A review by aprilyang1
Hungry Bones by Louise Hung

dark emotional sad fast-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

4.0

If the cover doesn’t immediately grab all your attention, then the first couple pages will! I admit I am not much of a horror girly… the smallest things can scare me for days(even kid like horror lol)—but Louise Hung crafted this story in a way that kept pulling me in for the mystery despite my brain wanting to stop because the haunting/ghost. The lighthearted and funny moments Hung weaved throughout really balanced the ghostly parts. I especially loved the different perspectives on the “haunting”—the pizza crust and coughing scene was seriously too good! 😂

What I love about this book is that it's more than meets the eye. When they say, 'don't judge a book by its cover,' I really think they're referring to books like this—books that may seem unassuming, 'just short middle-grade stories,' but are genuinely eye-opening. While reading, I came to the realization that I am ignorant to a lot of the topics discussed throughout this story. The way Hung incorporated the Chinese Exclusion Act and the history of Chinese immigrants in Texas was pretty powerful, in my opinion. I found myself asking, "Why doesn’t Molly just look up records?" early on in the story, only to realize how many Chinese immigrants were deliberately erased—given fake names, denied identity, and treated like no one. It was eye-opening, especially as a teacher, and a huge reminder of how much history is left untold.

Hungry Bones comes out October 1, 2024, and is the perfect fall and spooky read! Thank you NetGalley and publisher for providing me with an e-arc! All opinions shared are mine and mine alone.
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