Review by kelseywho - Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

kelseywho 's review for:

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

2.5

dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Here's the thing: Sapphic vampire novels are having a Moment. And I love it. However, not all Sapphic Vampire Novels are created equally. And I have adored Schwab's writing for years and years, but this one just fell flat for me. Maria's story is compelling and beautiful and I could have more of her narrative for ages. And I did really like Charlotte and how genuine, heartfelt and open she was. But Alice was downright unlikeable. I had no interest in her story. She seemed to have little interest in it herself, just kind of drifting from plot point to plot point, happening upon events by chance. And when we leave Maria's story for good, we pivot to Charlotte instead to fill in the remaining backstory. And her efforts to explain the situation to Alice feel awkward and clunky, Alice is rightly angry about where she has wound up, and Charlotte's attempt to finish the rest of the story feel exactly like an author trying to tell the rest of what happens to their characters before the final showdown. And so the climactic confrontation, when it comes, feels utterly insignificant. Because we have spent pages upon pages rehashing the history of two of these characters, coming to care for and understand both of them, and in the end it comes down to Alice. Who I can only think to compare to weak tea that has not been steeped long enough.
I feel like I was strung along getting a beautiful history for 500 pages all for it to come down to 60 pages of nothingness at the end.

Content Warnings