Mia. Ballard. Never. Misses. This book was brutal, disgusting, disturbing, and oh so cathartic. It made me want to scream “I love extreme horror written by women” from the rooftops. All I can really say without giving away too much of the plot is that this book shows exactly why horror is necessary. Horror stories allow you to feel emotions at their extreme in a way that’s safe. I honestly wouldn’t trust a story like this in the hands of just anyone’s, but Mia Ballard is incredibly capable and supremely talented, and wrote this story in a way that gives agency to the MC/victim in a way that not every horror author is able to do. We need more horror like this, written by marginalized voices. And I can already tell that Mia Ballard is going to go down as a true master of the genre.

Mia says it herself, but I feel it needs to be said again.. do NOT be fooled by the cutesy cover and make sure you read the warning/triggers before going into this story.
With that being said, this was an INSANE read. I don’t even know where to begin or end with my review, as my thoughts and emotions haven’t stopped raging ever since I finished the book. When I started dipping my toes into the Horror genre, THIS is what I was looking for.
Mia Ballard’s writing style is so smooth and flawless, I was quickly obsessed, and already have her other 2 books Sugar and We All Rot Eventually in the cart.
The way she portrays OCD, toxic relationships, the things that women go through on a daily basis, and the pure animalistic female RAGE that comes out of it all.. I couldn’t have been more impressed, seriously. I will think about this book, probably for the rest of my life, and continue to ponder on all of the deeper meanings hidden within it.

Favorite quotes:
• “‘Thank you,’ I say to the waitress reflexively. She widens her eyes at me. Get a load of this guy. I smile and cartoonishly widen my eyes back at her before she leaves the table. I love how we can telepathically converse like that. It was one of the only things women had that men couldn't take away.”
• “Rage. The word cuts through my thoughts like a knife. The sound of his voice, the sight of his face, the casual ease with which he dismisses everything he's done—it fuels the fire inside me until it consumes everything else.”
• “Women have always been cast as caretakers, peacekeepers, and forgivers. We're told to endure, to adapt, to rise above. But sometimes, the only way to heal is to rage. Sometimes, justice isn't quiet or clean; it's feral and bloody and unapologetic.”

Thank you to Mia Ballard for writing this amazing piece of art, and thank you to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read the ARC.