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btaylorb's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This appealed to everything I love about Robert Holdstock’s books (magic and grief are powerful and scary) combined with everything I love about Maggie Stiefvater’s books (magic and teenagers are both wholesome AND horny). The writing is exceedingly lovely and captures the spectrum of complex feelings about living but not fitting in in a small town. I managed to read this in three days on a beach trip surrounded by family members who can’t shut up, it was that engrossing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders
There is a content warning at the start of the book.theequestrianslibrary's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
DISCLAIMER: This may or may not be a full list of every trigger/content warning found in the book. Some triggers and content warnings may contain spoilers!
-----
To start, I really liked this book. I listened to it as an audiobook and the narrator did a great job with the descriptions and the voice adjustments as well.
I think overall the book is some sort of metaphor. There is a lot going on at any given time, but being a thriller/horror, that's to be expected. It wasn't until after I relooked at the content warnings listed on the author's website, that some vague imagery settled into what they might have actually been implying. For my first solid attempt into a NA based horror, I really liked this one. It flowed well, and moved right along throughout the numerous POVs and storylines that interconnected and fell apart before weaving back together.
The primary characters: Laurel, Isaac, Garrett, and Ricky are all in their 20s, with emphasis on Laurel dropping out of college and Isaac wanting to go. The book is not for a younger audience due to the imagery described in it, but an older YA/general NA, this is a solid take. I loved the description of the scenes and the setting given that it takes place not far from where I actually live. I do think the language was maybe a little flowery, but being a flowery writer myself, I could glaze right on over it. Sometimes it helped, sometimes it was maybe a tad long-winded.
I did like the consistent use of internal monologue for the characters since that lets us get inside their heads and see what they're thinking. I do wish some of the conflict between the characters was a little more heated and strung out. Some parts felt like issues between the group were moreso brushed under the rug than allowed to heat up and boil, but maybe that was the point of the narrative. Each character had their own quirky personality and were distinctive from one another which was good.
The imagery that the author used to describe the "devil" and its monsters was definitely eerie. There was a lot of research done on the different aspects and parts of blood and bone, and as well as the natural parts of rotting, decomposition, the idea of death, and the concept of life and rebirth. There's an emphasis on cycles when it comes to life and death with a strong emphasis on the cycles affecting the forests on the Early property. There are parts where Laurel talks to the plants and they talk back which is definitely eerie and creepy, but effective for what she needs it for.
There is a queer relationship within the book which I really liked how it was handled. The author played with the concept of internalized homomisia in one of the characters and allowed that self-loathing to grow more into a generalized acceptance and then trust in the character's feelings. Depictions of homomisia are present in the book with an implied slur used without being named from a parent to a child which is part of a bigger scene that may be difficult to some readers. However, I think it's realistic, especially being part of the LGBT+ community within the hills of Kentucky. Otherwise, there is an overarching acceptance for the characters' existences between the friend group and outlying minor characters beyond the main culprit of abuse.
The ending tied up some very prevalent questions I had towards the end and left some idea of "well, how did that happen then," but the questions weren't bothersome enough to really be too much of a problem. I do not think the book left on a cliffhanger and I think a stand-alone fits it nicely.
Overall, I'm pretty happy with this one! I look forward to seeing what else the author conjures beyond their debut novel. I will definitely recommend this one for readers looking for an easy to read thriller/horror with accents of magic and heavier themes.
-----
To start, I really liked this book. I listened to it as an audiobook and the narrator did a great job with the descriptions and the voice adjustments as well.
I think overall the book is some sort of metaphor. There is a lot going on at any given time, but being a thriller/horror, that's to be expected. It wasn't until after I relooked at the content warnings listed on the author's website, that some vague imagery settled into what they might have actually been implying. For my first solid attempt into a NA based horror, I really liked this one. It flowed well, and moved right along throughout the numerous POVs and storylines that interconnected and fell apart before weaving back together.
The primary characters: Laurel, Isaac, Garrett, and Ricky are all in their 20s, with emphasis on Laurel dropping out of college and Isaac wanting to go. The book is not for a younger audience due to the imagery described in it, but an older YA/general NA, this is a solid take. I loved the description of the scenes and the setting given that it takes place not far from where I actually live. I do think the language was maybe a little flowery, but being a flowery writer myself, I could glaze right on over it. Sometimes it helped, sometimes it was maybe a tad long-winded.
I did like the consistent use of internal monologue for the characters since that lets us get inside their heads and see what they're thinking. I do wish some of the conflict between the characters was a little more heated and strung out. Some parts felt like issues between the group were moreso brushed under the rug than allowed to heat up and boil, but maybe that was the point of the narrative. Each character had their own quirky personality and were distinctive from one another which was good.
The imagery that the author used to describe the "devil" and its monsters was definitely eerie. There was a lot of research done on the different aspects and parts of blood and bone, and as well as the natural parts of rotting, decomposition, the idea of death, and the concept of life and rebirth. There's an emphasis on cycles when it comes to life and death with a strong emphasis on the cycles affecting the forests on the Early property. There are parts where Laurel talks to the plants and they talk back which is definitely eerie and creepy, but effective for what she needs it for.
There is a queer relationship within the book which I really liked how it was handled. The author played with the concept of internalized homomisia in one of the characters and allowed that self-loathing to grow more into a generalized acceptance and then trust in the character's feelings. Depictions of homomisia are present in the book with an implied slur used without being named from a parent to a child which is part of a bigger scene that may be difficult to some readers. However, I think it's realistic, especially being part of the LGBT+ community within the hills of Kentucky. Otherwise, there is an overarching acceptance for the characters' existences between the friend group and outlying minor characters beyond the main culprit of abuse.
The ending tied up some very prevalent questions I had towards the end and left some idea of "well, how did that happen then," but the questions weren't bothersome enough to really be too much of a problem. I do not think the book left on a cliffhanger and I think a stand-alone fits it nicely.
Overall, I'm pretty happy with this one! I look forward to seeing what else the author conjures beyond their debut novel. I will definitely recommend this one for readers looking for an easy to read thriller/horror with accents of magic and heavier themes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Animal death, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Suicide and Drug use
Mental and physical abuse, homomisia, violence, dental trauma, guns, postpartum depression, drug usage, animal death, body horror, blood, alcoholism, and suicide.onemamareads's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Violence, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Death, Suicide, Death of parent, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Animal death
aghoststory's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
A book that had me at “The sleepy little farm that Laurel Early grew up on has awakened. The woods are shifting, the soil is dead under her hands, and her bone pile just stood up and walked away.”
And kept with me every “I reckon” that made
felt like home
And it’s dark atmosphere that is both haunting and familiar
And the way Elizabeth Kilcoyne paints nature so beautifully, but also shows the mysterious and dangerous side
how it ranges from southern gothic to folk horror
and the gore and ruthlessness
and a mention of banana pudding
Wake the Bones was one of the books that I was looking forward to reading the most this year. I think it quickly became one of my favorites too.
I was surprised just how dark it was (The author provided some content warnings on her website. I will leave at the bottom). There’s a certain mood when reading this book that I really enjoyed. It’s almost like you can feel the heaviness outside of the pages.
And I believe it is based around the legend of Rawhead and Bloody Bones, somehow I heard of but didn’t know much about. It is pretty terrifying.
I really loved this book.
*ARC provided by WednesdayBooks via Netgalley
CW: thematic material: mental & physical abuse, violence, suicide.
specific: abuse by alcoholic parent
Additional: guns, Postpartum depression, drug usage, animal death, blood
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Suicide
Minor: Blood, Animal death, and Drug use
thesaltiestlibrarian's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
RTC I've gotta think about this one.
***
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've thought about it, so here I am. Bear with me as I attempt to put into words the confusion I'm suffering. Three stars, you say? Not bad, not bad. It would be two if the prose weren't so good, keep that in mind.
So here we have Laurel Early in rural Dry Valley, Kentucky, freshly dropped out of college. Her family's tobacco farm is her future now, and she has her three best friends from childhood to welcome her home for the summer: Isaac, Garrett, and Garrett's older brother Ricky. As with a lot of rural places, the Early family cemetery is on the farm land, and the place that serves as Laurel's mother's grave is an old dried-up well. Less than 24 hours after being home, the well is busted open like something burst out of it, leaving a huge pool and trial of blood.
Well well well.
Laurel knows that her family is "cursed" according to local myth and legend, but she never thought she'd have to confront that curse herself, or that it would be so dangerous to contend with.
This story, guys. Guys, THIS STORY. I wanted to love it so badly. The potential was there, the buildup in the first third crept into my skin, and the monster had such promise.
The only thing that really worked in this entire novel were 1) the rural setting, 2) the characters being so complex, and 3) the prose. It is not a good sign that if you replaced the horror element in your HORROR novel with something contemporary and current, that that book would be the same book, GUYS. This monster could have been Deliverance-style rednecks, and that would have had the exact same effect. It could have been corporate douchebags intimidating the Earlys for their land, and it would have been the same! It could have been GENTRIFICATION OF RURAL PROPERTY, AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE SAME!
The monster is an ornament in WAKE THE BONES. It barely raises the stakes. No one is in serious danger, the last face-off ends in a splutter, and it only really shows up in force three times. That's once every 100 pages, and that's not good enough for a novel this dark. And as for WHY the monster is doing what it's doing, well, with a gun to my head and the hammer cocked, I couldn't tell you. We're given some vague reasoning as to why it's on the land and what it's doing to the tobacco fields, but that felt flimsy enough to be a soggy piece of bread in the sink: poke it and it falls apart. This is not a horror novel. It's a gothic featuring a monster.
Is it sufficiently gothic? Yes, this book is a creeper vine around your neck. That part is clear and comes through like a brick to the head. I LOVE the claustrophobia of gothic novels, and WAKE THE BONES checks every box on the list, including the oppressiveness of a Southern summer.*
I want so badly to talk about the ending and how the last quarter of this book made me so annoyed. Not even angry. I'm not mad, just disappointed. All the things I wanted to happen that would have jacked the tension up to 11 just...fizzled. We were given not much of a conclusion to speak of. Maybe I'm a contrarian, but a novel that calls itself horror needs to show up and deliver. As a gothic, WAKE THE BONES is great. As horror, it's much more than lacking. It verges on derivative.
*Fun fact: I was born and raised in coastal Maine, and in undergrad, the choir went to Virginia in April for a tour. You know those videos of polar bears passed out on rocks in the sun? That was essentially the effect on me. I couldn't believe how hot it was already, and people were around in pants and jackets. PANTS. AND JACKETS. No wonder you guys are cold up here in June.
***
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've thought about it, so here I am. Bear with me as I attempt to put into words the confusion I'm suffering. Three stars, you say? Not bad, not bad. It would be two if the prose weren't so good, keep that in mind.
So here we have Laurel Early in rural Dry Valley, Kentucky, freshly dropped out of college. Her family's tobacco farm is her future now, and she has her three best friends from childhood to welcome her home for the summer: Isaac, Garrett, and Garrett's older brother Ricky. As with a lot of rural places, the Early family cemetery is on the farm land, and the place that serves as Laurel's mother's grave is an old dried-up well. Less than 24 hours after being home, the well is busted open like something burst out of it, leaving a huge pool and trial of blood.
Well well well.
Laurel knows that her family is "cursed" according to local myth and legend, but she never thought she'd have to confront that curse herself, or that it would be so dangerous to contend with.
This story, guys. Guys, THIS STORY. I wanted to love it so badly. The potential was there, the buildup in the first third crept into my skin, and the monster had such promise.
The only thing that really worked in this entire novel were 1) the rural setting, 2) the characters being so complex, and 3) the prose. It is not a good sign that if you replaced the horror element in your HORROR novel with something contemporary and current, that that book would be the same book, GUYS. This monster could have been Deliverance-style rednecks, and that would have had the exact same effect. It could have been corporate douchebags intimidating the Earlys for their land, and it would have been the same! It could have been GENTRIFICATION OF RURAL PROPERTY, AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE SAME!
The monster is an ornament in WAKE THE BONES. It barely raises the stakes. No one is in serious danger, the last face-off ends in a splutter, and it only really shows up in force three times. That's once every 100 pages, and that's not good enough for a novel this dark. And as for WHY the monster is doing what it's doing, well, with a gun to my head and the hammer cocked, I couldn't tell you. We're given some vague reasoning as to why it's on the land and what it's doing to the tobacco fields, but that felt flimsy enough to be a soggy piece of bread in the sink: poke it and it falls apart. This is not a horror novel. It's a gothic featuring a monster.
Is it sufficiently gothic? Yes, this book is a creeper vine around your neck. That part is clear and comes through like a brick to the head. I LOVE the claustrophobia of gothic novels, and WAKE THE BONES checks every box on the list, including the oppressiveness of a Southern summer.*
I want so badly to talk about the ending and how the last quarter of this book made me so annoyed. Not even angry. I'm not mad, just disappointed. All the things I wanted to happen that would have jacked the tension up to 11 just...fizzled. We were given not much of a conclusion to speak of. Maybe I'm a contrarian, but a novel that calls itself horror needs to show up and deliver. As a gothic, WAKE THE BONES is great. As horror, it's much more than lacking. It verges on derivative.
*Fun fact: I was born and raised in coastal Maine, and in undergrad, the choir went to Virginia in April for a tour. You know those videos of polar bears passed out on rocks in the sun? That was essentially the effect on me. I couldn't believe how hot it was already, and people were around in pants and jackets. PANTS. AND JACKETS. No wonder you guys are cold up here in June.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Blood, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Animal death and Car accident
Minor: Physical abuse
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