Reviews with content warning for Murder - Where Darkness Blooms

Initially I was kinda confused on who was who and how they were all related with all 4 of the girls and then their mums and each chapter being a different POV, but once I was over that and knew what was happening, I really liked this. And actually, apart from that, it was a pretty easy read while still being interesting. It isn't really something I can compare to another book as it isn't something I have really read before, either because it isn't out there or its not a genre I read a lot of maybe? But I think because of that, it gripped me.

Plus, everyone living is always a win and I am so thankful because I really didn't want heartbreak after everything they had been through to escape.

I would definitely recommend

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apagetoturn's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Whoaaaa. This one started out as a story I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy — but through the multi-person POV this story trapped me in Bishop with the girls and made me fight for their freedom! I was sucked in pretty early on and didn’t stop reading until it was over! Highly recommend!

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wrensreadingroom's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

3.0

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ariatari's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

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reading_with_sydney's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

A dark, mystery centered around the town of Bishop located in Kansas. The land the town was built on is hungry and will only be satisfied by the blood of the women in the town.

The prologue opens as we are confronted with the dark nature of the town and those who will do awful things to keep their power. I was reminded heavily of Fear Street (especially the trilogy on Netflix - I wouldn’t be surprised if this gets picked up in the same way!) and how the teens had to unravel the secrets along the way.

This is marketed as YA, but the writing didn’t feel juvenile. It carried some heavy topics which the author lines out at the beginning of the book, but I think everything was written and handled well. Some of the characters were infuriating, but I think it made sense for their characters due to their age and circumstances.

The ending was easy to predict but didn’t detract from my enjoyment one bit as I sped through this book in a few hours! I highly recommend checking this one out if you love creepy settings and badass girls willing to do whatever it takes to protect their found family. 🌻

Thank you again to Wednesday Books and St Martin’s Press for the gifted copy of Where Darkness Blooms! 🌻🖤

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erinreadsstuff's review against another edition

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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

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patricktreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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.

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