I liked it. This book gave such a creepy and disturbing vibe, and I am not mad about it. I love creepy books, however I gave this one a three because it is labeled as Young Adult, and I am not sure I agree with that. Just because a book is written about a young adult does not mean that it should be thrown into that category. There are a lot of content warnings, especially for a younger person. This is why I could not rate higher.

The characters, (Wyatt, Cash, and Porter), were what made this book so good (and so disturbing). I felt emotions for each of them throughout the story. As for the narration, I thought it was really well done. It was very engaging and easy to follow along without the physical book in front of me. I would recommend this book or audiobook to my adult friends with some content warning.

Holy moly! This book took off from the beginning and I was hooked! Right away I had questions…

Is there really a sickness on the town? What was going on?

I instantly felt a connection to Wyatt. She was a lovable character who has seen soo much same in her young life that you could not help but feel sorry for Anna want a happy ending for. Dealing with the unsolved murder of her mother The year before, her character develops nicely throughout the story. As she also deals with seemingly unrequited love for her best friend, Cash, I kept wanting him to wake up and realize what he had in her. Cash seems untouchable too. He wants out of this town desperately soo sees no real future for them, but also at the same time does not want to lose her. What could turn into a beautiful relationship has morph into him constantly leading her on and dragging her basically on a chain of hope..

Than there is Porter… the seemingly untouchable rich boy…..Who seems to gave some sort of rivalry/hatred for Cash. But when Wyatt is thrown into a school project with him she is left wondering who is the real problem and what really is happening in her town.

This book was captivating. I could not put it down although I switched back and forth from audio to ebook. With the narrator was absolutely amazing!

What a perfect beginning of spooky Season read. It was great from beginning to end and I was in the edge of my seat the entire time. The ending floored me. I will read any thriller worn by this author!

This was a slow building book that had some interesting twists.

I really enjoyed the narrator's pacing and she drew me into the story.

Wyatt is convinced that there is something wrong with her town. Every November it seems that the people of her town get more violent, there are more deaths and suicides to the point that her school even does a school assembly every year asking students not to kill themselves. Wyatt's mom was one of the victims of "the sickness" as Wyatt refers to it, having been brutally murdered the year before. Wyatt is in a sort of relationship with Cash, one that is not announced but everyone knows. She feels that she isn't herself with him though, she sees the violence inside him so she does what she can to make her edges sharp and maintain control. Until he pushes things too far one night.

I enjoyed the narrator for this book, she had a calm and airy voice that made you connect to the scared teenager growing through some stuff. I liked the overall plot of it, but was disappointed that there wasn't more of the reasoning behind why these things are happening other than people suck. I think there is something to that idea of small town getting overwhelmed with tragedy and wanted more of the mentality behind it. That or something actually supernatural occurring.

The ending was a little disappointing, mostly because it felt like a rushed way to tie things up. There were still unanswered questions and I just wanted more.

Author also provides content warnings at the beginning of the book which I thought was awesome.

TW: Mentions of Self Harm and Suicidal Ideation. Depictions of Substance Use/Abuse, Abusive Relationships, suicide, sexual assault.
This is by no means a complete list as a lot of what is going on in this book is absolutely Toxic.

But I loved every moment of this book, Walters does a wonderful job weaving us into the claustrophobic town of Wolf Ridge. This is one of the few books where I feel that the depiction of a Small Town mirrors what I've experience in real life. The reality where everyone knows of everyone else in someway and the weariness that often comes with outsiders.
Along with how much work is gone into maintaining the "status-quo" even if that means not confronting what is happening right in frond of them.

This is fast paced and will keep you tied to your seat from beginning to end and the twist at the end somehow surpassed my expectations so spectacular that I had to go back and listen to it a second time to make sure I hadn't imagined it.

I really enjoyed listening to #TheViolentSeason. I thought the narrator was great and the book had an intriguing premise. For fans of #ThirteenReasonsWhy, this one is for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

The Purge, but with romance, a secret, and teens. This book is just delightfully spooky and full of horror and suspense that will keep you engaged from the first moment to the last.

The Violent Season is a book about a town, a family secret, a distorted romance, manipulation, friendship, hope, and so much more. I don't want to put any spoilers in this review, because almost anything I can write will give something away. There are so many twists and turns and I did NOT see the end coming. This was the perfect book to listen to while getting into the spooky season mood! The narrator is lovely and I loved the writing as well as the narration style. 5 shiny gold stars!

This is the first ARC for an audiobook that I have received on NetGalley and I was extra excited that it was a thriller for the October season. The only problem I had with the audio was that it sounded like the narrator was underwater and it took a while to get used to it. I felt like this story had a lot of interesting aspects to it including the idea that everyone in this small town is more susceptible to violence during the month of November. This idea was enthralling to me, and I had a lot of expectations when walking into this novel.

I personally enjoyed this novel a lot, but I was able to guess the ending from the beginning and when it comes to thrillers it takes a good portion of the fun away. Although if you are not a regular thriller or crime reader than you may really enjoy this novel with all the twists and turns that were added throughout. Wyatt as a main character was complicated dealing with two sides of herself and the people she gets along with. This character seems like something YAs can connect to and understand where she is coming from with her emotions. Wyatt becomes conflicted between two boys, Cash, her best friend, and person she hooks up with that stayed close after her mom was murdered a year before and Porter, Cash’s nemesis, a boy that has known Wyatt forever and wanted to become friends but felt she was in her own world.

Wyatt spends the novel dealing with her emotions of grief and trauma while living through her life and finding out who murdered her mom and why this sickness takes over her town every November. This novel invoked a lot of emotions and need to understand alongside Wyatt.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the E-ARC in return for an honest review of the novel.

I keep being drawn to YA thrillers even though I don't fully enjoy them. Lots of highschool drama, boy/girl love stories and popularity contests. I really liked this story line with the "sickness." There was a jaw-dropping moment when I didn't really expect some of the things be to revealed the way they were. I'll never stop getting drawn to YA thrillers, but I also don't think I'll love them. Solid B rating.

Hey Sar Bear- Thanks for the free ARC Audio copy of The violent Season in exchange for my honest review. I'll give you 5 out of 5 birds for this violent book! If I can make one recommendation, it would be to read this book in November, you won't regret it. It's a town where the 'sickness' falls every November and people just start dying.... at another's hand. This book is most definitely for my creepy followers. And don't be mad I called you that, deep down you're actually flattered. The setting for The Violent Season was eerily composed and the inserting of supporting deaths and methods. This book isn't all just gore, there is a romantic plot intertwined mixed with unhealthy attachments and assault. Some have said they saw the ending coming, I don't think I did until the second half which made it fun. This was a great debut novel. I think it goes without saying though there are a lot of triggers in this book- so it's not one for everyone. But I enjoyed it!

A pretty decent read that was just a little predictable. The reason I am giving such a low rating is honestly solely the narrator, but the sudden gaspy intake of breath at the end of every single pause is awful. I noticed it early on and it became very distracting and at times a bit scary sounding. If it hadn't been for that, I might have given this book 3-4 stars.

Was real hoping for a more supernatural murder mystery with this one, and though it’s pretty short it drags with scenes that do nothing to move the story forward. The narrator was good, but this one wasn’t for me.

This was captivating right from the start. The death of Wyatts mother was a mystery and Wyatts felt like her town was filled with a sickness. I did not see the ending coming. I loved this story line and I felt so sorry for Wyatt.

Thank you to NetGalley and SourceBooks Fire for an eARC of this novel!

*small town
*unreliable narrator
*love triangle (ish)
*violence
*abusive relationship

Welcome to Wolf Ridge, where the month of November isn't safe for anyone. We follow the main character Wyatt (confusing name for a heroine, but I dig it) who is a high school student who has recently lost her mother, and her kryptonite Cash. They seem to live in their own little world, having shut off their families and friends. Along comes Porter, who ends up working with Wyatt on a project. They start spending more time together, while Wyatt continues to try and figure out what really happened to her mother.

I really disliked Cash the whole time, so I suppose the development of the story really worked for me. I got Pretty Little Liar vibes, which isn't a bad thing. I predicted the ending pretty much from the start, but this book was intended for a younger audience, so I think it would still work really well for them.

I listened to the audio and read the physical book at the same time, and I really enjoyed both. I thought the narrator did an excellent job bringing emotion and tension to this text.

I really enjoyed this ARC! I’m not usually the biggest fan of YA anymore, but this one was definitely the exception! Living up to the extremely intriguing premise, I was entranced by the storyline and characters. The writing was beautiful with Sara Walter’s use of vivid sensory details, similes, and metaphors. My only complaint is that the ending seemed to drag out a bit, and I was left not feeling completely satisfied - but maybe that’s the point?! Overall, I recommend!

I first want to thank the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book. I was very excited to dive into this world and I was not disappointed, I will say, from the details of this book I thought it would be more paranormal but it was not. Which is totally ok and I still enjoyed the book.

Wyatt and Cash are best friends and have bonded over the fact that they both have lost their mothers. Overtime, their bond grew more to a relationship, although Wyatt is confused as to what they are most of the time since they do not use titles. What she does know- there is a sickness that has taken over the small town she calls home. Every November, someone dies. She knows she was told stories of the sickness when she was little, but never believed any of it until the sickness took away her mom. She is convince that she can stop it if only she figures out what it is.

Wyatt gets partnered on a school project with Porter, a guy that Cash seems to hate, but wont give a reason for why. Wyatt soon grows closer to Porter as they plan their 1920's party to shoot for their Great Gatsby assignment. Wyatt starts to learn why Cash hates Porter so much and to her surprise, its not an actual valid reason. She is ready to look past it all when the party starts but something horrific happens and she knows its the sickness at work again. Wyatt knows where that sickness lives, and now has to face the truth,

This book was a bit slow to begin with and I thought there would be come kind of paranormal part of this book so I think I was just waiting for that to come up even though it was not there. About half way in, I could not put this book down. There is so many twists and deaths that it really shakes everything you thought about the characters. I really enjoyed the book and the ending was not what I was expecting at all. I personally love books with big twists at the end and think that can make or break a book. The ending of this totally made the book and pulled everything together.

I really really liked this! Thank you NetGalley for another killer read (all pun intend. 😂)

This was a super fast paced read that kept my attention the whole time and I loved the mystery and suspense that built as the story went on. I got some major Riverdale and Scream (the tv show) vibes from this story because the characters were high schoolers getting mixed up in some very serious situations but it never felt immature or childish at all, and I think that’s actually pretty impressive from a writing standpoint.

Overall, I just really enjoyed this. Point blank period. You gotta give this a try!

“Not every mystery can be solved as easily as unmasking the villain. Sometimes the villain isn’t just one person. Sometimes the villain is in everyone.”

In Wolf Ridge, Vermont, people are hungry for blood. At least they are in November, according to local legend. There seems to be an uptick in tragic deaths near the end of every year. When Wyatt’s mother is murdered in that eleventh month, she completely embraces this legend, certain that the killer is another Wolf Ridge resident and that the police aren’t investigating locals thoroughly enough.

I really liked roughly 90% of the story, so you can imagine my disappointment when my feelings toward it changed. But let’s start with the good:

The Violent Season is dark, as you might expect, and filled with beautiful, meaningful passages. Wyatt’s grief over the loss of her mother, along with the regret she felt over the rebellious daughter she had been were thoroughly developed with a realistic emotional bite. The mystery, spiked with the possibility of a town curse, was intriguing. And I loved what the author did with the aspect of villains, making the reader consider how easy it might be to cave to a violent nature.

There was one issue that did bother me throughout most of the story, but not enough to make me dislike it as a whole. I did feel the author romanticized the idea that a white knight might swoop in and save someone from abuse. At the same time, the juxtaposition of toxicity and respect are important to observe and understand. And, of course, I absolutely do believe you can find the latter, even when you’ve only known the former, but it isn’t quite as simple as this story makes it out to be. Furthermore, I think the depiction of the abuser lacked nuance, leaning more into the Hollywood misrepresentation, rather than a well-researched and understood characterization. To some, this might not matter, but I do believe what we see in literature pertaining to abuse can affect what we expect to see in real life and that can be harmful when it comes to identifying authentic red flags.

The issue that really skewed my view of The Violent Season was the ending, though. I was extremely frustrated that the author took the easiest, most obvious route, with a splash of shock mixed in, and that the grand heroics (if you can call it that) were, again, assigned to Wyatt’s male savior.

Sara Walters certainly knows how to build tension and provoke powerful emotion through carefully crafted sentences. Her idea with The Violent Season was an admirable one. There is no denying that I was glued to the tale, despite my complaints, and I’ll very likely read whatever she puts out after this.

I am immensely grateful to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for my audio review copy. All opinions are my own.

The Violent Season will be out on October 5, 2021.

First, I want to say thank you to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for the advanced audiobook copy of this book.

Wyatt is a teen who lives in a small town known as Wolf Ridge where every November, something terrible happens. She labels this is the "sickness" of the town. Last year, in November, Wyatt's mom was murdered inside their home. Wyatt wants to know who murdered her mom and she wants to bring her mom some justice for unexpected murder. Wyatt has a best friend named Cash, who begins to worry her as time goes on. Eventually, she ends up having to do a school project with a boy named Porter (who happens to be someone that Cash despises) and she soon discovers that both Cash and Porter have secrets she never knew existed.

There is a lot of character development in this book, the narrator was pleasant to listen to and it was a great read that kept my attention the whole way. I can see myself reading future books by Sara Walters.

⚠️ Trigger Warning ⚠️ Senstive topics include murder, sexual abuse and domestic abuse.

“Every November, the people in Wolf Ridge are overwhelmed with a hunger for violence—at least that's the town rumor.”

Wyatt’s mother was brutally murderer last fall and this year she feels the call of violence as November comes. Her best friend Cash, who she is falling for, will not stop hurting her and she begins to think he is under the influence of the call of violence. Wyatt begins to pull away from Cash and gets close with his enemy, Porter. As the truth begins to come out about her mothers death, Wyatt starts rethinking everything she believes about what is making people hurt one another.
I was so happy to get this audiobook ARC, it was a great listen. The narrator gave off the perfect amount of spookiness while reading the book. This book was the best start to kick off my thriller season.