(pasted from my Instagram review)

🕷️ 𝗣𝗨𝗕 𝗗𝗔𝗬 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪 🕷️

𝗢𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲
𝗕𝘆 𝗧𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗠𝗰𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝗹
𝟰𝟲𝟰 𝗽𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀
𝗣𝘂𝗯: 𝟮/𝟭𝟰/𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯

𝘐𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦.

As some of you know, Tiffany McDaniel is one of my favorite authors, and Betty is one of my favorite books. So when Tiffany herself reached out to me late last summer and asked that I read and review her upcoming novel, I was ecstatic! On the Savage Side did not disappoint.

This is one of the most difficult reviews I'll write. Nothing I can say will properly describe this book, and with a character limit, I won't even try. It's like trying to sum up your entire life in 100 words -- impossible! Instead, I'll encourage you to read the publisher's synopsis, and I'll include some brief words about how this book made me feel... because you can't read a Tiffany McDaniel novel without a whole lot of feeling.

💭 On the Savage Side is a profoundly moving novel that reaches down into the depths of your soul. This book is savage and brutal; honest and sorrowful. McDaniel's writing is impactful! Her talent for lyrical prose is unparalleled. Her poetic use of words paint the most beautiful pictures. She breathes life into the inanimate, gives voice to the voiceless, and humanizes the inhumane.

This book will not be for everyone. And I don't even recommend it for everyone. This is a special kind of book for a very specific reader. But if you're up for a challenging, deeply emotional read, I absolutely recommend it.

This is not a quick read, as the reader must often pause to consider the meaning of the words. It's a book to be savored. It took me weeks to read, as I often needed breaks due to the content.
The content is VERY dark and heavy, so do check trigger warnings.

Thank you @aaknopf , @netgalley and Tiffany McDaniel for sending me a widget. This was brilliant, and I expected nothing less. ❤️
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I was more than a little surprised to see On the Savage Side was coming out on Valentine's Day. This was such a heavy read, and chock full of trauma and devastation. But the love of twin sisters Arcane and Daffodil endured through many a hardship, so maybe it's not so surprising after all.

On the Savage Side follows the twins as their story bounces back from their childhood to adult life. As children, they endure their days with a drug addicted mother and aunt, who both have a constant rotation of Johns in and out of their home. As adults they still struggle with their lives, and the aftermath of their childhood traumas live on as a reminder every day.

This was such a heartbreaking read, and a reminder to all those forgotten living on the savage side of life.

4/5 stars

There is some good news in the world to report. Tiffany McDaniel has a new book out. It's called On the Savage Side and it has all the great writing and storytelling that was in Betty. It's a stor about twin sisters and their life on the savage side. They are poor and live with their widowed mother who is a drug addict and their grandmother who i not perfect herself. . The story bounces back and forth between their childhood and their life as adults. The story also has a built in mystery of missing girls who drown in a lake nearby. Is it a serial killer? It's based on a true story. The nut of the story if how the life you you are given may not turn out the way you expected and how your parents and surroundings has a huge effect on where you will go in life. It deals with drugs, poverty, sexual abuse, and empowerment. This is a book you will pick up and savor the pages and then put down to truly absorb them and then pick it up and continue the journey of the two twins. It has moments of joy but mostly heartbreak. Tiffany McDaniel is truly a talent. I highy recommend this book for book clubs or that friend that you love to pass on a great book to. Thank you to #knopf and #netgalley. It was an honor to read this advance copy.

It's ironic to me that this book is published on Valentine's Day because it's as far from a romance as you can get. Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of love - some self love (but not enough), sisterly love, and the love between women. There is love of earth and life and all things living.

But there is also a tremendous amount of darkness.

If you're a person who avoids books because of certain trigger warnings, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. Seriously. I don't even need to tell you a single trigger warning because this book has them all. I mean it.

It's brutal, SAVAGE as the title suggests, disgusting, at times horrifically upsetting, and completely and utterly devastating. But it's also incredible and superbly written and beneath the themes of hate and cruelty and addiction, there is beauty and hope.

This is my first novel by McDaniel and wow can she write. Reading the synopsis I expected your run of the mill thriller/ mystery with a touch of true crime and really, this is nothing like that. It's a book about broken women, a broken family, a broken town, and a world that doesn't care about its broken things. It's a book you hope to never relate to at all, yet you can see a little bit of yourself with every passing page.

This is a novel that sticks with you. For the parts that were almost too hard to read, for the parts that flooded my eyes with tears, and for the parts that had me rooting for these lost and broken queens, it's one I'll never forget.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Thank you to the Publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own. Comes out February 14. My review will be posted on Instagram, goodreads, Bookbub, and Amazon once it publishes.

3.5⭐This was my first book by Tiffany McDaniel and after seeing so many rave reviews for her other books AND this one, I was eager to read this.This was a very DARK book, and have many triggers, such as violence against women, drug abuse, and sexual assault against children. I saw everyone saying the writing was poetic. I will say the writing was very good. I'd say lyrical. This is a style of writing that I'm not used to and don't really read many books like this, so at times the metaphors just did make sense to me. I also felt like this book was overly long and didn't need to be.

This is about two twin sister's, Daffodil and Arcade who have grown up among addicts, with their mother being a heroin addict and a sex worker. They have pretty much raised themselves. It goes back and forth throughout the twins' childhood and adulthood, and all of the struggles they've dealt with in their lives. They are not only abused by "John's" and other druggies, but also people with authority.

So this book is definitely one I won't forget anytime soon, but I just felt like it wasn't a great fit for me. I would still recommend it because it was so well written, and I know it's a story others will really get into.

Beautifully written but ultimately not the read for me Readers who enjoy historical fiction will find much to love here.. Much commentary on girls who live ( and die ) with poverty and violence. The book was well researched and the characters fleshed out. Even the river was a character in this book. The author is clever and talented. While I didn't completely enjoy this particular story I will seek out more of her work. Thank you to net galley and the publisher for an Arc of this book

“𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗽 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲’𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻,” 𝗺𝘆 𝗮𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱.

This novel is about women and girls who live on the savage side, those that go unprotected, are treated like garbage, are without options and see hope die with each passing birthday that isn’t celebrated with presents and birthday cakes. Girls who lose their beauty to harshness of rough living and the bruises of savage hands, who turn to drugs to escape the hell on earth they exist in and run to violent men because they know their destiny is death. This novel is “inspired by the unsolved murders of the Chillicothe Six”, women from the wrong side, invisible women who didn’t matter to most, prostitutes and drug addicts who disappeared and were brutally murdered. In McDaniel’s fictionalization, the river knows and sees all, carries the dead. The dead can’t save us.

Twins Arcade and Daffodil are fatherless (he overdosed) girls growing up with their drug addicted mother and aunt in Ohio. They spend their childhood exposed to the bad men their mother and aunt bring home, confused by the filthy words the town calls them. Sex isn’t love in the house they live in, only a means of support that only the ‘johns’ can provide. They know more about escapism then fairy-tales but it doesn’t stop Arc and Daffodil from dreaming of a better world, of future happiness. Avoiding the men isn’t easy, those who are like a shadow in your bedroom, and if you make a noise, he will kill everyone in your house. Sisters who love each other often take the devil into themselves to spare their sibling, but salvation doesn’t come to the poor side of town. The one good thing in their lives is their Mawmaw Milkweed (grandmother), who fills them with love and stories, teaches them that the earth and water are bound to them, both with one blue eye and one green. Daffodil loves swimming in the water, Arcade loves to dig the ground and both, according to their mother, are ‘two halves of the same’. They are thick as thieves, and as they get older, the love hanging out in their special spot by the river, where a 1950s convertible is theirs for the digging. The rusted-out car, through their wild imagining, becomes a time machine but there is no escaping their fate and their isn’t a time where women are safe from men. Along with their friends, they ponder ‘the eye of God’ on the river, while hungering for dope. The reader enters the stories of each of the girls, understanding what brought their fall. Mawmaw Milkweed once told the girls there are two sides to life, the savage side and the beautiful side, but trapped in the present, they’ve never known anything but the savage. It’s a beautiful dream, imagining escaping the future the women of their family always end up in, but it gets harder believing in it when every chance goes up in smoke and the devil is after you.

We read about the time when Mawmaw Milkweed was around, the pain after her death and their adolescence wrapped in violence after they discover the body of a dead woman on the river, someone they knew of. These women, seen as no better than floating refuse, aren’t important enough to investigate beyond assuming they are just junkies who overdosed- but there is a serial killer out there. Who is killing them? Why? While this terror is happening, the way the sisters are living is an education no girl should receive. The illusion their bodies have power doesn’t make prostitution any easier to embrace. They can get through anything, they always have, if they have each other but it’s a mean survival. Daffy is slipping away, blowing her one ticket out of the savage side, and Arc is naive enough to think she can save her. Arc swore to protect Daffy, but with highway man in the equation, it may cost her more than a pound of flesh.

This is a visceral novel, you can smell the stink of the papermill, the rancid stench of unclean bodies, and the rot of fear. I didn’t need to close my eyes to see the river, the bodies, the dusty, broken town and its women. It’s impossible for me to read about the abuse of children and women without feeling rage and disgust. If you look deeper, as McDaniel forces readers to do, it’s not so easy to dismiss people who turn to drugs and prostitution in desperation for escape and survival. We live in a world that is wildly divided, scratch beneath the surface of any pretty town and you will find horror stories like this, it isn’t surprising Tiffany found her inspiration from the Chillicothe Six, sometimes we tell stories to try and understand brutality. We often discard human beings who need the most help and let us not forget the ‘they deserved it’. There is a long history of the poor disappearing, being brutally murdered without much consequence or concern, so long as it isn’t affecting the fine citizens hy bother to solve the crime? On The Savage Side is a hard novel to digest, because it is too close to reality. I am reminded of Joyce Carol Oates writing, both she and McDaniel don’t shy away from putting a spotlight on inhumanity, the darker side of people. It’s important, because if you pretend it doesn’t exist, you are allowing evil to occur. It will trigger people, it’s meant to, because how else can you see what has happened, and continues to occur, if you close your eyes to it? That is it out on Valentine’s Day seems poignant, what love is greater than that of two sisters who want better for each other? Yes, another solid, heavy read from Tiffany McDaniel- read it!

Publication Date: February 14, 2023 Available Today

Knopf

i'm not that big of a fan of historical fiction/western or southern type dialogue in books (like how this was). i'm not really sure how to describe those sort of books and writing, so yeah. however, even though i didn't really enjoy this at first, i still appreciated the kind of book it was and the author's writing. i've been wanting to read one of her books for a while, so i was really excited to get the ARC for this. i feel like i might enjoy her other works more, so i'm going to check those out, too. i started to really enjoy this book at the end and really liked (and was surprised by) some of the decisions the author made based on the plot and the overall writing. i also really liked the little images and bits that were included, and i thought it was a pretty interesting touch to the book, making it different from so many other books. overall, this was a really good and interesting book, even though the premise/dialogue/setting isn't something i would normally gravitate to or enjoy. i feel like people who like that sort of thing more would enjoy this way more than me, but i still enjoyed it altogether.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC !!

Wow, what an incredibly well written book. Heartbreaking and powerful - this book made me speechless. The characters, the descriptions, the struggles, the strength - a testament to women (especially missing women everywhere). I don't even know where to start with my review, except to say, go read this immediately. But make sure to bring the tissues. Such a dark and powerful read.
The book is about six women who all go missing in a small town in Ohio and was inspired by the unsolved murders of the Chillicoth Six. It follows twin sisters, Arcade and Daffodil who can't escape the ghosts that follow their family. They cling to one another as those closest to them start to disappear. Arcade is wrestling with the memories of her past when Arcade and her friends find the first woman. Will she be able to keep herself and her sister safe?
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

I had to admit that this was just not the book for me. The premise sounded so up my alley and I have heard nothing but great things about the author... however, I just found the prose to be SO overwritten. I cannot immerse myself in a story where children are speaking only in metaphors. The intense subject matter didn't turn me away, I just think this authors writing style doesn't vibe well with me. I am positive this book will have many fans though!

On the Savage Side by Tiffany McDaniel is a story written based on the unsolved murder case of the Chillicothe Six. The story is told via the perspective of twin sisters, Arcade and Daffodil, growing up in dire circumstances with a drug addicted mother engaged in unsafe sex work. The narrative is told from both past and present perspectives and as readers we are introduced to the different characters in the lives of the girls- the ones who will harm them and the ones who normalize the harm being done.

Tiffany McDaniel has a viscerally honest approach to writing complex trauma on the page and holds nothing back in this latest release. Definitely check out content warnings before reading. I use Storygraph.

As the twins grow older, the danger they encounter only intensifies and there is no way to escape their circumstances. It's a haunting read but I think that's the point- to show the humanity of the woman our society chooses to forget.

On the Savage Side shows the violence endured by women and the way society trivializes these disappearances especially among women who engage in sex work or are deemed "unholy." Tiffany McDaniel is a skilled writer that is able to highlight the beauty in the bond between sisters despite their situation.

The plot twist at the end, however surprising, further drives the point home that while survival requires sacrifice, sacrifice does not guarantee survival especially for vulnerable women.
Thank you to the author and publisher for the e-arc copy!

Another powerful family saga from the author of Betty. Based loosely on the Chillicothe Six - six real missing and murdered women in Ohio, this story follows twin sisters Arcade and Daffodil as they grow up with an addict mother and a loving grandmother who is tragically killed.

With only each other to rely on, this book explores how vulnerable girls and women living on the outskirts of society often are. At times really difficult to read, the author doesn't shy away from sexual assault, rape, child abuse and neglect, prostitution, drug use (heroin) abortion, pregnancy loss and so much more.

My heart literally broke for these two girls and they did the best they could to survive - even trying to help stand up for other murdered women no one else was interested in fighting for. Great on audio but a bit longer than necessary in my opinion. It's definitely a time commitment to get through this one.

Recommended for fans of books like One two three by Laurie Frankel or Long bright river by Liz Moore. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

This is a powerful and beautifully written book. When I pick up a book, I hope that it makes me feel something, even if what I end up feeling is uncomfortable. This book did exactly that. It could be hard to read at times since it deals with drug use and sexual abuse but I am so glad that I did. This was a visceral story that I won’t soon forget.

This story follows a set of twins, Arc and Daffy, from childhood until their early adult years. The bulk of the story is told from Arc’s point of view. I felt the desperation along with Arc and Daffy and wanted to see them come out on top even though the deck was very much stacked against them. Their mother and aunt are prostitutes and drug addicts and to say that their home life is lacking is an understatement. Their grandmother was a bright spot in their childhood. My heart broke over some of the decisions that they made but I love the fact that I was able to understand why they did what they did.

Catherine Taber did an amazing job with this audiobook. This was such an emotional story and I thought that she did a great job of expressing those emotions through her narration. I believe that this is the first time that I have had the chance to listen to this narrator’s work and I was quite impressed. I found her voice to be very pleasant and I do believe that her performance added to my enjoyment of the story.

I would recommend this book to others. I would encourage any reader with triggers to look up trigger warnings for this book before diving in. Scenes from this book will live in my mind for a very long time and the writing is absolutely gorgeous. I cannot wait to read more of this author’s work.

I received a review copy of this book from Knopf and Penguin Random House Audio.

This book—based on the unsolved murders/disappearances of six real-life women in Chillicothe, Ohio—is haunting, hypnotic, and so powerful in its authenticity. It is one of the most brutal books I've ever read and yet still somehow quite beautiful. The direct gut-punch of unflinching descriptions of "the savage side" of life (the title is woven in the most heart-wrenching way) is stunning to behold. Some of the things that make me squirm most are vivid descriptions of drug abuse…and this book has some of the realest - and yet almost poetic - images I’ve read. And, as I’ve often said, it’s particularly hard for me to read about children suffering and being abused or neglected. Ooooooof on all counts here. These twin girls, Arcade and Daffodil Poet, who we follow through childhood into young adulthood, are some of the most unforgettable child characters I’ve ever read. And their grandmother, Mamaw Milkweed, broke my heart in so many ways. This book is a searing portrait of a community ravaged by the opioid crisis, the compounding complexities of growing up poor in an uncaring world, and trying to navigate and survive womanhood through violent realities. It’s an elegy to the women in the dark shadows of this country, who disappear both literally and figuratively every day. I am in awe of what Tiffany McDaniel did in this book—what a testament to the power of words to hurt us, heal us, and teach us hard truths. I couldn’t put this book down, even as I squirmed or cried. Now excuse me while I go eat comfort treats and get lost in a fluffy book to try to unsee some of this.💔 This was a five star read for me.

“At these times, the river says, I remember you. Who you were. I will listen to what you have to say. I will return your name to you, even as you disappear.”

Tiffany McDaniel’s writing is mesmerizing in this harrowing read about the Chillicothe Six victims. This is my first time reading from McDaniel and I was enthralled by the writing and vivid descriptions of the river, the characters, the metaphors used to advance the story are like nothing I’ve ever read before.

Arcade and Daffodil are inseparable, they share everything. Their hopes, desires for their futures, their imagination, their love for their grandma and their generational misfortunes that they are struggling to get free from. Living in small Chillicothe, Ohio feeds their imaginations and their strengthens the twins’ relationships.

On the Savage Side is masterful in its depictions of fear, poverty and a child's ability to cope with their circumstances. The horror these girls are subjected to because of their mother’s own hardships and struggles with addiction is heartbreaking and a hard pill to swallow.

McDaniel expertly paints life in a small rural town into a fully immersive and captivating backdrop to a story of sisterhood in a time where women in Chillicothe are disappearing and their bodies are found in the river.

However, it would be absurd to recommend this book solely on its use of language. While the writing is beautiful, the subject matter is hard to get through and very bleak. The descriptions of hardship, addiction, child abuse and domestic violence is harrowing. My biggest issue With the book is that there seems to be very little respite from the brutal events that take place. The subject matter is vivid and McDaniel doesn’t hold back in her descriptions of these harsh events that shape Arc and Daffy.

Massive trigger warning for child neglect, addiction, drug use, domestic violence, child rape, rape, alcohol abuse, miscarriage.

3.5 stars rounded up

Thank you to NetGalley for the eArc.

This book was simultaneously beautiful and devastating all at once. I wasn’t sure what to think in the beginning, where addicts and children spoke like poets in a poverty-stricken town. Then it all made sense. I’m haunted by this gorgeously harrowing tale of the Chillicothe Six. This was wonderful and I’ll be hurting for days after finishing this story. I don’t think that it’s ever been more worth it.

On The Savage side was heartbreaking, stunning and a must read. I read Betty last year and I knew I had to read the author’s latest. I was not disappointed and have found a new auto-read author!

On The Savage Side is a hard read, as it goes into extreme detail about drug use and abuse. The author has a lyrical way of writing that sweeps you away with the story and makes you feel all the feelings. I loved this book!

I can still remember reading Jessica Bowl’s post swooning over the book, Betty .

I mean, if Jessica Biel is recommending it , I had to buy it . This is the day I was introduced to one of my now, most favored authors, Tiffany McDaniel.

After reading Betty and then being introduced to the cover for On The Savage Side, you can under and my surprise .

Okay now McDaniel, I see you flexing .

Being able to write multiple genres takes talent and that is definitely McDaniel’s strong suit .

Fun Fact : McDaniel has also written, The Summer That Melted Everything.

On The Savage Side, is based on a true story and opened my eyes to the women gone missing in Ohio. I must have googled questions and read articles for days after concluding this book. I was completely consumed and obsessing over what I had read . I couldn’t think of a better author to write this kind of book and give the missing women voices .

As always, McDaniels just handed us our new favorite book .

Teaser :

Six women—mothers, daughters, sisters—gone missing. Inspired by the unsolved murders of the Chillicothe Six, this harrowing novel tells the story of two sisters, both of whom could be the next victims, from the internationally best-selling author of Betty.


Arcade and Daffodil are twins born one minute apart. With their fiery red hair and thirst for escape, they form an unbreakable bond nurtured by their grandmother’s stories. Together, they disappear into their imaginations and forge a world all their own.

But what the two sisters can’t escape are the generational ghosts that haunt their family. Growing up in the shadow of their rural Ohio town, the sisters cling tightly to one another. Years later, Arcade wrestles with the memories of her early life, just as a local woman is discovered drowned in the river. Soon, more bodies are found. As her friends disappear around her, Arcade is forced to reckon with the past while the killer circles closer. Arcade’s promise to keep herself and her sister safe becomes increasingly desperate and the powerful riptide of the savage side becomes more difficult to survive.

'On the Savage Side' by Tiffany McDaniel is a literary thriller. Twin sisters Arc and Daffy see their unbreakable bond tested by a vicious serial killer attacking women in their rural Ohio town. Though twisty and paced like a thriller this is not an easy read. The novel unflinchingly portrays abuse of all kinds and does not shy away from the harsh reality of life mired in drug addiction. There are no easy answers or happy endings but McDaniel demonstrates her tremendous literary talent by finding beauty among the darkness.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publishers, and Tiffany McDaniel for allowing me an ARC to On the Savage Side. This book took me on a spin that I was not expecting to go on. This was so beautifully written, so heartfelt, I honestly am at a loss for words. This will be a top book of 2023 without a doubt.