bookishlittlewitch's profile picture

bookishlittlewitch 's review for:

Tenderly, I am Devoured by Lyndall Clipstone
5.0

β€œI hold her tightly, feeling the frantic beat of her pulse in my own chest. She kissed me, the shared taste of our sorrow as bitter as the sea. I wish I could keep her this close forever, fold her inside the structure of my bones, tuck her safe beneath my heart.”

Published: 01/07/25 (ARC)
Genre: Fantasy, gothic, horror
Page count: 304
Format read: πŸ“±
Other books read by this author: N/A
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Thankyou to Lyndall Clipstone, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group/Henry Holt & Co. (BYR), & NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Tenderly, I Am Devoured is a masterpiece of a novel filled with haunting, lyrical prose. A bisexual gothic daydream exploring themes of ritual & religion, family dynamics, & class divides. A story of opposites: the disparity between loving brothers & abusive fathers, sprawling mansions & country cottages, academia & rural life, gods & mortals, friendship & betrayal. The characters & the relationships between them that ebb & flow like the tide are complemented beautifully by the settings, with descriptions so vivid they are almost an assault on the senses; the scent of sea salt & wildflowers, the crash of waves & the whisper of turned pages & footsteps through galleries, the taste of blood. An utterly perfect novel.