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This was a brilliant read, I couldn't put it down. The perfect balance of tense and comforting, the horror of an abusive relationship juxtaposed with the warmth of found families and true friendships. I'll be reading everything this author writes.

(one small gripe, I've never seen Tums for sale in the Scottish highlands - even in the bigger cities like Aberdeen and Inverness)

I had no idea what to expect when I picked up Milktooth, but I quickly learned that sometimes the most unexpected covers hold the deepest, most gut-wrenching stories. I love a sad girl book, especially when the cast is almost exclusively queer. That cool cover and the promise of a story about a woman finding herself—mixed with the literariness (litfic) I adore—had me hooked from the start.

Sorcha, now in her early 30s, is determined to leave behind the fleeting hook-ups and gay haunts of her twenties. All she’s ever wanted is the stability and love of a family—a dream that seems just within reach when she meets Chris. With her buttoned-up plaid, 90s heartthrob hair, and grand romantic gestures, Chris sweeps Sorcha into a whirlwind romance that quickly turns serious. Despite the concerns of her friends, Sorcha clings to the hope that this could be the real-life fairy tale she’s longed for.

However, beneath the veneer of domestic bliss promised in Cape Breton, dark truths begin to surface. Chris’s volatile moods and manipulative behavior reveal her true nature. As Sorcha becomes increasingly isolated, the very person who promised her a baby and a life of stability becomes the architect of her emotional and physical confinement. For anyone who’s ever seen their own past traumas echo in present relationships, Chris’s character resonates all too painfully.

Yet, this is not just a story of destruction. Milktooth is also about the possibility of rebuilding from the ruins. When Sorcha’s estranged Aunt Agnes—a retired midwife with a mysterious past—reaches out, it offers Sorcha a lifeline: a chance to retreat to a bothy in the Scottish Highlands and piece together a new life. Amid the pain, moments of fierce friendship, raw intimacy, and the beauty of found family shine through. The narrative is painted in stunning, lyrical prose that marries trauma with tenderness, and even in the darkest moments, hope glimmers.

Set against the evocative backdrops of Halifax, Cape Breton, and Scotland, every location becomes a character in itself, reinforcing the book’s themes of isolation, identity, and transformation. The subtle exploration of Gaelic language and evolving sexual identity further enriches the story, making it both a cultural and emotional journey.

Milktooth is a compelling testament to survival—the journey from yearning to entrapment and ultimately to liberation. It forces us to confront the lies we tell ourselves to justify staying in harmful situations and reminds us that sometimes the hardest step is believing we deserve better. This beautifully tragic story, with its raw honesty and unforgettable characters, has already claimed its place as one of my favorite reads of the year.

Highly recommended for lovers of litfic, queer narratives, and anyone who’s ever struggled to break free from the chains of a toxic past.

Thank you to NetGalley and Nimbus Publishing | Vagrant Press for the eARC.

I requested and received an eARC of milktooth by Jaime Burnet via NetGalley. Sorcha is over hook-ups and the gay scene, she's ready to leave that behind with her twenties. Now thirty-one what Sorcha craves more than anything is the opportunity to have a baby. She formulates a plan to ensure this result, but then she meets Chris. With her plaid and DiCaprio hair, Chris is irresistible to Sorcha. Although her friends express concern, Sorcha quickly becomes serious with Chris. It isn’t long before Cris becomes increasingly volatile, constantly impressing her criticisms and insecurities upon Sorcha, the two of them isolated together in “domestic bliss” in Cape Breton. When Sorcha becomes pregnant Chris's abuse escalates, she realizes that she must escape.

I was very impressed by the writing in this book. The way Burnet unravels the story and these brilliant little glimpses of Sorcha's character are very compelling. The emphasis on her family history really made me understand and sympathize with her. Once I started this book I really felt as if I had been put under some sort of melancholy spell that made me supremely uncomfortable, but I couldn't break away from. There’s a delicate balance between the bleak and hopefulness in milktooth that I really came to appreciate while making my way through the story. The mood mirrors Sorcha's feelings and experiences quite nicely.

The first half of this novel is incredibly tense and well-written. Intimate partner violence among the queer community isn’t something I often see reflected in literature, but I think Burnet does a great job of handling this issue with sensitivity and without any sort of narrative blame. Sorcha has an incredible group of friends that I really enjoyed getting to know, all very rooted in queer culture in one way or another. The second half of the novel, which does contain tension of its own, felt much more like a salve. Burnet has a lot to say about abuse, familial trauma, found family, and rediscovering yourself and does so in a spectacular and affecting manner.

I read this book in 24 hours, including 90% of it in one sitting. Plot-wise, it’s like IN THE DREAM HOUSE meets Eva Baltasar, but written in the style of Emily R. Austin. The prose is straightforward, not in a bad way, but a little more general fiction and a little less litfic than I expected based on the cover. This book says things about queer culture and identity that I’ve thought but never really seen articulated before (though the book is not primarily about that). I would definitely read more from this author!

thank you netgalley and nimbus publishing for this book

while slow to start, i read the last 70% in one sitting and actually may have even shed a tear at the end???

the most wonderful character driven book about queer identities, family, friends, love, relationships both good and bad and what it means to become yourself.

i loved so much of the easy education about the gaelic language and nova scotia and all the nods towards other pop culture references. i truly did not expect to find so much of myself in these pages, i did not expect to love this book as much i did. a very strong ending. a good read.

"Milktooth" by Jaime Burnet is a gripping work of fiction that centers on Sorcha, a queer thirty-year-old who finds herself in an emotionally abusive relationship with her girlfriend, Chris. As the couple relocates hours away from Sorcha’s chosen family to a more isolated community, the emotional abuse escalates. Throughout the narrative, readers witness Sorcha grappling with self-doubt and questioning the nature of their relationship, as the abuse is primarily verbal and psychological rather than physical. This includes experiences of gaslighting, love bombing, and other toxic behaviors. Feeling uncertain about her situation, Sorcha considers the possibility of having a baby with Chris.

Overall, the novel chronicles Sorcha’s journey to assert herself, reconcile with past traumas, and ultimately determine the kind of future she wants and the people with whom she wishes to share it. It explores themes of chosen family versus biological family. While the subject matter can be challenging, it is handled with exceptional writing and sensitivity. Readers are encouraged to review content warnings before diving in.

I highly recommend this book to those who feel emotionally prepared to confront its themes. It is crafted with grace and care. Thank you to Nimbus and NetGalley for providing this powerful advanced reader copy.

I have never picked up an arc quicker, I started it as soon as possible after being approved and I'm so glad I did as this was phenomenal.
I completely fell in love with these characters, with Sorcha our main character who I understood and saw myself in from page one. I also loved her friendship group, Agnes, and even the unlikeable characters were so well developed and intriguing. This was perfect for a character-driven reader like me. I also learned a lot about Nova Scotia through the lush description of setting, as well as the language of Scottish Gaelic.
I was fully immersed and invested in the story arc, it was difficult to put this book down. There is so much humour and heart and heartbreak poured into these pages, it was a very emotional but healing read.
This book is no less than 5 stars, one of the easiest I've ever given out and it has made it into my top 10 favourite books of all time, in 6th place! I am very much looking forward to buying a physical copy for my own bookshelves and I will reread this in the future as there are so many beautiful quotations I want to annotate. I would highly highly recommend this book but please, as always, check trigger warnings as this delves into some sensitive topics.
5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Nimbus Publishing and Jaime Burnet for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Review posted to Goodreads and The StoryGraph.

I’m not sure why a novel would not be offered as a kindle read, but the ARC for this was only offered to read online or via the netgalley app in two page spreads with a tiny font. I found that to be an impossibly unpleasant way to try to read an entire novel. I simply scanned the book to get a feel for it and it seems well written and compelling, but I won’t be able to publicly review it since I could not read it through.

this book shook me and cracked me open. it crawled up under my skin and inside my chest, LITERALLY MAKING ME GASP FOR AIR. i devoured this novel in one sitting, my heart pounding, my breath catching, my eyes brimming with tears—because Milktooth is not just a story my friend, it's a reckoning....

the story was about survival. about how love—real, deep, aching love can be twisted into something unrecognizable, and how the hardest thing in the world isn’t always leaving, but believing you deserve to. Sorcha’s journey from yearning to entrapment to escape is written with such raw intimacy that it physically hurt to read. Chris is the kind of abuser who thrives in the shadows, manipulating with sweetness, controlling with love—until that love turns violent. the insidious nature of queer abuse, so rarely explored in fiction, is handled with brutal honesty and heartbreaking clarity. it's the kind of story that forces you to confront the ways we rationalize harm, the lies we tell ourselves to survive.

but this isn’t just about destruction—it’s about rebuilding. how love can still be a refuge, even after it’s been used as a weapon. Sorcha’s journey to the Scottish Highlands, her tentative reconnection with Aunt Agnes, the fierce loyalty of her friends—these moments glowed with hope. the prose is stunning, lyrical yet sharp-edged, weaving together trauma and tenderness with haunting beauty. and the found family element? i sobbed. i sobbed so hard. because at the end of it all, it isn’t just about breaking free—it’s about creating something new. something stronger. something your own.

this book wrecked me in the best way. it's fearless, devastating, and darkly funny in a way that only the best stories are. if you’ve ever clawed your way out of something you thought would consume you, if you’ve ever yearned for a love that doesn’t destroy, if you’ve ever wondered whether you were strong enough to begin again—this book is for you.

well deserving of the 5 ⭐️ thank you so much @nimbuspub & Jaime Burnet for the ARC!