Member Reviews

The Girl the Sea Gave Back picks up about 10 years after the events of Sky In The Deep. Halvard has grown up in a time of peace in his new combined clan, the Nadhir. Meanwhile, a girl named Tova has grown up an outsider among the Svell after being discovered by their holy man in a funeral boat washed up on the shore as a young child. The tattoos covering her body mark her as coming from a mysterious northern clan and as being a Truthtongue, someone who can see the future by casting rune stones. The Svell fear her, and when one day the stones bear an ominous message, a cascade of violence begins and Tova begins to question her powers and her past.

I did not enjoy this book nearly as much as Sky In the Deep. It was a bit confusing and choppy due to alternating perspectives and timelines, and the characters were not as well developed. I didn't feel as drawn into the story and I did not get invested in Tova, the new character. The connection between Halvard and Tova felt somewhat arbitrary and forced as well. I did enjoy getting a glimpse of how the characters from the first book were doing 10 years later!

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I cannot express how excited I was to pick up this book. Last year I read Adrienne Young’s debut Sky in The Deep and fell absolutely in love with her writing and her way to tell a story, so I went into this one with very high expectations. Though I didn’t love The Girl the Sea Gave Back as much as her previous novel, I still had such a great time and found some elements of this particular story so unique and beautiful.

I had a feeling that The Girl The Sea Gave Back was going to be a slow paced type of book, and boy, I wasn’t wrong. My main issue with the story was that it took me a few chapters to understand who the different tribes were and what was the connection between them, so when I started I was a bit confused with all the information thrown at us. After that, I didn’t mind that it was such a slow and completely character driven story, but I have to say that there were certain times where hardly anything was happening, so I was expecting to see a bit more action sometimes.

However, I absolutely adored the concept of the story, and once we passed the half mark a lot of things started happening and I really enjoyed the path the story was taking. Though I was expecting a much more shocking ending, there were some revelations I didn’t see coming and I enjoyed the few last scenes the most.
When it comes to the characters, I had no complains. Since this book was mostly focused on the characters, I must say they were the strongest part of the book. I loved both Tova and Halvard as main characters, and how their stories interconnect and how throughout the story. I feel their evolutions were so well done and in a very realistic way, and not only that but also their dynamics and interactions were quite interesting and different.

Something that I would have loved seeing a bit more in The Girl the Sea Gave Back was the romance element. From what I could understand (or what the author implied) there was going to be a romantic relationship between our two main characters, and they had such a great chemistry, but they hardly interacted throughout the novel, and it was mostly towards the end where we saw more conversations between them, and I just wish they’d had more scenes together, but that was such a personal thing.

I found the mythology aspect so interesting. That was one of the things that I absolutely adored of her debut, and though in this particular one it wasn’t as present as in Sky in The Deep, I liked what I learnt in this book. An element I really enjoyed seeing was rune casting, which was so cool and fresh, so there were things that definitely made the story to me.

Overall, I think The Girl The Sea Gave Back was such a solid story to me. I fell in love with these characters as well, and though the plot and the pacing were pretty slow, I think the characters and their evolution totally redeemed the story and made it flow more easily.

Rating: 3.75

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**REVIEW**
Disclaimer: First and foremost I would like to thank Adrienne Young, Wednesday Books/St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. This in no way sways my opinions, all thoughts expressed are my own.


Regardless of my review, I believe that we should give books that interest us a chance! Reviews are important but not every book is for every person and we need to keep that in mind when we decide what books we want to read!


I went into this book with the understanding that this book is not Sky in the Deep, however because it is in the same world, I had a hard time separating that expectation from my thoughts. I cannot fault this book for not being Sky. To me, this book has way less Viking action and hardly any romance but that’s okay because it is a story of its own!


There were many parts of this YA fantasy that I enjoyed. I really loved the idea of how relying on fate can rule the way a group of people live. I love the expansion of the different clans, their ways of life, and how they view the world. I liked the idea of multiple points of view to get the story from a different angle. The fighting scenes were intense, had me on the edge of my seat, reading as fast as I could!


With that being said, I had a hard time connecting to the characters and the story, I would have an even harder time connecting if I hadn't read Sky. Adrienne Young sets up a very unique world in the first but I felt like it wasn't expanded much in this novel. The voices felt flat, even the POVs read the same in tone and structure. I felt lost, not knowing where I was in the story/world, and kept having to reread passages to figure out who was talking and where I was. Sometimes I would be reading a chapter and forget who's point of view it was.
I felt that there wasn’t much of a buildup to the climax.

There was a lot of telling and not showing, which packed less of an emotional punch. I felt somewhat lost on the characters motivates, and confused as to why they were doing what they were doing. I didn’t understand why they were at war, which is actually part of the issue I had with Sky. The plots seemed similar and had the same issues with pacing.


Overall, I feel like this book is very bingeable; while it had it’s issues, I still get myself compelled to keep reading it and to find out the fate of the people in this story. I think that there’s a lot that can be expanded on and more to explore! I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Viking lore, action, and for people who read and enjoyed Sky in the Deep but keep in mind that they are different stories!


You can pre-order this book at Amazon, or search any retailer online or book store closest to you! Available September 3, 2019!

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I received a copy though NetGalley for review.


I was hoping for good things as people have generally liked her other novel A Sky in the Deep. Which I haven’t yet read, it’s been on my tbr list.

But I have to say this was pretty disappointing a read.
I found that this really dragged on, and the switch off on the POV between the two characters I was hoping there would be more to the back and forth and sudden flashbacks. At some point but it never really got there. Which has me wondering is this a prequel to their story? For another upcoming book?

Girl dies, is sent off by funeral into the ocean- washes up on shore, (survives somehow and is revived) of other clan who hates her, but loosely tolerates her presence. She’s used by them. Her personal character development wasn’t all that deep. She has the power to read he truth of fate in runes. She sees a boy from the enemy of the clan that raises her and feels “connection”.

The entire thing felt so contrived. So fearing her death by the new clans leader who despises her. And she’s now trapped in the middle of the war between these two people. She runs out and switches sides at the last minute. Hoping to redeem herself and the guilt she has believing she caused this war.

I just couldn’t buy the story. The battle scenes are graphic and brutal. But once it feels like it’s reached a real point it abruptly ends.
I wish I had better things to report on this but it’s a real dud.

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Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books for providing me this amazing novel and ARC through Netgalley to read early!

I absolutely adore Adrienne Young's writing style. She is able to capture me with her storytelling even with screaming children in the background. I am wrapped up in this world and with these characters. Young is able to capture such complex emotions so easily.

Halvard isn't the young and carefree boy he was in Sky in the Deep. I thought they mentioned in Sky in the Deep that he didn't remember his father, but in this one it says he does which is one inconsistency I found. I still loved it though. I loved being able to revisit these characters I've grown to love. I hope we get to see more of Tova and all of the others. I'd like to learn more of the Kyrr and their religion. Overall it was as amazing as I thought it would be and I can't wait to purchase it in September. The cover alone is gorgeous.

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I went into this book without having read Sky in the Deep. So I went to try it and it just didn't grab me.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back struggled to get my attention for a little more than half the book but kept me entertained afterwards. I would love to read more about Tova and Halvard. Their interactions and connection is what made his book interesting.

Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday Books for an e-arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to the publisher for an early copy via netgalley!
4/5 stars

For those of you who loved Sky in the Deep, this book is quite a bit different but still has great writing. It follows Tova and Halvard but our beloved characters from Sky in the Deep make an appearance.

The story is definitely pretty intense at times and unapologetic about it like Sky in the Deep. There is another war between different people that starts in this book, but for completely different reasons and of course needs to be resolved in a different way.

I loved seeing the characters from her first book and I loved the overall story. Definitely recommend with the reminder that it is a lot different than Sky in the Deep. Less Viking battles, less romantic love story.

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I really enjoyed Sky in the Deep, so I had high hopes for this. Overall I enjoyed this book. I found it to be a little slow in the beginning and had to push through. It was about a quarter through that I thought it really picked up. The writing is very good, she does an excellent job at details. I would definitely recommend this.

I received this ARC from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

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Hollis’ 4 star review

I feel like everything that kept me from loving SKY IN THE DEEP, was missing in THE GIRL THE SEA GAVE BACK. This makes me very very happy.

I was sure this was going to be an easy three star read; lots to like but not quite getting me all the way there which, I mean, would’ve been a better result than book one. So colour me surprised by this rating.

This story takes place ten years after the events of SKY IN THE DEEP and, once again, we have warring clans. The characters we knew from book one have known peace and a time of rebuilding, rebirth, as a united people but now another group, the Svell, are stirring up trouble. Made worse by the fact that the Svell people are, themselves, divided. Additionally, they feel they are cursed by the existence of an outsider who lives among them, who washed up on their shores, and yet they also rely on her for her gifts at reading the runes, and predicting the future, as she is a Truthtongue.

It’s Tova’s prediction that sparks tragedy for Halvard’s people and we watch as they are on opposites sides of a war neither of them want. Halvard loses people he loves and Tova is blamed for things beyond her control as the fragile trust she has with the man who has raised her.. frays. Betrayal abounds with the Svell people and she’s tossed amongst them, lost, confused, and resigned.

Tova doesn’t know who she is, Halvard is bound so strongly with his family, both blood and found, and I actually really enjoyed bouncing back between their perspectives and the glimpses we got from their past. Their connection isn’t much, either, but yet feels.. present. There’s almost no romance here and yet we see possibility, potential, and that’s honestly where this book became more than I thought it would be.

I found the pacing to be pretty much perfect and I loved where the book, and our characters, ended up. This is a stronger book and the events, the loss and brutality, felt more real. The stakes somehow higher. The surprises (of which maybe there was only one but it was a good one) more surprising. I definitely have a question or two about how some things played out but those niggles are buried pretty far underneath my general contentment over the story.

If SKY IN THE DEEP wasn’t a book you were able to get on with, I would definitely recommend you pick up this sophomore offering. And if you loved SKY IN THE DEEP, I think you’ll be just as satisfied, if not more, by this follow-up in the author’s viking world.

** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **

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The Girl the Sea Gave Back. This. Book.

let me first start off by saying that I am a fool for not reading Sky in the Deep prior to this and also
a fool for not reading anything Adrienne Young writes automatically with no questions asked.

There aren't a lot of things you'll miss if you don't read Sky first since they're both stand alone's but
they are in the same universe so theres some history and what not that I was a little stuck on since this is
10 years after the events in Sky but I can totally go back and read Sky in the Deep and im sure nothing major was spoiled.

NOW lets get into this beauty of a book. First of all I want Adrienne Young to write all the fight scenes i'll ever
read for the rest of mY LIFE ! The battle scenes in this book had me seriously so hyped up lol not to mention that
I love listening to pretty hardcore music while I read stuff like this so it always makes the adventure that much more epic but trust me it's not the music making it epic, its the book.

The world building is of course incredible and if you've read Sky in the Deep then you know how intricate the history is not to mention all the clan names, gods, and all the mysticism in these stories.

Tova MY LOVE ! I love Tova so so so much She's such a good MC she doesn't want to be a barbarian for no reason and I absolutely love her for it, shes smart, cunning and a freaking bad ass let me tell you.

And don't get me started on Halvard, I'm so glad this was in his POV too I loved his chapters and I love him1 He's such a well thought out character and his fighting skills WOW im just gonna say the battle scenes from his POV are gonna have you standing up!

this story as a whole was just so incredible I don't know what I did before it or before Adrienne Youngs writing!
I will recommend this read to anyone and everyone, in fact I'll buy copies and just fling them at people because I need everyone to read this the moment it comes out

5 out of 5 stars, all the stars who cares just have them

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Such a well-written and enthralling novel! The characters were well-developed and while reading, you almost feel like something is missing, but with the flashbacks, those missing feelings get filled with information from the characters’ pasts. I really like that the whole novel builds up to the battle discussed in the beginning!

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I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the first book.. so it isn't really surprising that I fell in love with this one as well.

The girl the Sea Gave Back was so entertaining! It was definitely a page turner and made me fall in love with Tova and Halvard. Now I'm not really a fan of the back and forth with flashbacks because they don't always work in books. Yet, it definitely did in this one. It made everything clearer in a way that I wasn't expecting. It also made me fall even more in love with Tova's character because she is most definitely a bad ass.

Speaking of Tova, oh lord she was aammaazziinngg! She had moments when I had cheered for her because no one should be treated that way. I felt so bad for her during those moments so I was like.. ya know karma is a bitch but I feel like Tova is a bigger one when you try to cross her. Or ya know.. hit her in any way, shape, or form. YA KNOW?

Then there's Halvard, and ugh I loved his parts! I was craving more interaction between him and Tova though but I guess I can accept what I got in this book - maybe? Not quite sure on that yet. I especially want to know more about this damn cliffhanger - because hot damn, I hate those so much! UGH, I NEED MORE DAMMIT - so I'm expecting another book ASAP!

Overall, everyone should read and love this.

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Thank you to Macmillan and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. After reading Sky In The Deep I had high expectations for this book. Unfortunately it felt a bit shallow and it was very detailed with emotions and not action. I was definitely not feeling the Viking vibes so much in this book. There was also not too much action but when there was it was the scenes were brutally exquisite! I also found myself less connected to Halvard and Tova. The tattoos that Tova had that represented stories and prayers of her people was a really cool detail. Overall I enjoyed this book but I was disappointed by the depth of it and lack of action.

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***ARC received from Wednesday Books and NetGalley in exchange for honest review, opinions are all my own. Thank you!***

I did not read Sky in the Deep and while this book doesn't bill itself as a sequel, its not but I would consider it a continuation. You don't have to have read the first book, I was able to fully enjoy this book and the characters, I still think reading the first book would have given you a full background of the world.

The Good

- I really liked Tova and Halvard. The book is told from their POV which is nice because they are on opposite sides. It gives the reader a chance to see the conflict from both sides, glimpses into what drives them, especially the Svell. I liked Tova, a Truthtongue able to read the rune stones. She lives with the Svell in this constant state of unbalance. They turn to her when needed and hate her for what she brings to them, its a really interesting dynamic. The book providers a few small chapters dedicated to the backstory of Tova and Halvard and you get to see level of fear she seemed to exist in while growing up. For me, it helped flesh out the idea as to why an outsider would stay with a group that so clearly dislikes her. Sometimes you get a feeling its a sense of duty without the real why, I appreciate that the author was willing to give the backstory to the why. Halvards parts of the backstory chapters didn't really do as much as Tova.

- The world is amazing, I loved the clans and Norse inspired world. The two clans had different reactions to the runes and the gods fate. The author seems to have done a really nice job in creating her told. I think having read the previous book I might have gotten a fuller view since the Svell felt more fleshed out than the other since we spent more time through Tova's view.

The Not So Good

- For over 300 pages this book felt oddly compressed. It really would have benefited from being two books. The characters are constantly on the move but it felt like they were almost transporting to their destinations. I never got a feel for how large the world is, it feels from the way they talk that it is large but they manage to get places in hours. A large army, over 500 folks, doesn't travel fast it should take them quite a few days even across a short distance. I don't know if this was an attempt to keep the tension high but it didn't work for me. I was just left thinking that a more drawn out build up to the conflict would have had a better pay out.

I will definitely go back and read the first book as I want more of this world.

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Synopsis:

For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse.

For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.

My Thoughts:

I loved the multiple POVs, between Tova and Halvard. I also liked the Past and Present narrative the author put together to give readers more of their stories, their backgrounds. Ever think you dont belong? This book will have you thinking twice and being confident that you belong everywhere for one reason or another. I loved the little romance, it didn't take over the story and become souly about the two lovers. I loved the magical system of runes!! So closely related to forms of magic from the past that I have learned about that use runes!! I loved this book and cant wait for a physical copy, but a huuuge thank you to the author as well as NetGalley for this opportunity to review and give my honest opinion!! Your gonna love this book, a fave for the year!!!

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Wow—what an experience! I was a huge fan of “Sky in the Deep” so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on “The Girl the Sea Gave Back” with the hopes that this story would be just as fantastic (and it is!!). My favorite thing about Adrienne Young is that I never want her stories to end!

“The Girl the Sea Gave Back” starts about 10 years after “Sky in the Deep.” The story focuses on Tova, a Truthtongue from the Kyrr people, who ends up as an unwanted ‘guest’ of the Svell people, and Halvard, the younger brother of Fiske. Tova lives on the outskirts of Svell culture from the time she is 6 years old and is feared and hated because of her mysticism while Halvard is becoming a man under the peaceful existence of the Riki and Aska people, now collectively known as the Nadhir.

The story alternated view points between both characters while also giving us glimpses into their pasts. We get to see the struggles Tova faced with who she was and how she was treated while at the same time seeing Halvard flourish under the guidance of his family. It was sometimes heart-wrenching to read about Tova’s harsh upbringing and then to read about the same timeframe in Halvard’s life because their paths were so different. In the end, they both had a tough journey to face and Ms. Young’s writing style was flawless in guiding us through it. She has quickly become one of my favorite authors!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

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I really liked The Girl the Sea Gave Back.

It is beautifully written tale full of Scandinavian culture, mythology and a bits of rune magic.

The book tells a story of a girl, who thinks her own people didn't want her, so she survives with a different clan and casts the rune stones for them, and a boy/man with a good heart and sharp sword and axe. There are two POVs of the main protagonists plus some flashbacks into their past.

I enjoyed reading this book, the language and writing were soft and almost magical, I couldn't stop reading. The characters felt real and believable, I only wish there was more interaction between them. We got to see some favourites from previous book, which was a nice plus.

And the cover is the most gorgeous thing ever 😍

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Tova is the daughter of the Kyrr, a tribe that relies on fortune telling stones to guide their actions. Believed dead by her parents, Tova is adopted by a different tribe the Svell, which fears her fortune telling but seeks to use it for their own ends. As Tova grows older, she meets Harvald, chieftain of a rival tribe, and must decide what the future holds. Coming of age young adult fantasy. Plot was predictable but bits of the mythology were interesting.

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Note: This is a companion novel to The Sky in the Deep, which you can find my review here (http://www.happyindulgencebooks.com/2018/04/10/sky-deep-review-dashing-viking-inspired-fantasy-family-front/). It takes place 10 or so years after the first book, and it is not necessary to read The Sky in the Deep to understand the events that take place in this one. This review will not have spoilers!

I really enjoyed The Sky in the Deep when I first read it a couple years back, and while Young’s sophomore novel stays in the same world, it focuses on very different things. Back when reading book 1, I recall the light world-building in contrast to the heavy characterization and family themes. While the familial themes are retained in The Girl the Sea Gave Back, we explore more of the Viking-esque mythology/lore, and get less characterization. It’s an interesting dichotomy that certainly makes for a different novel than book 1. Readers will either really enjoy it, or have a hard time getting used to it. I myself appreciate the unique exposition Young took on this book, but found it less memorable than book 1. Let’s explore a few reasons why.

“I still remembered the first time I heard the word Nādhir. Two clans, one people, who had buried the blood feud that had defined them for generations. It was something no one thought possible.”

The book begins with a funeral ceremony of a girl, Tova, who ends up being picked up by a fortune-teller (or Truthtongue) of a different village. Readers would think that Tova will be raised in a loving household… or, at least I did. However, she is actually hated in the village because of her foreignness (her tattoos mark her as an outcast) and “bad luck” as someone who casts the fate of the village in her stones. Tova’s background as an unliked outcast of the village makes her on the immature side, compared to her ~18 years when the story starts. It’s not exactly ‘immature’ as in she makes rash decisions, but ‘immature’ as in she really isn’t cognizant of what’s happening around her. She’s quite passive in her decisions, and usually leaves her - and others’ - fates in the hands of her fortune-telling stones. While the former makes for good character development, the second is a problem for me. More on that later.

Readers get a first-person POV switch between Tova and Halvard - a familiar name to those who read The Sky in the Deep. Now a grown young man, he’s embarking on his own journey of discovery after he realizes that he’s not ready to become chieftain of a clan that’s on the brink of war… and to the clan that picked up Tova, no less. Through the stones, Tova knows that their lives are intertwined. But how exactly? And for what reason? And here we get to the ambiguity of the story-telling and inconclusiveness of the “fate” that brought them together.

“I’d left the headlands, but the headlands hadn’t left me. What and who I was was marked into my skin in the sacred staves and motifs with meanings that even I didn’t know. It would never leave me.”

Tova’s life is prepared by her fortune-telling stones, which includes the courage she got to step against the village that isolated her. That’s fine. She gets into an interesting conversation with Halvard about her reliance on the stones, but that’s the only time it’s challenged. And this heavy reliability on “fate” and “destiny” continues throughout the book. Halvard’s small mention of not wanting to know his own “fate” in case he doesn’t like the outcome (and thus having an opportunity of going against it) is in the book for about two pages long. Despite everything, we conclude the story with a reliance on the destiny written for one another - which includes the possible romantic relationship that was hinted. There was no romance for the majority of the book, although it was definitely hinted at the last 20%. But… it was not enough. Not enough interactions for this development/attraction, and certainly not enough reasoning. I can SEE the potential, but I cannot see the decision justified in the pages, which further strengthens the argument:

“Well, fate brought us together. So obviously we’ve got to GET together. Right?”

Do you see what I’m saying? It’s unsatisfactory. And if I was a reader who was looking for a light read, I would be fine. I actually was, after getting to the denouement of the story. But the more I sit on it, the more substance I feel like I deserved - and the characters, too.

Quick outro facts: the family aspects were as strong and lovely as ever. I really enjoyed seeing familiar characters. I think there was also potential to explore grief that the characters go through, but the need for the plot to keep moving kept that from happening (sadly). Halvard’s personality was not unique, and while Tova had a lot going for her, she never realizes her full potential. I’d actually prefer a sequel over where things were left off in this story.

Honestly, readers can either go from really enjoying this one to scratching their heads at what they read. I lot of what I wanted from book 1 (i.e. more world-building) got focused on here, but at the expense of what I enjoyed as well (i.e. characterization). Tova’s a unique heroine in which her skills lie somewhere other than fighting, but she has so much unrealized potential - and so did this book.

Trigger/Content Warnings: violence, blood, loss of loved ones, death

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the review copy!

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DNF at 20% - couldn't get into this one. I'm pretty sure it's just because I'm not in the right mood to read this at the moment so will revisit it in the future

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