the former.

Again, I don't really know how to review this because it very well could be a good book if you go in with the right expectations. And probably even better if you don't have to reckon with your own trauma on every page.

Glad I read it, probably won't be reaching for it again soon. Bummed.

neptunenad's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

erintowner's review against another edition

3.0

My three star rating is a testament to Rory Power's excellent writing and character development. The trauma the characters experience from abusive/neglected childhoods is evoked well.

This book suffered from serious pacing and plot hole issues. There is a lot of foreshadowing of explanations that never occur and the science is spotty at best. This book was a bit of a letdown after Wilder Girls and maybe would have been a better novella or short story.

hrenfro's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5