Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the review copy of this title.

This book was wonderful, heartbreaking, and so creepy. Loved it.

I’m going to start by saying this book was amazingly atmospheric and hauntingly beautiful. I made it about a third way through the audiobook when I knew it would be a story I was going to want to revisit again and bought the physical copy.

The breadcrumbs left throughout were so well done (and personally I was very glad to have been able to follow them - with moments of “yes, I knew it” and not in a way that was “overtly predictable”)

The three main characters had me in a vice. I wanted these three to get their ending. To stay forever in a connected dependency that they had formed. A toxic but intoxicating relationship. That said, I got more attached than I should have. That said, this book made me emotional. That said, the reason this got five stars is because I got emotional more than one and have already decided that I will rejoin this book at least one more time this year.

As I final note, I want to thank NetGalley and Scholastic Press who had graciously approved me for an arc of this book last year which I regrettably did not download in time.

This was a interesting read, i picked it because of the cover. i enjoyed the story and the world it was set in.

Book Summary:

Wyatt Westlock is the last of her line. For the most part, that’s never felt like a big deal. It meant she got to spend her summers at the family farmhouse, enjoying her time with her two best friends.

Until the day everything changed. Something horrible happened, resulting in Wyatt getting banished from her own home. Decades later, she’s back, and she wants to burn the place to the ground. But something’s stopping her.

My Review:

Apparently, 2024 was the year for blindsiding me with novels connected to worlds I loved. Your Blood, My Bones shares the same world as The Whispering Dark. Maybe I just missed the memo, but I was not expecting that (not that I’m complaining).

Your Blood, My Bones is split into two primary perspectives - Wyatt and Peter. The two couldn’t be more different if they tried. It’s a bit of an opposites attract romance, but in a twisted and dark way.

Where Wyatt is the fumbling yet powerful character, Peter is the tortured soul. If readers enjoy those tropes, be sure to check out Kelly Andrew’s latest novel! The story also has dark secrets, twisted revelations, and a few surprise cameos.

Admittedly, I don’t think I loved Your Blood, My Bones the way I cherished The Whispering Dark, though it’s still a solid read. It just didn’t sweep me off my feet. I think it was something about how the story unfolded, but I’m not certain.

Now I’m left wondering - will there be another addition to the world, or is this surprise release (to me, at least) the conclusion?

Highlights:
Paranormal Fantasy
Loyalty & Magic
Twisted Romance
Same world as The Whispering Dark

Trigger Warnings:
Graphic Injuries/Trauma
Animal Death

I always struggle the most to review books I feel complete apathy towards. And sadly, Your Blood, My Bones is one of them. I mean, it was okay? I liked it, in theory. There's just nothing about it that stands out. The foreshadowing was a bit too apparent, none of the twists surprised me. And I didn't find myself caring about the characters, so when things fell apart at the end, I felt like a disinterested bystander. Again, this wasn't bad. It had the potential to be incredible. But I like my forest horror to be a bit more atmospheric. I want to feel the decay slowly creeping in, and I didn't feel that at all with this one.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Your Blood, My Bones by Kelly Andrew didn't grab me. Something about the MMC didn't click. Sorry! Thank to you NetGalley for the ARC!

I legitimately had to put this book down a couple of times in the first several chapters because it freaked me out so much. That speaks volumes to the depth of character Andrew conveys as well as the ability to carry an entire story on the back of vibes alone. At times the dialogue was a little heavy handed and angsty, but ultimately successful.

3.5 stars rounded to 4 because I’m in love with the setting and characters. Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

It' been in my "currently reading" list, untouched, since July and I think it's time I officially DNF. I might come back to it in the future, but in the 10% I read it didn't catch my interest enough to want to come back. I'm very sad because I was so excited about this when it was announced but I don't think the execution was what I was expecting from what I saw in the promos of the book, so I was a bit underwhelmed from the start.

Kelly Andrew's Your Blood My Bones is a gothic YA tale that blends horror dark fantasy and romance into a hauntingly beautiful narrative. I picked this up because of the intriguing cover and blurb and while it didn’t quite meet all my high expectations it still left a memorable impression.

The prose is without a doubt one of the book's strongest elements. Andrew's writing is rich and evocative conjuring a chilling atmosphere that feels both unsettling and captivating. She paints a vivid gothic landscape that pulls you in making the horrors and emotions of the characters feel tangible. The sorrowful and somber tone permeates the story and while it’s not a happy book by any means there’s a certain beauty in its sadness which I believe was Andrew's full intention.

The story centers on the trio of Wyatt Peter and James and while I appreciated the glimpses into their pasts I found myself wanting a deeper more cohesive connection among them. The power of three is mentioned throughout but I wished for their bond to feel more present and emotionally raw. The narrative scratched the surface of their dynamic but didn't quite dig deep enough to evoke the intense emotions I was hoping for.

The ending felt a bit rushed and the introduction of secondary characters towards the finale felt somewhat misplaced. A tighter focus on the main trio would have heightened the impact and left a lasting impression beyond the final page. While the immersion was strong during the reading experience I found myself wanting more to ponder once I closed the book.

That said this novel is an impressive debut and Kelly Andrew’s talent is undeniable. Her writing style with its ability to craft a gothic and immersive world is a gift. I’ll certainly be keeping an eye on her future works.

This book is gorgeously haunting in the best possible way, and at the line level the writing is vivid and breathtaking. An impressively woven, deliciously dark YA horror!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kelly Andrew, and Scholastic Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

I absolutely did not expect to love this book as much as I do. It’s labeled a Teens & YA book but the content absolutely leans more towards YA. The characters, while approximately 19, go through some horrorifying situations in this book.

Kelly Andrews does such a great job with the imagery and the dialogue. I would almost name this a YA Horror novel with Witchy Elements. It’s an absolute perfect read for fall, and I highly recommend adding it to your fall or spooky TBR.

Creepy house, mysterious person, troubled past. All great reasons to get into the book. But, the execution is not as strong as I would have liked it to be. It's perfect for teens just starting their exploration into a thriller style story. It has a definitive coming of age quality to it, and the characters are interesting enough to care what happens to them. But, a lot of plot points were pretty predictable.

Atmospheric, gothic romance.
I was absolutely sold. This book is all the vibes that make my heart feel at home.
It was a beautiful read, and i so enjoyed it.
Obsessed!

You know when morning glories or ivy or other similar plants will grow all over some old chair or rusting car or what have you, and eventually the thing underneath rots or rusts away into nothing but the vines are now holding themselves up in the shape of the original item, but there is no actual structure there and it falls apart if you poke it? That's exactly what Your Blood, My Bones feels like. It's vibes and a prayer, but there's no internal coherency, no structure, even the madcap structure of an Alice in Wonderland type of story. It's like the author wrote the tropes and vibes and scenes and moments she wanted, but nothing that leads to, supports, or earns those moments and feelings. In short, this book is a mess. A pretty, aesthetically appealing, cottagecore mess, but a mess all the same.

Thank you to the publisher for the advance review copy.

A decent mix of intrigue, suspense, mystery, horror, and a slow burn romance. I didn’t necessarily love the book, but did enjoy the writing well enough to read future titles from this author.

This was a really interesting read. I loved the main characters and how their relationship was revealed. I liked the mystery of it all and the twist at the end. It was just missing something that her first book had.

Kelly Andrew has fully cemented herself as one of my favs with this second book. Just like her previous novel, this book was atmospheric, creepy, romantic, and full to the brim with angsty feelings. The author writes about people just edging into adulthood, usually in college, and she really makes sure to smack you in the face with their emotions (exactly how I was as a teen tbh).

Your Blood, My Bones is about three friends, three families, and a curse or a gift depending on who's telling the story. The main characters spend every summer together growing up breathing each other's air with nobody else to cling to outside of their confusing, secretive, and often hostile families. They spend lazy days on a farm in the middle of nowhere while their parents do weird shit they don't understand. Until something very bad happens and Wyatt, our FMC, is finally taken away by her mother. Years later, on the event of her father's death, Wyatt is bequeathed the farm and finds her long-ago best friend, Peter, tied up in the basement and left to die.

This story starts off with a bang! It is creepy and atmospheric and full of dirt and trees and gore right from the beginning. Unfortunately, I think because it feels like the action starts so quickly, it kind of plateaus in the middle and starts to feel very slow, like we're all just sitting waiting for something to happen. Which. We are, but I would have appreciated more to happen in the middle instead of some of the more repetitive situations and conversations that we did get.

Overall, that was my only issue, and I ADORED this book outside of that one thing. We also get drop-in characters from the last book which I will never not love.

The magic system is dark and scary and gory. The love is deep and sumptuous and sloooowwww burn and angsty. The end was a TWIST somehow, I never expected it and I appreciate it all the more because of that.

Highly recommend to those that love books like Ninth House or My Dreadful Darling Thing. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC!

Thank you so much Netgalley for approving me to read this arc of the book. This review is coming way late after the publication date I must admit. When I first saw the the title, the cover, and the description of the book, my expectations of the book went through the roof. I was excited but also apprehensive that the book would let me down. I can genuinely say it didn’t but it also wasn’t entirely what I was expecting either. The world building was kind of not all there. I could see what she was trying to do but I felt like it was a lot more vibes than it was anything concrete. There were times where I had no idea what was going on and the pacing was a little stop/start. That being said, this book made me cry so much. It was a tragic little tale and by the end I could barely see the pages from my tears. The ending was incredibly bittersweet and though I knew some things were coming I couldn’t help but still be sad about it. The complicated friendship between the three main characters was interesting to read about and there were times you were rooting for them but also other times where you wanted to shake them a bit. Overall, this book was something I’ll never forget.

Thank you to Scholastic and NetGalley for the arc. My opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved this book. Perfect gross, atmospheric setting. A creepy cult with a dark secret. My only wish is that this was adult and I hope this author branches out to that!