After the events of last semester at St. Benedict High, Leslie and her friends are slowly putting their lives back together. But a cute stranger comes to town, and bodies are still showing up at the river. Coincidence? Leslie is determined to find out.

I loved River of Wrath! The first book (River of Ashes) was good, and I think it handled some difficult topics honestly, but this book was beyond amazing. I loved that it took a bigger turn into the mystery and thriller aspect, keeping up with the southern gothic vibes, and I appreciated how the different POVs helped with that. I can’t wait to see where the next book goes!


Thank you to  Alexandrea Weis and Lucas Astor, the publishers andNetGalley for this eARC!

I will not be reading this, as I did not realize when I asked for it that it was the second in a series. I could have sworn the parentheses that shows this after the title wasn’t there when I requested this. I am sorry. I may get to it if I get a hold of the first book and like it enough to read the second book. The cover is stunning though.

Thank you to NetGalley and Vesuvian Books for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

*NOTE: I did not realize that this was the second in a series. When I had requested it, NetGalley did not have it listed in the title or in the description. It seems they amended that by the time I finished reading.*

"River of Wrath" by Alexandrea Weis and Lucas Astor is the second in their St. Benedict series. I have not read the first book but I imagine that my thoughts about this book would remain fairly the same. This book is essentially about a series of murders that take place in sleepy but cursed town and the teens at the center of all of it. I will be short with this review because I did not enjoy this book very much. The one thing I was interested in was the 25 year old murder victim that gets found in the first few pages of the book but the main storyline and the main characters? I did not care for them. 

The main character and her friends were so shallow and flat. They all had one defining feature and that was it. No character growth, not closer look at any of them, not even with the main character. I finished this last night and I can't even remember their names. The characters in this book were so faint that they just fall to the wayside in my memory. On top of poor characterization, the writing was just awful to get through. The plot, the twist, and the "mystery" felt like a rushed season of a CW show which is saying A LOT because those shows aren't great. 

Overall, this is not a book I'd recommend.

Part two in the riveting St. Benedict series does not disappoint. Well-written and fast paced, this book equally shares time between older YA and adult POVs, giving more insight to the complex Devereaux family--whose history is as sordid as it is fascinating. While lingering questions from book one are resolved, many more mysteries are introduced, keeping you on the edge of your seat. Add a chilling ghostly thread, a handsome stranger with a secret, and more dead bodies, this book doesn't let up. Book three can't come fast enough in this engaging, twisted series.

I had not read book 1 before reading this book (and didn't realize this was a sequel until I had it) - it was a mistake

This book (presumably) starts right where book 1 ended. We're thrown into a situation where 4 friends (who I think hate each other?) are dealing with the aftermath of the last book. In the prior book, psychopath Beau raped 2 of the friends, killed the sister of the 3rd, and I assume did something to the 4th (which I'm sure was mentioned and I missed it). So, as near as I can put together, they went to Beau's father, Gage, and they all agreed to murder Beau (like you do). I kept feeling like I was watching an episode of Riverdale where an over the top and ridiculous drama.

There's also a 25 year old body that is discovered. This was the most interesting part of the book (and was keeping this at a 2 star rating until the end). The body is somehow connected with Gage (the father) and it was actually a decent reveal.

One of the 4 friends, Leslie, broke up with her boyfriend, Derek, at the end of the first book (or between books). He turned into a stalker and follows her everywhere because he loves her so much and people kept telling her to get back with him because he's so sweet. I think we're supposed to find it romantic and endearing (unclear), but I wanted her to get some pepper spray for him. It might have been different if I had read book 1, but purely from book 2, not a fan of him at all.

And lastly, we have a hot stranger who shows up into town and who looks and sounds very similar to Beau - I don't want to give away if possibly there is a paternity connection - it was a big mystery and shocking surprise when that was answered! /sarcasm And, golly, do you think he's hiding something?

I never felt like I had a good grasp of the story, except for the part with the 25 year old body. The book would reference how Leslie's sister was murdered by Beau.... but, okay, she died in a fire..... okay, I guess he set the fire? I'm still not 100% clear on how she died. The book kept calling back to the prior book and kept assuming you had familiarity with the book. Even at 75% into the book, it was still referencing book 1 stuff which still wasn't clear.

Many of the characters were one note. For the friends, Leslie was the most developed. Then there was Sara who had a large bosom (said every time she was flirting with Luke and always called her "bosom"). Taylor did research - that was about all I knew about her. Holly..... Sally.... (I had to look it up) Kelly is from out of town. That's it for her character development! Derek is a stalker with a truck. Luke is hot and nice. Etc

And after wading through this book and waiting for it to get better or clearer and give me some payoff, the dang thing ends on a cliffhanger! Talk about adding insult to injury.

I highly recommend you play the drinking game where every time a character "sneers" at another, you take a shot. Warning: you will get wasted. I appreciate how the author uses words other than "said" for characters having a conversation but they all have a sneering problem.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this advance review copy.

I loved book one so much so I couldn't wait to get my hands on book two and see what happens next. This book gives off all the creepy factors with a seance, apparitions, howling dogs that kill, dead bodies piling up and so many secrets. 

A new guy comes to town and he ends up being Gage's son so will he be like Beau? Is  evil really in the family blood? Gage will do anything to protect the family name and his son.

Another dead body by the lake and now Kelly is discovered dead after giving birth but who took the baby?

Just so much going on to keep you engaged and on the edge of your seat until the end. Now the long wait for book three to come out.

A fast paced and easy read. Overwhelmingly good reviews so far, if you liked the first one I think you’ll like this one. The cover is to die for, but I myself couldn’t really get into. Thought I was getting something else entirely, which is my own fault. Still, good writing and interesting.

The second in the series was not a disappointment. I have high hopes for the third book in the series. This is a great series for young adults and lovers of thriller stories. I wouldn’t be surprised if every book by this author is just as good. Thank you for the opportunity to read and share my thoughts.

the story and concept were interesting, but just so poorly executed. there were too many povs which served no purpose other than to dump information that had no relation to the main mystery. the writing was also not good, and the way the teenagers were written was frankly just embarrassing.

Okay First -- can we discuss this gorgeous cover?! I adore it and it really drew me into the idea of the book. The book is shocking and mysterious and really keeps you engaged and interested. Perfect for fans of a good murder mystery and need something to keep them up all night.

An incredible sequel to River of Ashes that was as mysterious and it was shocking. Terrific writing and plotting from the authors. Looking forward to book three. Definitely recommend to anyone who likes murder mysteries, family secrets, and a slight supernatural angle that keeps the spine tingling.

Did I just go to my Kindle Store and buy River of Ashes St. Benedict Book 2? Yes! Yes I did! 

River of Wrath by Alexandrea Weis & Lucas Astor is book 2 in an unputdownable story!
With it's southern gothic vibes and awesome characters I was intrigued from the start. 
The story is a gripping from beginning to end.
The characters are amazingly developed and so put together.
And the writing was phenomenal. I was flipping the pages like a crazy girl! 
Needles to say I'm stating the first one this evening and can't wait! 
The beautiful cover caught my eye. And I'm so glad I opened it up because it was one hell of an amazing ride. 

I read that RoA is currently in development for a TV series and if it's true that gets me all kinds of excited.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

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

Unfortunately, this book did not give me what I was hoping for based on the description and the gorgeous cover. the plot felt very slow-paced and there wasn't much mystery to it, nearly everything was explained in the first third of the book. Everything not explicitly explained the book hit you in the head over with foreshadowing and descriptors. The dialogue also felt incredibly unnatural and stiff, more like people speaking in a board room than teenagers speaking to one another. Also, within the first quarter of the book the e-slur is casually dropped, which immediately made me feel disgusted.

This one wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. It wasn’t interesting enough for me. I couldn’t stay interested at all. I had to power through this one.

From the beginning, this book started off strong. You are right in the middle of the police finding another murder in their town. And then you find out that 4 teenagers had something to do with one of them and covering up secrets. Especially when you find out it was revenge for Leslie's twin sister, Dawn. This one reminds me some what of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder since it's high school kids and Taylor is doing research on the Devereaux family history. I don’t know how so many people can keep so many secrets hidden: who Luke Cross' biological dad is, what happened to Beau, Gage buying new cars for the girls to keep quiet, etc. There were only a few things I will say about this book that made me choose 4 stabs. Many chapters didn't really leave off at a cliffhanger. I tend to continue reading a lot quicker when there is a cliffhanger every so often. Also, some times I felt like it was slow because there were parts that had lots of details when it wasn't necessary in my opinion.

Leslie and friends are still trying to recover from their rough year. More secrets and bodies are still turning up in this dark gothic mystery series. 
This was a great creepy read that I couldn’t hardly put down. Thanks NetGalley and Versuvian Books for this ARC that will be released January 30.

This book was a fast paced, easy read in that it kept my attention. It has some good character development and all the elements of a thriller I love like a good mystery, twists, the potential of some supernatural and multiple plot lines to uncover. However, that is one part I struggled with. There are a lot of mini story lines woven in and at times it felt a little choppy trying to follow and pull them all together. I was very engaged and enjoying the book but the end felt very quickly wrapped up; acknowledging of course, there is another book in the series to come. I felt more like I was left dizzy with loose ends than intrigued with a solid cliffhanger of what’s to come. Overall, it was a decent read, just a little harder to follow for me personally.

Firstly, THAT COVER. Holy crap. I'm obsessed and need a copy on my shelves immediately.

This is a novel about crime obsession, but its also a novel about relationships and choosing the path between what we love, what loves us, and the roads in-between those.

that cover is what drew me in and the fact that I enjoyed the first book in the St. Benedict series. This did not disappoint, it was such a great story it had the horror elements that I was looking for and did it really well. I was so glad I was able to read this and continue the story. Alexandrea Weis & Lucas Astor wrote this perfectly and it had what I enjoyed from the first book. I can't wait to read more from them and this series.

"My guess would be guilt over something. Our family has made a lot of mistakes through the years.” Gage chuckled as the gates slowly swung open. “My grandfather, Jacques Devereaux, tried to drown his sins in beer. He’s who built the brewery. It became his passion.”