Thank you so much to #netgalley & #randomhouse for sending me this #gifted copy of Burn Our Bodies Down. Sadly this one was my first DNF of the year.

I tried really hard to power through because
1. I hate not finishing books
2. I feel bad not finishing something that was given to me at no cost.
But it just wasn't capturing me like I thought it would. I made it through 50% of the book and felt a bit lost and confused on what was going on. I thought that each chapter would help me understand the story more but it just left me with more questions. I just couldn't grasp what was going on with Margots mom and grandma. Why the town her grandma lived in was so taboo.

Obviously every book isn't going to be for everyone but I did enjoy the writing style and descriptive writing the author portrayed throughout. And you never know this one may be for you! Overall I would give this one 2 stars. I appreciate the opportunity to have read this book.

What a fantastic book! I had no idea what I was getting into. I went in blind and had wanted to read the book because I loved the cover. Yes, I do that many times.
I am so glad that I read this book because it was amazing!! What a superbly crafted, chilling and incredible thriller.

Ever since Margot was born, it’s been just her and her mother. No answers to Margot’s questions about what came before. No history to hold on to. No relative to speak of. Just the two of them, stuck in their run-down apartment, struggling to get along.

But that’s not enough for Margot. She wants family. She wants a past. And she just found the key she needs to get it: A photograph, pointing her to a town called Phalene. Pointing her home. Only, when Margot gets there, it’s not what she bargained for.

The author does such a good job of fleshing out Margot, a teenager who learns that there is some sort of evil in the bloodlines of her family. Margot's journey to her mother's hometown and her unravelling her family history and secrets has been so superbly plotted.
Rory Powers does a great job of writing this fast-paced, spine chilling, intricate and mind-boggling plot.

I don't want to reveal more details since I want to give no spoilers or accidentally give a clue to the story. Rest assured I most definitely recommend this spooky, sinister, intricate book!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing a digital ARC in exchange for ah honest review.

3.5 ⭐️
Margot lives a less than desirable lifestyle with a negligent mother. She has never known any other family and her mother makes her out to be the villain every chance she can get. Margot unexpectedly comes across information detailing family she might have which changes her entire existence and the relationship she has with her mother.
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This was a weird one, thats for sure! The premise was extremely unique and I was nowhere near close on figuring out the twist. I think it’s best to go into this knowing it’s going to be unusual, similar to Wilder Girls, but not nearly as graphic and gross as Wilder Girls could be for some people.

For seventeen years the only family Margot has known is her aloof mother. Whenever she tries to push the subject of family, her mother closes herself off more than she does on a regular day. When Margot comes across photo of her mother as a child with an inscription on the back written in an elegant hand, she thinks she finally has what she’s yearned so much for: a grandmother.

Margot is tired of being on her own, and she’s tired of struggling, so she runs away to the small town of Phalene. It’s clear, by the whispers that follow Margot around town, that her grandmother, and her family name, have a long history in Phalene. But as Margot becomes more acquainted with the town and her grandmother, she begins to question why her mother left in the first place, and what caused her to keep her distance. Now, she’ll have to question if being loyal to that family name is worth the consequences.

Burn Our Bodies Down is a slowly-unfolding family saga told completely through the eyes of Margot. As a reader, looking in from the outside, you know that things are not right in Phalene and in her grandmother’s house. Even Margot acknowledges something is off with the dying land and the bleeding crops, but the heartbreaking way she longs for someone to love her unconditionally overshadows all common sense.

I think that Rory Power did a great job of making Margot’s solitary life so stark that even when she’s around other characters and forming what could blossom into friendships, she holds herself apart. That loneliness also ups the ante on the thrilling side to the narrative. Who does Margot trust? Who can she go to for help? It’s such a contrast with Power’s previous book the Wilder Girls where even though it’s kind of an “everyone for themselves” mentality, there are still groups and bonds that form. Here, it’s solely on Margot’s shoulders to carry everything.

I’m also a big fan of family histories and how the past has such a hold and influence on us. Are we destined to keep on the same path as our forbearers or can we change the cycle? It’s a definite theme running throughout as Margot unpacks her mother’s past.

So far Power is two for two and has become an auto-read author for me. With Burn Our Bodies Down she’s delivered another haunting read full of grotesque beauty. Read her work just for her absolute wonderful way with words and imagery, but stay for the thought-provoking stories. Power writes books that stay with you long after finishing, but also have you anticipating what she can come up with next.

This book was so good! I went into it blindly and I’m so speechless. It gets the best after 50% just so you know. Once you hit that part you won’t be able to put it down! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time! So many twists and turns at the end! The writing style was spectacular! I can’t wait to read more by this author

I felt like this book fell a little flat. The concept was interesting but the characters were so flatly written I didn't really connect with any of them or care what happened to them. I've noticed this a lot lately. So much is put on having an original plot or concept but then the basics like having characters you are invested in is left behind. That was very much true of this book. It look a very long time to get to the point and once I was there, I didn't care anymore.

“Keep a fire burning, a fire is what saves you.”

Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power is about a seventeen year old girl, Margot Nielsen, who only ever wanted a family. With no father, and living alone with her mother who could pass as a sister, Margot finds herself at a dead end. Her mother refuses to give her any information regarding their family tree which brings us to a desperate Margot. She decides to run away to her newly acquainted grandmothers farm to get the answers she deserves. When she arrives to town she finds herself in an eerie predicament.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Margot and the city of Phalene. The description of the town and farms were well done.

Rory Power never fails to make my skin crawl. Honestly, that’s the biggest reason I loved this book.

The only thing that would’ve made this a 5/5 stars is if there was a little more surprise when it came to the plot twist. About halfway through I had mostly figured out what was going on so when it was time for the big “Ta Da”, it didn’t surprise me.

I gave Burn Our Bodies Down 3/5 stars.

3.5⭐
Summary
It has always been just Margot and her mother. Just the two of them stuck in a dingy apartment, struggling to get along. But that's not enough for Margot. And despite her efforts, her mother refuses to share any details about their family or past. So when Margot discovers the key to her family, she takes it and runs. Directly to a town called Phalene where grandmother lives. But the family she finds isn't the one she bargained for and meeting them only raises more questions.

Overview
➸ POV: 1st Person from Margot's POV

➸ Margot Nielsen: 17, Lives in Nebraska, Resents her mother, Desperately wants to know her family and history

➸ Content Warnings: Child Neglect, Graphic Depictions, Blood/Gore, Murder, Abortion, Arson

My Thoughts
This book took me on a wild ride. Hands down one of the most unique and strange stories I've ever read.

My favorite aspects of this story were the setting and atmosphere. This setting was so haunting. Between the creepy little towns and endless corn fields, this setting set the perfect eerie undertone. But on top of that, this book always had a sense of foreboding. Even when nothing outright scary or intense was happening, I had a sense of unease. I never knew where to put my trust or what what coming next which left me on the edge of my seat throughout this book.

I also really enjoyed the writing style. It took me a moment to sink into but once I did it really worked with the creepy vibes of the story.

This book touched on so many things - what it means to be family, gender/feminism, friendships, etc. And I really loved the found family/toxic familial dynamic that this played with.

However, the pacing really slowed down throughout the middle. This story kicks off with a bang and ends in wild tornado of events. But the middle was missing some impact. I definitely found myself wavering during these chapters and I wish some events had been spread into this part of the book to keep the momentum going.

I also thought the hint drop for the twist was more like a bash over the head. It definitely was not subtle so I had a good idea where this was heading as soon as it was mentioned. This didn't really impacted my enjoyment per se, but I think the ending would have been even more intense if I didn't see it coming so early on

Overall I really enjoyed this! This author has insanely unique and horrific concepts that leave me feeling so uneasy. This is definitely a story that will stick with me for a long time. I can't wait to see what Rory Power releases next!!

I loved Wilder Girls. And I mean that, I truly loved Wilder Girls. I tried with this book really hard, I read probably 75% and then skimmed the rest and it was just too much for me to continue. The plot was extreme and bizarre. I did enjoy what I did read and a bit of what I skimmed but it went from mysterious to extreme suddenly and I felt ill prepared for that twist.

Burn Our Bodies Down was quite a ride. For as long as Margot can remember, it has been just her and her mother, and that's just the way her life always has been: dealing with her mother's erratic behavior and trying to survive. When Margot finds a link to her mother's past and a long-lost grandmother, she eagerly leaves her home to travel to Phalene, Nebraska to find the truth. But when a girl with a startling resemblance to Margot dies in a fire on her grandmother's property, Margot finds even more stunning truths about why her mother left Phalene all those years ago---and about herself as well.
Honestly, I am not sure I even know what I just read, and I mean that in a good way. Burn Our Bodies Down draws you in with its twisted web of family secrets and then hits you in the face with some grotesque and strange horror elements at the end. Like dang. LOL. I would classify this book more as a thriller than as straight-up horror as there is a long build up to the explosive ending, but it does have a fair amount of disturbing moments. I also really loved watching Margot as she struggles to figure out her own personal heritage and her complicated relationship with her family. Rory Power's writing style is really what sold it for me--perfect for a good thriller. Burn Our Bodies down is straight-up fire, a story about a girl and her identity---and reconciling that with a complicated family history. Something, while not quite to the extent as it is here, I am sure many readers such as myself can understand.

Roller-coaster ride that will have you burning a candle from now on.....with an ending I did not expect!!!!

Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power is not an easy read. Instead, its a challenging mess of tangled, toxic relationships with a mystery of who Margot is, the family secret, where she came from and why her mom is so messed up. It is a story of self love and hope...that survives years of emotional abuse...and a story of a twisted dysfunctional family. It is well written, with clear characters, a compelling plot, and terrific character development. Although there were times where I enjoyed reading this suspenseful thriller, there were other times where it was hard to see the way that Margot was treated. Definitely a power packed novel!

Thank you sincerely to NetGalley, Random House Children's Delcarorte Press and author Rory Power for this temporary advance review copy for me to read and enjoy. As always, my opinions are my own,

I read this book in almost one sitting. The story was engaging and I wanted to find out what was really going on with the Nielsen family. It was not what I expected or imagined. Very clever.

This one was a huge disappointment for me. 

When I initially began seeing this all over the community, I was so excited for a horror story. I've been in such a mood for this genre, that I immediately snatched it off NetGalley and began reading it. 

Unfortunately, the expectations didn't meet the reality. 

Overall, I would definitely categorize it as more of a mystery than a horror. Nothing seemed to pop out and scare me (which is why I picked this one up), but the world, characters, and plot felt mysterious and enchanting. 

Especially during the beginning chapters, I felt bored and confused with the world she lived in with her mom and the craziness/mental health which came with it. It lost my interest pretty quickly and left me giving this one a 2 out of 5 stars. 

If you are looking for something creepy or scary, this wasn't it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

17 year old Margot lives in a small town in Nebraska with her mother, Jo. Jo won’t tell Margot anything about her past or her family both of which Margot is eager to learn about. Margot manages to uncover a bible from Jo’s past that reveals where she is from. Margot manages to contact her grandmother and sets off to meet her. Immediately something is off when Margot gets to her grandmother’s farm.

Initially I was liking this book. It was fast paced, moving right along. I didn’t feel bored at all. There were enough new clues being uncovered at every turn that I stayed engaged, really wanting to know what was going on. And then I found out what was going on. I can suck up a lot of far fetched thriller endings but this was way too nuts for me. I just couldn’t buy into it and it ruined the book for me. 5 star start, 1 star ending equals a 3 overall.

Burn our bodies down by Rory Power
Rory Power proved herself with her first novel Wilder Girls, with the success of that book it would make sense if her next book wasn’t quite up to the same hype, because it is hard to rise to new expectations when they are suddenly placed upon you. It does help in this case that Burn Our Bodies Down is in no way connected to the Wilder Girls.
Burn Our Bodies Down is at it’s heart a horror novel in the same vein as Shirley Jackson, it starts off a little slow with the feeling of dread building up subtly in throughout until it all explodes. When you first meet the main character, Margot, you find her in a terrible home environment, her mother is really distant and doesn’t seem interested in being a mother, she doesn’t seem to know a lot about her family history but she knows that something feels off. Powers does a good job of letting you feel the same way with subtle hints very early on as she describes the mother daughter duo looking more like sisters and just why do they not talk about their family?
To be honest at first it felt reminiscent of Gilmore Girls a young unwed single mother running away from her family with her newborn daughter. But the comparisons don’t last very long, throughout the book a sense of dread loomed at every turn of the page as I wondered just what was instore for Margot. She leaves her mother behind and goes to search out her family, after finding clues that point to them not being too far away. But once she arrives in town she finds out that sometimes knowing the truth can be a lot of trouble.
Overall the characters in this book feel very real they go through good characterization and growth throughout the book. The overall setting of the book is amazing, having it be set in a small town really helps give it that gothic folk horror genre feel. And the story managed to feel fresh and interesting even though it also seemed really familiar. Overall the book got a 4.5 out of 5 and it should definitely be on everyone’s TBR. This book is OUT NOW! So go to your local bookstore/library and pick it up.

What did I just read? The ending of this book still has me unnerved. I’m not entirely sure how to classify the take as it’s part thriller, part mystery, part family drama, and maybe a little bit of horror?

I had high expectations for the book after reading Wilder Girls. In Burn Our Bodies Down, Power delivers the same incredible sense of atmosphere, and you can almost feel the oppressiveness of both towns, of the farmhouse, everything. Growing up in central Illinois and spending a few summer working in cornfields, they can be eerie enough on their own with their carefully placed rows, so the chaotic planting and the evident sickness of Vera’s crops adds to the malaise of the farm.

But it’s the characters who shine, although shine is not a word I’d use for any of the characters. They have rough edges. Margot’s longing for a relationship, her recognition of the push-pull for attention or anything from her mother, the evasiveness and alternating love and cruelty from her grandmother were hard to read.

At times, this isn’t an easy book to read. The pace of the book at the beginning is slow, a bit reflective of the oppressive heat and the kind of emptiness that is Margot’s life. . There are times, too, when none of the characters are particularly likable and yet Power pulls me into Margot’s story because, quite frankly, I have no clue what is going on. It’s clear Margo is being lied to, she knows this as well, and that is what drives the plot forward - her need for answers, and maybe also her desperate need for love, for reciprocation from a family member. That said, while I had ideas of what might be going on, wild and crazy ones, nothing prepared me for what was really going on at the farm!

Despite the slow pace at the start, this was a page turner. Disturbing, moody,emotionally gripping, and while I’ve still got questions, the ending doesn’t leave me with a “but wait, what’s next” like Wilder Girls did (thank you, Rory.)

Just...wow.

3.5//

Well first of all thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity for reading this.

I think I want to preface this with I do not think this book would be for everyone. It's really hard to conceptualize this book for someone who's never heard about it. But once you read it, you can totally understand the vibe.

I can totally respect the writing because I think it's really distinct and I don't find a writer quite like Rory Power in my reading experience. That being said, the entire time I was waiting for "the other shoe to drop". It almost like a thriller but I definitely wouldn't personally put it in that genre, personally. Though I can see why someone can make the argument for the opposite.

The story is so ominous, which I hinted to earlier. I personally don't enjoy the almost fabulousness of this book. It's not something that I personally enjoy. I think the plot is so wild that most people won't be able to get the jump on the plot before it comes to fruition. I personally like a more solid and concrete resolution to the story and I don't think we really got that, but it's a personal preference.

I was incredibly uncomfortable with the relationship that our main character, Margot, had with her mother and her grandmother. I think that really adds to the story overall. It was a large part of the haunting tension.

I think that if any of this sounds interesting for you you might like this. I just personally think it wasn't for me. But I couldn't disregard the craft that went into this.

*Copied from my goodreads reviews*

Who knew obscure facts about corn would lead to my favorite horror/thriller of 2020.
I have so much to say about this book.
I own a copy of Wilder Girls by Rory Power, but for some reason I haven’t gotten around to reading it. Probably something to do with the disease aspect of it. But when I saw the description for Burn Our Bodies Down I knew I had to read this book as soon as I could get my hands on it. The second I opened this book I knew it was for me.
First of all, there is nothing more ominous than Ohio/Nebraska corn fields. During the day, especially in the summer, that shit is just so oppressive. You could be on a well marked road and feel like you will never get away from the tall stalks surrounding you. This book really captured the claustrophobia of that. Horror, cornfields, and small towns really just go hand in hand and this book shows it from the very first scene where Margot encounters the towering stalks of the farm.
This book really showcases how powerful a story becomes when you utilize giving a character a ~feeling~ and lacing it through every aspect of the story. Margot’s desperation for family and her frustration at all the secrets later on influence everything that happens in this book and the way she reacts to the events. I think without that emotional context the events of this book would not have hit nearly as hard as they did. Every character was involved in keeping Margot away from the truths she was seeking, whether they were aware of it or not. The tension in this book just grew so organically throughout and came to head at just the right point. It was just so well done.
I love a book that has well written family trauma. This book was so good about showing how behaviors and defenses are passed on through the generations as one family member caused that trauma on the next generation. Every single thing that happened between the three women at the center of this story has a cause and an effect and it was the same carried down the line. Behaviors are learned and manipulated by trauma and this book really showed how devastating that can be.
The end plot twist to this book still has me reeling. Of all of my theories of what was happening in this book, what was actually going wasn’t even close to my guesses. Rory Power’s genius is unmatched when it comes to these stories that shock you down to your very core. She is quickly becoming one of my auto-buy authors and will be someone I trust to give me a good horror novel in the future.

I unfortunately only got about 75% through this novel. While this book was enjoyable, hence why I am giving it three stars on here. However, this book deals with things that I am not quite ready to read about at this time and I don't think it would be the smartest thing on me to indulge myself in this story as of now. What I read was good—the plot was interesting and I like Rory Power's writing but for now, I just wanted to leave this as a placeholder review for when I do return to this novel.

Overall, I would recommend but it is very heavy and I don't think I will be able to deal with the themes/topics of this novel just yet.

After borrowing Allie's Bookcon ARC of Wilder Girls last year, I was a huge fan of the book and incredibly excited for Rory Power's second novel. I wasn't let down. If you enjoyed Wilder Girls, you'll like this book. It was in that similar niche of queer eco-horror (I described this book using that to a friend who told me that was like the funniest thing they'd ever heard but its accurate). Like Wilder Girls, it's an intense read that addresses abuse, the ethics of science, and our effect on the environment (and its effect on it). The cast of characters in this book was definitely smaller than Wilder Girls, and I did feel like there was a lot less depth to these characters, with an exception of about four of the characters, but then again that also felt intentional, that a lot of the characters were very stereotypical, almost like props rather than people. The prose was gorgeous, and helps create that mysterious, atmospheric vibe the book needs. The biggest issue I had with the book is its pacing. Not much happens for the first 2/3, then a lot happens. As a consequence, it was hard to get into the book, but once I was in, I was hooked. I think the book would've benefitted from a more gradual revelation, rather than the main character walking around town asking herself the same questions with no answers for 200 pages. That being said, it wasn't enough to spoil the entire book for me, and I really did enjoy it.