Wow. This book is so hard to review, because any little thing said about the plot is like a spoiler. I’m blown away by this book, the love between the family members, the curse of the Farrow women, the strength of those women to live through the lives they did. It all felt so heartbreaking and bittersweet. The ending made me cry when the mystery is finally unraveled and the unspoken things that it makes one think of that are just so sad, the secrets that they have to keep from each other. I truly loved this book and all the characters. Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC!

The Unmaking of June Farrow is an adult fiction with a fascinating generations old curse that is filled with mystery, complicated relationships, and mystical magic. I enjoy Young’s writing and was excited to receive an early copy of this new work. I was not disappointed! The main character, June, is a caring and curious woman entangled in a web created by the long ago disappearance of her mother and the sickness that plagues the women of her family. As she uncovers the mysteries of her family, we are thrown into an impossible world that is complicated but still easy to follow as you read. I enjoyed the setting in a cozy southern town that is filled with intrigue. There were unsettling moments with certain deranged characters, but it added suspense and excitement to the story. I found the characters unique and the premise absorbing as I did not wish to put the book down. If you enjoy mystery, complex family and relationships, and a bit of the impossible you will like this book. It is an adult fiction so beware that there is some language, sexual material, and some violence.

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL STORY! Adrienne's ability to get to the heart of her character within the first few pages makes you hurt for and care for the MC instantly. This story is wholly its own; a masterclass at building tension and mystery. I wasn't sure where the plot would go, or how I'd feel about the romance, but she had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I honestly can't wait to read this again!

SYNOPSIS:
- June is grieving the loss of her grandmother, Margaret. Margaret raised June with the help of a few folks (Birdie & Mason), after June’s own mother, Susanna, abandoned her & disappeared without a trace. Over the last year, June has been experiencing hallucinations, including a red door.
- June investigates what happened to her mother, and after a series of revelations, June is faced with a decision to walk through the red door.
- Can’t really say much else without spoiling it :)

MY THOUGHTS
- Involves time travel + magical realism. Also, has suspense/mystery + romance.
- Lots of strong female characters.
- Interesting premise & well-plotted story.
- A good Fall read.
- A little slow in some parts.
- Set in Jasper, NC.
- Young adeptly paints the setting, as well as emotions & body language. While reading, your mind automatically forms a picture with the words.
- As with all time travel stories, it is easy to find some logical inconsistencies & confusion. With these types of read, I find overthinking it isn’t worth it.
- I enjoyed Young’s clever references to women’s legitimate issues timelessly being deemed “hysteria” or mental illness by medical professionals and society.

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Read if you enjoy time travel with a mix of other genres (romance, mystery/suspense, magical realism).

Thanks to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. It will be published on October 17, 2023.

Adrienne Young has sculpted a brilliant story of passion, mystery, complexity, and love. The Unmaking of June Farrow is a beautiful reminder that love will prevail against the logic of time.

The novel follows the life of June Farrow, one of many farrow woman who seem be counting the days until their lucid reality takes over to the farrow curse. vivid hallucinations that blend together with the world around them. so when Junes grandmother is finally conquered by the curse, and the weight of her mothers disappearance begins to close in, june has to face that maybe time is ticking down faster than she realizes.

this book is complex, intricate and becomes a unputdownable source of wanderlust.

it started off very slow for me, but it paid off in the end.

a potential movie adaptation would be dreamy

This is definitely one of my top books of the year. It has everything I could want. While its not really fantasy it is more of a mystery/thriller (more on the mystery side of things) and has magical realism. In this our main character is the last of her family. Her beloved grandmother, the woman who raised her has died. June has made it her mission to be the last of their line and end their families curse with her. All the children that her Farrow family line has is women. The women have one girl and that is it. Each of them end up going mad. They see things, hear things, and they start to deteriorate.
June has already started seeing and hearing these things. She also sees this mysterious red door. She finds out more about her mother that does not make sense…then one day she decides to go through the door.
I have really been in the mystery/thriller mood this year. But I also really wanted something mystical that also would throw in something different from what I.have been reading. I felt like I was goign into a slump and this single handedly stopped that from happening. I will be going back to this book more in the future for multiple rereads!!

OH MY GOSH, this book was nothing short of amazing. I devoured this book, it will live with me for awhile. The theme of this book is familial love with some steamy romance and a murder mystery set in a sci-fi fantasy world. I'm not going to say much more than that because I don't want to spoil it. The book has hope and it resonates throughout the story. The women in the book are really strong, and while they don't always do what's best for the family, they do it through love and bring strength. This is a brilliant novel with so many twists and turns you will be intrigued until the very last page. The only downside, I will have a hard time moving on to other books after reading this spectacular diamond.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Delacorte Press, the author Adrienne Young and NetGalley for this incredible read.

Part mystery, part magical realism, part historical fiction, The Unmaking of June Farrow is unlike anything I've ever read. Adrienne Young's writing is magnetic, and her sense of place was incredible. This takes place in the blue ridge mountains, in a fictional town near Asheville, and I really felt that I was there. I found myself getting upset when I had to put the book down to go back to real life. And when you finish it, you'll want to do the same as I did and go back and reread it, to see things you missed along the way. This is one of my favorite reads of this year and I'll be making sure to pass this along to everyone I know!
Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the ARC.
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. June Farrow, like all Farrow women, will eventually become “sick “with the family curse. In the small town of Jasper, North Carolina, everyone remembers the madness and disappearance of June’s Mom, Susanna. Susanna leaves seven month June in the loving care of her grandmother. Then there is the historic unsolved murder of a local pastor that also made local headlines years prior.
After June’s grandmother dies, a cryptic piece of mail arrives that causes June to dive into her mother’s mysterious past. June has begun to experience symptoms of the Farrow curse including hearing voices, sounds and seeing things, including a red door.
This was a delightful read with an inventive storyline that keeps you engaged. Really enjoyed this novel.

I found the beginning a bit slow but once you get used to the pace, it’s a comforting read. The plotline of June farrow begins with a curse passed down from daughter to daughter and June vowing to be the last one. While the curse is not broken by June, June does end up having a happy life. I liked the fact the curse would be broken by her daughter and the intricate the women have in raising each other literally. It gives a nice twist in time travel

Adrienne Young’s adult novels have quickly become my most anticipated reads, I loved Spells for Forgetting and I loved this one even more.

Her writing is so atmospheric and beautiful it’s like a movie for my mind.

This story was achingly sad at times but so interesting and beautiful as well, I loved the time travelers concept it reminded me vaguely of the “Time travelers wife”
Eamon and June’s love story is so unconventional but still so lovely, admittedly in the beginning I couldn’t figure out how it was all supposed to be reconciled but somehow she did it and I loved it.

Adrienne deserves all the stars for this gorgeous read!

Wow...just wow.
I loved this book so much.
I'm in love with June's journey.
It's such a unique and beautiful story.
The bond between the Farrow women is so amazing. They are there for each other no matter what and it made me tear up more than one time.
I'm not saying anything more because I don't want to spoil the plot but again, just wow...this book is really something else.
AND YES, I did cry at the end.

I'd like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc of this book.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is precisely the type of book I look for to usher in the cozy-spooky-quiet of fall time. Not only is there a quaintness to the setting, which nestles itself comfortably amid the farms and the flower fields of a small town in North Carolina where everyone knows each other, but there's also a magical realism element that frays timelines, blurs ancestral ties, and unravels family secrets and curses.

As the story opens, June Farrow is waiting to be claimed. For madness to take her like it has taken all Farrow women before her. She is determined to be the last of her name, to never fall in love, to never pass the family curse onto another generation. However, after her grandmother's death, a flurry of clues arrive that are connected to her mother's disappearance, leading her to step through a mysterious red door in search of answers. What she finds on the other side is both unbelievable and uncanny, but it also reveals something she's secretly always wanted.

The journey June embarks upon challenges every belief she has about herself, her family, and the history of her beloved town, Jasper, that she thought she knew. It's an intricately plotted and suspenseful tale with a slow unraveling that'll keep readers hunting for answers right alongside June.

The story itself is a bend of different genres and tropes - from murder mystery to fantasy, from time travel to thriller to unconventional second chance romance - which gives it an unorthodox pulse, making it both offbeat and comfy all at once.

If I had to categorize the book as a whole, I'd say its themes and cadence lie somewhere between Practical Magic, The Time Traveler's Wife, Dark Matter, and The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue. Reading it is like stepping through a door and into a portal world where an unsolved mystery shadows the town and love can cross any boundary of time. Perfect for anybody who likes atmospheric reads in the autumn!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for my review.

Wow I haven't read anything like this book! I really enjoyed the setting and how mysterious this book was. This book is perfect for fall because of the mystery, family curses, small town, etc. I also loved all of the relationships in this book-different kinds of family relationships, as well as partner/love relationships. I mean I was pretty sucked in from the beginning and it completely held my attention. I also think it was the perfect length. My only complaint is that the magic realism part of the book was a bit confusing for me. I think I understood how June had gone back and forth but I was still confused on how she had lives in two separate time periods that were somewhat still continuing on. This is my second book by Adrienne Young and I am really excited to read more from her!

Thank you Random House and Netgalley for the eARC

The Unmaking of June Farrow made my brain work hard in the best way possible. I’m completely floored by Adrienne Young’s storytelling. This has the signature elements I’ve come to love from Young - lyrical writing, super atmospheric, great setting, and intriguing characters. With June Farrow this is all taken to the next level and the mystery and intrigue will have you staying up late to finish.

There is SO much more I want to say about this book, but it’s best going in blind. Please be wary of reviews that start giving too much info, because I don’t want anything spoiled for anyone!

This book was next level addicting and will easily land amongst my favorites for the year. I was a little worried how this story would pan out, but the ending was so satisfying!

Trigger warnings/content warnings: murder/violence, mental illness, mentions of suicide, maternal abandonment, vague open door/fade to black.

thanks to NetGalley & publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

the unmaking of june farrow is a mind-boggling mystery focused on time travel and multiverses. this reminded me a lot of dark matter by blake crouch which i read earlier this year.

i’m somewhat torn as to my rating overall – i sped through the first half of the book, completely entranced by the cozy, small-town vibes and the hints to a larger mystery waiting to unfold. however, i lost interest in the second half with the focus on a romance plot that i wasn’t too invested in.

i was also taken out of the story multiple times because i kept wanting to work through the intricacies of their time traveling rules? maybe i’m just not smart enough to grasp my head around the idea of time bending, so it’s partially my fault that i wasn’t satisfied by the book’s conclusion.

3.5 ⭐️

Adrienne Young has written another amazing book, just absolutely beautiful.

Read if you like:
Small town mystery
Different take on second chance romance
Magic
Time travel
Family Curses
Getting your heart ripped out
Unexpected twist.

Our main character is June Farrow, a woman who was raised by her grandmother after her mother’s sudden disappearance when she was a baby. June has spent her whole life waiting. Waiting for the curse that has plagued the line of Farrow women - going mad - to come for her. She has lived a quiet existence, refusing to fall in love or to start a family in order to have the curse end with her. A year before her grandmother’s death, her worst fear comes true and she begins seeing things and hearing voices. The visions only intensify until June receives a mysterious clue and a simple instruction - the next time that she sees a red door…to walk through it. What comes next is best left unsaid, but know that you will be in for a wild ride.

This is easily one of my favorite books of the year! I highly recommend this one if you like small town vibes, a good mystery, and fantastical elements (time travel). I adored the characters (lots of strong women!), the rural farm town setting, and the just-right amount of sci-fi/fantasy— not over the top but enough to totally suck me in and keep me on the edge of my seat. It is fantasy that feels feasible, which is a testament to the writer’s talent. I can see this book being a huge hit. It was absolutely enchanting. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. I’m so thankful I was able to read this one!

As I finished this book, all I could think was, "What did I just read?" But in the best way possible. This was honestly one of the most unique, amazing, and mind-bending books I've ever read. At many points, I didn't even know what I was reading. The way the author wove together the past, present, and future was truly astounding.

The book follows the story of the women of the Farrow family who are plagued with a terrible curse, that makes people think that they’re going crazy. Each woman sees visions that blur the lines between illusions and reality, with a mysterious red door that only they can see. June Farrow, the protagonist, has vowed to break the curse no matter the cost—even if it means ending the Farrow lineage and never finding love.

Grieving her grandmother's death, June now resides with Birdie, one of her grandmother's oldest friends. Eventually, June discovers an envelope containing a cryptic picture (that her grandmother sent to her before she died), setting her on a quest for answers. When she confides in Birdie about her visions and shows her the photo, Birdie's lack of surprise surprises her. What's more, Birdie advises June that when she encounters the red door again, she should enter it, but she can’t tell her why. Little does June know how drastically her life will change when she does so. The journey she embarks upon after crossing the door is an exhilarating rollercoaster, filled with revelations and plot twists that continually leave the reader astonished.

Adrienne Young masterfully combines elements of magical realism, fantasy, sci-fi, time travel, suspense, and even romance in this book. It explores themes of family, love, sacrifices for loved ones, and the resilience of women. No review can fully convey the sheer brilliance and enchantment of this book, but please do yourself a favor and preorder The Unmaking of June Farrow—it's the perfect autumn read.

This has to be one of my favorite books ever, so now i’ll be reading every book Adrienne Young has ever written🧎🏻‍♀️biggest thanks to @netgalley and @delacortepress for this eARC.

This is possibly the most beautiful book I’ll read this year. I loved every second of this adventure and appreciated the ease at keeping up and the pace!