I didn’t know what to expect when I started reading And Then There Were Crows.  Part satirical urban fantasy, part black comedy - the end of the world begins with a Craigslist ad for a roommate.  In this case roommate from hell is an accurate description.  Amanda Grey has agoraphobia and panic disorder.  Dealing with the everyday is hard enough, but now she has shades trying to kill her, a disturbing excuse for an angel blaming her for the oncoming apocalypse, and a new neighbor trying to be her friend.  Odd things are happening in New York, and somehow it is up to Amanda to save the day.

Amanda isn’t the most likable heroine, but she is perfectly believable as a young woman with serious anxiety issues. Her main methods of coping are avoidance and driving people away by being unpleasant.   But she is the perfect heroine for this unique novel and difficult to classify novel.

My only complaint is that there are times when the novel drags.  Otherwise it is an excellent and unusual read.

4 / 5

I received a copy of And Then There Were Crows from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

— Crittermom

When I first saw the plot and the title of the book, And Then There Were Crows, I found it way too intriguing. Once I received the book and started reading it, I found it rather absurd. The book was fine but it took me a long time to finish it because of its slow pace. Few instances I didn't even feel like ending it. Reading the blurb on Netgalley made me get excited, I thought the book would be different than the usual YA genre, but it was disappointing to me. The writing style was way too dull. The story tends to get a little tangled up at times, but in like a quirky and endearing way.

About the character, if I talk about the main character Amanda, she was a mess and I suppose that was the only aspect handled by the author nicely. A young woman coping with mental illness, but not in a sad-but-pretty way was something that made me pull on with the book. Although the plot or the idea about the entire book wasn't that bad the execution was horrible. It could have been written in a much better manner with a fast pace and intriguing structure. Other than that, the front cover was interestingly chosen including the title name. I suppose most of the bookworms would get this book just cause of its title "And Then There Were Crows" and the front cover kinda gives you the creep.

I received a copy of And Then There Were Crows by Alcy Leyva from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was intrigued by the summary and really wanted to like this novel, but it was a chore at times to keep reading. The storyline could have been pulled together better and the characters (especially the main character) developed better. There were flashes of real goodness, but then the story would get bogged down or off track a little.

I would try reading another book by Alcy Leyva to see if the writing/storyline would improve with more experience, but I don't think I would recommend this novel unless further editing to tighten it up happened.

So, despite my five star rating, this may not be the book for you.

You have cursing (lots of it), gruesome violence (lots of it), just general weirdness (a whole freaking lot of it), and snark (pretty much the entire book).

Added to the above mentioned virtues (lol - no, not vices), you've got a rocking adventure of a story that made me smile more than once, laugh out loud (literally a few times), and snort unattractively (many, many times).

I loved our main character. Somehow, our author managed to make her snarky without making her sound like a teenager. D was beyond awesome and even the Pope made me laugh. (Note: if you can't take a rather tongue in cheek view of religion, you might want to skip.)

My first reaction when I started reading it could best be described as a rather stunned what-the-heck-am-I-reading expression, but the book quickly became just pure fun.

So, probably not for everyone (because severed body parts), but definitely for me!