Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Burn Our Bodies Down

Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

19 reviews

lovelymisanthrope's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I bought a copy of this book from the library bookstore.
"Burn Our Bodies Down" follows Margot. For as far back as Margot can remember, it has been just her and her mother against the world. As much as she loves her mother, Margot wants more, she wants a family she can share her life with. Unfortunately, her mother is very tight-lipped about where they came from and who their family is. When Margot finally gets a clue about her family, it is too elusive to pass up. Margot ventures to the small town where her grandmother lives, but everything is not as picturesque as Margot imagined.
Just like with "Wilder Girls", this book was strange, sci-fi-y, and relied on some body horror to shock the reader. With that said, I thought it was very captivating, and I did not want to put it down.
Margot's desperation for a family and understanding where she came from was devastating and highly relatable. I think most young people grow curious about who they are, and a big part of that can be who their family was/is. Margot's mother refuses to share anything with her, which only makes the family secrets all the more alluring. This is definitely a very stereotypical YA trope, and I do not think this book did it in any special way, but it was still enjoyable to read.
The "mystery" about what was going on was a unique take, and although aspects of it I anticipated early on, I thought it was difficult to see the whole picture right away.
This was a pretty fast-paced thriller, as is most YA thrillers. Because it was so fast paced, it was easy to devour in one sitting, and it was fairly engaging from start to finish.
I definitely will continue to read from Rory Power in the future.

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artzea's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This book got me out of a reading slump. It has a great use of mystery and family trauma (which is very well written and feels very real).

A quick read. A touch repetitive at times and a tad slow in the middle, but the ending and story conclusion is worth it. Excellent context clues and use of foreshadowing.

Also a beautiful cover.

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percervall's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.0

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fanboyriot's review

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Read For:

Small Town

Creepy Vibes

Family Secrets

Mommy Issues

Supernatural Elements

Margot grew up with her mom reminding her it was them against the world; they didn’t need anyone else. Growing up in an emotionally unstable and abusive household she looks for other family only to find her grandmother's number. Looking for answers and a link to the comforting family she craved she sneaks away to visit a grandmother she had never met. The small town isn’t what she expected and the answers she gets are far from comforting. Maybe it would have been better if she never went to begin with.

This book still has me questioning what I just read. I have so many questions about the last few chapters. I read this in a buddy read and we both seemed to have the same questions only to get to the end and never learn the answers to them.

I really did enjoy this book though. The writing style of the majority of this book was so good, that it was intriguing and entertaining. The author did such an amazing job with the setting of this book, bringing in the creepy vibes of a small town and unknown family secrets that left me wanting to read the next chapter. However, it kinda lost me with most of the supernatural elements, I think the idea could have been better if it wasn't such an open-ended/rushed ending. I’ve noticed this with this author's work before so maybe it's just her writing style or something.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ (4/5)

Release Date: 07, July 2020

POV: First Person

Spice: n/a

Rep: Lesbian (MC)

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eeriekeri's review

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Horrifying, claustrophobic.

The supernatural, the gore. It's nothing compared to the choking feeling that suffuses every conversation between mother and daughter.

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allisonsmith120's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes

4.5

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grrrlbrarian's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I almost hit DNF about halfway through and kind of wish I had. Margot as a narrator is so melodramatic about everything, it made it difficult to care about anything in the story. The audiobook narrator was also giving it 100% on the emotional scale at all times, which again just felt like too much. I enjoyed the premise and the building tension through the story, as well as the lush and sometimes disturbing descriptions. The ending just felt like it belonged to a different story, there were too many loose ends and questions still remaining for me.

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