Another absolute hit from Emily Austin. I absolutely devoured this, Austin’s ability to make the most relatable queer, awkward, and neurodiverse characters should be studied. Austin just knows how to depict the human condition, in its beauty and its ugly.

I laughed and I contemplated my own life and my humanity and it’s everything I could have wanted.

While a tough subject matter I think the way it was handled and integrated into the narrative fit so well.

We Could Be Rats is so real, so jarringly and vulnerably real. A must-read not only for fans of Austin’s previous works or sapphic literature in general, but overall fans of litfic and discussions on what it means to be a person.

This book is so beautiful, so sad, and so hopeful. Sigurd is such a wonderfully realized character, and her sister later becomes just as interesting of a character. It is written in such an interesting way, and it is honestly just a perfect book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5 stars)

Many thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and the author, Emily Austin, for the opportunity to read We Could Be Rats. Honestly, I picked this book because I loved the title—and I’m so glad I did.

We Could Be Rats is a tender, poignant exploration of sisterhood, growing up, and the painful complexities that come with navigating life’s rough edges. Emily Austin brings her signature blend of humor, heart, and deep emotional insight to the story of two sisters who couldn’t be more different—yet whose bond, though strained, proves to be unshakable.

Sigrid, the younger of the two, is the kind of character who lingers in your mind long after you’ve finished reading. She hates her job at Dollar Pal, didn’t finish high school, and prefers wandering the streets with her best friend Greta over any notion of responsibility. On the surface, she’s the "lost" one—the sister who can’t or won’t conform to society’s expectations. But underneath her detachment is a vulnerable soul still grappling with the traumas of her past, from pretending her parents were swamp monsters during their violent arguments to losing Greta to the opioid crisis that has ravaged her small town. Austin writes Sigrid with such sensitivity and depth that her pain, though masked in sarcasm and nonchalance, cuts deeply.

On the other hand, Margit, Sigrid’s older sister, has seemingly followed the expected path. She’s frustrated by Sigrid’s refusal to grow up and settle into society’s mold. But as Margit begins to unravel the secrets of her sister’s past and confronts her own assumptions, she slowly realizes that perhaps neither of them truly left their shared childhood behind—and maybe that’s where they need to look to move forward.

What’s really beautiful about this book is how it celebrates the power of imagination and the shared stories that siblings create. Their childhood games, from pretending their parents were monsters to crafting entire worlds together, become a key to rediscovering each other. It’s a love letter to childhood and the way imagination can be both a refuge and a bridge between people who’ve lost their way.

The opioid epidemic and its impact on their town is a heavy backdrop to the story, but it’s handled with grace. Austin doesn’t shy away from the raw, painful reality of addiction, but she also weaves in moments of humor and lightness, balancing the dark with the hopeful.

While We Could Be Rats is moving and emotional, I found the pacing a bit slow in the middle. There are moments where it felt like the narrative could have pushed a little further or dug a bit deeper into the complexities of the sisters’ relationship. Still, this doesn’t take away from the power of the book’s core themes—love, loss, and the enduring strength of sisterhood.

In the end, We Could Be Rats is an unforgettable story about finding your way back to the people who knew you before the world left its scars. It’s a testament to the bonds of family and the magic of shared memories, written with warmth, wit, and plenty of heart. If you’re a fan of character-driven stories that explore the messiness of life with both humor and compassion, this one’s for you.

This story was a trip. Austin’s storytelling was powerful, hard-hitting, and thought-provoking. It really immersed me and went in so many directions that I wasn’t expecting. The narrative style very non-traditional and I love the focus on the relationship of the two sisters and coping from the childhood trauma they faced. So relatable and hit close to home as well. Highly recommend—tears will be shed, jaws dropped, and hearts pulled.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Another Emily Austin banger! Austin is a new to me author this year but I devoured her backlist in a few days and was so excited to get an ARC for this one. As usual, we follow a queer, anxious protagonist afraid of disappointing the people in her life as she navigates her own mental health. I thought the exploration Sigrid's hometown through the lens of her sister was fascinating and the contrast of the two girls really highlighted the different responses that come from dealing with a volatile family.

Another home run by Austin. I love a flawed, queer, neuro divergent leaning main character.
I found the premise of the attempt notes very readable and they carried the story to the second portion quite well. I really appreciated the perspective that essentially the fleeting nature of joy rather than the presence of despair can be at the crux of suicidal ideation. So many of the quips regarding the impracticalaties of death were relatable.
The second half plot twist (from my perspective at least) had me shocked. Also a little bummed because I really preferred (what I perceived to be) Sigrid's voice. Margit did however grow on me, and in the end I wanted more from each sister.

Recently read Interesting Facts About Space and loved it, Emily Austin is now an auto-read author for me so I was excited to get this one. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Without spoiling anything, this book is pretty heavy - take heed of the author's note and content warnings before reading. I really love Emily Austin's writing and her characters are so relatable. Highlighted a bunch of lines that express feelings I've never been able to describe.

4 stars because: I thought the narrative structure was creative but got fatigued of the note format in the first half, and I wanted more of Margit's perspective. This was fully character-driven, but with less plot I hoped for a bit more character growth and satisfying resolution.

I loved Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead, so I was really excited for this. I found Sigrid and Margit both really relatable. I appreciated the deeper topics explored here. However it was pretty repetitive, therefore it dragged a bit. It was a bit all over the place. I wish we’d gotten more from Margit, I was really enjoying her perspective. I feel like we didn’t really get a proper ending.

I also didn’t love all one-sided politics talk towards the end.

In Emily Austin’s new novel, we follow Sigrid and Margit. The two are sisters and seem to have led very different lives. The novel tackles growing up, interpersonal relationships and family, and mental health.

Austin does it once again — she has crafted a gorgeously and devastatingly relatable novel that genuinely brought me to tears multiple times. The topics of suicide and sisterhood are so vulnerable and relatable. Austin always does a wonderful job of pointing to the mundane parts of life (like googly eyes going missing or playing dolls with your sister or listening for people’s footfalls) — and We Could Be Rats is no exception. I kept thinking of the saying about how everything someone lets go has claw marks on it, and Sigrid absolutely does this, especially with her childhood experiences and Greta (and more).

With an incredibly succinct and sarcastic narrative style, Austin creates characters that feel very real and their experiences and thought processes feel so real. Vulnerable and raw, Austin’s newest novel is quickly one of my favorite books. I’d recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys Austin’s other works or enjoys fiction that tackles topics such as mental health and personal growth.

This was good.. but also made me sob for about two days straight. I would advise people to only read this if you are in a good headspace because it will send you spiraling. The ending was a little bit of a non ending which I dont love but it was so good!

Emily Austin is one of my favorite authors of all time, so of course I had to get the ARC for her latest addition. This book was another pitch-perfect commentary on the human condition, something Austin is truly gifted at writing. It was a wild ride, with probably the most unreliable narrator I’ve ever encountered in literature. But once again Austin puts to words all the nuance of human beings and makes even the ugliest situations and feelings feel seen and safe. Once again Austin has reminded me that I am not as alone in the world as I tend to feel, and that individual pain is not as unique to us as we think. My only issue with it was the structure, as it got a bit confusing in regards to the unreliable narrator aspects, but by the end I found it to serve the story well. Beautifully executed and well done.

Traditional format 📕 (digital). Release date January 28,2025.

I read and really enjoyed Emily’s last book Interesting Facts About Space and I was looking forward to this read.

Sadly this one disappointment me. It had the same vibe as the last book (random tidbits of stories that were all over the place) but lacked the quirkiness and did not draw me in at all. I was about to call it quits about half way through but when the story switched from diary format to “real life” format it picked up for the. The second half of the book was more what I was expecting but it still wasn’t enough to salvage this one for me.

Because I enjoyed the second half I bumped up my rating a little but over I wouldn’t really recommend this one and give it the middle of the road score of 2.5/5.

Thank you Atria books and Net Galley for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

Another perfect book from my favorite author. No one writes the mind of an anxious/ mentally ill person better.

So happy I got to read it early through NetGalley but can’t wait to get my own physical copy to highlight and write in the margins.

The definition of an unreliable narrator till the very end. But still laughed along with her and rooted for her the entire time.

Nothing could prepare me for the way this book ripped the heart out of my chest, stuck a bandaid on it, then gave it back to me and said “You’ll be okay.” I will in fact not be okay.

Adulthood to high-school dropout Sigrid is nothing but bomb threats at the dollar pal, Kevin Fliner running for mayor, and Greta, her only friend in the world and the only person who truly knows her, is struggling with an opioid addiction. Drafting her suicide note Sigrid feels isolated and angry. Her parents are angry swamp monsters, Jerry won’t stop consuming essential oils and Margit, her older sister doesn’t understand why she won’t conform to polite societal standards. But most of all, Sigrid just wants to be happy.


Childhood, sisterhood, being queer in a small town Emily Austin does it all in We Could Be Rats. This is my favorite Austin book yet. She knows how to speak to my soul in a language no other author has been able to do before. It feels like she's directly in my brain shuffling through my own thoughts and feelings and putting them down on the page.

The sibling dynamic in this book was my favorite. As an older sister with her own swamp monster parents and younger sister who couldn’t be more different than her I felt the most connected to Margit as a character. The way she internalizes the things going on in her surroundings, and is attuned to how the people around her will act and feel. I never felt more seen in a character before. I loved that we got some of Margit’s perspective as well. I loved seeing her growth and own understanding of herself. She knows she’s made mistakes in the past, especially in regards to her relationship with Sigrid and I loved seeing her make amends with herself and her sister.

What I love most about this book is the way Austin writes about the human experience. About all the layers of being human. It feels like we’re all onions and the more you peel back the more you see. There’s a layer for being a queer woman in a small town like Drysdale. I especially liked the politics mentioned in this book. Because these are real problems that real people are facing everyday. And I loved reading about how angry Sigrid was because of this. Because it is aggravating. There’s a layer for growing up and mourning the childhood you had, even when it wasn’t perfect. There’s a layer for grieving lost friendships. I found the relationship between Sigrid and Greta to be especially sad. It’s never easy losing a friend and the way Austin writes Sigrid mourning that friendship she had with Greta made me sob at two in the morning.

Overall, I could go on and on about this book and the immense love I have for it. I could write whole essays about how much this book has changed me as a person in less than three hundred pages. I really loved the the conversations around queerness, mental health & childhood. I recommend to anyone who loves books that will break their heart in half and simultaneously heal it at the same time.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have loved all of Emily Austin's work and this was no different! The characters are brutally real while also being entertaining. I think that this book has wonderful portrayals of family, sexuality, mental heath, identity, and life in a small town. I will continue to read every novel that Austin writes and can't wait for the next one!

This was the first book by Emily Austin that I have read and I throughly enjoyed it and plan on going back to read her past work.

“We could be rats” talks about very heavy topics (TW for suicide/suicidal thoughts, abuse, substance abuse, and SA) and even though it does focus on these topics, it still is a very enjoyable read because I think it hits on those topics in such a raw and honest way. “We could be rats” really brought up some nostalgic memories of late childhood/early teenage years. Running around without care, being confused as to why your friends don’t want to play with Barbie’s anymore and trying to find where you fit into everything in a town that doesn’t seem to have space for you. The beginning was good it really pulled me in right from the first chapter. I felt connected and similar to Sigrid and Margit in so many ways. I definitely think this is a book I will sit with for a while and characters I will remember. I do have to say I thought the beginning chunk was a bit repetitive but once I hit the second part it truly surprised me and then I couldn’t put it down until I was finished!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the publisher and Emily Austin for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

i don't think anyone else captures the balance between the happiness of being alive, holding random connections with people and the frustrations of having to come to terms with the evils of the world better than emily austin. i cried during so much of this book and was still left with hope. loved sigrid's perspective and felt so so connected with marg's chapters as well. didn't want this to end at all.

thank you netgalley for the arc <3

We Could Be Rats is a story about 2 very different sisters, who coped with and unpredictable, challenging childhood in very different ways, trying to find their way back to each other. Sigrid did not graduate high school, hates her job, never wants to grow up and has lost the only friend who’s ever understood her to drug addiction. Margit is a people pleaser and just can’t understand why Sigrid can’t just be the same way and not rock the boat.

I adored Interesting Facts About Space and couldn’t wait to read Emily Austin’s newest book. We Could Be Rats is an emotional story about the challenges of living in a small town and feeling like you don’t fit in. The struggles of realizing that the safe, happy bubble of childhood no longer exists and to cope with adulthood is just so hard. The mental heath struggles in the story are so relatable and the way things are revealed and uncovered is so powerful and thought provoking. This book contains some VERY SERIOUS topics written in that quirky, sometimes funny, but profound, Emily Austin way. I read this one in 24 hours! (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ARC of We Could Be Rats in exchange for my honest review.

4.5/5. I think if this book reaches it's niche it will be loved and be relatable to many people. This book is a uniquely written story of a sister, a friend, a daughter, and a niece. I think fans of the author will be pleasantly surprised with "We Could Be Rats" as it did not disappoint.

this book ripped me open in a way only Emily Austin knows how. it gets at the heart of what it means to be queer in a small town: when you don’t want to live but don’t really want to die either. BIG TW!! half the book is written in the POV of suicide notes which i was not expecting and had me openly cry on an airplane. i will definitely need to sit with all the feelings this book kicked up because it was almost uncomfortably too close to home, but a true testament to how amazingly written this was.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.