Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Where Darkness Blooms

Where Darkness Blooms is a dark fiction story based in the town of Bishop. It is surrounded in mystery and turmoil. Every few years women go missing or turn up dead. Now the younger women are left, and they are starting to go missing, and they are the final generation.

I didn't realize going into this exactly how dark it would end up being. I knew it would be semi dark, but it ended up being way more intense. However, it did truly keep me on the edge of my seat. I would absolutely recommend this to those interested in dark thrillers, but please absolutely check the trigger warnings. I kind of wish content warnings were given at the beginning. I feel it would help more readers be more away going in to make the reading experience easier.

My arc (courtesy of NetGalley/Wednesday Books) was an audio, and I greatly enjoyed consuming the work in that way. In regards to the audio portion, I only really had one critique. I wish that at the beginning of the new chapters the character POV name would be given to help with keeping track of the character switches.

Content Warnings

theknitterwithabook's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

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I would like to thank @NetGalley and @stmartinspress for an electronic copy of this ARC for an honest review.

This YA novel was FANTASTIC! It started slow but quickly picked up. There was mystery, supernatural events, betrayal, found family, a cursed town and happy ending with a little bit of unanswered questions to keep the mystery up. If you want a YA book that's a bit creepy, mysterious and right in the feels, this is it!

I finished this book during my lunch break and let's just say that having a meeting scheduled right after wasn't a good idea. I was in tears. I shouldn't have wear mascara today. 😂

It was beautiful and touching. I don't want to spoil anything but I'll just say that I liked that no-one was perfect. Everyone had their own little flaws and other characters respected their limits by forgiving but never completely because they were hurt. That was very human and real.

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The Blurb

Bishop, Kansas, is known for windstorm and endless sunflower fields. But also women dying unexpectedly or disappearing mysteriously. Bo, Jude, Whitney and Delilah saw their mothers disappear on the same night, two years ago. The town is finally setting up a memorial but the wind has other plans.

It's finally time someone digs into the town's secrets and find out what happening. Are the girls in danger? Will they find out what happened to the women and heal their own wounds?

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Please check the TW as there are mentions of rape, gaslighting and violence against women.

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Content Warnings

calaqua's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The ARC of this book was given to me by the author for an honest review.

I enjoyed this. The book follows the story of 4 girls, and each voice was unique and distinct. The pacing was good and I wanted to keep going to find out what happened next.
The story had a creepy atmosphere but enough to keep the story thrilling and not overdone or tipping into horror.

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