I requested this book on NetGalley because I love everything I've ever touched by Adrienne Young, and this book did not disappoint.

June Farrow is trying to discover how to live her life without her grandmother, whose funeral opens the book. Her life is fully of mysteries, the one that looms largest being her mother's disappearance after leaving her in an alley at 7 months old. But June has no idea where that thread will lead, and before she knows what's happened she's in the middle of a 50 year old murder. That's about all I can say without spoilers...

This book is realistic fiction mixed with time travel mixed with historical fiction, all set in the beauty of the North Carolina mountains. While a few of the plot points were pretty clear to me early on, there were enough surprised and webs that took a little more effort to untangle that it kept me hooked. And, even though I saw parts of it coming, it didn't keep me from crying. This story is about the strength of family, the power of secrets, and learning to trust yourself. It was a fabulous read that I enjoyed from start to finish.

I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH! I will be buying a hard copy when this comes out.

The plot was fantastic. The main character was so lovable. I don't think I could like this book more than I do.

Adrienne Young is now an auto buy author for me!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Such a unique and beautifully written story! A story about grief, loss, love, and finding a part of yourself. Adrienne Young has managed to create another page turner full of magical realism with a sweet southern romance thrown in!

In the small town of Jasper, NC., after the death of her grandmother, June Farrow discovers some cryptic clues left behind that may help her learn about the disappearance of her mother when she was a baby, along with the history of the curse that follows the Farrow women.

I did not see this book coming! Even with the blurb, this book went in a direction I did not expect and yet I loved it. I think it’s best to go in blind but pay attention because it can get confusing. This was a beautifully told story that was both compelling and moving. Young has created a cast of complex characters in the small rural southern town so perfectly you’re just drawn into this story! The pacing isn’t slow but it’s not fast either, however, Adrienne weaves the story well enough to keep you interested throughout with the best slow burn romance. Another well written story from the mind of Adrienne Young.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 stars

When I tell you that I literally screamed and jumped for joy when I saw that Young was writing another adult book, know that it actually happened. I can’t express in words how much I loved Spells for Forgetting and how excited I was to be blessed with an early copy of her next adult novel.

This book has me in an existential crisis, wondering if I’m the problem. Seriously, I’m apparently having the biggest slump right now. Because if I’m not enjoying an Adrienne Young book, whose every book I have loved, then something is very, very wrong with me. Please, send help. I am DNFing this for the time being. I refuse to not like it. For the sake of my sanity, I am putting this one down for now and picking it up again later when I’m out of whatever funk is happening to me. I am about 20% in and I care about nothing. I am completely unmotivated to continue, not feeling any connection with the main character, and it feels blandly plotless. Why am I bored? Why am I experiencing so many flops this year from authors that I adore? Y’all… I don’t even know.

As always though, her prose and lyrical writing is impeccable. She has such a unique way with words and crafting her voice that could never be replicated. I love the setting. This is one of many new books I’ve read recently that feature the Blue Ridge Mountains (where I also live) and I am loving this trend. Obsessed with it. And I can tell you that it is as stunningly beautiful, steeped in history, and at times haunting as everyone writes.

I’m not leaving a star rating yet. I’m determined to come back to this book again. (And, of course, I will be updating my review when I do.) But I had to share my honest, early thoughts on it for now. Don’t let me put you off. And, please, someone out there tell me to stick with it and try again, please tell me it’s worth it as much as I want it to be. I am tragically discovering that I need the motivation. There’s still time, as this doesn’t publish until October. Pray for me, while I make a promise to return to this before then, in hopefully better spirits.

The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young is a beautiful story full of love, mystery, with a little bit of family 'magic' set in a small town with a lot of history.
We follow June as she's tries to navigate the 'curse' of the farrow women and learn about what happened to her mother, She soon learns it is a much bigger story.

*I cant wait to read this again to see all of the things i missed now that i know the full story!

I think this is my favorite book yet by this Author. Thank you to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for allowing me to receive an E-Arc of this.

I've loved every book I've read by Adrienne Young and this was no exception. What an amazing story. I don't even know what to say that won't give away any plot points. She did an amazing job weaving this story. Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to receive an ARC.

This story has a Southern Gothic feel to it. The Farrow women are cursed; they all slowly lose their minds. June Farrow doesn't want to continue the curse so she decides never to marry and never to have children. But there are things she doesn't understand and secrets she knows nothing about. How does a murder 70 years ago have anything to do with it? Can June really avoid love & is that what she really wants to do? I enjoyed this beautifully written novel, though at times, it moved more slowly than I would have liked. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for my honest opinion.

This book may be my new favorite that Adrienne has EVER written.

I am undone.

Set in the picturesque town of Jasper NC, the unmaking of June Farrow takes place. Across the strings of time the Farrow women are cursed to be in two places at once. This is a journey of finding oneself when time threatens to pull you away.

Adrienne truly captured the essence of rural small southern towns and added her original charm & magical elements to create a story that left me sobbing.

Thank you so much Penguin Random House for providing me with the e-arc.

What an interesting story of time-travel! June Farrow is caught between two lives in the same town - one she's very familiar with and another in a different time. June must figure out the connection between all of the pieces in her life before she unravels. I really enjoyed the writing in this book - it was beautiful and haunting. Definitely a fast-paced story that I couldn't put down! A solid 4-star book!

I'm not sure I fully understood the time travel overlap but I did enjoy the overall story and characters. Looking forward to seeing what this author writes next!

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book. Adrienne Young's writing is dreamy and atmospheric, and the book is romantic, mysterious, emotional, and compelling. Its Southern Gothic inspiration is obvious but it's more optimistic than books of that genre usually are. Highly recommend it!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is hands down my favorite read of 2023. I finished this book in a single evening, completely unable to tear myself away from June’s story. Adrienne Young has absolutely outdid herself. Each sentence was crafted with such skill and intent - I am literally still in awe.

The characters are complex and so easily known. I felt as though I was along with June in the uncovering of her path. The story was just all around beautiful. There are themes in this book that capture motherhood, loss, grief, and love so perfectly.

I cried as I devoured the last 100 pages of this book. Sad tears, angry tears, happy tears.

Please buy this book. You will not regret it.

There are good authors, there are great authors, and then there’s the inimitable Adrienne Young. I first fell in love with her literary work thanks to the deeply engrossing “Fable,” series, followed by the forbidden allure of “The Last Legacy,” and her hauntingly poignant “Spells for Forgetting.” Once again, I’m left reeling after having finished her latest novel — which I’m also convinced is her best yet. (This is saying a lot, as I count “Fable” and “Namesake” among the greatest YA books of this generation.)

“The Unmaking of June Farrow” follows protagonist June, who has just lost her beloved grandmother, in part to what she believes is their mysterious, longstanding family curse — one she herself has started experiencing inexplicable symptoms of. June is determined to figure out what’s wrong with her before it derails her life entirely; and, in the process, is trying to figure out what happened to her mom, who left her with no explanation in the care of her grandmother when she was just a baby, and hasn’t been seen since.

The world-building in this is unbelievably well-done. Set in the mountains of North Carolina, spanning a period of several generations, in “The Unmaking of June Farrow,” Young richly captures the reality of life in a small rural Southern town, all the while crafting a tale where the impossible becomes possible, and a lost girl finds her way back to herself. Without going into too much detail, everything works here. From a gorgeous slow-burn romance to a thrilling pursuit for the truth, Young is no stranger to perfecting the art of fiction.

If it isn’t already obvious, I devoured this masterpiece, and I’m willing to bet you will, too.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for an ARC.*

This book is brilliant. Have you ever read a book that plays with time and time travel and at the end of it thought "that made total sense"? No? Me either...until this book. And oh my gosh the romance. THE ROMANCE. I was up late one night in the dark reading next to my husband and started sobbing because of a beautiful moment. This book is utter perfection.

I am on a mission to read all of Adrienne Young's books this year and I only have two more to go!. She is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Young's writing is so atmospheric and beautiful, and I feel so lucky that I received an ARC of this book. I enjoyed this a lot, and I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys their stories with a little bit of magic.

June Farrow has come from a long line of Farrow Women, all who have been cursed with madness for centuries. This madness led to the disappearance of June's mother, Susanna, and June is determined solve that mystery. It's been a year since the madness has started creeping in on June—she has begun to hear and see things that aren't there, including a red door that sporadically appears in odd places.

Clues begin to reveal themselves to June about her mother's disappearance and she discovers that the red door may be the answer to all of her questions. June decides to take a chance and walk through the door, revealing a unexpected journey that may help her solve the mystery and break the curse that her family has suffered through for centuries.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. Again, the writing was so incredibly beautiful and I felt like I had been plopped right into June's farm. This was an engrossing mystery and romance and I felt myself reading it quickly so the mystery could reveal itself, even though I didn't want to read it too fast because I wanted to savor the writing as well. I think that the story did slow down quite a bit in the middle and I lost a little interest, but it picked right back up and was met with a satisfying ending. Young's adult fiction has been fantastic so far and I can't wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book opens up with June Farrow’s Gran dying from “mental illness” but the doctors can never figure out what’s actually wrong with her. June has started having these same episodes a year prior but doesn’t tell anyone.

She starts digging into her past and it causes her to go down a rabbit trail of who her parents are and who she really is. There’s just enough magic and suspense to keep you on your toes!

I gave it a 4 ⭐️ because it was a little hard to follow with some of the time traveling and fictional aspects. My mind just couldn’t wrap around some of it 🤣 I think if I was to reread the book I’d see a lot of Easter eggs that would make other parts of the book make sense. Such a great read!

Thanks NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my Honest review!

June comes from generations of women that seem to succumb to insanity. It was a given that as a Farrow female you would go crazy with hallucinations and delusions, often disappearing, perhaps committing suicide. In reality, each woman "moved" into an alternate universe where she lived a different life. June was left as a baby by her mother who disappeared from her life forever. Her body was never found but suicide due to mental illness was suspected. June lived in fear of following in her moms footsteps and going crazy at a young age. She watched her grandmother die, who often did not speak or know where she was. She vowed to never have children so that the insanity would end with her. What June discovers is not insanity, but rather a curse on her family. This book was good but I really had to pay attention to what I was reading. Otherwise, I found myself to be confused due to the different timelines. Very imaginative and magical, I would recommend this book for those that like multiple timelines, fantasy and time travel.
My rating was rounded up from 3.5 stars to 4 stars. Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC. This review is my own.

I started this book last night and finished it today. I could not put it down. It’s just the right mixture of mystery and thriller and intrigue. The world Adrienne Young creates pulls you in from the very first paragraph, sentence even. In short, I may read it again tonight.

The story opens with the death of June Farrow’s Gran, and the first chapter sets up the mystery of a family of women bound by a curse of “mental illness” that occurs suddenly and seemingly without warning at various points in their lives. At 34 years old, we see that June’s madness had begun the year prior but is growing in intensity in the aftermath of the passing of her Gran. Determined to uncover the mystery of her mother’s disappearance and comforted in the fact that she will be the last Farrow woman to succumb to insanity because she had remained intentionally childless, June eventually is forced to face the inevitable and tell her remaining loved ones about her hallucinations.

Her Gran’s best friend, Birdie, is not surprised or concerned to hear about June’s hallucinations, and hands her another piece to the puzzle. June presses for more information, but Birdie tells June that she had promised long ago not to interfere and wouldn’t break that promise for anyone, not even her. She leaves her with one simple instruction: when the red door shows up, June needed to walk through it.

There were a couple scenes that were for a mature audience, but in my opinion, they weren’t crude or crass, and they didn’t drag out. There were also a couple of scenes of violence. If it were a movie, I’m sure these collection of scenes would make it a an R rated movie.

I still have questions, but these questions aren’t gaping plot holes. They may be intentionally left to provide material for future books— I’d definitely read future books about the Farrow women. The questions may be intentionally left to make you wonder long after the book is finished. If so, well done, Adrienne. I really enjoyed this book.

***Editing to add that this is a book you’ll want to read twice! There are little Easter eggs cleverly scattered throughout the book that you can’t properly enjoy until you’ve read it once through — also yes, I am currently rereading this book and enjoying the effort Adrienne put in to making this book as good the second time around as much as the first!***

I’d like to thank Random House Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is an achingly beautiful tale that's brimming with evocative joy and sorrow.

Readers follow June as she begins a rendezvous with fate that she neither wants of truly understand. As her life begins to unravel, June must rely on the generations before her and her own quit strength to forge her way to the life she truly wants.

June's story is so intensely human. While the circumstances of the generational curse are otherworldly, I felt empathetic to the hard choices these characters ultimately choose. While it is unlikely that readers will ever have to make such choices they do cleverly echo the choices that most folks lives are made up of and speak to the way those choices create one's reality. For me the quiet moments are what really made this story special but the mystery of it all is engaging and propulsive too.

I can think of only one other character that has effected me like June ( Addie Larue) she is someone who I will think of fondly and often.

I loved this book so much I read it in one day. Could not put it down. I found it to be a beautiful love story. I also really loved her first adult novel.