Prudence Perry is a Ladybird Scout, taking after her mother. The Ladybirds are a secret society who fight mulligrubs, intergalactic parasites who are created from and feed off human emotions. If fed enough, they turn carnivorous and feed off the humans themselves. After an attack that ends in the death of her best friend, Prudence quit the Ladybirds and was diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety. When she is asked by her mother to train three new recruits of the Ladybirds, Prudence reluctantly agrees.

I was initially drawn to this book because I was a girl scout as a child, so I thought the concept of this book sounded really fun! The idea of different monster grubs feeding on different human emotions was an interesting concept, and I was intrigued to see how it was going to play out in the end. Unfortunately, I just found this book to be very average in my opinion and a bit sloppily executed. There wasn't anything about it that made it jump out to me, I didn't love it, but I also didn't hate it. I did enjoy how different each mulligrub was, and learning more about how each one came into existence. I like how this explored family obligations and parental expectations as well. I also liked getting to know that "babybirds" and their unique personalities. They were super supportive of one another, and I really enjoyed their growing friendships with one another. I really disliked Prudence's mother, as well as her Aunt, they made me so angry on multiple occasions with the way they treated Prudence, especially in regard to her trauma. They actively went against what her therapist suggested and basically tried to reinforce the idea that everything was in Prudence's head, all while belittling and embarrassing her any chance they got.

Will say that I adore this cover though.

I really wish they had books like this when I was growing up. It is a fun fantasy YA about a group of girls who are basically slayers. There are these grubs that are basically energy suckers and this group of girls drinks a special tea that gives them the gift of sight for these grubs and they find them and kill them. The story and the world-building were very enjoyable, I enjoyed being swept away into this world.
But we all know Fat Girls in Fiction so I have to touch on the fat representation, This is the second Lily Anderson book I have read with fat representation and I love how she does it. It is there both on the cover and in the story. You know the main character lives in a bigger body, but it is never anything in the story she has to overcome. She just gets to be a kick-ass fat girl saving the world. She had love. She had problems, but none of them have anything to do with her size.
If I had stories like this growing up it would have meant so much to me. Representation gives you permission to see yourself in stories that you would never have allowed yourself to be in. That is why I love this book and will recommend it to others.

Prudence’s whole family is deeply immersed in the Ladybird Scouts, a girl scout-esque social group that is really a demon fighting organization. Prudence herself was a scout up until three years ago, when she saw her best friend killed during a battle. Since then, Prudence has quit the scouts and tried her best to live a normal life while recovering from her trauma. But when she’s forced to re-enter the fold and train a group of junior scouts, Prue finds herself getting closer to the scouts. As evil brews in her town, Prue will be forced to confront her demons—both literal and metaphorical.

Scout’s Honor is a paranormal YA novel that blends fun with serious in a perfect balance. The novel deals with mental health very thoughtfully: Prue is still struggling with trauma and anxiety three years after her best friend’s death, while the world around her (including her family and fellow Ladybirds) tells her to move on. She struggles with feeling weak or too soft, but in mentoring younger scouts, she begins to see her softness as a strength. The Ladybirds have always been trained to be strong, hard, and sharp, but Prue dreams of a new version of the Ladybirds that embraces vulnerability and makes space for everyone.

This novel also deals with friendship and family as Prue finds her new place amongst the scouts while reckoning with those she left behind. She struggles with feeling out of place in her family, especially with her hyper focused mom who is devoted to the scouts. While this is obviously a fantastical read, many teen readers will relate to Prue’s desire to find her place and be accepted as she is. While Scout’s Honor is very much about mental health, it’s also an action-packed read with a dose of humor and campy paranormal vibes.

In terms of diversity, Prue and her family are Puerto Rican, and there are several other supporting characters who are Black or Latinx. Prue and her boyfriend are both fat, and there are side characters who are queer and disabled (including one who uses a prosthetic limb).

Readers who enjoy fast-paced novels with lots of action scenes will enjoy this book, as will those who liked Lily Anderson's previous book, Undead Girl Gang. I'll also be recommending it to fans of the Babysitters Coven series by Kate Williams. Scout's Honor brings an excellent balance of heavy topics and fun demon fighting, and is a great addition to any YA collection.

Prudence is not longer a Ladybird Scout, despite her families long history of dedicating their lives to the scouts. This is not your average Scout trip, no camping trips or cookie selling for these ladies. Instead they protect humans from mulligrubs―interdimensional parasites who feast on human emotions like sadness and anger.
I wanted to like this book, and I mostly did! But my goodness some things just super rubbed me the wrong way.
The biggest one I need to get off my chest was the line, "So lawful good they make Captain America look like a criminal". CAPTAIN AMERICA IS LITERALLY A WAR CRIMINAL. THAT IS CANON. Steve Rogers doesn't respect a rule unless it fits HIS idea of what is right and just. Lawful good my ass, he's a goddamn Slytherin to the bone.

Small things like that really got under my skin for some reason, but overall I do think this book was fun and had just the right amount of life lessons to make it worth the read.
The characters were dynamic and interesting, I really enjoyed their relationships. However the book felt maybe a little longer than strictly necessary. I kind of spaced out during the training montage which took up a large component of the book and could have been cut down and filled with more actual action in my opinion.

3.75 Stars. This was a fun and pretty entertaining read. When I saw this book, and read the blurb, I knew there was no way I could pass it up. I was a Girl Scout as a kid, and not a very good scout since I never made it out of Brownies, and I spent half the time being jealous of the Boy Scouts since there got to learn to make fire and get cool pocket knives to play with. So it wasn’t actually the scout thing drawing me in, but when you put “perfect for fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, in your book blurb, well you are basically promising to feed me human catnip. In the end, I don’t know if I really would compare this to Buffy but maybe a little more for fans of Astrid & Lilly Save the World. It has a bit of the same campy feel while also being a little more serious and creepy at times, but overall still entertaining.

While I read a lot of LGBTQ+ books, I want to mention that I would not put that tag on this one. There is a mention of one, very side, character being a lesbian, but other than that there was no other sexuality talk except for some girls and boys pairing-up, like the main character who has a sweet boyfriend. There was some kissing but no sex scenes. This is YA and besides some monster killing violence, and some discussion of death and PTSD, I think this would be an appropriate book for libraries and a wide range of ages.

I really liked the premise of the book. While I have read or seen some things similar, the premise fleshed out as a whole, felt different enough to easily grab my attention. I also liked how important the scouts were, and how great it seemed, yet the main character was really struggling and showing us a different side. I enjoyed the interesting monsters “grubs” and how they were different enough then the common vampires, demons, or ghosts that we are used to people hunting in books. The whole thing was quite fun and clever.

While I enjoyed the book, I wasn’t really blown away. While there were a few funny lines, it felt like the story was missing some more humor or some good snarky comments. I also felt like the pace was a little too up and down for me. At times the story seemed to drag a little, or at least slowed down too much, other times the author purposely fast-forwarded things, which was smart, but I didn’t always like her choices. I found myself wishing some scenes that were longer were shorter and vice-versa. And finally, I thought some of the fighting ‘grub’ scenes were a little clunky. While some worked better than others, I could not always picture the fighting scenes I’m sure the way the author wanted to convey them and I sort of more made them up in my head as I read along.

TLDR: A fun and campy YA read. The whole premise is smart, well done, and just different enough that it works even for readers that read a lot of monster hunting books. The main character and most of the side characters are quite likeable which added to my enjoyment of the book. I did have a few issues with pace and how certain scenes felt a little clunky. I needed better visuals during the fight scenes, and maybe a tad more overall excitement, and then this book might have gone from being enjoyable to an actual favorite of the year. I had a lot of fun with this read but it was just missing some little bits that stopped it from being great.

This is a book that has everything I could ever ask for. Its supernatural with tons of real life issues. There are two great, diverse friend groups, and a bunch of girls that kick butt. This is campy and weird and wonderful.

This book follows Pru, a former Ladybird Scout ( like Girl Scouts but they also kill monsters) who left the scouts after her best friend was killed. Pru suffers from PTSD and although I do not, I think the mental health stuff was great in this. At its core, this is a story about healing, and helping each other to heal. Pru ends up training her own troop, and through that, we see her thrive. She looks after her girls and does her best to make sure they never go through what she did. She can be a mess, but at her core she is good and caring, and that shines through in her deep love for her friends.

The friends in this book are eclectic. There's my favorite, Sasha the Beast, Pru's bestie, and a new scout who accidentally gained the ability to see "grubs". Sasha is guarded, but has her soft moments. She has her girl's backs. Also, she burned down an Old Navy that didn't care plus sizes. There's also Pru's boyfriend, Kyle, and his little sister Kelsey, a new scout. Kyle is sweet, soft and loves cryptids. Kelsey is kinda dorky, but her journey is great, and we really see her blossom by the end of her story. There's also Pru's cousins, Chancho and Avi. Avi is a new scout, and Chancho is a boy who wishes he was a scout. They are both funny and passionate and in Chancho's case, dumb in a fun way. I love the expansive cast of characters in this group, and love how diverse they are. There's someone for every reader to connect with.

Overall, this is my favorite book of the year. Its campy, fun horror with tons of heart and important conversation. Between this and Undead Girl Gang, Lily Anderson is moving up in my list of favorite authors. Read this if you love Scream Queens, the graphic novel Squad or Cemetery boys.

The world can force us to harden ourselves. To lose our emotions and to focus on competition and getting ahead. But Scout's Honor is a love letter to teamwork and friendship, empathy and love. I was immediately obsessed with the world building. It is unique. A blend of what one might think of when you think of scouts, Anderson introduces fantastical into every aspect. From the charm names to the handbook, Scout's Honor is one of truly fantastic those contemporary fantasy blends.

As a heroine, Prue is fantastic. Not only is she dealing with the trauma and loss of her best friend, she's also grappling with this conflict of her monster hunting and her friends. How can we protect someone we love from something they can't see? Something they aren't allowed to know? How true to ourselves, to the things we love, are we being in that moment? Scout's Honor may have originally captured me with the world, but I ended up loving Prue.

Overall: Another paranormal smash hit from Lily Anderson.

Pros:
Campy Paranormal. The exact type of paranormal vibe this cover gave off.
Writing Style. I really wanted to know how this went. I needed to know what was happening.
Trauma. I enjoyed how this topic was handled when it came to our protagonist.

Cons:
Structure. I am not the biggest fan of how the organization was set up.

maybe this review is a few days late, but does that change anything i’m about to say? not even slightly. in fact, it may even make it more true.

scout’s honor was a surprising novel to say the least.

from the cover alone, one would think that this book was that of a queer, light contemporary in which those within a scout’s troop find themselves in the midst of purple pie baking disaster. one glance at the description or even the first page would show that none of that is even close to being true.

except for maybe the queer part.

instead, this novel follows prudence perry, a legacy who was born into both a family and group of scouts dedicated to protecting the entirety of the human race from mulligrabs – parasites who can be found feasting on strong human emotions, most notably sadness and anger. three years before the events of the novel, prudence’s best friend was killed during a hunt and resulted in prudence deciding to leave the scouts for good, much to the dismay of her family. and now, prudence finds herself involved with the troop once more after she attempts to swipe some of their weapons and is instead met with a young group of junior scouts who require her help to fight the wave of demons that are putting everyone they know in danger.

there is no question as to whether or not prudence will help them train or fight, instead, the question is whether prudence will be able to face her own demons or if she will allow them to feast on her own emotions.

this novel was one of my favorites for this year, and i now can't wait to go back and read all of lily anderson's previous work. it seems i have a lot of catching up to do.

scout’s honor by lily anderson came out on april fifth of this year – a special thanks to netgalley and henry holt for this early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Scout's Honor follows former Ladybird Prudence Perry who, as punishment for sneaking out, has to spend her summer training new Ladybird recruits. Although on the surface the Ladybirds are an organization that hosts tea parties and gives back to the community, the knitting-needle wielding Ladybirds guard a terrifying secret: their real job is to banish interdimensional monsters that feed on people's emotions.

I love a good casually paranormal read, and this one was a great time! Though there was plenty of gruesome grub-stabbing, the highlight of this book was getting to see the girls -- and their boys -- come into their own.

Ultimately, the story turned out to be incredibly sweet, and I loved the way that Prue and her friends were able to forge their own path -- a better path!! -- in the Ladybird organization. Though the pessimistic part of me wants to point out that those kinds of Big Organizational Changes would probably not happen, or if they did they wouldn't happen quickly, in real life, it was honestly so pleasant to be in a world in which a huge and important organization like the Ladybirds was generally open to positive change supposedly just from one Tia's incessant bellyaching.

While there weren't really that many queer characters -- most of our main cast seemed to identify as straight and cis, though there was mention of a couple minor (and by minor I mean generally off-screen for the majority of the book) characters who were part of the queer community -- there was a lot of positive talk about homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny. The characters readily pointed out antiquated misogynistic and transphobic rules/traditions within the Ladybird organization, especially in relation to an older rule regarding menstruation, and were quick to propose changes when the opportunity arose at the end of the book.

This book also took the time to get real about anxiety and PTSD, with the characters normalizing rather than stigmatizing, and that was awesome to read. I particularly appreciated how the ultimate resolution of our main character's anxiety disorder and PTSD was not getting rid of it, but rather, in a really practical way, learning to live with it.

Overall this was a lot of fun! A great adventure with a solid cast and a wonderful message of kindness and acceptance and putting good into the world.

This is a fantastic read with an ending that left me extremely satisfied. The characters are amazing-incredibly well drawn, and imperfectly teenagery in a super realistic way. With mystery, romance, and monster slaying gore, it's a great choice for summer, and I'll definitely be booktalking it to our teens. Could possibly pair it with Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall for a graphic novel/regular novel book club read..

I'd recommend this to readers who like stuff like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Stranger Things, or Lumberjanes, but it's also completely its own wonderful story.

Thoughts

This book is absolutely delightful. Lily Anderson does a great job with the super campy and super fun proper-ladies-turned-killer trope . At the same time, this tried-and-true trope has been updated for a modern audience. The impact of blood, violence, and the death of friends on young minds--the true toll of living such a life--aren't left unsaid. The price of being the Chosen Ones is heavy--and that helps to balance out the silly fun of this book to make it something great.

Pros
Campy: This book, as I have already said, is over-the-top and exaggerated in the best way possible. It embraces its tropes. It's all fun concept and better execution. The multidimensional emotion-sucking monsters are extra campy, some good gruesome fun, and the Ladybirds are just as over-the-top in their rituals, though they're grounded in their persons--the perfect balance. This girl gang is pure fun (and not gender-exclusive).

Mental Health Rep: A lot of stories featuring monster-fighting teenagers have emotional backstories involving violent and gruesome deaths at the hands of monsters. These brutal backstories add emotional impact and high stakes, of course, but a lot of writers neglect the impact such experiences would have on mental health. Not so here. Prudence Perry, witness to her best friend's brutal end, struggles. She suffers from PTSD. Her anxiety, already a factor before Molly died, has only increased since. And, in training the new scouts to take up the gauntlet, she doesn't let this experience fall to the wayside. She teaches them to fight monsters, of course, but she also teaches them to care for themselves and for each other--because self-care is important, even in a world of volatile monsters.

Female Friends: A lot of books featuring high school girls in a contemporary setting have these girls pitted against each other. Jealousy, cat fights, and the silent treatment with a heavy side of manipulation is kind of the norm--and I hate that. Here, these girls fit the demographic, but they actually like each other. They support each other as friends and as people. They have fun together without stabbing each other in the back. And their ultimate friend group isn't ladies-only. Their group expands to include a handful of others as well--and without including any sort of unnatural romantic tension.


Cons
Cognitive Jumps: The beginning here, before I as a reader knew exactly what was going on, was a little rough. Prudence, obviously, knows more about the world around her, and she doesn't explain everything outright. The narrative, necessarily, jumps between what she knows (to help readers make sense of her fears and concerns) and what is happening right now. These jumps, between necessary worldbuilding and immediate action, were a bit discombobulating. I wish the worldbuilding had been fitted in a bit more seamlessly at the very start.

Lackluster Training Montage: Of course, there's got to be a training montage here, right? If there was one part of this book that I think didn't embrace "camp" enough, it was the training. What existed was good, but it wasn't enough. I wanted more--which is perhaps a pro also wrapped up in a critique.

Slow Build: It's a good build, but it's a slow build. If you're wanting monsters left and right--with lots of gratuitous stabbing--this one probably isn't for you. I like it. I thought the pace was almost-right. But it's not constant action, lots of fight scenes, or anything like that. It's all about character with a side of monster fighting.

Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
7/10

Those looking for the fun of Gail Carriger's Etiquette and Espionage in an updated setting will enjoy this new group of monster hunters. Anyone who appreciated the socially-anxious main character of Tricia Levenseller's Blade of Secrets will love these new girls and their focus on self-care.

This was one of the most unique books I have read so far this year. I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book but the description was so interesting I had to give this a chance and I am so glad I did.
The concept of a girl scout type group being a front for a magical organization that kills giant bug like creatures is everything! That alone is reason to pick up this book but if you need more this book has it all. The main character is amazing and I freaking adore her for her sarcastic comments and very real depiction of PTS and anxiety. The side character are amazing and I want them all to be my friends. Plus this book is packed full of action. This literally has it all. Please do yourself a favor and check this book out.

YES i loved this!! lily anderson does it again with this creepy, gory and hilarious romp. i found the plot to be utterly unique and the characters to be fresh and funny.

5 stars!!

Huge fan of how fun and camp this book was! I also appreciate how this book discusses PTSD and trauma and other mental illnesses paired with the monster fighting aspects of this book. It gave the paranormal a realistic edge that added something special and memorable.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Title: Scout's Honor
Author: Lily Anderson
Rating: 4/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: April 5, 2022

I am going to say that I enjoyed this book. It was not a new favorite but I definitely need up enjoying it overall. There were a couple of times, especially near the beginning, where I was just not getting into the story and the pacing felt off but once we entered into the later half things really started to fall into place and I was having a lot of fun. The premise is great and the characters were fun to hang out with.

So for the general premise of this book imagine if the Girl Scouts were tasked with defending the world from monsters. I know it sounds awesome and I personally thought it was pretty cool. I loved the secret society aspect and the interpersonal relationships that developed from there. I was never a Girl Scout but I have done 4-H for 10 years and FCCLA for 6 so I still get the idea of dedicating so much of your life to service organizations. In premise this book is awesome and it only falls a little bit on the execution.

I also want to give this book points for having a MC who really and truly looks like me. I have never up to this point found a book with a protagonist who looked like me so when I read her description, a very pale short girl of Puerto Rican descent, I was so happy. I cannot stress the importance of feeling represented in media enough so this is a great find. In a similar vein, I also loved the general vibes of this book with its focus on topics such as PTSD and anxiety. I do not in any way condone or appreciate the amount of underaged debauchery and engagement in the consumption of illegal substances, but not every character can be perfect and these things do make sense for the character.

For my next tangent topic for this review, I would like to briefly gush over the cover. AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! I love the cover so much, it is just so much fun. I love things like this which at first glance appear all girly but are actually a little morbid and dangerous. That actually serves as a pretty good evaluation of the whole story. At first girly but in actuality, badass and dangerous.

I could continue but I think that this is a pretty great evaluation of how much I enjoyed this book. I definitely recommend it for a certain type of person and if the premise intrigued you that is probably you. Additionally, if you want a book with similar vibes then I highly recommend Magic Mutant Nightmare Girl.

Fans of Anderson's previous YA books are sure to enjoy this one as well. Imagine if Girl Scouts hunted monsters instead of crafts and camping and selling cookies. Add a healthy dose of banter and team building and you've got Scout's Honor.

Lily Anderson, you are my new best friend.

I had a lot of fun with this book. Reading about cool, diverse women saving the day is the dream.

I had a couple of issues with the pacing of the book, but nothing that cannot be overlooked.

I cannot wait what else Anderson has in store for us!

Does the sound of a monster slaying Girl Scout troop pique your interest? Well, you might just enjoy Scout's Honor!

Prudence Perry left the scouts after seeing her friend die, and it's left her with some scars. She has a plan to be done with the Scouts for good, but to do that, she has to go back and train up new Ladybird initiates. Easier said than done.

I really enjoyed this novel. Not only did I get to read about a troop of monster slayers, but the book deals with mental illness and PTSD it very real ways. Not only does Prudence recognize the faults of her once beloved Ladybird Troops, but she works through her own trauma while helping the newest girls work through their own issues. A very well done book with characters that are easy to love and root for.

I really loved this book and couldn’t put it down once I started reading it. 16 yr old Prudence Perry is a third generation Ladybird Scout who mission is to protect humans from mulligrubs which are interdimensional parasites that manifest and feed on human emotions like sadness and anger and the society masquerades as a prim and proper ladies organization all white gloves and tea drinking. Prudence quit the ladybirds 3 years ago when her best friend was killed during a hunt if front of her and the rest of her troop and she has had PTSD and Anxiety ever since and just can’t stomach going back in the field. Unable to deal with seeing the mulligrubs anymore she is trying to get her hands on some Tea of Forgetting which will make her forget she can see any of grubs anymore and forgot about all she learned about them too. She just wants a normal life with her boyfriend Kyle and her group of friends nicknamed the Criminal Element but when she is coerced into training her cousin and Kyles little sister Kelsey she finds herself falling back into old habits. She realizes that how the girls are trained isn’t great and the competition that fostered even within a group with the national leaderboard where you register points for every kill you do the bigger the more points and if you stay on top you can get a scholarship to college. Prue also realizes that her trauma isn’t going to go away if she forgets about the grubs that it will still be there she just won’t be able to see what you she should be fighting. This was so great and so reminiscent of Buffy and the whole chosen one ideology especially with it only being the girls that are the ones pressured to fight the grubs if a boy manifests with the sight in the legacy families they don’t have any obligation to do anything with that talent.

Thanks to Macmillan Children’s Group and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book in e-book form. All opinions in this review are my own.