Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the ARC!

This was a solid YA dark fantasy! I really enjoyed the relationship between Kit and her mom, and the beginning of the book where we are introduced to a small town where everything is not quite as it seems. The author does a great job and laying breadcrumbs and slowly leading up to the reveal of why things feel so ~off~ in Rosemont!

The romance(s) felt a bit instalovey to me but I realize that is coming from an adult perspective. The ramp up to the end of the book also felt rushed.
I think this is a great pick for teen readers who are interested in picking up something a little darker!

You know, I'm sad to give this book 1 star. I didn't hate read it and nothing mind blowingly awful happened, but I can't deny that this didn't suck me in AT ALL and a lot of it just seemed to not make sense.

When I was halfway through the book, I thought, "Let me read the blurb again. What was it that made me want to pick this up?" And when I read the blurb, I noticed that it really didn't correspond to what I was reading. This girl was being passed off as a teen bride or offering to this creepy entity and... What? I don't even know if that's what really happened, but that's what I was getting.

Oh and there was a sprinkle of LGBT in here and then we pulled away from it. Not sure what the point of that was.

I went to book club tonight and this was our book club's January pick. Out of the 3 people that managed to finish it, none of us could really give an idea of what happened. It was confusing and not memorable. I think that has to be because of the writing because it's sure not due to that gorgeous cover.

Bummer. I was in the mood for spooky vibes and this wasn't it.

The cover followed by the description is what drew me in. I haven't read a spooky book in a bit and this was a nice refresher. I think because I knew it was mysterious to begin with, that had my brain on high alert the whole time waiting for something to drop.

The story had a slow start to it and if it wasn't for my curiosity to see if I could guess the ending based on the first few chapters, I may have stopped reading. The author does a great job of creating a breadcrumb trail throughout the first half of the book to where you think you've got it, but it still surprises you at what you missed. At least that's how it was for me.

The story follows Kit as she's grieving the loss of her dad while finding out about her grandmother (who she was told was dead) and the town that holds her Starling family name on a pedestal. Her mom takes her to visit the town and meet her grandmother, but there's more hidden away than she realizes. There are secrets, whispers, and an ominous feeling that has you wanting to find what lies beneath the surface of the town.

Overall, I thought the book was just okay. While I felt like a few things were predictable, that doesn't usually knock my interest in a book. I kept looking for more depth and I wasn't finding it. The characters felt one dimensional, the worldbuilding was barely there, and so many things were touched on and then never mentioned again even though they felt like they were going to be important. I just never felt a reason to care for these characters either.

I will say, I appreciated the bi-visibility (even though the romance felt like an afterthought and I didn't feel like it was needed) as well as the therapy plug!

If you want a simple book with spooky vibes, this fits the bill~

This book really met all of the trends. I was really hooked from the blurb alone, as I really enjoy darker fantasies. But I felt like the romance sort of came out of nowhere, and honestly, the characters fell pretty flat for me. Which, is frustrating, because I really enjoyed several of the plot points (the festival) and the imagery was incredibly vivid. I wanted to like this a lot more than I really did. This one really just fell in the "meh" category for me.

First of all, this cover is absolutely gorgeous! I loved the setting of a horror novel in an idyllic small town! Very creative and I really enjoyed this.

Anyone who wants to dive into a small town feel with mystery and intrigue this is the book for you. Vibes like Freeform Nancy drew.

Enjoyable but forgettable — I wanted to like it and I was intrigued throughout but somewhat bored. I liked the gothic elements and atmosphere most but it didn’t feel all that unique to me.

An engaging read that I thoroughly enjoyed! It was everything I was hoping for from the description and more. Highly recommend and will purchase several physical and digital copies for library collections. Thank you!!

Some books surprise you. This Ya read was pretty good. I was really nervous at first. The story line felt a little over done. But the author did a great job creating the proper feel for this dark fantasy.

For a YA read it hit all the right points for me. Good plot, perfect world building, and character worth your investment and time. I enjoyed it. It was a good read. Its a book that doesn't need to be dissected and analyzed. It just has to be read and enjoyed. For me it hit all the right spots.

There are reasons for every town to have its dark corners and secrets. The question is will you peek around and try to find them? One must heed that warning that if they search for what goes bump in the night they may just bump into it.

I was intrigued about the thriller/horror aspect with the family secrets, etc. Then, there was a love interest who showed up and I immediately stopped caring about the book anymore.

Disturbing and delightfully creepy. I started reading this without refreshing myself on the book description, so I had know idea which direction this book was going, which probably made the book come across as even creepier.

The books starts off with Kit and her mother visiting her father's hometown shortly after his death. The town, Rosemont, initially feels a little off, but things become dark very quickly.

The atmosphere of Starlings was excellent- and my favorite part. Even though facts are intentionally obscured as Kit uncovers the truth, everything just feels weird and slightly off from the beginning. This is definitely one of those books where you don't need to fully understand what's happening and can just be taken on a creepy journey.

Okay, first of all this cover is absolutely gorgeous. Now that I’ve got that out of the way, I loved Starlings. Such a good fantasy debut, and just dark enough without getting too cringey. I highly recommend this and I’m excited to read more from Amanda Linsmeier!

This is the perfect dark YA fantasy to read in the winter months. You'll be chilled to your core as Kit discovers more secrets while uncovering the real story of why her father lied. It's a slow burn type novel but the second half will pull you in and keep you on the edge of your seat. Great debut novel!

Starlings is, in a lot of ways, one of many. This is a book that fits into well received trends, and doesn't work that hard to reshape or add to them. However, that doesn't mean it isn't an enjoyable read.

As I said, this book definitely plays off of a popular trend- Midsommar, creepy small towns, feminist horror. From that alone, I do genuinely think people who search out these areas in horror will like this read. It knows what it's doing, and does it fairly confidently.
The festival and its roses add a level of eeriness and uncertainty that I enjoyed, and there are moments of prose and well created visuals that are incredibly effective.

However, I did expect- particularly since the concept on its own isn't that unique- this to be more character driven. None of the characters felt multi-faceted or fleshed out, beyond maybe Agatha. The flatness of the characters made the whole story feel flatter.
The horror element, too, was not that strong. This was certainly more of a light horror novel than a heavy, dark one- which may be what you're looking for.

Did not finish the book. Stopped at 27%.
I really wanted to love this one, but honestly, I was so bored. I felt like I had a pretty solid idea of where things were going, and after looking into spoilers I saw I was right & decided to DNF. I don’t love when books are easy to predict & nothing was overly sucking me in with this story. The characters felt flat and extremely naive & the entire setup was too convenient and easy for me to believe. Younger YA readers or those who aren’t avid readers may enjoy this more, but it felt unoriginal for me.

This book is absolutely beautiful, I just couldn't get into it. I might have to try it again later, but it's a DNF for now.

Definitely not what I expected! Just the right amount of creepy and intriguing. I was blindsided by the twist and on the edge of my seat until the very end!

This was requested when I first found out about NetGalley and I had requested so many ARCs that I could not get to all of them before they were archived. I really wanted to get to this one, as it seemed interesting. If I can find this somewhere for a reasonable price, I will try to get it! I am giving this book three stars, as I don't want to give it a good or bad rating, since I did not get to it.

I adore all things dark and gothic, including this. Very atmospheric and consuming. House of Hollow is one of my all time favorites and an apt comp for this.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children’s/Delacourt Press for the e-arc to this in exchange for my honest review.

If you loved House of Hollow or Small Favors, you will love Starlings. The tale of Kit Starling, a young woman searching for answers about her family.

Ms. Linsmeier does an amazing job weaving the tale about Rosemont, the town where father grew up with the grandmother Kit never knew existed. She is hesitant to trust, skeptical of the interest of Bear, her “guide,” entrusted to escort her around town.

Definitely a novel you can finish in one sitting, and you will not regret it. The suspense, the tension, the eloquent imagery that provides the allure of the work and the mysteries within, are worth every page.