11.3k reviews for:

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

V.E. Schwab

4.23 AVERAGE

slightlyaboveaverageman's review against another edition

3.75

dark informative mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Ive got very conflicting feelings about this book. The first 45% was such a slug to get through and I found myself struggling to get into the world. This book has taken me a long time to finish and I'm glad I soft DNF'd for a time and came back to it later. 
I found myself actually invested when I hit the 48% mark and things actually felt like they were taking off instead of building the story of each of the women.  

Pros: 
- beautiful writing and imagery (Schwab always nails this) 
- characters really feel alive
- love the version of Vampires that actually felt inspired by historical lore over current depictions.
- the symbolism of the rot inside you changing who you are and become the death of you

Cons:
- first half feels too drawn out (I can see the benefit but it almost makes me full DNF 😭)
- I felt more connected to Sabine than Alice. Lottie was refreshing when we finally got a chapter but I struggled to connect with Alice

The ending was both good and bad. It's a satisfying conclusion but also felt a little bit empty. I actually wish that (as bad as this sounds) that Alice would've chosen to end things herself then continue in the darkness. It just doesn't fit how I saw her portrayed to want to live and then choose this life.

amcarthur's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

i_v98's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional mysterious 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

madisonjane17's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

beckyhaver's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

isabellemery's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

dtheilig's review against another edition

2.0

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

wilt0046's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ashleybright's review against another edition

3.5

dark emotional sad 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

benreadshorror's review against another edition

4.5

dark emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes