This book was not a favorite of mine. I found it difficult to get through, partly because I just didn't like any of the characters. Mack Johnson, after a social media failure decides to try homestead living with a few other people. They live off the land, and I did learn about farming but this novel just didn't grab my attention. I was not sympathetic towards any of the characters.
Thank you NetGally for allowing me to read this book.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

HIPSTERS ARE SCARY AND EVIL AND WILL SPIT UPON YOUR GRAVE

Now that that’s out-of-the-way, I don’t really know what to say about this book. It can’t really be considered an entertainment. And absolutely none of these people are remotely likable. Even the sad sack narrator is a horrible TERF. Of course, the most passionate revolutionary are entitled spawn of hyper capitalism. This book is fable, and it could be important, but it really wasn’t that much fun

It was a relief to finish

Mack Johnston escapes to rural NY after a botched failed social media experiment. She goes to live on the Homestead a type of communal farm with Beau, Louise, Jack and Chloe. The 5 battle the weather, and other farmers to try and live off the land. A lot of interesting dynamics between the characters and some suspense whether the Larson family of farmers have been trying to destroy their farm with pesticides. Also a current of discord with another communal farm nearby called the Community.
I found the book to be interesting and learned some things about farms and beekeeping, and the relationships between all the main characters to be interesting and at times suspenseful.

"So many accumulated scraps of words," says one of Dolan-Leach's characters toward the end of the book, "and that's what we build our lives on."

There's so much to unravel in this book that it feels almost like a disservice to write about it. There are obvious Big Themes herein: the ravages of late-stage capitalism, the banality of social media, the privilege of those who are comfortable/financially stable enough to choose living off the grid...But it's the sneakier undercurrents that really dragged me into this book. This idea that we can become trapped by the stories we weave from our lives--these tales we tell ourselves that often turn out to be wrong--is so compelling to me. At its heart the book is about Mack's descent into her own mythology; once she's built this great, labyrinthine story in her head to explain what's going on around her, she's unable to find her way back out.

Having read Dead Letters and We Went to the Woods within the same month, I recognized a few characters that Dolan-Leach carried over into both books. For instance, beautiful, maddening Zelda makes an appearance here, almost like the author couldn't bear to let her go just yet. Most of her characters are written this way; they're treated with love despite their great shortcomings, and the way that everyone connects to one another gives you the sense that Dolan-Leach has her own web of stories she's constantly wandering through. Stephen King does this a lot too--little character cameos that connect the books in his "world"--but with this author it feels more organic, like she followed a thread on a lark and found another group of intriguing people to write about. (I hope she'll find more threads to pull from this group, as I'd now gladly read ten more books about upstate New York despite never having cared about that region before.)

I should probably say something about the plot, right? Basically there's a group of young people who move into a neo-hippie commune out in the woods together. Sex, drugs, and sustainable farming ensue, plus a lot more that I won't spoil. There is much talk of crops and compost, but despite all the quiet observation and wide-eyed description of nature--things I usually can't stand too much of--the book is simply unputdownable.

CDL writes dread very well. She imbues her stories with this horrible tension that alternately thrills and unsettles you. You know it's going to end badly. The characters know it's going to end badly. You all participate in the narrative anyway.

Okay, I could probably write a thesis but I'll stop here. Suffice to say, you should read this book. Read it, let it haunt you for days, briefly wish you had never downloaded it onto your Kindle...

...And then sigh as you settle back in to read it again.