If it wasn’t evident that Andrew Joseph White is seemingly uninterested in writing gentle fiction with his debut novel, Hell Followed with Us (one of the best books I read in 2022), The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is indisputable proof he savors telling stories that center his transgender characters in challenging environments. And then convinces readers that fighting to be who they are, against the push-back of a society that repudiates them, can be accomplished in some thoroughly gruesome and engaging ways.

This book is not for the squeamish. Although it’s not categorized as such, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is a horror novel. Body horror, both on-page and the ideation of, is significant to its plot, so be forewarned there are characters who do not go gently into that good night. Sometimes the cruelty of their survival is, in fact, much worse. The patriarchy is the unrepentant evil in this place where young women are manipulated, pushed, and othered, with impunity. Daughters are bartered, young women are cajoled and coerced into behaviors deemed necessary to make them marriageable. If a girl displays independence or scorn for the status quo, there is a remedy for that—a cruel dose of redirection at Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium.

Silas Bell has a promising career as a physician, were it not for him being assigned female at birth. As a boy who society insists is not, only because of the shape his body has taken, a young man who doesn’t fit the mold of obedient daughter to parents who demand “she” conform, Silas faces the challenge of surviving as a shell of a person. Added to that, is the autism that prevents him from reading social cues and makes communication uncomfortable and difficult at times. Silas was Braxton’s-bound from the jump, if not someplace worse, owing to his very existence in a society that refuses to accommodate or do even the bare minimum to understand him.

White is an uncompromising storyteller. His canvas is the page, his imagination the palette, and his words and experiences the color he uses to paint a story, sometimes in grisly ways, always vibrantly. Silas’s punishment for the pseudo-illness called Veil sickness, which is not a thing at all but is named so to explain female social behaviors that deviate from the Royal Speaker Society’s rules, is detention at Braxton’s. His alleged affliction is to have been born with violet eyes as well as a deep-seated distaste for the idea of being forced to marry and perform wifely duties. Meeting the person he is destined for turns out to be Silas’s greatest fortune, as they are more alike than either of them could’ve imagined. Silas also discovering someone at Braxton’s who is like him turns out to be a gift amidst the debris of his abuse at the hands of those who were meant to help.

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is a story of triumph, in the end, as the payoff for the misery its characters are confronted with and tested by along the way.

First and foremost, aside from trigger warnings I suggest this be a blind read. I’m so glad I just jumped in. This book also helped me out of a 2 month reading slump. For the trans/autism rep alone I feel like this is a must read for everyone. I can only imagine how genuinely awful it is to feel unwanted for who you are.

I was convinced Victorian era historical books were not my jam. Apparently if you e corporate medical maladies and people performing secret surgeries, I’m in. This book gives me similar vibes of Anatomy a Love Story & Immortality. Mostly because it’s got the protagonist who wants to be a surgeon but has to hide their true identity. I can’t say enough about the stunning descriptions, the beautiful diction, and just overall atmosphere of this book. This is definitely an important story, and I personally believe the gore is 100% necessary and deftly written.

Heavy heavy themes. Take care of yourself, be sure to check trigger warnings.

This was sooo addictive. A little of a slow start, but wow. Andrew once again proves that they are an incredibly talented writer. Andrew created another world where I am captivated and horrified.

The pacing is a tad slow, but it’s balanced well with the outrageous & horrifying shock.

A MUST add to your spooky season reads!!

I finished this book in 2 days and I still need time to process.
it was just amazing.
This book it's not for everyone, I strongly advice to read the cw first, but I really hope that it finds the right people that will be able to appreciate it as much as I did.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

My mind is still reeling from this book. This book felt like a paranormal thriller, horror, historical fiction, and LGBTQIA+ romance all in one and it was fantastic. Not only does it contain trans and neurodivergent representation, but the beautiful way it is written in this story is unlike anything I've read previously. Obviously being trans, neurodivergent, or both results in a completely different experience for everyone, but Silas' experience is so captivating from page 1. I immediately felt seen, felt a deep need to protect Silas, and eventually all the girls in Braxtons.

The storyline was enrapturing and though I took quite a while to read through, my attention was held the entire time I was reading. While the first half of the book was rather slow (typical of a horror/thriller), I felt as though the ending went incredibly quickly, almost like whiplash. Though I enjoyed the ending, I was a little disappointed that it ended so quickly. I would also warn other readers of the graphic nature of the medical descriptions. While I personally loved them, they were incredibly graphic and won't be for everyone.

I want to finish off with a couple quotes that I found most compelling, most relatable to myself and the world we live in now:

"They can't keep scraping away layers of me thinking they can find the girl they want underneath. I'm not the dead flesh on top of a healing injury, devoured by maggots making way for the tender meat underneath to bloom. I am not the septic organ or the infected tooth. All of this is me. They can't just remove whatever they want."

"Why three? It's such a small number. This is a tragedy that has only begun. It has not taken root, or forced society to become desensitized to its own horror. There's a difference between horrible things that have gone on forever, because you can almost convince yourself of the inevitability of an age-old cruelty, or almost its necessity. But not a new one. With a new one, the change is too great, the wound too new, and you cannot convince yourself that it is simply the way of the world."

I absolutely adored this book. It follows Silas, an autistic tan guy who gets sent to a boarding school during the Victorian era. This book is incredibly angry and gory in the best way. This book delves into the horrific ways of the patriarchy and gender-based violence. I need to read more historical fantasy horror immediately after this. I highly recommend.That being said, I suggest checking trigger warnings because it is very dark.

This book was quite different from Hell Followed With Us, but it left me feeling much the same way. It's a truly horrifying book to read, and I read it in one sitting - I'm not sure what that says about me. There's so much gore, so many terrible things, and those terrible things are exactly what scare me the most as a non-binary autistic person. But somehow I feel like this book helped me, exactly because it names all of these horrors and reclaims them from a perspective of trans and autistic rage. I'm not a huge horror reader at all and I had to wait until I was in the right mood for this, but it was very very worth it, and I will read anything Andrew writes.

I finished this book about a week ago, and I am not yet well enough to be able to form coherent thoughts about it. I was hesitant at first because it was marketed as a horror, and I am a huge baby, hiding under my sheets at the first weird sound kind of baby, I don´t do horror because I can´t ever sleep again kind of baby, but this book wasn´t as bad. I was too busy contemplating everything I ever knew to be scared.
This is an amazing book, that is somehow gory and heartwarming, touching on themes of gender identity and social expectations around gender, ableism, homophobia, and sexism. It has a fantastic pace, as I couldn´t put the book down after I passed the 30% mark, It does keep you on your toes and the reveal towards the end is heartbreaking.
Silas Bell, our main character, is amazingly written. Being in his head and seeing how his mind works made me feel so seen and depressed. Andrew White does a great job at portraying the tragedy of those who don´t fit into the white, straight, neurotypical, cis-male box that is accepted in society. Everything that happened to Silas is a very accurate description of the Victorian era and sadly of the present day. We still have to fight to be who we are, There are still hate crimes against those who dare to be different, and as much as I would like to hope that we are heading in a better direction, I am honestly afraid for our future. The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is a dark mirror for our modern society.
“They can’t keep scraping away any layers of me thinking they can find the girl they want underneath. All of this is me.”
This book does have a very long, well-earned, list of TW and I really recommend checking them out before picking it. But don´t let it turn you away from this book. It´s a story I am very glad it was told, a story worth reading, one which I think any of us should pick up because it forces you to sit with yourself, look in the mirror, and check your biases and privilege.
Thank you NetGalley and Peachtree Teen for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
The review will be up my blog and Instagram closer to the publication day!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC!

I have never in my life read such a dark, bloody novel that feels so much like a warm hug. I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I call this story stomach-churning or when I say that there were several times when I had to physically turn away from the page, but dear god, was it good. Andrew Joseph White continues to blow me away with both his prose and his characters; I swear, I cried for half the cast of this one.

This is a book that feels physical on several different levels. On one hand, the descriptions were so clear and vivid that I could almost feel blood on my own hands during several scenes. On the other hand, the love and care clearly packed onto every page was also visceral. It is a rare talent for an author to mix those two elements so well.

I can’t recommend this one enough, but only to readers with the stomach for it: as the beginning of the book will tell you, there is some serious gore (and a lot of other heavy topics, including transphobia, gendered violence, and sexual assault). Please remember to take care of yourself.

I was granted an eArc of this book for consideration of review through Netgalley.
READ THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW. PUT DOWN ANYTHING ELSE YOU'RE DOING OR READING AND READ THIS.
Top book of the year, my number 1 for 2023. This had literally everything I ever want in a book. Spirits/mediums, 1800s, queer rep (2 main characters are trans, another is hinted as a lesbian), gore, revenge, friendships, romance ish. Perfect in every way, I cannot recommend this book enough. If you know me you know I don't really recommend books, but this I will preach about and force into the hands of every single reader I know. EVERY. SINGLE. READER.

Hey! Hey? Hi. Hey! Just out of sheer curiosity, maybe someone will happen to know the answer, but how in the ever-loving hell am I supposed to continue living my life like a sane, regular person after reading this book? Andrew Joseph White, you better expect my therapy bills to show up at your doorstep, because I don't think it will ever be humanly possible for me to recover from this.

I mean this book, at its core, embodies the mind-boggling, stomach-churning, true essence of horror and I am in love with every single one of its pages. It is fantastic and deserving of every single award a person can bestow on a novel. I thought Hell Followed with Us was stellar, but I could never, in a million years, have anticipated just how life-altering White's second book would be for me.

I think the word "disgusting" has lost all meaning for me, because everything included in this story far and above surpasses the realm of disgust. I'm talking about repugnance and vileness, I'm talking about the indefinite extent of human violence and evil. I was sick to my stomach the entire way through, and I'll probably exist in a state of general nausea for the rest of the week—it was spectacular.

This was also one of the most enticing narrative voices I've come across in a very long time. I simply could not look away. As horrifying as the passages were, as much as every single scene made my entire body cringe in on itself, my eyes refused to look away, even for a second. I was enthralled by, not just the main character himself, but specifically the way he was experiencing everything that was happening to him and everything that he was doing. I could read this a thousand times over and never get bored of it.

This is definitely not a book for the faint of heart, I will warn you. However, if you think you can stomach it, I recommend it so wholeheartedly. White really does have an amazing talent, and I cannot wait to see what he does next.

This book is just as harrowing and disturbing as the author's debut. Actually, possibly moreso although in a different way.

I will admit I struggled with the beginning of this novel, it was a slow starter and felt a little clunky in terms of the writing and the setting up of the world. There were a lot of words used to set up the Speaker Society and what the Veil was and yet somehow I still didn't fully understand what precisely that meant until way later in the book. It did pick up though and once I hit the 40% mark or so, I was hooked and it was a straight read through until the end, and a lot of that was spent on edge and with a lump in my stomach.

There is a lot about this novel that hits close to home for me (although obviously in a very different setting haha) and because of that there were passages that were particularly hard to get through but the story was told very well and with a lot of nuance. The characters were full of depth and despite being quite a lot of them (namely the numerous school girls) they were all individual and had distinct personalities and motives, even those who were 'off screen' for the majority of the book. Silas is a great MC and to date is possibly one of my favourite representations of an autistic character. I also liked that he was not the only autistic character within the book and that the other character's autism was portrayed differently but in such a way that Silas was able to identify like with like.

Andrew Joseph White doesn't shy away from difficult topics or harsh betrayals and it's always written so clearly and precisely that it can be incredibly uncomfortable to read. It makes the story all the more engaging.

This was a discomforting read and I really enjoyed it. It was a hard read in places but very worth it.

Silas wants nothing more than the freedom to create his own life: to study medicine, to only answer to one name, to never be married off to the highest bidder simply because of his eyes. But escaping his life and his fate of becoming a Speaker wife is more dangerous than even Silas anticipated. Which is exactly how he finds himself institutionalized at Braxton's, a finishing school meant to cure "Viel sickness" in violet eyed women. Something is not right at Braxton's beyond the school's goal to break students down and reconstruct them into the perfect obedient wives desired by Speakers. Silas sets about trying to get to the bottom of what is happening while desperately trying to find a way out.

Andrew Joseph White yet again creates a world of true horror seeped in a reality that many had to endure. Despite the frustration and horror Silas expresses within the narrative, the casual mention of the violence of treatment and expectation he has experienced is chilling. This intentional narrative creation is one of White's strongest skills. That and his consistent ability to make me utter ew gross while reading, a personal favorite aspect of any horror novel. The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is gruesome and disturbing and so compelling that I read it one setting.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early access to the book



Characters: a star for characters as they are very realized but motives were slightly confusing. It was difficult to read the struggle and abuse the main character suffered through because he was born in the wrong body.

Setting: This is a part in history that is both fascinating and stifling but the author seemed morefocused on the horror of expectation on these women than supernatural horror itself. I’m giving this a star because of that focus more so than how the author created the world of elites, the veil, or the house he ends up in to “correct him”.

Plot: the plot got lost on my. There were times where moments sped through and we barely explored points made by characters or circumstances. Then the author would chose to slow way down and hyper focus on moments that wet close to dragging on to long. It was not a weakness of the story but of my patience of the book in the moment. Though I still didn’t want to give a star for it.

Resolution: The characters seemed both changed and stuck in this world ready to take advantage of them. They seemed to use bc manipulate the system rather than dismantle it and which is what I was hoping for.

Writing: this is the first book I’ve read by Andre Joseph White but not the first I heard of. I liked moments of the writing but some other point felt confusing, wordy, or convoluted. I still give a star because there were moments where the sentence gave me goosebumps, especially when the horror elements came into play.

"i think the entire world depends on people pretending they don't know they're doing terrible things."

holy fucking shit. this book gripped me by the throat from the start, and didn't let me go till i finished it. i read the whole thing in one sitting (literally just ～7 hours of me rotting in bed, reading in both awe and horror) and its definitely going to be one of the best books i've read this year

if you want an amazingly written historical fiction book with fantasy elements, queer/trans rep, [SPOILER] a t4t relationship [SPOILER], paranormal activity, and depictions so graphic they make your stomach churn (its a fun time, i assure you) you NEED TO READ THIS. seriously.

i don't have the words honestly so all i can say is READ READ READ. check the trigger warnings first and make sure you haven't eaten anything (bc i felt nauseous like the whole way through,,) and then, if you think you're prepared, do yourself a favour and READ IT

literally On my way! to read everything this author has ever written now

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Andrew Joseph White did it again. The Spirit Bares It’s Teeth is an incredibly heart wrenching book while somehow also heart warming. It held the balance of being very hard to read due to graphic gorey scenes and then intimate scenes around friendship and identity and love.

I’m not going to lie, my two gore topics I avoid are eyes and pregnancy and this book hit both of them and yet I didn’t ever want to stop reading. Andrew’s writing is so captivating and poetic it’s hard to put down. Even though this took me almost a month to read, it wasn’t ever because I got bored or didn’t want to be reading it. It was constantly on my mind and I already wish I could keep reading it.

The characters really embedded themselves in my heart. I was so deeply invested in their stories and what would happen to them. Silas felt very special to me as a person both in the trans community and neurodivergent. I related to the struggles he faced and how his mind worked. All the girls were also so well written and I wanted to know more about all of them, just like Silas. I was also so attached to the groundskeeper even if he wasn’t in a ton of scenes. The element of spirits and the veil were both scary and intriguing at the same time. I really enjoyed that.

I am still fairly new to the horror genre but this is the first book that I’ve physically felt my heart pounding and my eyes trying to skip ahead to find out what happens and if the characters are okay. I was in such a state of anxiety but for once, it was enjoyable. It was a really intense reading experience.

This book has made me much more interested in looking into the history of forced institutionalizations of women / minorities. Horror based in history and real life hits so much harder and really opens my eyes to things I didn’t put much thought into previously. Even if it isn’t a completely accurate representation.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book!! I would especially recommend it to my fellow queer and neurodivergent readers because this just felt so special and I want more people to experience that! Thank you Andrew Joseph White for writing such incredible books and I can’t wait for more!

CWs : graphic violence, sexual assault (both implied and on page), medical gore, on page c-section, abortion, transphobia, ableism, medical / psychiatric abuse, gaslighting, physical / emotional / verbal abuse, forced institutionalizations, body horror, dysphoria, torture, confinement, death of parent, murder, adult/minor relationship, self harm

When autistic Silas gets sent to a school to train spirit-world connected girls to be obedient wives, things go about as well as to be expected. Secret rooms are discovered, a few girls turn up dead, and you find out you may have more in common with your arranged marriage fiance than you originally thought.

As to be expected with an Andrew Joseph White book, all of the characters were fantastic. Honestly, Silas was a bit frustrating for me in the beginning, but he had such amazing character growth and there were so many opportunities we had to get to know him that I think he was written perfectly. All of the the girls at the school were unique and had distinct personalities. Not all of them were likeable, which I really liked, but they were all different. Each one had a distinct personality with individual relationships and backgrounds that made her unique. White is so good at creating characters!! I also think White wrote some very interesting gray characters in this book, and I was happy to see the challenge taken on. And as always, the diversity and representation in White's novels can't be beat.

Unfortunately, this is a "it's not you it's me" situation with this book, thus why only 3 stars. This solidified it for me, I'm just not a fan of Victorian era novels about spirits. I've tried several and not really enjoyed any of them but I thought surely if anyone can get me into it, it's White. And boy did he try! And he has a great book on his hands here! It just wasn't for me, and that's ok. While I loved the characters, the subject matter bored me. I found myself reading more because I was invested in the welfare of Silas and Daphne, and less because I was invested in the plot. I really didn't care what was happening at that school. Victorian times were horrible for anyone that wasn't a white, rich, man, it's not a secret. And as much as I love the representation, for a book that was clearly researched, it felt out of place in such a time period. I realized I just don't enjoy reading about that time period. And spirits just aren't my thing. Post apocalyptic religious viruses? Yes! Victorian era spirit worlds run by rich white men? No! Learned something about myself.

Again, this will be a great book for loads of people. I'm happy to see the representation still going and to have met so many great characters. Unfortunately I just didn't find myself enjoying the experience and am looking forward to a different setting next time.

This was vivid, disturbing, absolutely gross, and so, so good. Wildly horrific, disturbing, and thrilling. Full of just incredible amounts of gore, a very respectable number of spooks, and absolutely horrible and worse, pretty historically accurate treatment of anyone young, female, queer, or neurodivergent (do not take the content warnings lightly, there is no underselling here). Makes you want to throw things that may or may not explode. A+ horror again from Andrew Joseph White; I can't wait to see what this author comes up with next.

Amazing. Truly amazing. But this book is not for everyone, the trigger warnings at the beginning of the book need to be paid attention to.

Andrew Joseph White’s writing is always amazing but this is on a whole new level. This book destroyed me in the best kind of way.

Thank you Holiday House and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Look, I’ll admit, I nearly DNF’d this one. The first third or so was so slow and the themes were all so heavy handed instead of allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions.

But somewhere after the first third, I found myself hooked on this story, needing to know how (if) they got out of it.

I found myself falling in love with Silas, with Daphne, with Isabella and Mary and Louise. I found myself desperately needing them all to be okay and happy and to have the lives they deserved. These characters were all so rich and vibrant and it felt like such a stark contrast to the dull tone of the first third of the book.

The plot was fascinating and engaging and while it was, at some points, incredibly predictable, it was a thrilling ride nonetheless.

I do still think certain ideas are pushed on the reader too heavily and there’s a lot of telling and not enough showing, and I would have liked more details about the veil and spirits and how it all works, but it still ended up being an enjoyable read.