"The Unmaking of June Farrow" by Adrienne Young is a captivating and enchanting novel that weaves together elements of romance, mystery, and magic to create a mesmerizing story that lingers in the reader's heart and mind.

Set in the small mountain town of Jasper, North Carolina, the novel introduces us to June Farrow, a young woman from a family known for their flower farm and a centuries-old curse that has plagued them. As rumors and whispers about the family curse continue to circulate in the town, June's life takes an unexpected turn when she begins experiencing strange phenomena—voices, wind chimes, and a mysterious door that appears seemingly out of thin air. These signs point towards something she's always known deep down: her destiny is intertwined with the curse that has haunted her family for generations.

June's determination to break the curse drives her to unravel the secrets of her family's past, particularly the mysterious disappearance of her mother. As she embarks on this journey of discovery, she must confront the unknown and face the possibilities of love and sacrifice. The novel beautifully navigates between the present and the past, weaving a narrative that not only reveals the secrets of the Farrow family but also explores the complexities of human relationships and the blurred boundaries between reality and the supernatural.

Adrienne Young's lyrical prose paints a vivid picture of Jasper and its inhabitants, enveloping readers in a richly atmospheric setting. June's character is well-developed and relatable, making her journey of self-discovery and courage all the more engaging. The romance that unfolds in the story is tender and genuine, adding an emotional depth that complements the mystery at the heart of the plot.

"The Unmaking of June Farrow" is a story of generational secrets, resilience, love, and the powerful connection between the past and the present. Adrienne Young's storytelling prowess shines through, creating a narrative that captures the reader's imagination from beginning to end. This novel is an unforgettable exploration of fate, sacrifice, and the enduring strength of family bonds.

THE UNMAKING OF JUNE FARROW, by Adrienne Young, centers around June--the last in the Farrow line--and how she is determined to put an end to the century-old curse that each woman in the family is born into.

Even if that means never finding love, and ending the Farrow line with herself.

"We were cursed--the Farrow women."

The "illness" begins when other memories and visions start intruding in their usual lives, questioning what is real, and what isn't. The sight of a red door standing in the middle of nowhere--that can appear to them at any time--harrods the agonizing choice of whether or not they should go through to the "other side".

I must admit, that normally I'm "lost" in a book that has a certain troupe that this one has (no spoilers); however, this is a rare exception for me. Not only was the storyline easy for me to follow along with, but it was so powerful--emotionally and mentally--that I never wanted to leave it. June is seen at first as someone hiding behind a hard exterior, steeling herself against any kind of emotions that she doesn't feel she should pursue. She is a Farrow. She is cursed.

At the heart of this are multiple mysteries, and clues to them scattered throughout. Who murdered the minister all those years ago? WHY does his death matter? What happened to June's mother, who disappeared without a trace? As June begins delving further into the past, she starts to unravel not only these mysteries, but awakens a side of herself that she didn't believe she could have.

This book gave me ALL the "feels"! I was mesmerized by the changes in June's emotions, and the mysteries that came to light. I didn't "predict" any major part of this, just went along for the ride and enjoyed the journey.

A fantastic novel that I'll be thinking about for quite some time.

Highly recommended.

*Thank you to NetGalley for an arc of this novel. All opinions are my own.*

June Farrow knows that she and all the women in her family are cursed. Sooner or later, a sickness comes for them that steals their memories and gives them visions. None of the Farrow women have ever escaped this fate. When June starts experiencing “episodes” sooner than she hoped, she tries to research the curse. One day, she decides to follow a vision and slips through a mysterious red door. The door transports her to the 1950s, where she finds a family she doesn't remember that has been torn apart without her. Secrets unravel, the curse is put to the test, and a dark mystery haunts the town…

Adrienne Young is an auto-buy author for me! I’m pretty sure she could be describing her grocery list and I would be interested. The Unmaking of June Farrow is Adrienne Young’s second adult book. One of my favorite things about Adrienne Young’s writing is how vivid it is. I felt like I could see the red door and flower farm so clearly in my mind. She always makes sure to describe all the senses and creates an immersive experience. June is a relatable and strong heroine who it was easy to feel invested in. I loved how powerful women are portrayed and how they work the magic that allows them and their families to stay safe.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is compelling and very hard to put down after a certain point. Adrienne Young effectively ties together time travel and how the choices we make have an impact. June’s story is one with undertones of grief and loss. I loved how June reflects that the world must keep on spinning even after what feels like an unfathomable loss. While not your typical romance (for many reasons), Eamon and June had a palpable and sharp-edged energy between them that was difficult to look away from.

Adrienne Young has a magical ability to completely sweep readers away. I would recommend The Unmaking of June Farrow to readers who love atmospheric mysteries, compelling characters, and immersive prose. I can’t wait to read what Adrienne Young writes next!

Thank you so much to Adrienne Young, Delacorte Press, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, and Barnes & Noble etc

This book follows June Farrow and her quest to find the truth about her family. After losing her grandmother to an unknown “mental illness” which June suffers similar episodes from as well she’s determined to find out who she really is.

I gave this book 3.5 stars. The story was intriguing but was a little hard to get into as well as stay on track with. I definitely think that you have to be a very keen reader to pick up on all the little details that play a role later in the book. I loved the suspense aspects as well as the romance.

Ended up skipping to the end of this book after halfway through. The storyline was dragging too slowly with pages and pages of nothing really going on.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is about a young woman who belongs to generations of cursed Farrow women doomed to “madness”. For the past year, she’s been seeing and hearing things that aren’t there and she knows her time has come. When her grandmother dies, June comes face to face with her fate and a red door. What she finds on the other side is life altering-and time as she knows it, is running out. She must make a choice between the life she’s always known, and the one she built for herself on the other side of the door.

I just finished reading this book last night, and I didn’t even intend to. I was probably about halfway through it, and I could not put it down! I just had to know what was gonna happen! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and after reading it, want to go back and read her, previous work, The Spells for Forgetting. I thought it was a really interesting take on alternate timelines. A beautiful love story!

The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young I think I’m in the unpopular opinion group because while I did enjoy this I also felt like there were some plot holes and complicated timeframes that didn’t fully add up. I think I need to go back and read the first part again to fully understand. The dates didn’t add up for me, but I don’t see that mentioned in other reviews so I’m thinking that’s a me issue and somewhere along the line I didn’t retain the information given. June Farrow lives with her grandmother and knows there is something different about the Farrow women. She begins to hear and see things that others cannot and one day after her beloved gran dies, she sees something and decides to embark on an adventure to seek the answers to her mother’s mysterious disappearance and to find out the answers to family secrets. What she discovers is life changing. Adrienne Young is such a talented writer and she fully captivates her audience with her beautiful writing and story telling. I will absolutely listen to this when it comes out on audio. I would still recommend this book, it was very interesting and I could hardly put it down during the second half. This book comes out on October 17, 2023.

Thank you to #netgalley and #DelacortePress for an advanced readers copy.

This book makes it very clear that Adrienne Young has found her perfect writing niche in magical realism. I fell in love with Spells for Forgetting and to have the opportunity to read an ARC of June Farrow is so exciting.

Adrienne's beautiful, atmospheric writing makes you feel as though you are within the story, feeling the wind through the fields and the smell of Gran's biscuits. I could not put this book down. I do not want to say much regarding the story as I feel it is better to read as it unravels. The mystery elements and twists kept me turning the page so fast to to see what is revealed next. I cannot recommend this book enough!

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing/Ballantine/Delacorte Press, and Adrienne Young for allowing me to read this amazing digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I remember when Adrienne first posted on her Instagram about this novel, at the time unnamed and simply titled with a reference to a red door. It was that moment that I knew I would be reading whatever story Adrienne would weave together.

She is a master of magical realism, and The Unmaking of June Farrow has a similar feel to her debut adult novel Spells for Forgetting. The beautiful setting, emotional and ethereal writing style, and a mysterious tale that had me trying to find any second I could to pick up my kindle and read another chapter.

The story itself was so unique, and brought me feelings of The Time Traveler’s Wife but with an incredibly special story. June’s feelings of grief and anxiety were a driving force to show her how strong she actually was.

I thoroughly enjoyed the setting and the different time period as well as the perfect conclusion to the mystery. It’s one I would recommend for fans of books such as Where the Crawdads Sing, The Time Traveler’s Wife, The Scent Keeper, and Spells for Forgetting.

Thank you to Net Galley and publisher for the arc, and all opinions are my own.

The emotional rollercoaster this book takes you on is utterly amazing. At certain parts I was on the edge of my seat, others I was in tears with the beauty of this story. This is one book you don't want to miss out on.

It contains mystery, romance, time travel, found family, everything about this book came together marvelously.

June has just buried her grandmother, the visions are getting worse, but she has yet to mention it to anyone. June wants nothing more than to be the end of the Farrow curse.

The Farrow women we're such strong women and they did whatever needed to be done for those they loved. I loved seeing such them work together and just be there when the other needed them.

The Farrow women are known to be different, with each one slowly losing it to delusions. June is still trying to piece together the missing pieces of her mother's disappearance, when things take a major turn... She is now back in 1951 and life is even more complicated.

The love story that surpasses time travel and all of the confusion, was just awe inspiring. June, had to make all kinds of choices and when it all unraveled and you see why, your jaw hits the floor.

Thank you so much to Adrienne Young, NetGalley, and RandomHouse Publishing Group for an advanced copy!!

Wow!! I really enjoyed this one. The subtle magic felt so compelling and even though time travel can be hard to nail in a novel sometimes, I really think this was one of the best executed time travels I've read. Loved seeing the different pieces coming together in such a mind bending way. Time travel-murder mystery-romance, 5/5 stars.

While this is a slower paced book, I never felt bored.

June lives in 2023 with her grandmother. Her family is cursed, passed on from daughter to daugter and June has sworn that the curse will die with her. Their minds unravel and June never knows why until it starts to happen to her. When she goes through "the door," things begin making more sense and she realizes what she has to do to end the curse.

This is a mind bending love letter to the multigenerational care between mothers and daughters and their mothers and daughters disguised as a romance novel.

It took me a little while to get into this book. I put it down and picked it back up twice before I got into it, around 25%. But once June's adventure gets off of the ground, I just had to know more.

This isn't quite sci-fi and not quite magical realism. As others have said, it reads like a black mirror episode but without the sinister tone those normally hold. (Think more on the San Junipero side of the spectrum if you are a BM fan)

The science fiction of it all is probably why I am struggling to give it a full 5 stars. You and June spend most of this book confused, trying to put the pieces together. The way everything pans out makes sense but I am still unsure about the technicalities. If I had a physical copy of this book, I would probably be flipping back and forth trying to make it click in my head but I am reading on a kindle and, as we know, flipping around is not the easiest.

Even though it didn't hook me right away, I wound up really liking it and I am glad I stuck with it. I am trusting the author here that it all the technicalities check out and I look forward to the debates that will happen when this is fully published!

Thankful to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honesty review!

Young does a phenomenal job once again with her second adult novel. We follow the story of June Farrow as she uncovers the madness that plagues her family and uncovers plans that someone in her family set in motion in the year 1950. Set along the Blue Ridge Mountains, this is the perfect story to close out summer with and welcome fall. Perfect for fans of Addie LaRue or the Time Travelers Wife.

Once I started this book, it was impossible to put down. From the first chapter, I was fully invested and had to know what happened next. I've never read this author before, but I will definitely be reading more by her because this book was SO GOOD. The moment I finished the book, I missed it because the experience of reading it was magical. The writing was so engaging and I literally have no notes.

I don't want to say too much about the plot or what kind of magic this book contains, because I really enjoyed unraveling the story as June did. I fell in love with all the characters, and their family. The romance in this book was so sweet, but I definitely wouldn't have said no to more.

You definitely will not regret picking this book up, it was one of those books that feels short because so much is happening.

Thank you to Random House and Delacorte Press for this ARC.

✨ARC Review✨

“I had only one ambition in my simply built life, and that was to be sure the Farrow curse would end with me.”

“I’m not sick, honey. I’m just in two places at once.”

I absolutely went head over heels in love with Adrienne Young’s first adult novel last year, and when I heard about this one, I knew without a doubt it would be one of my most anticipated reads this year. The threads of magical realism that Young interweaves into both of her adult novels is unmatched.

June Farrow is the last of the Farrow name after Margaret Farrow’s passing. It is no secret that June’s mother went missing shortly after giving birth. There is mystery surrounding her disappearance, although it is believed to be due to the curse of the Farrow women. June soon realizes she is having “episodes” or is “sick” like her mother and grandmother were.

Mystery, time lapses, fraying parallel threads, a magical red door, love, family, and strong relationships pull together that poetic, lush prose that Young brings so magnificently in her adult works. This one is another must read for the Fall season!

What’s On The Pages:
-small town
-family curse
-mystery
-a red door
-a family flower farm
-magical realism
-romance

✨Rating✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

A special thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for this eARC! The Unmaking Of June Farrow is out October 17th!

Slow to start but once I got into it, maybe halfway, I couldn’t put it down. I had to know how it would end. Well done! Thanks for the arc, all opinions are my own.

I think this is officially my new favorite Adrienne Young book. Think magical realism and small town mystery. Generations of Farrow women have been cursed and June is determined for it to die with her. But the journey is not what she expected. Will she be able to do what is necessary when the time comes?

This book was full of twists and turns. I gasped and cried and I can’t wait to get my physical copy. You must add this to your TBR!!! Adrienne does it again!

Thank you to Penguin Random House for the e-ARC!

Review: The Unmaking of June Farrow
Author: Adrienne Young

Rating: ⭐️⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️ 5/5

Wow. What just happened?! This was a mix of fantasy/ sci-fi that I didn’t know how much I needed.

I almost don’t want to say too much because part of the magic of this book is you truly don’t know what’s going on while you’re reading. So you truly feel surprise, shock, and heartbreak.

There was also some lovely prose in this book that made my eyes instantly tear.
I am just totally blown away.

This was a stunning read.

June is a young girl that just wants to live her life, but with an ancient old family curse, she finds out she must break, and her grandmothers death, June’s life is anything but normal. A cute challenging story and must read