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A review by perpetualpages
Sing Her Down by Ivy Pochoda
3.75
CWs: Graphic injury and violence; references to COVID and its effects; some ableist language; some depictions of alcohol and drug abuse; descriptions of sexual assault and attempted sexual violence; some allusions to past domestic abuse
*Review copy and finished copy provided by MCD x FSG Books*
Sing Her Down is a modern-day Western. It may not seem like it on the surface, because it takes place in a contemporary setting, there's no imagery of the wide open "wild west," there's no cowboys, etc. But at its core, it's about two female outlaws, two violent women who can't seem to escape their lives of crime as the try to outrun the law—and each other—as they brave the wilderness of Southern California and builds towards a fated epic showdown in the streets of Los Angeles.
This book is tightly paced. There's a staccato urgency to the prose that keeps you reading and unable to look away. What's more, the animosity between Florida and Dios is palpable and electric. Despite their wishes and despite their best intentions, these are two women who are drawn together again and again with magnetic intensity, and each time they clash they inevitably leave destruction in their wake. The synopsis promises a deadly cat-and-mouse chase, and I think the story definitely delivers on that time and time again.
In the end, I think this story is about how we can't escape the undesirable parts of ourselves, no matter how hard we might try. It's a story of women raging against their circumstances and their lots in life, giving in to the animal instinct to destroy each other—and maybe even themselves—despite the consequences. It's about how ugliness begets ugliness, how violence can seem like the only answer after being raised in an inherently violent world. It's an interrogation of whether we can be freed from past trauma or if our lives will always be dictated and shaped by it, regardless of the choices we make.
Making tremendous use of the rotating POV structure, Sing Her Down is a gritty, intense, and violent blend of the Western and crime genres. In my opinion, some of the flashbacks/backstory trended a bit towards stereotype at times and could have been integrated better in general, but that didn't deter from my overall investment in the story. That said, I'm so glad I got a chance to read this one, and I would absolutely read more in this vein from Ivy Pochoda in the future!
(Also worth noting that this book would be great to check out on audio! I didn't get a chance to listen to it because I had a physical ARC, but I know has a stellar cast of four narrators, and the listening experience would probably be incredible. So I definitely recommend checking out that format if it's accessible to you and you're interested in this one!)
*Review copy and finished copy provided by MCD x FSG Books*
Sing Her Down is a modern-day Western. It may not seem like it on the surface, because it takes place in a contemporary setting, there's no imagery of the wide open "wild west," there's no cowboys, etc. But at its core, it's about two female outlaws, two violent women who can't seem to escape their lives of crime as the try to outrun the law—and each other—as they brave the wilderness of Southern California and builds towards a fated epic showdown in the streets of Los Angeles.
This book is tightly paced. There's a staccato urgency to the prose that keeps you reading and unable to look away. What's more, the animosity between Florida and Dios is palpable and electric. Despite their wishes and despite their best intentions, these are two women who are drawn together again and again with magnetic intensity, and each time they clash they inevitably leave destruction in their wake. The synopsis promises a deadly cat-and-mouse chase, and I think the story definitely delivers on that time and time again.
In the end, I think this story is about how we can't escape the undesirable parts of ourselves, no matter how hard we might try. It's a story of women raging against their circumstances and their lots in life, giving in to the animal instinct to destroy each other—and maybe even themselves—despite the consequences. It's about how ugliness begets ugliness, how violence can seem like the only answer after being raised in an inherently violent world. It's an interrogation of whether we can be freed from past trauma or if our lives will always be dictated and shaped by it, regardless of the choices we make.
Making tremendous use of the rotating POV structure, Sing Her Down is a gritty, intense, and violent blend of the Western and crime genres. In my opinion, some of the flashbacks/backstory trended a bit towards stereotype at times and could have been integrated better in general, but that didn't deter from my overall investment in the story. That said, I'm so glad I got a chance to read this one, and I would absolutely read more in this vein from Ivy Pochoda in the future!
(Also worth noting that this book would be great to check out on audio! I didn't get a chance to listen to it because I had a physical ARC, but I know has a stellar cast of four narrators, and the listening experience would probably be incredible. So I definitely recommend checking out that format if it's accessible to you and you're interested in this one!)