Thank you to NetGalley for access to this title in exchange for a honest review!!

Just, wow. These characters and everything they’ve endured truly came alive and flew off the pages. I honestly didn’t know what to think was going to unfold throughout this story and it was such an enjoyable reading experience. These characters and their story will be with me for a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publishers for this eARC in exchange for my honest review! As well as Courtney for a physical ARC!

I loved Courtney’s first book The Dead and the Dark. I actually read it last June for Pride and am reading her newest one for Pride as well!

While Courtney played with more horror vibes and had a bit more of a creature feature going with her last book, this one focuses on mystery and suspense.

Beck has just lost her mother. Her father left and while her mother’s illness and memory began to get worse, she was forced to be the parent to her little sister. Now, months after her mothers death, she and her sister Riley are going to go live with her father and his new wife. Before she decides to uproot her life, she drags her sister on a “vacation” for two weeks. They are going to stay in Backravel AZ, a place where their mother frequently visited over the months before her death. Right after she passed, Beck is sent a letter in the mail from her mother only saying “come find me” and she is determined to figure out what kept bringing her mother back to this place and what secrets the small town holds. They don’t have cars, there are no cemeteries, & everyone’s house looks like it’s from a different period in time.

This is a good look at grief and letting go. Beck is ready to run into danger to figure out what happened to her mother before her death. Everyone in Backravel is having issues with life and with a grief of their own. I was very invested in the mystery with Backravel and her mother.

I also liked the different types of relationships here. We have Riley and Beck, which is a relationship between siblings. Beck had to parent Riley for a long time and feels like she has to protect her from the world. There’s Riley and Avery. Avery’s father runs Backravel and Beck knows she is hiding things from her even though she is falling for her. Last we have Beck and her mother Ellery. Beck loves Ellery, even though she had to take care of her mother after her father left and she became ill. She became the adult in Ellery’s decline. Beck wants to figure out what happened to her mother at all cost, even though she was hurt so much by her. I’m enjoying Courtney’s books a lot so far. I’m looking forward to everything she has coming out in the future!

Thank you Netgalley for the advance audiobook and reader copy of Where Echoes Die by Courtney Gould in exchange for an honest review. I wasn't too sure of this book as it does deal with grief and the pain of loss. I have been sensitive to that since my mom died last year. I kept listening and before I knew it, it was 2am and I was 65% done and really wanted to finish, but also needed sleep. I really liked the story of Beck and Riley and them trying to find peace after their mom died. Of them going to a town to try to understand her better and finding more than they expected. This was a beautiful and heartbreaking story that I am so glad I read.

This was a fun and quick read. It is a story of two sisters that travel to a remote and mysterious town in Arizona to investigate why their mother kept coming back here before she passed. There’s something creepy about this town and its residents, which kept me engaged in the book to find out what was going on.
Great mystery that I would recommend checking out this summer.
Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and the author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Book: Where Echoes Die
Author: Courtney Gould
Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with an ARC.

In this one, we follow Beck, who is grieving her mother’s death. She is barely hanging on but is pretending otherwise. It’s summer. She and her sister, Riley, are supposed to be going to Texas to live with their father. The two girls are going to go there after their vacation with a friend. Or so they say. The thing is the girls are not going on a beach vacation with their friend, they are going to Backravel. It’s a place that their mother was drawn to and Beck feels the pull. She is hoping that the town will be able to tell her more about her mother. When the girls arrive, they quickly realize that there is something off about this place. There are no graveyards, no churches, and no cars. What’s even more strange is that no one remembers how they to Backravel or how long they have been there. All they can remember is that they came here for treatment from Ricky and are now better. Beck starts to develop somewhat of a relationship with Avery-it could be friends or something more. As their relationship develops, Beck begins to notice little changes in Avery, such as her not remembering what they talked about the day before. This is not enough to make her want to leave though. For you see as her relationship with Avery develops, so do her emotions with her mother’s death.

It did take me a little while to come up with a classification for this book. It’s a brilliant mixture of science fiction, horror, and romance. I love it whenever books include so many different elements. We have this town is shut off from the rest of the world and we don’t know why. We know that something very unsettling is happening, but it’s difficult to put a finger on it. Courtney does an amazing job at giving us this unsettling atmosphere and I’m not sure how she did it. This is not an overly long book; it’s under four hundred pages. To give us this spooky environment, yet believable is the mark of a truly talented writer. The warmth of the air, the town that never changes, and the mystery all come to life in a way that will leave you breathless. The girls are drawn to Backravel and we are too. Courtney has this gift of pulling you in and making it hard to come out. Her writing is very immersive. I will say that her style of horror does remind me a little bit of Stephen King. Like with his books, you get a sense that something very wrong and messed up is happening, but you don’t know what.

I thought the characters were well done. Once again, Courtney does an amazing job at giving us characters who fit into the story and have this sense of the unknown. While the characters are developed, it feels like we don’t have their whole story. Like with the setting, there is a mystery to the characters. Now, this is more than likely because they don’t know much and their memories appear to be a little clouded. At first, Riley and Beck seem to be the only ones who think something is off. This changes. The more they are in the town, the more it becomes them. It’s like they are in this dream-like state and are half awake, half asleep. It feels odd. Plus, whenever you have questions, the characters turn away from them.

I did like Beck and Avery’s relationship. It’s a slow burn. I could see that the author was going to pair them up, but I liked it. Avery is Ricky’s daughter, the town leader. She is the one whom many times people will turn to. She gives tours and almost makes sure that everyone is falling into line. Beck has questions. At first, it seems like Avery is trying to get Beck to stop asking those questions. I take that back, that’s what she is doing. As the book progresses, so do their feelings for each other. It does so in a nice way again one that is believable.

So, why four stars? Since there are so many things that I liked about this book, why only four stars? Well, if I am going, to be honest, I felt like the middle was dragged out. I get that it was to add suspense, but I felt that the middle was rather weak. I also found some of the plot to be too predictable, so the big reveal wasn’t that exciting. Had those little things not been there, this would have for sure been a five-star read.

This book comes out on June 20, 2023.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/dH-cHvTyqYQ

I really enjoyed Courtney Gould's debut book a couple of years ago and was excited to see where she would go with her next book. Where Echoes Die is Gould's sophomore book and was filled with interesting characters and a very complex little town in the middle of nowhere Arizona.

When Beck and Riley's mother passes away, they are left with jumbled thoughts and letters left by their mother. Beck feels like she must follow those random thoughts that lead the two sisters to Backravel, Arizona. But no one knows these girls are there and they are supposed to be heading to their father since they are both still minors. When they pull up to Backravel, everything seems a bit off. It's a quiet combination of an old military town with cookie cutter homes. No cars litter the streets and there are no cemeteries. SO why would the girls' mother lead them to this town??

Right from the start, I got some eery vibes from the town inhabitants and the fact that anyone the girls encountered all mentioned the "treatment center", ran by the very mysterious Ricky. It was like being thrown into a town that resembled a rundown Stepford Wives. Everyone may not have looked alike, but they all swore on the high tech treatment center that they all visited. There was a lot of repetitive language and even conversations that was kind of daunting, but it actually went along with the storyline. I was very curious about Avery, the daughter of Ricky and her past and then her relationship with Beck and how that was going to change over the course of the book.

Courtney Gould created a very atmospheric story with interesting characters in a small town that sucks you in wanting to get answers. Answers to what? You'll have to read to find out!

For a unique story that is mysterious and eery, but also has a diverse cast of characters all dealing with grief in different forms, check out Gould's YA mystery/suspense with a twist,

This books was so much more than I expected! I was pulled into the story quickly and really enjoyed it!

I would say this book is a YA version of Don’t Worry Darling and a bit of Rory Power vibes.

The entire story I was wondering if there was actually magical healing going on, or if (as the reader) I was joining our main character’s, Beck, descent into a cult.

How the twists all came together in the end was satisfying and I couldn’t stop reading this book.

It hits well on the complicated topic of grief and time and what we will do to steal more time or to revisit life before our loss. As someone who has lost a loved one to cancer and then was diagnosed with cancer, I felt this story and it’s underlying themes around grief were spot on!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Tw: death of a parent, grief, animal death, child death, gaslighting, cancer

THIS BOOK! It was one hell of a rollercoaster and I adored it! I'm so grateful I received an ARC of this and I was able to participate to the street team of this incredible book!

Beck can't stop looking for answers surrounding her late mother, so when a mysterious letter in a her mother's handwriting arrives in the mail, Beck takes this opportunity to drive to Backravel, her biggest mother's obsession to find the answers she desperately needs.

I LOVED the gloomy and spectral atmosphere of this book, it honestly felt like I was in Backravel all this time and that contributed to making the book extra special.

The characters were well-rounded and I really loved the sisterly bond between Beck and Riley and the romantic relationship between Beck and Avery.

The writing was smooth and captivating and it kept me hooked from page one. I'm definitely a huge fan of Courtney Gould and I can't wait to support all of her next books!

I highly recommend this one to people who are looking for a spooky read with intriguing characters and deep relationships!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an early copy.

I usually love to YA thrillers, especially with a supernatural aspect. But I could not get into this one. The writing style was too distant and the build up took too long to me. I’m sure many readers will enjoy the chilling atmosphere and character dynamics. But I could not in good faith give this a higher than three stars, as I could not connect.

Where Echoes Die is an atmospheric sci-fi thriller that will make you grateful you don't live in Backravel, Arizona. Beck and her sister Riley have come to town to investigate a letter they received from their mother — a letter she somehow wrote after her death. The town is oddly secluded and wary of outsiders, but it's also home to a state-of-the-art treatment center. What gets treated there? No one really seems to be able to describe it. In fact, no one seems to be able to remember much at all, aside from their cookie-cutter daily routines. As Beck digs deeper, she starts to worry maybe she's gone too far and the town may not let her leave at all...

This book has immaculately creepy vibes! A desolate town made up of crumbling military structures and sparkly new modern buildings. A strange "desert woman" who seems to be suffering some sort of mental collapse. A complete lack of cemeteries and churches, with bikes being the only allowed form of transportation. What on earth is going on in this weird little place?!

I had fun guessing at what "unspooling" was and how Beck and Riley's mom was involved with Backravel. Some of my guesses were proven correct, but another few took me by surprise. I loved the relationship between Beck and Avery, as well as the dynamic between the two sisters. I did find bits of the book to drag on a little, with a lot of repetitive inner monologue, but overall I really enjoyed the read.

Thank you to Courtney Gould, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for my advance digital and physical copies!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book hooked me from the very first chapter. This book was strange and unlike anything I have ever read before. It wasn't as spooky as Gould's debut, but it still had a creepy, suspenseful feeling that made me want to keep reading. I felt like I was solving the mystery of the town of Backravel along with Beck.

I'm very glad this book was sapphic like Gould's first YA novel, and I think the romance was executed better in this book. It felt quiet and didn't overshadow the central mystery of the book, but it was still important to both main girls' character developments. I also liked that the book focused on the relationship between two sisters, Beck and Riley, but I wish that relationship had been developed better. I felt that Beck treated Riley badly throughout the whole book, without much improvement to show her character arc.

I would recommend this book for fans of Stranger Things and will definitely read more from Courtney Gould.

This book was weird but like in a good way and I was definitely not expecting it.

I really enjoyed Courtney's writing, it flowed well and almost felt a little magical to me.
I loved the small time travel aspect and though it wasn't totally hashed out it definitely was a good mystical aspect.

I also really loved that or main character was queer and seemed to have some anxiety and depression issues. It made her feel real in a world that was very much not real.

This isn't a book I would have normally picked for myself to read, I would have been intrigued by it but would have never picked it up. I am really glad I picked it up though as it was not only good but out of my comfort zone. I think you all might enjoy it as well.

Thank you to Net Galley, Courtney Gould, and St. Martin's Press for a copy of the e-arc.
This book kept me turning pages. I usually do not read science fiction but this was very entertaining. This book gives you the culty, creepy vibes right from the start. It covers hard topics such as grief, mother daughter and sister relationships. I enjoyed the setting in the eerie town of Backravel that is suspended in time. It felt ominous, like the Twilight Zone. 4 stars!

I enjoyed this book. The setting reminded me a bit of The Giver, which I loved. It started out with good intentions, but they turned out to be more harmful than helpful. Beck was a great protagonist. Learning from her perspective throughout was great, and I could feel her grief, distress, and desire for some form of closure. This was a good book, and I am very grateful that I got to read it before it was released!

If you are looking for the next summer read that slightly spooky and a bit unsettling but thankfully sapphic, then you've come to the right place.
Gould has created a small, intriguing mystery that both we and the lead of this story want to unpack and that is: What is actually going on in Backravel?

From the very beginning something is Off in this place and sisters Beck and Riley, who's late mother was obsessed with the town, get caught up in living the mystery for themselves. The chisel at the confusion around them until nothing makes sense and everything they knew is upside down.

I felt Beck was an excellent lead for this story. She has a lot of unresolved Oldest Daughter Trauma that was relatable and instead of truly seeking help in dealing with that trauma, she instead follows her mom's path in becoming Backravel obsessed. Along the way she meets townie and "mayors" daughter Avery and the two form a begrudging friendship and more.
The relationship between the two was one of my favorite things in the story and weirdly, though I usually like a dual POV, I appreciated that this one stayed firmly with Beck so we never really knew what was going on with Avery, putting us in the same skeptical situations that our lead was.
The ending did feel a bit rushed but maybe that's just because I enjoyed the set up so much that I expected more gravity/explanation later but that feels like a me problem.
I will hopefully get this book for my classroom library to recommend to just the right kid who likes a bit of an old school mystery with modern sensibilities.

This story is for all the older sisters who take on the weight of the world without being asked because it needs to be done.

Beck Birsching takes care of everyone but herself; her sister who is younger and carefree and friendly (everything opposite of Beck) and her mother who seemed to be losing memories, and pieces of herself and her sanity near the end of her life. Fighting the grief of losing her mother, and her own memories as she starts to slip into replaying them in her mind, Beck and her sister take a trip to Backravel, a small town her mother went to for years on vacation.

The town is small, and quiet, and slightly off but Beck is determined to dig in and find out what was so special about this place that had her mother coming back year after year. The longer Beck and her sister are here, the sicker they get, the more they notice the people's obtuse behaviors, and the evasive answers they're given when Beck inquires about the "treatments" they receive.

Gould does an amazing job of weaving together the breadcrumbs she's painstakingly placed throughout the book, crafting immersive scenes that give you chills, and leaving you satisfied yet curious about what you would do if you were in Beck's position.

Beck and Riley Birsching have been grieving the death of their mother. They are set to move to their father's home but then Beck receives a letter in the mail in her mother's handwriting stating "come and find me" in a town called Backravel in Arizona. Their mother was a troubled investigative journalist who as it turns out had gone to Backravel many times over the years.

When the two sisters arrive, they notice that the town has not cars, no cemeteries, and no churches. None of the inhabitants seem to remember how they got there. Bec is determined to find out why her mother kept coming back her and beings to find herself lost in Backravel. The only ones who seem to know what is happening is the towns leader and his daughter.

This started strongly for me, and I was intrigued by the creepy town. Something is not quite right there, so many things seem off and I enjoyed this about the book. The author blends many genres into this YA book: mystery, science fiction, romance, and horror(ish) elements. ho provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

It is on the slower side and as I had both the book and the audiobook, I found myself turning to the audiobook more as I enjoyed the narration. Courtney Gould can write and excelled at created a creepy strange town. It has a history, and I was desperate to know what it was. I was also invested in learning what was happening and why their mother kept coming back to this town. I loved her book "The dead and the dark" and had high hopes for this one, perhaps my hopes were too high.

Well written, creepy, and mysterious.

Short and Sweet Review
Ever since the death of her mother, Beck hasn’t been quite right, she’s always thinking about her mom and why she was obsessed with a town called Backravel. When Beck gets a note in the mail in her mothers handwriting saying Come and find me, Beck thinks this is her chance to go to Backravel and get some answers. In Backravel, Beck and her sister Riley quickly learn that things are off in this town. People have memory lapse and they always seem to turn to the town founder and his daughter Avery. Beck and Avery are drawn together and Beck seems to be slowly finding answers about her mother, but the longer she stays in Backravel the more she begins to lose herself.
Where Echoes Die, was an interesting read, Beck is on the hunt for answers about Backravel a town her mother was obsessed with. She brings her sister Riley along not necessarily being completely honest about what they’re doing there. Ever since her moms death Beck has been trying to find what drew her to Backravel, Beck has also been a shell of her former self. When Beck and Riley see how strange things are in this town, including the fact that they don’t have a church or any cemeteries they just brush it off, until they see how strange the townspeople act. Beck knows the only way to get answers is to talk to the town leader Ricky and the only way to get to him is through Avery. Avery has an air of mystery about her, but for some reason her and Beck click. There is a bit of romance between the two, I wasn’t really invested in this relationship mainly because of the thing that’s affecting everyone in town. It was interesting that everyone gets treatment by Ricky. I did like that Beck was getting some answers about her mom and what exactly kept bringing her back to this town. The ending was good and I didn’t want to put the book down, I wanted to know what was going to happen.
Where Echoes Die, has a great premise and it is an engaging read, especially when we learn about Becks mom and what it is about the town of Backravel that makes it different. I do wish that the pacing was better, otherwise this is an interesting read for people who like mysteries with a bit of sci-fi.

Themes: Grief, Loss, Family, Moving on
Representation: Lesbian, Mental health
Content Warnings: Abuse, Violence, Death

Premise: There are no cars in Backravel, no churches and no cemeteries. After her mother’s death, Beck decides to visit Backravel, a strange little town in Arizona that her mother was quite drawn to to solve her mother’s mystery. However, she has more questions than answers.


Characters


Since this book is more plot-focused, I found that the characters weren’t as well-developed as I would’ve liked. However, I think the author did a good job portraying how each character struggles with grief differently, how nuanced it is, and how it does not affect everyone the same.

For Beck, she has grief over losing her mother. Not just what she had with her, but what could have been since Beck has a very interesting, to say the least, relationship with her mother and that has affected her life a lot, as well as her relationships with other characters. We can witness Beck’s relationship with her mother in flashbacks. And the author does a good job connecting the present and past.

However, I did wish the author showed more interactions between Beck and her mother. A lot of what we know about her mother is based on Beck’s interactions from before, however, there is only one interaction (from what I can recall) from before the before. Before Beck’s relationship with her mother started to change. I feel like if we were to be shown more of the relationship before the before, it would help the reader better understand why Beck feels the way she does about her mother and why her feelings are so conflicted.

Other than that, I also think the author does a good job portraying Beck’s mental health because mental health isn’t something that is easy to portray. Showing how Beck’s struggles do not necessarily make her a “weak” person and how she can overcome them. However, I wish we were shown a bit more of Beck’s thought process about overcoming her struggles.

As for the other characters, they were also generally well-represented. I loved how Riley showed a different perspective of how she felt after losing her mother was different than how Beck felt. I liked the interactions that the two sisters had with each other and how their relationship was generally positive as well as how they cared for each other. I do wish we got a bit more explanation about why Riley felt compelled to act as she did around Beck from Riley rather than Beck’s internal monologue.

I also enjoyed Avery. I enjoyed how her character showed how living in Backravel could change you. I liked how she also showed a different perspective towards grief and loss since, yes, Avery does have troubles of her own. I also liked how she helped Beck, not only with solving the mystery of the town but becoming a better person. However, even though I liked the Sapphic representation that the author decided to include, I felt that Avery and Beck lacked chemistry and their relationship felt more platonic to me than romantic. Plus, I felt that having a romantic relationship took the focus away from their character development as individuals.

Finally, Ricky. He was an interesting antagonist. He started off seeming perfect, unsettlingly perfect until BOOM… the end when his true nature was revealed. As well as his motives for his actions. Though I loved his reveal in the end, and how what he did wasn’t because he was necessarily an evil person, I wished there was more of a buildup towards his character reveal. I wish the author included small fragments into Rick’s life that foreshadowed and better explained his actions based on his character and his character’s interactions.

Rating: 3.5/5


Plot


The plot was the best part of the book. After all, this book is plot based as the character is striving for a specific action, a “goal” if you will.

Though the exposition of the book started off slow and confusingly and might turn you away from the lack of action… do not fret. Once you sit through it, it is worth it. You are hit with twist after twist, leaving you with more questions than answers, and leaving you wanting more. Wanting to solve the mystery of Backravel with Beck. And wanting to figure out why exactly Backravel is so unsettling.

The ending of the book was unexpected and unpredictable. You’d think something else was the reason why Backravel was the way that it was based on the “clues” you were given throughout the story but it turns on you. Packed with action, the ending of the book does a good job of surprising the reader while tying all the ends of the story together in a fitting way.

Finally, the author does an excellent job of foreshadowing in the book. Leaving the clues in small sprinkles and letting the reader tie the clues together rather than revealing what happens straight away. She does this through things the other characters say, the actions that the other characters do, and making the strange town, Backravel, get stranger and stranger. Though, I can’t give you a specific example without spoiling the story itself.

Finally, the setting and atmosphere play a huge role in the plot. The desert and this strange town, Backravel, just seem to be in the midst of all the mystery!

Rating: 5/5


Style


Speaking of the setting, I loved how the author describes it. She uses a lot of vivid imagery to evoke the essence of Backravel. The imagery of the desolate desert and peculiar town. As you are reading this book, it feels like you have been transported to Backravel, the Arizona sun beating down on your face, along with Beck.

As for the themes, the author does a great job representing Sapphic love in a casual manner, something that is rare in books and rarer in YA thrillers. Which is something I, as a queer person, do find validating. She also does a good job with the mental health rep. She shows how grief can affect each person differently through different characters, their thoughts, their words, and their actions since grief and loss aren’t a “one-size-fits-all” type of thing.

For the general formatting of the book, I didn’t really think too much of it. It was written in third-person present tense which didn’t add nor subtract anything from the book and actually fit the book since it was pretty plot heavy.

Rating: 3.5/5


Final Rating


Characters: 3.5/5
Plot: 5/5
Formatting: 3.5/5
Final Rating: 4/5
Personal Rating: 3.5/5

Date Read: May 30th, 2023
Date Reviewed: May 31st, 2023

Where Echoes Die is just as good as her debut novel! I was so hooked I couldn't put the book down. This single book contains so many of my favorite genres: mystery, thriller, romance, fantasy. Don't sleep on Courtney Gould!