User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Hi! I wrote this book.
There's a full length of content warnings on my website at www.elizabethkilcoyne.com/wake-the-bo..., but just note that WAKE THE BONES deals with themes of mental and physical abuse, violence, and suicide.
Rating: really liked it
**3.5-stars**When Laurel Early left for college, she was excited to be escaping her small farm town in rural Kentucky. It's what everyone from there dreams of, but few succeed at.
Unfortunately, Laurel didn't succeed either. The big city life of Cincinnati was overwhelming. She begin to fail her classes and then stopped going altogether once she realized she could just go home.
She returned home to her Uncle Jay's farm, but hadn't come clean with her best friends yet. They just think she's home for the summer.
In addition to working on the tobacco farm, Laurel is also a taxidermist of sorts. She doesn't seem like the type of taxidermists that I am aware of, but she deals in a lot of animal remains, particularly their bones.
It doesn't take long after she returns to town that the horrors begin. Blood trails on the farm, massacred animals, dreams of her dead mother.
The whole atmosphere is frightening, but in addition to all of that, there is a lot of normal, contemporary issues happening for Laurel and her friend group, made up of Isaac, Ricky and Garrett.
There are rumors that the Early farm is haunted, but a local girl, Christine, who everyone knows is a witch, is the first person to actually say it to Laurel at the time she needs to hear it.
It definitely gets her thinking. She needs to get the mystery of their property solved. She's always been haunted by her mother's suicide, but is there even more to the story than anyone knows?
Wake the Bones is a character-driven YA story with dark magical realism elements and a heavy Southern Gothic vibe.
I finished this extremely quickly once I started listening to the audiobook. I couldn't stop listening, but I couldn't really decide whether I was enjoying it or not. This was seriously a difficult story for me to rate.
There were many interesting aspects and the horror imagery was very well written, however there were good solid chunks that I found boring. The contemporary character work, it was too in the feels and less in the dark mystery I was hoping for.
I can definitely recognize that Kilcoyne writes beautifully, I just think at the end of the day, this particular story was lacking a bit of the pizzazz I was hoping for.
If I had to compare this story to other books, I would say it reminded me quite a bit of Summer Sons, Burn Our Bodies Down and Ghost Wood Song; like the three of them meshed together.
It's funny though, because even though I wasn't blown away by this, I can't stop thinking about. I'm basically trying to figure out why I ended up feeling so ambivalent about it.
With all of this being said, I would definitely be interested in picking up future works from this author.
I liked the themes explored here, the characters were well done and as mentioned before the horror imagery was great. I would love to see her go even further into the Horror lane.
Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. It's certainly given me a lot to think about!
Rating: really liked it
4/5
This is a very solid book and it definitely serves as an intriguing debut novel. This is a horror type novel, although I’m not even sure what genre it would really fully fit into? It definitely doesn’t confine itself to just the horror or mystery genre, which makes it to be an interesting read. Set in the summer I feel like this book is very atmospheric and definitely is slow, but it for the most part works really well.
The characters are all well developed, although they had stereotypical wants and needs for YA characters, I enjoyed them. Our main character Laurel is definitely strange and I see her being a conflicting MC to read about, and although I definitely didn’t enjoy all the things she did, I for the most part liked it. Ricky was okay. I initially really liked him but by the end he just really annoyed me with his dumb decisions. Garrett was definitely my favourite side character. He seemed to be the most logical of them all and was quite sweet. I didn’t really at all care for Isaac. I think the character of Christine was very underused. I was surprised when we had our first chapter from her POV as it’s mostly Laurel’s with Garret and Isaac’s thrown in too. Christine was really interesting but she seemed to be just a plot convenient character and only existed to help Laurel and co.
The romance and relationships both were a tad similar to me and I think although they were decently well developed, they were a bit unnecessary in the grand scheme of things and took away from the overall plot.
The plot itself was okay. I think it started off strong but as the ‘magic’ used in this book is described very loosely, any such scenes with it can be hard to understand. I wish it had been more clear. The climax felt too short for how intimidating the threat was made out to be. I thought the ending was very convenient, and it wrapped up a lot too nicely for me.
The pacing is slow and near the 70% mark became a bit slow, but for the most part it’s okay. The writing is very atmospheric and there are weird comparisons and descriptions here and there, but for the most part it’s an enjoyable read.
I think it was missing a more concrete plot (I felt so many things were left vague) and the characters needed a bit more depth, but it was overall a very enjoyable read. I’m interested in what the author will write next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the E-arc in exchange for an honest review!
Rating: really liked it
Laurel Early's farm just woke up. Her bone pile (don't ask) had gotten up and walked away. The woods are shifting, and the soil is dead.
The devil that courted her mother has come for her. She and her friends are now in danger and Laurel must rely on her own inner magic to help protect herself and those she loves.
This is a highly imaginative and original book. I had the privilege of having both the book and audiobook. The farm/land is very much a character in this book as well. It sets a very stark and hopeless stage.
This is a book that is best to go in blind. It won’t be for everyone. This book contains themes of abuse, sexuality, finding your inner power, dropping out of school, and friendship. There are dark elements at play here.
This book is a mash up of fantasy, horror, and romance.
This was an interesting book experience. The entire time I read and listened, I wasn't sure I liked it, but I also could not put it down. I'm still not entirely sure where I stand, but I must give it props for originality and creativity.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com
Rating: really liked it
This book has such great description you can picture every detail. I enjoyed reading it. It was magically eerie.
Rating: really liked it
Review coming soon.
Rating: really liked it
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.Wake the Bones was a really weird but interesting book. Like the weirder things got the harder it was to look/walk away from it all. I'll admit that Laurel was a strange character too. Mostly because she was a taxidermist and I don't think I could do that myself. It's definitely a me and not you situation.
After meeting her, and the rest of the characters, we start to dive into the mystery of it all. Especially when we dive into the hauntings and the devil. I had so many questions and thoughts floating around in my head while I was reading this. Things and situations never went the way I thought it was going to go. Which is probably why this is such a good book to digest within a sitting (or two).
Towards the end, I had a feeling not everyone was going to make it but I'm just basing that off of all the horror movies I've watched before this. It was still really weird, interesting, and entertaining though. I'm really happy that I got the chance to jump into this around Halloween because it's a spooky book that everyone deserves!
Rating: really liked it
So to be clear, I’m going with 3 1/2 stars rounded up. I usually go with a half star if I keep flipping back and forth between ratings. That’s totally what’s going on here. I just liked it for the most part, but there were times that I really liked it too. Laurel is our main character and she is kind of a creepy girl. I mean, she uses animal bones to make things and talks to the dead. But that also makes her interesting to read about.
The other characters, and there weren’t really that many others, were also pretty interesting. I like Christine with her strange abilities, and Isaac with his heart, and Ricky for being the hometown boy sort. The characters together make up a good cast that you get caught up in.
The small amount of romance was fun too, nothing major and not too exciting. But that’s because the main focus is the freaky stuff that starts happening. There were a few moments where I was cringing because of the creepiness that is this book. It’s not really scary, but like the, oh hell no, type of creepy.
And there was one part that made me shake my head because, really?! Did that seriously just happen?!?! Cause I didn’t believe it, as a reader, not for one second. If you want to know what happened, here’s the spoiler… (view spoiler)
[ One of the characters was brought back to life after he’d been dead for like ten minutes. And he was brought back to life by infusing plant matter throughout his body. I mean, come on… just sayin… (hide spoiler)] Anyway, other than that I liked this one.
I recommend this to those who enjoy a creepy YA read. I do recommend the audiobook btw. It made things a little more eerie I think.
Thanks so much to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, and Elizabeth Kilcoyne for the opportunity to read this for my honest and unbiased opinion.
Rating: really liked it
Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for providing me with a copy of this ebook. The following is my honest review. I was expecting whimsical horror from this book and instead I got a whole lot of nothing. This is like a slow romance for people really really into both body horror and plant magic. It's disorienting, but not in a horror-story way. More like when you accidentally overhear two people talking who have a completely different communication style from your own and also you're missing some crucial context. I understand the words but the conversation makes no sense.
For starters, none of the characters had any personality at all. They were just there. None of them reacted or responded in a way any real human would. Half of every chapter was spent on one character describing what another character looked like currently. People's relationship dynamics changed on a whim. The main character came across as a normal human surprised by magic, then suddenly halfway through she'd always known she was a witch, then 9/10ths of the way through she could summon fire? Why??
This isn't even touching on the horror. Or should I say, lack thereof? I can't stress enough how boring this book was. It was like the author went out of their way to make the horror scenes as unstartling as they possibly could. Most of the time I didn't realize anything scary was even supposed to be happening until halfway through the scene. The way this was written it was very hard to know what was going on at any given point.
I've been excited to read this one for months and what a disappointment. Perhaps it would be good for someone who likes very very slow, meandering romance with the occasional gross-out magical scene but that someone is definitely not me.
Rating: really liked it
3.5 stars
Laurel Early dreamed of leaving her rural Kentucky town and she made it …only to return after giving up on college classes in the city. She’s ready to settle back on the family tobacco farm and make a little extra money from taxidermy.
Laurel’s return awakens a devil that has been sleeping since her mother’s death - the woods begin to shift, the tobacco is dying in the fields, and her bone pile manages to stand up and walk off. It’s up to Laurel to discover her mother’s legacy and tap into a magic she wasn’t sure she had.
The summary I just gave downplays literally everything about the book: the creep factor, the atmosphere that holds true to rural Kentucky, the complicated mother-daughter bond, yearning to leave your hometown while I also aching for the familiar comfort it offers.
This was a beautifully written story that walked a fine line between mature YA and general southern gothic horror. The most intense character in the entire story is the farm and while the characters never felt fully realized to me, I was invested in
Wake the Bones because of the strong writing about the land itself.
Thanks to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Wake the Bones was released July 12, 2022.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
Rating: really liked it
I thought I would enjoy this novel based on the description. Unfortunately, I was wrong. The novel is a very slow read with very little excitement. It's not a page turner and in my opinion, very boring. At the 33% point, I gave up and started skimming the remaining chapters. Nothing grabbed me or stood out to get my attention.
The characters are not developed enough to add dimension to the story. All of them seemed so generic without any color to their personalities. They appeared "gray" in my mind's eye and nothing stood out to differentiate them.
The world building, however, is excellent. I enjoyed how the author carved out the details in the farm, environment, and forest. Too bad the story didn't quite make the cut. One, I didn't like it, star.
I received a digital ARC from St. Martin's Press throught NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.
Rating: really liked it
Honestly I liked this one but struggled with it’s age group appropriateness, so it is hard for me to rate. I would push it on the 18-25 age group and keep it off the YA imprint.
With walking bones, rising evil, death, abuse, and a terribly disillusioned drowned ghost among other eldritch things, this is definitely one to have on board for spooky season. It’s much more lyrical than a typical horror novel though and encompasses magical realism and literary fiction too.
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Ok here are my quick thoughts on the age thing: it’s marketed as YA (13-18) but I really truly strongly feel it should target an 18-20something age group. The characters are 18+, one was in college and dropped out, and all were struggling with loyalty to home, their future, and generational bonds vs their own fate. Is their home down on the holler or where does fate lead them? Many of the conflicts and issues were not ones that 13-17 yr olds are going to face, although some will, plus the language includes at least one f*ck per chapter, s*x scene at the penultimate moment AGAIN (please, YA authors, STOP doing this – we assume a second couple shacked up that night too) … I just have a hard time with this on the YA imprint.
That said: let’s talk about this contemporary fantasy / horror / literary fiction
It takes place mostly on Kentucky farmland, where Laurel’s family tobacco farm has sat for generations. The atmosphere it set from the start with a hunt for bones and trip to the graveyard, where we learn that Laurel has a penchant for death. From there, things slowly start getting spookier and spookier. It never gets to the splattering stage but there are dead animals, blood trails, dreams of the dead, her mother’s drowned ghost, lots of blood, someone is hanged, and the devil is downright creepy .. among other things.
The spooky parts are interspersed with a number of important themes to the New Adult (18- ?) age group, like generational chains. Laurel’s family has been rooted on Kentucky for generations, and she tried leaving, failed, and came home to the farm and friends that needs her. Another character is abused by his father, and wants to leave, but also struggles with loyalty to his friends and the area. One doesn’t want to leave at all and is happy as is, and, the fourth has no idea what he wants.
So we see these scary parts mixed with chapters about love and mixed feelings. Two male characters (Isaac and Garrett) have feelings for each other and that is a constant storyline, plus Laurel and Ricky feel fated towards each other but recognize fear and obligation as obstacles.
All this taking place in a muggy, hot summer, in the middle of a pretty severe haunting. Each character, even a fifth that is brought in as a guide to Laurel, has different parental and generational issues that has shaped their experience growing up in this small town.
Can they all be friends like they were before, what needs to change, what will their futures hold? Will they even be alive to find out?
Coming home and self acceptance are huge themes. I loved how the magic worked, as Laurel’s mother was tied to the land and so is she. Land based magic is my favorite but I’ve never seen it in a contemporary fantasy before so that was interesting
I wish I could share quotes … I normally am not a fan of purple prose but Kilcoyne manages to write about death, life, and survival in such a way that I had SO many quote tabs on the pages.
OH, yeah, survival is a HUGE theme too. Everyone has to survive their upbringing, life situation, and all the self destruction of those around them while taking hold of their own futures.
The real question is … Does everyone survive? Heh heh I actually did like what the author did at the end, but no spoilers
For me, 🌟🌟🌟🌟, but I’m 33 and would hold this one til my kid was at least 17. I will not rate it for YA
Rating: really liked it
Laurel Early left her family farm near a small town to go to college, but it wasn’t long before she dropped out and found herself back home again. Things went back to how they’d always been – working in tobacco fields with high school friends and practicing taxidermy during her free time. But one day, she runs across a warning left on her land, learning that her mother practiced magic and an evil being is after Laurel’s blood.
The author did an amazing job with the setting descriptions. From the sweltering heat of the tobacco fields to the dust of the red clay land, the author completely evoked the feelings of living on a small southern farm. Honestly, it made me feel like I’d grown up right down the road from where this story took place. Similarly, the atmosphere of the small town and the interactions of its inhabitants (both positive and negative) were well written, realistic, and relatable. The author wove all of these things together to create a somewhat unsettling setting that focused on its tenuous relationship with nature.
The plot and the story itself were weird – but in a good way. I wasn’t sure what I was getting into with this work. There was plenty of detailed information concerning bones (especially teeth) and taxidermy and gore that got a little bit much for me, but I’m queasy when it comes to that sort of stuff. I liked how Laurel’s story centered around her coming back home after trying and failing to leave, and how her feelings relating to her home and its landscape were quite complicated. This was one of the most well-done aspects of the work. The plot itself was a little slow in getting off the ground, but as I enjoyed the atmospheric setting of the work and the author’s writing style, I didn’t mind this so much.
Laurel was a well written protagonist, with the right amount of conflicting feelings, strength, and personality to make for a genuine character. I enjoyed reading the story from her POV. Overall, the secondary characters were nothing special. There are three men Laurel’s age that didn’t feel particularly unique in the way they were written. They were given some distinct characteristics that the author repeatedly referenced but their personalities and the characters themselves felt interchangeable. Things about their characters were revealed through Laurel constantly telling the reader about them, but then the characters never actually do these things during the story. It made them feel flat overall.
I listened to the audiobook version of this work. The narrator did an amazing job at bringing the story and characters to life; she was the perfect choice for this audiobook.
This story excelled at its setting and the atmosphere, and the author’s writing style was gorgeous. I would have loved stronger secondary characters, but overall I enjoyed this work and recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy of this work through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Rating: really liked it
this title is me every morning ever
but also this sounds like my type of weird magical realism
Rating: really liked it
Gorgeously descriptive prose provides an atmospheric backdrop for this debut novel. Contrasting the writing style, themes deal with violence, physical abuse, mental abuse, and suicide. This is being classified as sci-fi and fantasy as well as YA. I think it fits for YA but should also be horror due to the creepiness and walking bones, and the "devil".
I enjoyed the book and liked the characters. The writing is delicious and tones down the horror. The paranormal aspects were well done with several characters having some magical ability. I enjoyed the intertwined relationship of the four friends who were trying to find their way.
Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on July 12, 2022.
