I was sent this ARC in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.

For me, the biggest sell of this book was the blurb. And I feel like it was one of the most trivial points of the book. The killer was unexpected but in the worst way possible because it didn't make any sense of the impact the plot.
The dialogue was unrealistic, the choice of tense meant that there was a real lack of tension throughout the book and overall my level of engagement was very low.
The discussion of domestic abuse, grief and assault were used to further the plot rather than inspire a discussion about them and although this is fine, I felt that the writer could have interwoven these themes in a more intriguing way.
I enjoyed the second half of the novel (after chapter five) but I was still disappointed because of the potential the book had. The ending just didn't hit hard enough and it felt like [author:Katie Lowe|14205906] ran out of time when writing.

The Furies is yet another book that I am always craving- the kind of book with teens, secrets, and horrifying revelations! This book kept me on my toes and put a big smile on my face. I know it's going to be a hit among the YA generation as well as adult readers.

I'm afraid this just didn't work for me. The topic has been "done" before, and better (see, for example, The Secret History, or the more recent If We Were Villains). Some sloppy editing bounced me out of the story as well. The author is British; so is the main character. Why then does she use the name Mom? If this was consistently applied, ok, but she alternates between Mum and Mom even on the same page, with no rhyme or reason for the switch, making me think maybe she'd been told to use "Mom" (for the American market?) and then the book wasn't thoroughly copy-edited. That alone wouldn't have turned me off, but the story never really took hold for me and I found it difficult to get through.

I was drawn to this book having enjoyed other books based on the myth of Furies. This, a women's cult and a murder mystery told me this would be an ideal reading choice for me. It wasn't. Here's why...

The magical ability of Furies is alluded to in a foggy way, using vague descriptions of rituals found in books and possible results of spells cast- it's down to the reader to choose between coincidence and direct impact.
The book is based around the wrath of women, their ability to exact violent revenge when slighted and how readily these acts are ignored.

Whilst I understand the need to fit into a group, especially for a teenager, the actions they become complicit in are extreme in so many books.
It bothers me no end that these characters dont seem to have a limit to what they'll do for acceptance. I would put this down to my age difference but even as a teen I thought the same way.
The Furies is a shining example of this point. Peer pressure and insecurity lead Violet to participate in all sorts of criminal activity, she knows its wrong but thinks little about the consequences before or afterward.
I found it very strange the way she consistently brushed off all sorts of traumatizing events with seemingly little ramification.

I wasn't a fan of the long passages of dialogue from teachers throughout the novel. I was never one for dissecting historical works in school and I don't really want to read random excerpts of someone else doing so.
Whilst I'm sure they held intelligent interpretations and added subtext to the overall story, in all honesty I had to skim them.
However these parts would definitely appeal to those who do enjoy art- it's just not my thing.

In 1998, in a Little town near the sea, a series of unfortunate events end up with the death of a 16-year old girl. She was found on a swing in the school grounds. Not known cause of death, no witnesses, nobody knew what happened.

That is what most people think, but now, several years later, we are going to unveil the mysteries behind this fatal event. Violet, our protagonist and one of the closest friends of the girl on the swing, is going to tell us how it all started and of course, how everything ended the way it did.

How far are you able to go for someone you love? Will this person do the same for you? Are you sure? These are the questions that we are going to face throughout the book. We are going to experience the pain of being the invisible one, and later, the fear of being rejected. A fear so intense, that you do not need to be drunk or drugged to do things you may regret.

Reading this book was not easy, it is so well and clearly written that you can feel almost everything that is happening. It is so beautifully described that you are going to feel scared, disturbed and unsettled, but this is not going to stop you from finishing the book. Lowe works out perfectly the balance between the thrilling mystery and the dark mythical artifices that when put together, create the perfect scenery.

Obsession, friendship, witchcraft and murder, a magnificent dark fairy-tale that will leave you wanting for more. Even if you know that you are going to make a terrifying discovery, “The Furies” will captivate you until the very end.

I would like to thank NetGalley, and Jordan Hanley from St. Martin’s Press for sending me the book and for giving me the opportunity to read this brilliant work.

This was a “coming of age” novel about Violet, an unhappy, lost sixteen year old who was the sole survivor of an automobile accident that killed her father and young sister. Her mother, a background character who had not been in the car, exists by drinking and self loathing. Violet gets a scholarship to an exclusive girls’ school and becomes involved with three other girls and a teacher who is espousing witchcraft. She is generally lost, drunk, stoned and distant from everyone other than her friends. There are deaths and some areas of self discovery. It is not a genre I generally read, however it is well done and I am sure anyone who enjoys skirting the paranormal will quickly become engrossed. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC for an honest review.

Thanks to St Martin's Press, Netgalley and Katie Lowe for the review copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

'It is the actions of men that make them vengeful, not through mismanagement or absence, as the text says, but out of cruelty and selfish desire.'
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This book was great, a coming of age story with some dark magic thrown in the mix. The story centres around Violet, who is starting at a private school, after the unfortunate death of her Dad and little Sister. She meets a girl called Robin who she becomes instantly obsessed with, but Robin's friend recently went missing and weirdly bares a striking resemblance to Violet.
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What I loved about this one was at any one moment I couldn't tell what was going to happen on the next few pages, there was so many unexpected twists and turns, that I found it really hard to put down. Lowe really knew how to make the reader uncomfortable and portrayed the toxic relations between the 4 girls so well. I also loved all of Annabel's classes and the references to the fates and furies.
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This one is going to be released in October 2019 and I highly recommend you pick it up 😁

honest opinion. This will be available to purchase on October 8th.

**Be aware: there is a theme that could be very upsetting. I have mentioned it below in the vaguest way I could, but please read at your own discretion.**

Dark and unsettling, this was a hard book for me to read. In fact, I almost gave up on it. Sexual assault was a driving force in this book , and that’s something I try to avoid reading at all costs. I only finished because I felt that I owed it to the author to provide feedback for their pre-release. Now that I’ve written that, let me rush to add that I am going to do my absolute best to separate my distaste for parts of the book, and focus on it as a whole.

This book felt to me like it was going for a Virgin Suicides-meets- The Craft vibe. Violet wants desperately to find a group of friends, a fact that is noticed- and exploited by Robin- a girl who is on a headlong rush into disaster. This book explores the depths some people can fall to when love, lust, revenge, hurt, and loss collide.

Although there’s nothing incredibly new about the plotline, the story itself is well-written and hard to escape, if that makes sense. Part of what makes this book so disquieting is that there is no good guy to cheer for, and no redemption for any of the characters at all. Don’t go into this expecting a quick, fun mystery with a hook.

Aside from the unexpected and unwelcome impetus, my big complaint would be the ending. Throughout the book the author did a very good job of drawing things to a breaking point, then pushing them a little further. However, the ending felt rushed and didn’t fit in with the rest of the book at all.

This book was disturbing and thought-provoking: if that was the author’s intention, she succeed magnificently. However, if I had known before starting this book that there would be a theme of assault, I would not have read it. So…I guess the verdict is: this book is one to read if you like things on the harsher side. For me- I wish I’d skipped it.

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley!!

This is a YA book based in an a girls boarding school. The characters are well-written... the book had plenty of drama. There were for sure some slow moments, but the thrilling aspects outweighed that fo rme.

A hot take on scary school lit. Started it at night thinking I would just read a page or two and then got sucked in big time. Excellent YA title, must read for teens that love mystery and drama!

Review to be posted in September.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

Welp, I was so looking forward to reading this one. I kept hoping my wish (as I wished for this one) would be granted. And it did! However... it took me 3 days to finally get through this and it wasn't easy at all. I had to force myself to read a certain amount so I could get through it without it taking to long.

What went wrong? Well, the blurb and the cover looked awesome. Boarding school? Sign me up! Murder? Oh yes! Potential black magic and strange rituals? Ohhhh. What more could I want. Sadly, this story is what I wanted. The boarding school? Well, I wouldn't call it that as everyone seemed to go home every day. It was more of an elite super school for kids who are smart. Murder? Well there is some murder, but eh.

What else went wrong? The characters mostly. Robin is just a freaking psychopath and should be locked up from the early pages of this book. She is unstable, her mind is unhealthy, she makes it seem like it is all someone's problem, while she is always the cause of the disturbance or terrible events. She drags people down to hell with her. She only cares about herself it seems. At least what I could read from the book. She makes it seem like she cares all about someone, but then something happens and you see her true colours. She is a manipulative bitch. :|

Violet? Well, she started off pretty decent and I have to say I liked her at the start, smart, responsible, but as soon as she gets involved with the group of girls, and especially Robin, she changes to a weak, unstable, wtf is wrong with you girl. I was so frustrated with her constantly as she kept doing things that no one should ever do. And sure, peer pressure is a thing, but this went much further than that. She went to use drugs, drank all the time, was spineless and constantly cared only for the compliments of the girls (especially Robin) and would do anything and everything for them. Like with the Dean? She could have just ran away or say no or anything, but instead she did all those things. I just wanted to shake her. Later on things escalate further to the point that I was just cringing and wondering what the hell was wrong with her. Eventually I would call her almost as bad as Robin. Maybe less crazy though (just a bit), but still unhealthy.
I guess the whole accident that happened back when she was younger and that costed her not only her father but also her sister, and following that her mom who fell into addiction and neglect, also didn't help with things. Maybe if she had a good family, parents who care about her, maybe she wouldn't have fallen for the tricks of Robin, maybe she could have been stronger. All those ifs, and we will never find out.

As for the other two girls. Well, they were around and at times they had their says, we see that things aren't good for Grace due to her abusive father, but other than that, these two just fell in the shadows/background quite fast. They were part of the group, but the focus of the book was clearly the very unhealthy relationship between Robin and Violet.

Annabel, I do wonder how much she knew. Did she know what her students were up to? I am guessing yes. This given various situations were with one glance she seemed to tell all, and with her speeches, her warnings, and then later on something else. If she truly knew, why didn't she stop the girls? Why didn't she cut them off from the early times?

I actually felt sorry for Nicky. She was a gossip, at times seemed to only care about that and spreading it, she also seemed like the most fun character. Quite a few times she talks to Violet, tries to be there for her and invited her to parties and such.

The story borders on boring to wtf am I reading, and I really had to push and push myself to keep reading. The speeches by the teachers, while I did like that they fitted the theme of what was going on at the moment, were also terribly dull.

The whole Dean thing and how that ended.... just o.0

I have to be honest and say that I still have no idea who killed Emily. Really, with all that happened n this book and how my mind just seemed to tune out at times, now that I think back, I just don't know. Probably really terrible of me, but sorry this story just sucked the joy out of me.

The ending made everything even worse. The things that happened in there, the girl on the swing, the thing with Grace and Alex, and then there is Violet's decision. What the actual hell? Why would you do that? After all that happened...

I could probably give a ton of more reasons why this book wasn't for me, but frankly I want to forget about this book and just go to my next (hopefully) better read. I am sure there is an audience for this book, but it isn't me.

A true page turner a new girl a girl trying to fit in to the school trying to be one of the crowd.This is a tense well written thriller a book that should be made into a movie unputdownable Grab this book,

The Duties is a entertaining and well written book. The characters are well developed and the storyline is great. I would read more from this author.

After a car accident takes the lives of her father and sister, 16 year old Violet and her grief stricken mother receive a huge insurance settlement. A settlement that gives Violet a chance to attend Elm Hollow Academy, a pricey girl’s boarding school in a dying town on the coast of England. Violet quickly becomes part of the in crowd in her new school, where she learns of the academy’s unsavory past, with rumors of witchcraft, both past and present and the disappearance of another student the previous year. The story of told from Violet’s perspective, years later, as an adult, so the book is somewhere between a YA and an adult novel. Lowe does a good job at portraying the Academy and its environs as festering, decaying places where “people go to die”