That was it?

I know I'm in the minority here, but this fell a bit flat for me. The writing was not my style: very vague and a bit poetic. I also guessed part of what was going on about 20% into the story; however, the reveal left something to be desired. I guess I was hoping for a why for everything that was happening in this book, and I didn't really get an explanation.
I will say that I liked that the book was weird and very original.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Burn Our Bodies Down is a spine-chilling and unique story. I enjoyed the writing style and I truly appreciated the well-developed characters. I also enjoyed the way the author represented the family dynamics in this story, which made me really understand each character’s actions, no matter how eccentric they may have seem to me at first. However, I don’t know how I feel about all the bizarre happenings in this story. Some things worked for me and some didn’t. At one point I started having flashbacks to the Children of the Corn movie and I definitely felt the Stephan King’s vibe, which I guess is not a bad thing if you are King’s fan.

Overall, this was a strong 3 stars book for me that will find many fans in the horror/thriller category.

Thank you NetGalley, Delacorte Press, and the author for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

“Keep a fire burning; a fire is what saves you. The first, the last, the heart of them all.”

Margot’s relationship with her mother, Jo, has been strained for as long as she can remember. Jo’s actions tend to lie in her own best interest, seemingly without any thought for her daughter and often leaving Margot to fend for herself. Whenever Margot asks her mother what her father was like or if her grandparents are still alive, Jo retreats further into herself. One sticky summer afternoon, Margot stumbles upon an artifact from her mother’s past that opens the door to a world of dangerous secrets. Margot runs away, but she’ll soon discover that her mother’s been running for much longer.

Rory Power writes in such a way that even if you’ve never been to Nebraska in the summertime, you’ll feel like you can say you have after reading Burn Our Bodies Down. This doesn’t seem like an obvious horror novel—there aren’t any traditional monsters or excessive gore or anything else one may associate with the horror genre. The subtlety is partially what drives the absolute horror of it; from the first chapter, it’s easy to pick up on the feeling that nothing is quite right, just enough off-center that you should be prepared for something terrible with every turn of the page. Margot doesn’t stop digging until the entire uncanny truth is ripped from the depths of her grandmother’s farm and everyone finally understands what has happened. Themes of mother-daughter tension and what you inherit run bone deep in this novel. The sympathetic characters, unbearable tension, and razor sharp descriptions all work to culminate in a perfectly unsettling work of horror.

Overall, I found that this novel was so different from Rory's previous work Wilder Girls. Elements of her writing that I loved in that novel were not present in this one and I, unfortunately, could not devour it. I thought it was still a fun and unique read, but I feel somewhat left down. I appreciate the ARC! I have yet to review this on Goodreads, but I will publish a review closer to the release date!

Margot and her mother have a tough relationship. And Margot wants to know more about the rest of her family if there is one, and her mother won't share at all. So when Margot takes off to find out on her own, we can guess that she's going to get the proverbial more than she bargained for. Rory Power creates such dynamic characters. They are deep and full-bodied from page 1. They are creepy and flawed and learning-as-they-go and you empathize with them. It was exciting to let myself be taken in by the underlying sinister tone of the book and I couldn't even guess, didn't want to guess, at where the story would take us.

I haven't yet read Wilder Girls, (although the cover was so stunning that I did purchase it!) so Burn Our Bodies Down is my first Rory Power book. It was quite slow to start, and a little difficult to follow, almost like a stream of consciousness rather than a structured narrative. Margot and her mother have never gotten along, and it has always been only the 2 of them. When Margot discovers a link to her mother's past, she leaves her life behind to find out where she came from. From the minute Margot arrives in Phalene, this story goes off the rails. I knew something weird was going on, but I never would have guessed exactly how weird. The pacing definitely picks up in the latter half of the book, but it still felt a little drawn out to me. This story is a wild, crazy ride, and while it might not be for everyone, I think fans will be very excited to have this book in their hands.
3.5 stars

I was provided a review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thanks to Delacorte and Netgalley

Burn Our Bodies Down is the second book by Rory Power and it's sure to be a hit as it's an outstanding YA thriller (with more than a touch of horror) that's about family--but not the good kind, and I love that Power explores that and does it so well. The setting--desolate town and the horror it hides--isn't new, but Power ramps up the intensity with top notch imagery and great writing. I really enjoyed this and recommended for fans of psychological horror /thriller novels.

I really commend authors who come up with ideas that are just so twisty, original, and unexpected, and Rory Power has done it in Burn Our Bodies Down.

The story started off simple enough with a crazy mother/daughter dynamic and a girl who wants to learn more about her family history, but keeps hitting a brick wall when she tries to pry details from her mother. So, she does what any teenager would do, right? She runs away to her grandmother (who she just recently found existed) and all types of weirdness ensue. When she arrives in the town of Phalene, she finds that her grandmother's field is on fire, and stranger yet, a girl who looks just like her perishes in the fire. While staying with her grandmother (who certainly acts like she's hiding something), Margot begins to dig deep into the roots of her family tree and uncovers the real reasons behind why her mother has kept so many secrets...and wow...I'll stop here...The story gets pretty intensely dark pretty quickly, but it takes quite a bit to get to that point.

The majority of the book (maybe the first 75%) is a slow build up with lots of little plot elements and "clues" being dropped, but I just found it kinda mindless as I flipped the pages after the initial discovery of Margot's doppelganger in the burning field. However, once I hit that last 25% or so and everything started to come together, I was enthralled. The imaginative explanation to all the family secrecy was so unexpected. It did seem a little outlandish, even for the context of the story, but I did find it to be an interesting angle.

3.5/5 rounded up to 4/5 for Goodreads - I couldn't help but to compare this to Wilder Girls. In the same vein, I just wanted more from this book. Some of the plot events were very original, but somewhat unbelievable, even within these fictional pages. Rory Power really does have a way with prose though, and there is just something about her writing that pulls you in and won't let go. The character dynamics and relationships were really very well done, and the atmosphere of suspense was ever present. I can't really say there's a ton I didn't like about the book, but I also wasn't overly wowed by it either. If you are a fan of darker YA reads and don't mind some heavy, twisty, thriller elements, you should totally grab this one and give it a try.

I really enjoyed this dark and twisty read! Rory Power intrigued me with WILDER GIRLS last year and I think this is an even better novel, well-plotted and totally all-encompassing.

Thank you Delacorte Press and Random House Children’s for an ARC of this captivating book! The eeriness of Burn our Bodies Down ropes you in from page 1. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. The twists and turns kept me wanting more, and when I finished, I didn’t know what to do with myself.

I went in pretty blindly but knowing that anything Rory Power touches is gold. This book surprised me in many ways and kept me guessing the whole time.

Burn Our Bodies Down is a thrilling read, telling the story of 17 year old Margot, who has been raised alone by her mother Josephine.
Margot is determined to find out more about her past, and her mother seems equally determined not to tell her, so Margot tracks down her grandmother and runs away to the town where her grandmother lives to get the answers she desperately seeks.
On her first day in town, Margot makes 2 new friends with Tess and Eli, they offer to take her to her grandmother's farm and on the way it becomes apparent that her grandmother's land is on fire. They find a girl, who bizarrely looks identical to Margot who has been overcome by the smoke and dies.
Margot now finds that her grandmother is just as evasive as her mother, and as time goes on it becomes apparent that her grandmother is harbouring bizarre and horrifying secrets about her and her family's past.
I really enjoyed the book, it conveyed the teenage angst of a need for identity and belonging really well. I also liked that there was a potential for a gay relationship in the book, which the author hinted at but then cut off because the protaganists were too busy dealing with all their other issues.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a YA thriller.

This was not the book for me. I called it a small-town family mystery before I started it, but that’s not quite right. It’s a farmhouse family mindfreak. Except without the excitement and longing to know that comes with a typical mindfreak. I’m not going to say the ending didn’t make sense, because it was explained, but it also didn’t seem to matter to the story at all?

Usually if there isn’t much of a plot I would like character development. I didn’t really see much of either. This book is set over the course of about three days, in which Margot goes to her mother’s hometown to figure out what happened in her mom’s past. Because her mom refused to say a word about it her whole life. The day she gets there, she finds something really disturbing and just is okay with it and continues to suck up to the grandma whose land it happened on while knowing her grandma is blatantly keeping secrets from her.

The whole book had themes of codependency and really toxic family values, which get remedied in the end. It’s not inherently bad to have those themes in a book, but seeing a main character pick being wanted over being safe multiple times is kind of upsetting. And there were some good lessons regarding that - “you don’t have to stay somewhere just because you’re wanted” is an almost exact line from the book. Just sucks that it took til 78% into the book for her to learn that.

The writing was easy enough to read; the imagery for the setting was definitely there. The book gave me a dusty summertime feeling. I’m glad there was lesbian representation in the main character, Margot. The mystery’s resolution was wildly boring and I don’t understand the audience for this book.

Content warnings for gore and gun stuff

We are one of the most complex things on the planet, so why do we build boxes and force ourselves to fit them when it comes to media? No one is just one thing, we are all an amalgamation of our choices, and desires, fears, and anxieties. Tropes are built around common patterns, but sometimes when they're everywhere you turn, we get into the rut idea that we need to conform to those tropes to be successful.

Recently, however, I have had the great pleasure to be on a streak of reading trope-breaking stories. More specifically, books centered on incredibly complicated, usually anger-driven women. Women fueled by spite and survival instinct, who don't have a lot of time to be the sugar-sweet innocents they might be expected to be. They break boundaries in their own worlds, and show readers that it's okay - even necessary - to break boundaries for ourselves. Breaking is part of the building that shows us who we are.

Rory Power's Burn Our Bodies Down is a veritable tapestry of complicated, troubling, self-serving, fiercely protective women. To read it is to be immediately swept into a Gothic, sprawling family drama all brought to its boiling point in Margot, a young woman on the hunt for answers about her roots. For as long as she could remember, it's always just been Margot and her mother. Their relationship is love wrapped in thorns, dependence, and fear. Margot's mother is secretive about her past and forceful in her belief that her and Margot are all they need to survive. Fed up with the lack of answers, spurred on by an explosive fight and a clue from a pawn shop, Margot goes hunting for the family she never knew and finds far more secrets than she bargained for.

An atmosphere that slowly weaves its tendrils around you the further you go into the haunting town of Phalene, inexplicable tones of Wicker Man and Children of the Corn all blended in with a bit of We Have Always Lived in the Castle make for an unforgettable read steered along by an equally unforgettable narrator in Margot. Rory Power's sophomore offering showcases her strengths beautifully. Burn Our Bodies Down is an intense examination of family, connection, and finding meaning in identity told through an unconventional labyrinth of one woman's mind as she simultaneously learns and unlearns everything she thought she knew. The only constant is uncertainty, and fire.

Keep the fire burning, it's the only thing keeping us all alive.

Margot's family has a secret, a secret so deep that not even Margot knows it, but she's going to find it, even if it means leaving home to do it. Margot travels to her mom's hometown, Phalene, and to the house where the grandmother lives that she's never met and doesn't know. As soon as she arrives, her family's farm is burning and a girl is dead. The thing is that this is the second fire this farm has suffered, the first happening right before her mother left home for good. So, why did her mom leave home never to return? Are the two fires connected? And who does the dead girl belong to? Margot is going to find out.

I love mystery/thriller books, as well as YA novels. I thought that overall, this book was pretty good. I enjoyed most of the writing and the author's style of writing. I did feel like the book lacked direction and plot development at times and more could have gone into action to move the story along. I didn't like how the reader found the answers to solve the mystery (through someone's diary) and wished that that information would have been revealed with more excitement. This book lacked the a-ha moment for me, which was disappointing.

I would recommend this book to young adult readers who enjoyed series such as Twilight.

Remember when I read Wilder Girls last year for mine and Rachel’s buddy read and well, it basically ruined me because OMG I FELT DUPED?! Well I was genuinely shocked that I got approved for the eARC for Rory’s second book, 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐁𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧. Let me say this, not as and as Wilder Girls, but also just as unsatisfying to read.⁣⁣
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It’s the story of Margot, who lives with her shell of a mother and has no idea of where she came from or who her extended family is. She does know that her mom makes her keep a flame burning at all times, but who knows for what reason. One day Margot happens upon a clue that will lead her to her grandmother, still living in her mother’s home town, and there is a mystery surrounding her family.⁣⁣
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Sounds good right? It was compelling and once I got into it I couldn’t put it down (much like Wilder Girls)...but I swear the “mystery” and intrigue around what’s going on was SUCH A LET DOWN (just like Wilder Girls). My brain concocted all of these conspiracy theories that were much more interesting and ultimately I was left just feeling frustrated that I sat through the story for that payout at the end.⁣⁣
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One thing that I will give credit for is it being a horror YA...the gruesome horror parts were spooky and unnerving and not something we usually get in YA...and one thing I want to call out (AGAIN) is the barely there “but we’ll totally market it this way” LGBTQIA+ rep. Just like Wilder Girls, there is a passing moment of “OH WAIT MAYBE THE MAIN CHARACTER ISNT STRAIGHT” only for it to be never brought up again and almost felt like an afterthought for marketing. If your going to give rep, GIVE US REP!⁣⁣
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Would I pass on this, probably, but is it the worst ever? Nope. 𝘚𝘦𝘦: 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴.⁣⁣

Such a let down. I really loved Rory's writing in her debut, but the ending let me down so I hoped that the ending of this one would be more enjoyable. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The gruesome and harsh writing that I loved so much was missing from this one. The small-town setting just led to a really slow book that was, in my opinion, too drawn out. With the mystery aspect of the main character's family, it felt like not enough was given to the reader to make the book seem interesting and gripping. The ending was so rushed too. So much information that I would have liked to receive throughout the book left me honestly confused. The whole reason I kept reading was to find out what was actually happening with the Nielsen family, but, after finishing the book, I'm still pretty confused. I get why everything happened, but it was so rushed and detailed were skimmed over quickly that the pacing choices for the ending just confused me. Overall, I'm pretty disappointed and enjoyed Wilder Girls way more, despite hating the ending of that one too.

Margot lives only her mother and doesn't know any of her family. Her mother has some odd behaviors and is neglectful sometimes. After Margot finds an old photo with a phone number, she reaches out to her grandmother and hitchhikes to see her. Right after she arrives, she meets a few local teens who hear about a fire at her grandmother's. Margot sees something shocking and unexplainable in the fire. I was intrigued by the mystery of what Margot saw in the fire and was curious why so many in the town didn't like her family. I felt the middle of the story was too drawn out and I skipped a lot of it to get to the end. I felt the story could have incorporated more horror to make the story more interesting.

This was definitely one of the strangest and yet captivating books I have read in awhile. I love Rory Power's writing style and the short chapters make it read quickly. I am still puzzling through what I just finished but I really enjoyed it. First Wilder Girls and now this... I can't wait to see what she does next! Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was not what I was expecting. But damn did it deliver. I didn't even read the description of the book, just went with the fact that it was Rory Power and wasn't disappointed. It was suspenseful and mysterious, and just kept moving.

Rory Power’s novel Burn Our Bodies Down takes a multi-generational, dysfunctional family relationship and turns it on its head. The main character, Margot, is a teen on her journey of self-discovery, within the confines of a particularly secretive childhood. Detailed character development creates a believable midwestern town.