I really liked this book! I enjoyed the dreamy narrative style, although at times I wished for a little more clarity around significant events in the plot. I liked Laurel, and I like that she's a complex protagonist who sometimes makes bad choices. I liked Isaac and Garrett, although at times I wished they were a little more fleshed out. Overall, a really solid, enjoyable read.

DNF at 22% / A really great concept, but just wasn't really for me and I could not get into it and struggled to pay attention.

This book had some serious potential, but when it got down to the actual story, there was much there. There was very little set up, the entire thing was disjointed, scenes come from nowhere and end up nowhere. The entire story could have been told in about half the time. The characters backstories were very random, and didn’t do anything to tie the story together. Why did there need to be any love interests for any of the main characters? Just felt extra and totally unnecessary. The only saving grace, that it almost got the spookiness right.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for my review.

4.5
This was absolutely one of my favorite reads of the year so far, and it swept me off my feet right from the beginning with its lush, atmospheric prose and distinct sense of self. However, while the quality of the prose and the particularly visceral nature of its descriptors were consistent throughout, I found myself expecting slightly more from the plot, which felt like 80% slow build and set-up, creating a sense of meandering.

Overall, however, I thoroughly enjoyed this book as an experience. I would recommend this to readers who appreciate decadent prose and clever writing, and are less focused on fast-paced, twisty plots.

What really draws you into this book is the lyrical, magical language the author uses. From the first page, I was sucked into the atmosphere of this story: the nature, rot, magic, and death of it. This book is pure gothic Americana.

The main storyline unfolds pretty slowly, which was something I didn't mind because it gave space to more intricately explore topics of grief, growing up, and the complicated relationships between all the characters. The idea that someone is almost the right fit for you, that the main characters struggle over whether to stay or leave their small town, and the conflicts that creates, was something I loved to read about. It gave the lyrical writing an anchor even as the plotline was slow to unfold. I also found this book's exploration of grief really lovely. These are topics and themes with no easy answers or solutions, which is what I appreciated about them.

However, this is why I didn't really love the ending. It seemed like all these complicated themes were wrapped up too neatly. Laurel's storyline with her mother, Isaac and Garrett's relationship, and Laurel and Ricky's were all resolved too easily and quickly. It felt like all the problems and tension set up earlier were forgotten about for the sake of getting characters together. It also seemed that once the characters had the slightest grasp of the magic in the story, they were able to resolve problems with the snap of a finger. A lot of scenes I would have loved to see on the page were left out and the final showdown was over pretty quickly. I needed more pages for the ending.

Despite that, I loved this story. The writing was beautiful and the gothic elements were woven really nicely into the conflicts that weren't magical, such as the relatable struggle of a young person in a small town deciding whether to stay or go. The writing alone, the slow creeping of the narrative, won me over. While I didn't like the ending, the rest of it was amazing.

the most wonderful Midwestern Gothic book I've read in a long time. the magic is so cool and all the characters are visceral and interesting. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. some wonderful LGBT representation too! Issac and Garrett were so real and I adore them.
laurel is someone id love to be friends with. heck I've had friends like laurel. she's wonderful.
everything about the small town vibes was really realistic and I appreciated the nostalgia. even the get me the fuck out of here feelings lol

This book is what I wanted from 'Wilder Girls' but did not get. It's a small-town horror novel with sufficient body horror and LGBTQ+ characters whose personalities are more than just their identities. It's definitely on the heavier side and deals with themes that are not suitable for everybody but if you are able to handle these topics it makes for a meaningful and thought-provoking read.
I'm a huge fan of Kilcoyne's writing style, it's the right amount of intriguing, vivid, and easy to read that makes me fall right into everything she is describing to me.
Laurel as our main character is....interesting to say the least. She's not the most likeable character I've seen and sometimes her choices were questionable and I disagreed with them but she was also interesting and having an 'unlikeable' MC is a nice change of pace. I say unlikeable because she does not fit into the 'hero/golden child' that a lot of YA main characters tend to.
I do have some problems with the book though, nothing insanely critical but I do want to acknowledge them.
My main criticism is that I firmly believe this book would have been better off as an Adult or New Adult (18+) novel rather than a YA (13+) novel. The characters are all roughly college-aged and I just think that the overall vibes and story would have benefited from an older age rating.
The plot itself got a little muddled as the book went on and by the end of the book, I did struggle to remember plot points from earlier on.
Overall though I found this book to be an intriguing and interesting mix of horror and fantasy and if these are genres you find yourself interested in and you can handle the heavier content and themes, then I think it's worth checking out when the book is released on July 12, 2022.

The following list of trigger warnings come right from the author, Elizabeth Kilcoyne's website:
Some of the thematic material in Wake the Bones involves mental and physical abuse, violence, and suicide. Additionally, the book includes dental trauma, guns, postpartum depression, drug usage, animal death, and blood.

Wake the Bones started out with a lot of promise but by the end I was very ready to put this story down.

The setting is vivid and it felt like the author took time in crafting her words delicately. The prose is beautiful in many places but for the bulk of the book, it felt disjointed and over the top superfluous.

In some spots, it’s as though preteens are talking.
“I’ve still got options. I’ve got a future.”
“Well, all I’ve got is magic.”

In other places, it’s like a pretentious 20 year old is. I’m all for flowery writing but in moderation. When every other line is so thick, it becomes more grating than anything else.

Magic is oddly incorporated and it’s functionality is not well explained at all. It’s inconsistent with no rational as to why. For example, Christine is rumored to be the town witch and hated for it, as if they all take pleasure in talking shit about the weird girl. But then all of a sudden, Laurel spits out that she’s magical and casting spells of sorts, fighting demons and it’s no big deal. Everyone (except her uncle) accepts it immediately? The characters are one dimensional and flat. Their personalities and motivations can be summed up in one line. The plot moves along painfully slow. It’s covered up by the sheer volume of dialogue and descriptive text but you’re saying a lot of nothing. It was one long filibuster of a book, and at a short 320 pgs, that’s not a good thing.

The bones here are good (see what I did there?) but the author struggled to give any real substance to support them. A for effort. 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

While not the most thrilling adventure I've ever been on, Wake the Bones will be a good read for people who like a dense, spooky atmosphere. I found it difficult to vibe with the main character and her "will I won't I" on and off again feelings for the main love interest. The queer best friend was a nice touch, especially his relationship with the small town they live in, but where I wanted a strong horror fantasy I got a slow burn trickle with nothing more than vaguely spooky vibes.

Wake the Bones is a deliciously creepy atmospheric fantasy-horror mix that completely consumed me from the first page. It's weird and unlike anything I've ever read, and actually reminded me a lot of The Raven Boys series. I adored how flawed and strongly written these characters were, and it's nearly impossible to describe how much I loved Laurel's character.

Just read it.

kinda cool, kinda confusing. marketing this as a ya is an interesting choice, characters are in their early 20s and the subject matter veers on NA. The way it ended left me hallow but not in a good way, like the entire book was missing something essential.

This book is definitely geared toward the higher end of the YA spectrum and I, loved every second of it!! The setting,creepy atmosphere and visceral descriptions made the world jump off the page from the get go. However the characterization fell flat in some parts, the jump between narrator's felt a little jarring and unnecessary amd just didn't feel fully fleshed out, yet still something about the world and our main character laurel made this book so gripping and completely irrestibable to put down. A thrilling debut and I cannot wait to see where the author goes next!

If I could give 3 and a half stars, I would. This book isn't super terrible, but it's also VERY confusing most of the time.

Wake the Bones follows a small ragtag group of friends in a small farming town as they try to navigate both the devil that's lurking in the very soil and their growing pains of growing older in such a small space. Laurel is the main character and she must find her inner magic in order to save her friends and apparently the world too from a devil that her mother failed to banish.

I'm not going to lie, the book's prose is very beautiful with amazing language that definitely paints a good picture. The only problem is, half the time I don't know what that picture is because the language takes over the actual plot. I honestly still don't know what happened during the middle and end of the book, but I will say that the last probably 20% of the book moves very quickly and I was drawn in, it was just a drag getting to that part. The last chapter though? Zero clue what actually happened and it felt more like it was just dropped in without much explanation. Is a character dead? Are they not? ZERO IDEA.

Overall, it is beautiful with the way the author worked in the horror piece to the story, but not something I would pick up again or probably recommend to a friend. Just an okay book.

After dropping out of college, Laurel is back in the town she previously escaped from and reunited with her friends. The town she grew up in is anything but normal though. Strange things are happening in town and things are only getting stranger. I really enjoyed this book and the characters. It gave me TRC vibes which is a huge compliment coming from me since that is my favorite book series. Wake The Bones is a bit creepier though. I loved the creepy small town horror vibes.

Omg. First of all, this book was amazing. I was hooked from the very first page. The prose is fantastic. Dark and lush, it' grabbed and wouldn't let go! This story has a very creepy feel, perfect for the southern gothic genre (complete with animal corpses lol). It's a twisted love story filled with magic, small town horror, and the past coming back for seconds. It's slated as YA, but read more upper YA, which is common for Wednesday Books. I love every second of this story and can't wait to read the final version when it release in July! 100% would recommend.

This book was hard to read. I had to skim so much of it just to get through it all. At the end I felt like I was dragging myself to the finish line. So much of it was confusing; Laurel’s mom, the magic, the devil… all of it was poorly structured and lacked depth.

Wake the Bones has as wonderfully spooky concept. It starts off genuinely fast-paced with some truly spooky features to it. However, after a while, the thrill seemed to quell and it slowed down for me.

I really enjoyed the atmosphere the most. This was more of an “it’s not you, it’s me” feeling. I think most others would enjoy this book as for it is certainly unique. I, personally, just wanted to enjoy it more than I actually did.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced copy.

Laurel Early just recently dropped out of college without telling anyone. Has moved back to her family’s farm and is desperately trying to forget the guy she loves. During the time on the farm Laurel is giving it her all to resume her some what normal life of a taxidermist and tobacco hand until the devil from her past arrives. With the soil beneath her feet coming alive and the bones walking, Laurel must use her magic to unravel her moms past and save the life around her.

I don’t know. I really don’t know what I read and really how I feel about it. All I know is I did not love it. There were parts of the book that just got me. Held me to my seat and made me fly through the pages. Then there were other that dragged. That had no spark, no action, no emotions, just black words across the paper. What I did love was how this was a fantasy story with walking bones, the devil, monsters and still the characters lived normal lives. They dealt with normal problems. The characters developed nicely and went through their own day to day problems and life. And, I’m always a sucker for multiple POVs!

Wake the Bones is delightfully dark and oozing with atmosphere. It's prose are haunting, heartbreaking, and intensely human.
You'll follow Laurel Early as she withdraws from college and returns home to the family farm, a farm that's haunted by a tragic past and an uncertain future. You'll meet a handful of Laurels childhood friends and come to intimatly understand how living in a small southern town has shaped each of them.
The author masterfully builds a looming feeling of dread that gets heavier and heavier as you turn each page. I felt true otherworldly terror within these pages, terror that was greatly enhanced by the juxtaposition of so many familiar, human moments.
Wake the Bones isn't just one thing. It's part horror, part coming off age story, a look at loss, and a smart and sobering peek into the live of folks living in the"fly over" states. I think this story is one that will connect with many.
I'm in awe that this is a debut novel! I'll most certainly be picking up whatever this author offers up next!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

What have we got here? A well paced, atmospheric read with great characters, that’s what!
After escaping the small town, Laurel Early drops out of college and returns home to tobacco farming, taxidermy, and her three close friends - quite an interesting trifecta right there, hooked me from the beginning. There’s a eerie presence on her farm which manifests as dead carcasses, blood, ghosts and walking bone monsters - so, plenty to keep you hooked. The plot develops as Laurel is trying to figure out what is going. It takes us into the past and the circumstances surrounding her mother’s apparent suicide. We explore how the past is shaping the horror that Laurel is currently living. My heart broke when death comes calling, but leapt for joy at a rather unexpected ending. I really liked that ending.
The characters are great. We’ve got Isaac Graves, Laurel’s best friend. He is desperate to escape the small town and his abusive father. He is trying to ignore the pull he has toward Garrett because it would only make it more difficult to leave. We’ve got Garrett whose in love Isaac and makes no secret of it. There’s a potential love interest for Laurel in Ricky, Garrett’s brother. Finally, we have Christine - our resident psychic. She knows what is happening and is the only one that can help Laurel. I found the characters developed well as the story unfolded.
This is a solid debut novel. Worth the time that I took to read it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishing for granting me a copy of the eBook to read and review.