Really enjoyed the story the world it brought me in to.Characters that come alive ,it’s listed as YA but perfect for adults also.#netgalley#st.martins

The blurb and other reviewers are comparing this to The Lost Boys, something I’ve never seen. Perhaps I should watch the movie? But I think maybe because I hadn’t seen it that I enjoyed this more than others. Mayhem lived in a crappy situation at home, which has expanded into every other aspect of her life, as children in abusive homes experience. It shouldn’t have taken Roxy’s husband hitting her daughter for her to find the strength to leave him. But when a woman is abused, they will put up with way more than they should.

If she hadn’t left him, we wouldn’t have this really fun story where Mayhem suddenly has these amazing powers that put her more in tune with other people. I like her moral compass, which is almost always at play here. Although she was always the social outcast, she related well to the other kids in the home. She has a level of compassion and caring that also probably stems from having to take care of her mother for so many years.

I liked the fantasy elements at play here, with water that can give a person powers. I would love to know why you have to be a Brayburn for it to not drive you insane. Mayhem has the power to change things, and while she seems to lose her way for a while, her moral compass helps to make things better for the town. This was a fun, YA read. The storytelling had me hooked from the start. I liked how Laure weaved the past and present for a complete history of the Brayburn women. If half stars were a thing, I would give this one 4.5. Thank you, St. Martin’s for sending this along.

I was gifted an eARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review — thank you for this opportunity!

My thoughts on Mayhem are really mixed, and I've been thinking for days how to put them all together. The concept for this book really grabbed me — feminist supernatural horror with some really awesome elements of family and friendship within it. It sounded as though it was right up my alley, with elements of Wilder Girls (which had a concept I was a huge fan of). However, I'm really not sure. I felt very confused and lost for the majority of my time reading the novel. Just when things started to clear up, another curve ball was thrown at me and I wasn't really sure what was going on. The start of the book was really strong and had a really interesting and grabbing prose style, but that became very murky for me from about 25–75% of the way through. After this point, it started to clear up, but I think my personal confusion detracted from my reading experience. I was also missing some of the alleged feminist themes. They were quite upfront in the beginning of the novel, but disappeared as the novel went on, which did not bode well for me who was drawn in by these aspects. I was also caught off guard with some of the more triggering content in this book. Themes of abuse are prevalent, and I wasn't quite ready to handle it without knowing it was there.

I can see why people would love this book, but unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me.

Mayhem
I received this book as an ARC from netgalley.com. I was initially interested in Mayhem because of its beautiful cover and promise of “supernatural feminism.” It tells the story of a girl, Mayhem, and her mother, Roxy, who escape from an abusive stepfather/husband to Roxy’s hometown of Santa Barbara. They move in with Roxy’s twin sister Elle, who has taken in three children - Neve, Jason, and Kidd. Early in the novel, it comes clear that Mayhem’s family possess some supernatural power, although it is unclear what this power is.

I enjoyed Estelle Laure’s writing and empathized strongly with Mayhem. The domestic violence that sparks Mayhem’s and Roxy’s journey to Santa Barbra is well portrayed and the effects of this violence is well captured within Mayhem and Roxy. This results in the relationship between Mayhem and Roxy feeling rather aggravating and can make it hard to empathize with Roxy, despite her poor life circumstances. This can make some of the early chapters more difficult to read.

As the story becomes less about Roxy (in that Mayhem starts to break away from Roxy), and more about Mayhem’s relationship with Neve, Jason, and Kidd, it got more entertaining for me. I love a good eccentric band of teenagers. However there is a lot missing from their stories, including more detailed information of how they ended up with Elle and what had happened since they moved in with Elle. It’s hard to completely grasp their motivations or Elle’s motivations. In general, I would have liked more direct discussion of Mayhem’s family’s supernatural ability, whereas most of this comes in the form of decades old letters or diary entries that do not reveal enough to begin understanding this ability.

Additionally, although the ending of the book was entertaining, it seemed rushed. The murder and vigilante justice mentioned in the description of the book is too small of a part and I was left wondering what I was supposed to get out of the book. Solid 3/5 stars for good writing and entertainment value that would have been enhanced by building a stronger plot around the characters.

Trigger warning: domestic abuse, rape, child abuse

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very quick read, and it kept me interested the entire time. Even though Mayhem didn’t find out “who she was” until about half way through, I didn’t feel like it was taking too long for the reveal. As someone who grew up in the 80s, I did appreciate the 80s references sprinkled throughout.

Many other reviews compare this book to Lost Boys and Craft. If aren’t familiar with those, don’t let that scare you off. I wasn’t either, and I don’t feel like I missed out for it.

I received and ARC of this book thanks to the publisher, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley.

I received an advanced copy of Mayhem from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review!

Content Warnings- this book is thematically centered around domestic and child abuse. Additionally, Mayhem contains scenes of rape, kidnapping, murder, drug use and suicide.

Mayhem Brayburn has power in her blood, even if she hasn’t quite discovered it yet. Mayhem and her mother have struggle through so much in their lives, but when her stepfather goes too far one night, they are forced to flee their home. Traveling hundreds of miles from Texas to their family home in Santa Maria, California, Mayhem quickly realizes that she might have deeper ties to the town than she ever could have imagined. In Santa Maria, she meets a side of her family she’s never gotten to know, including her aunt’s band of adopted children. They group of kids quickly grow close, as the Brayburn magic begins to tighten its grasp on each of them.

You can get your copy of Mayhem on July 14th from Wednesday Books!

Mayhem is described as a mashup between The Lost Boys and The Craft, which are incidentally two movies that I haven’t seen. This might’ve been the reason that this book didn’t quite resonate with me. I thought the premise had some promise, as I loved the idea of an 80s thriller with magic, however, I felt that the execution fell flat. For a book categorized as a thriller, I found the story to be a bit mundane.

My Recommendation-
Even though Mayhem wasn’t a great fit for me personally, that doesn’t mean that you won’t enjoy it! If you like stories with inherited magic and mysteries to be solved, you might want to give Mayhem a read and see how you like it!

I really loved this book! It was so full of magic and mystery and I loved Mayhem's character!
Thank you so much for this advanced copy!

It’s 1987 and Mayhem Brayburn and her mother, Roxy, are living in small town Taylor, Texas, and things aren’t good. Life in general for Mayhem isn’t great. She doesn’t have friends, and her home life is a horror show. One night, Mayhem’s stepfather, Luke, takes things too far. As Mayhem and Roxy flee the abusive home, Roxy head toward the last place she wants to be. Santa Maria, California. Home.

The second they pull up to the Brayburn farm, Mayhem feels an almost immediate connection to the family homestead, even as her mother seems hesitant. As she gets to know her aunt’s adopted kids, she begins to uncover things about her family, things her mother has tried to hide from her throughout her life. As the petals of her inheritance begin to unfurl, Mayhem begins to understand what it truly means to be a Brayburn. She also begins to fall in love with the town where her family’s legacy has been firmly rooted, and when she finds out about the Sand Snatcher, someone who has been stalking the beaches at night and kidnapping young teen girls, she feels compelled to do something about it. True power and impowerment is found, Loyalties are tested, the true meaning of “home” is explored, and the balance between good and evil is rocked in this epic beach read.

I absolutely LOVED this book! It’s the perfect summer read and reminds me so much of the books I enjoyed as a teen when chilling on the beach with my friends. Dark and empowering, “Mayhem” is a triumph in contemporary YA fantasy. It is a spiraling staircase of emotion, power, and learning who you truly are as a person during a pivotal time in your life. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to get totally lost in an awesome read. I will absolutely be picking up more from Laure in the future!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book given in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions in this review are mine.

Content warnings for this book: suicide (not depicted), drug use, domestic abuse, sexual assault, kidnapping, murder, child abuse

When Mayhem's stepfather goes too far one night, Mayhem Brayburn and her mother, Roxy, flee to the ancestral Brayburn home in Santa Maria where Roxy's twin sister, Elle, and foster children are living. Through Elle's children, Mayhem is introduced to a source of power which is her inheritance as a Brayburn woman. Suddenly not only is Mayhem angry but she is more powerful than she could ever imagine.

This was a very middle of the road book to me. The story was okay (there were some choices I didn't agree with) and the writing was beautiful but there was just way too much going on in the story. There were flashbacks, a kidnapper, the impending threat of Mayhem's stepfather, a romance, and a story involving Elle's children.

There are so infinitely quotable moments to this book, particularly this one:
"You're a plague and a pestilence, and the way you carry your manliness like it's a permission slip from God to act like"you rule everything and everyone in your path, like you can do whatever you want-- well, I think the guillotine is a good option. I'd love to watch your head roll across the grass."

While the supernatural elements of this book may appeal to YA readers, the slow pacing of the story may cause them to give up reading. Books set in the 90s are only nostalgic for adult readers rather than the target audience of this book. Likewise, they may be unfamiliar with the source material for this book and thus uninterested in the elements drawn from it.

The plot wanders and does not feel consistent in narrative. While it can reflect a teenagers mind, when used too often, it is distracting and works against the plot moving along. Comparing a novel to two films gives a false sense of what is to come. Aspects of the novel were lost as they seemed to be created with film in mind. Things that may have translated beautifully on screen were lost in the necessity of wordy explanations.
One of the more interesting things was the insertion of former generations, and how they were drawn to the water as Mayhem also is. Each voice was unique, but it did seem like there were too many generations for continuity to be accurate.
The reveal of the sort of supernatural being is minimal, and frankly, disappointing. More information about the beings, or more devotion to that would have given the plot a deeper, more rich feel.
There were moments when it seemed to gravitate towards LGBT+ relationships, and then a hetero-relationship would be revealed.

A supernatural feminist YA novel set in 1987? Sign me up, especially when it has a cover as beautiful as this one Mayhem by Estelle Laure is the story of our eponymous heroine and her mother Roxy, who have returned home to the beach town of Santa Maria, California as they flee from a dangerous and abusive situation. Returning to her ancestral home may help to cure Roxy of the mysterious illness that has plagued her for as long as Mayhem can remember, and Mayhem might even get some answers about the one topic that Roxy never wants to talk about, her family. They are taken in by Roxy's twin sister, who has also taken in a group of kids, and this group soon takes Mayhem under their wing, revealing the magical mystery at the heart of the family, and the power that has passed down the female line , and that Mayhem is due to inherit. However that power does have a downside , and Mayhem is forced to weigh the cost when she holds the life of another in her hands.
I really enjoyed this blend of fantasy and coming of age story. As part of coming to grips with her powers, Mayhem has to face up to the responsibility that they bring. The characters were well crafted and I loved the relationship between Mayhem and Roxy, even when they argued, it was from a point of caring and worrying about the other. The supernatural element was not the typical witchcraft, which I really appreciated, it made the book a little different to the norm. While there is a romance element to the book, it is not the main focus of the story, and adds to the book overall as it really forces Mayhem to think about what she really wants her future to be, and how she can avoid the tragedies of the past repeating themselves.
There are some darker moments that touch on areas like abuse , addiction , murder and suicide, but they are handled well and always relevant to the story, never gratuitous, and entirely appropriate for the target YA audience.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This is a very new sort of mythology wrapped around a family of women with interesting skills that make them both revered and feared by their local community. Of course, being a member of the family has its strengths and drawbacks. It's a story about embracing one's destiny while coming to terms with right and wrong. Very entertaining and thought-provoking read.

Trigger Warnings: domestic abuse, mention of rape, suicide, drugs

About: When Mayhem’s stepfather goes too far with his abuse, she and her mother, Roxy run away from him and back to Roxy’s home back in Santa Maria. Set in 1987, this book follows the mystery to why Roxy ran away from Santa Maria in the first place and why she never wanted to come back.

Characters: Mayhem was a really strong character and that’s what I liked about her. Her relationship with her mother was complex and really well-written. I liked her aunt’s foster kids with whom Mayhem makes friends with, especially Kidd. I also enjoyed the sisterly bond of Roxy and her twin sister Elle.

Feelings: The writing was great. I loved the setting of the boardwalk and the atmosphere described around the beach. The mystery of Santa Maria is what kept me intrigued. After halfway through the book it gets a little slow paced and the magic of the Brayburns isn’t explained that much in detail. The world building wasn’t much but I loved setting by the beach and it gave all the summer feels.

Recommendation: If you love a good slow-paced book with a group of friends, a little magic and a small-town setting, this book is for you.

Favourite Quote:

“You can’t spend all your time focused on negative things. You have to keep living or you let the bag guys win.”

Rating: 3.5/5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advance copy of Mayhem by Estelle Laure in exchange for an honest review. Based of the title alone I thought this book was going to be filled with a bunch of Mayhem not realizing until I read the synopsis that is the main character's name and doesn't have anything to do with the story really. When I read it was for fans of The Lost Boys I knew I would want to pick it up. At first I thought this book was going to be sort of a remake of The Lost Boys which I am glad it was different minus the pop in of the Frog brothers. I was looking forward to vampires but that was a disappointment. I thought maybe the characters were witches, I was not expecting soul snatchers. The writing flowed really well and kept your attention. I liked the character of Kidd. Strong willed, smart, and motherly to Mayhem from the beginning. I would like this book to become a series. I think how things were left with Neve and Jason there could be potential for at least another book.

Received this book for an honest review on Netgalley


This is a fun book but a little dark that tackles a wide variety of issues. It's a genre-bending mashup with elements of horror, fantasy, and mystery. I personally love these genres. It follows Mayem and her mother who returned to their hometown. She soon finds out that her family has a history with magic and that's where the plot and story take off. I would definitely recommend this book.
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I was surprised (in a good way) a lot when I started to read this book. Mainly, I expected a really dark historical contemporary, but what I haven't expected were the fantasy aspects that made the story even more interesting. Characters were without a doubt the best thing you could find in this book. I enjoyed Mayhem's personality and her character development. Her family's history was also interesting, and it gave the story an amazing atmosphere. The writing was not bad, but not great either. And the plot was overall average, though it had great potential, I loved the theme of this book!

Thank you Estelle Laure, NetGalley, and the publishers for allowing me to read and review this book.

I adored This Raging Light by Estelle Laure. Just loved it. So I was so excited to read an advanced copy of her new YA novel Mayhem, available July 14. Mayhem is a very different book, but the writing is just as beautiful as I remember Laure’s first book.

It’s the 1980s, and Mayhem’s mother Roxy moves them back to her hometown in California after years of being abused by her husband. But Roxy doesn’t seem happy to be home and she won’t tell Mayhem why. Roxy’s sister Elle seems nice, and so do her three adopted kids including the brooding, attractive Jason, but they seem to be hiding a secret that Mayhem’s mother doesn’t want her to know. And girls are going missing on the beach, suspected to be victims of a serial killer. Ultimately this book is about female empowerment, coming into your own strength, and realizing that the things that make you strong can be toxic for others. It’s hard to say much more without giving the book away, but there are magical elements, letters throughout the book from multiple generations of the women in Mayhem’s family, and a strong mother daughter connection that was hard to read, but had a lovely arc.

With everything going on in the world, this book was definitely on the heavier side. It took me a little bit to get into it, but by the halfway mark I was so curious to see where the book was headed. The writing is lyrical and beautiful, and I loved the observations about motherhood and love. I would recommend this book to fans of magic or the 80s or harder stories about imperfect families trying to make the best choices they can without all the answers. I think this is one that will be settling into my consciousness for a long time.
Thank you to @, @netgalley , and the author ¬for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books are some of my most approved books and I appreciate it so much. I feel like I let them down but I couldn't get into Mayhem and chose to DNF.

*Please be aware of the subject matter of this book before reading.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Mayhem.

I have only a very basic knowledge of the inspirational media for this book, so I was coming into the book without much background but also without particular expectations. I ended up not feeling drawn in by the narrative. I thought the pacing was pretty odd - somehow achingly slow, bogged down in the minute forward movement without much actually happening, and then not actually dwelling on the times when there were action - and the characters weren't particularly likable, but more than that, were not really engaging. The writing style seemed to give even main character Mayhem an emotional distance, an opacity that made it hard for me to connect with her.

The storyline with Mayhem's stepfather, Lyle, seemed to me much stronger and richer than the magical water/family history storyline. From the author's note, it seemed clear that this was the area with which she had more personal inspiration, and I think capitalizing on that rather than trying to marry it with the fantasy element might have led to a better put together book.

Although other reviewers seem to indicate that this is a disappointment for those who are looking for Lost Boys style, it might be an option for readers transitioning from urban fantasy or realistic fiction into magical realism.