I'm not sure how to begin with this book. I enjoyed the story but at the same time it fell a little flat for me.

This is a book with some romance, past and present, good vs. evil, supernatural abilities, and a major moral dilemma to save people.

I loved this reinvention of the Roanoke settlers and the moral dilemma they were faced with in order to save themselves and future generations. It was interesting to see how the Devil was portrayed in the book as well. The settlers in his paradise weren't necessarily evil but did make some poor life choices. It almost raises the question of what does it mean to be good or evil.

Books with multiple POVs are some of my favorite because I love to see what is going on in the character's heads. However, Eleanor's story was not needed half of the time. It was interesting to read her experience, what she went through, and the choices made that impacted her people, but to have her presence throughout the entire book was too much. Her story was valuable to the overall understanding of the book, but I think it could have been shortened.

I still enjoyed reading the book and would love to see what happens next with Redd and John. The book ended on a good note in that it leaves readers wanting more.

This dark and mysterious tale captivated me. The different perspectives added intensity to the story. I loved the historical aspects.

Nopety nope nah no nope

I’m sorry but this shit is too creepy for me

Okay being completely honest I am a MASSSIVE baby when it comes to creepy paranormal things. I’m talking like pg15 stuff terrifies me. So please dont take the fact that I DNFd I 65% as an actual opinion on the book. If I knew I’d be able to sleep tonight I would have continued.

Star rating is based on what I did read

A fantasyesque historical but also modern day paranormal Thriller - To be honest I don’t know really how to describe it. Basically a mashup of House of Hollow and The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue

We follow three POVs

Redd the “main” character

John the one from Eden

And Eleanor from the 1800s

Redd to be honest didn’t interest me much, though it’s clear she’s different and has led a different life I didn’t really get to the point of understanding her or understanding her motives - which I’d hoped I would having gotten well over half way into the book

John is pretty ditto, though I did enjoy what we learned of Eden through his POV

Eleanor POV Let me tell you I was on the edge of my seat figuring out what happening, I loved the fact there was a warped sense of time between all the POVs and as someone who has been interested in the Roanoke mystery I loved seeing it in this book. Slowing figuring out what and who everyone is is so gripping - and the feeling of nervousness and fear because you don’t actually know what is out there. Sinisters the word, I was never like actively scared but I felt like something was looking over my shoulder.

Massive thanks to Katie Hayoz and BooksGoSocial Publishing for the opportunity to read this amazing book !

WOW. This was a compulsively readable take on the Lost Colony of Roanoke, mixing historical and urban fantasy in such a compelling way.

Present day: Redd has spent her whole life with her mother, fleeing from a secret past she knows nothing about. On her eighteenth birthday, she opens a mysterious box against her mother's wishes, attracting the danger she's unknowingly been evading. John hails from an idyllic village, where peace comes at a deadly price. When he's sent to find Redd and bring her back, he has to decide where his loyalties truly lie.

Fourteenth century: Eleanor Dare lands in North America in hopes of finding a prosperous new life. Instead, she and her fellow settlers encounter endless ill-fortune as they try to build a future for themselves.

Both stories intertwine in dark, horrifying ways. This book was full of dark magic and intrigue, and I had a hard time putting it down. And that CLIFFHANGER?!? I need book two immediately.

I enjoyed reading this story written around the mystery of Roanoke. The POVs were split between three characters, two in the present and one in the past giving background. The book was a bit slow for me to start but really picked up during the last 1/3 and I had to know what happened. It does end on a cliffhanger, I did have a bit of trouble believing the romance between the two characters, but I enjoyed the story so it didn’t bother me. Looking forward to reading what happens next!

The Curse That Binds Us by Katie Hayoz is a dark and atmospheric tale that takes as its inspiration the infamous lost colony of Roanoke. The original premise of having the disappearance be the result of a pact with the devil is certainly a clever one and it was this ingenious idea along with the strikingly beautiful cover that first drew my attention to the book.
The story is told through three characters, Redd, John and Eleanor and the skill the author displays in giving them each a unique and distinctive voice is impressive. Eleanor's story is set in the past, and explores the history of Roanoke with some supernatural additions, John and Redd's characters are both in the present day, and their stories interact in a dramatic and surprising way, Redd is eighteen and has spent her life constantly on the move, she never has time to put down roots anywhere and she knows her mother is hiding a secret, probably something to do with the mysterious box that appears every year on her birthday, This year Redd is determined to finally find out what is in the box, no matter how terrifying,
John lives in a mysterious and isolated village where life is governed by strict rules , and where dark deeds are the price of safety and secrecy. When he is sent out to find Redd he is motivated by the need for revenge and his desire to help protect the only home he knows.
As John and Redd's stories come together with some help from the background provided by Eleanor's perspective it is clear that the author has woven together a tapestry like tale filled with action, adventure and mystery that examines the themes of good and evil. The pacing is definitely on point, the book keeps the reader completely engaged as the story unfolds, and while the ending definitely leaves it open for more books, it is still satisfying .
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

I like Katie Hayoz because they always provide a good mystery. The Curse that Binds Us is no different. It is a creepy, parallel plot, devil’s due, supernatural thriller with an intrinsic but sinister puzzle for the reader to pick apart piece by piece. It is scary, but fun. However, some through narratives are definitely more dynamic than others.
I really liked this as a spooky read. It isn’t unnerving in the same way that a psychological thriller is, but neither is it a monster story. If anything I would call it occultish, similar to something more Lovecraftian—where the monster or magical object is rarely ever shown, and the horror is more about how people degrade under the power and ability that catalyst gives.
Admittedly, I did have some trouble with the multiple narrators and timelines. It is not that I found them confusing, but rather that I gravitated to one particular one. Throughout reading The Curse that Binds Us, Eleanor’s story was definitely my favourite. Which was a problem only in that John and Redd’s stories ran simultaneously while Eleanor’s was in the past, so for over half the book I was waiting for my favourite timeline to come back and tell me what was going on. John and Redd were still interesting and enjoyable, however their combined narrative was a lot more slow burn and complicated with emotional teenage baggage, on top of all the supernatural baggage, so it felt bigger and more long-winded.
I did like this and would definitely tell anyone looking for creepy occult horror/Blair Witch vibes to pick this one up.

I really enjoyed this book, published earlier this month.

The story is told through 3 narrators and in 2 different timelines. We have Redd’s pov and John’s one for the present, and Eleanor’s narration for the 1587 era. If we don’t understand why these three narrators are here at first, the logic behind them unfolds little by little with the story. I really liked how everything that is happening at different times and places is connected with Redd’s situation. The only negative side induced by this narration is that the action takes a long time to carry on, giving the feeling of stalling.

The other issue is that the author has less time to build both the characters and the world. If the characters development is enough because we are discovering them through their actions and thoughts (for some of them), I would have liked to discover about Eden even if I suppose it will be the main place of action in the sequel. Concerning the 1587 timeline, I was impressed by the author’s capability to draw this period in my mind. I even preferred and was more involved in Eleanor’s chapters. I really felt the atmosphere of the Roanoke colony, the feeling of being trapped in an unknown place, and the collective mind that people had during that time (characterised by contempt towards everyone who is not English and towards women).

I loved discovering the mysteries lying behind Eden, the disappearance of the colony and the secrets of Redd’s mum. I think there is currently a trend of creating morally grey characters because none in this book has a clean past or pure intentions. And despite the fact that I usually succeed in liking at least one character in this type of situation, in this one they all got on my nerves (except for Eleanor)… But I really enjoyed how they all questioned the notions of love, family, loyalty and how far you can go to preserve your life.

In brief: an unusual story full of mysteries. Even if I didn’t really like the characters which usually is a big issue for me, I liked the book enough to go on with my reading. And given the cliffhanger of the end, I’m even more intrigued to see where the plot will be going.

I've accidently chosen a few Roanoke books lately, and I've enjoyed reading the very different ways the authors have chosen to explain what happened. In The Curse That Binds Us, the explanation is quite evil...

The story is told through three perspectives: Redd, John, and Elinor. Redd is a teen with a mom who has odd, overbearing rules and is constantly running from a creepy box that shows up every year on Redd's birthday. John is a mysterious teen who shows up in Redd's life with a goal of bringing Redd back to his hometown. Then there is Elinor. Her story is the historical view of what happened at Roanoke. These three characters' stories intertwine in such a surprising, interesting, and terrifying way.

I really enjoyed the way this entire story unfolded. It was dark and creepy at times. There are wooden masks that come to life, hell hounds that create havoc, and decisions that cost people their lives. There was a lot of world building needed, and the author did a great job of bringing everything to life.

Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction mixed with fantasy.

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

Fantastic and different. The mystery of Roanoke has always been intriguing, and I was fully immersed in this creepy tale of what happened to the settlers there. Loved the flashbacks. I had no idea where the story would end, and was not disappointed. Can't wait to see what happens to Redd in Eden during book two.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Evil would never again enter my cottage, but he would forever taint my blood."

Firstly, wow. Secondly, wow. What an original and interesting plot this book has! So many have tackled the mystery of the Roanoke colonists, and their true fate has remained unknown. Theories vary wildly, and the story itself is so strange and eerie that you wonder what new perspective could even be applied to the tale.

This is such an interesting and well-thought out book. Katie Hayoz has taken a well-known unsolved mystery and created this incredibly plausible solution to what really happened - flitting between three POVs slowly reveals the truth behind the Roanoke colony. We have Redd - a girl with extraordinary hidden power - on the eve of her 18th birthday, trying to break free from her controlling mother. We have John, a strangely old-fashioned boy who leaves the sanctuary of Eden - a paradise with a hidden dark side - to scout in the Beyond. And we have Eleanor Dare, one of the Roanoke colonists, speaking from 400 years before. As the book progresses, their stories entangle and weave together to form a strange, haunting tapestry.

"Death would have been too easy."

Sometimes I'm wary of multiple first-person POV books, only because it can get confusing. This is not an issue in The Curse That Binds Us. Each character's voice is so distinctive that there's no trouble discerning one from the other. The story is so fast-paced that I was never bored, and the ending left me with so many questions that I'm now dying for the sequel!

This was a solid 4.5 stars for me and I am absolutely recommending it to everyone!

"I' can't read minds - how cool would that be - but o can sense other people's mental states ... In other words, I'm a freak"
"You want me to seduce a girl in the Beyond?"
"The scent of attraction"
This book really surprised me!
I was looking for a book to get me back into fantasy after a bit too much of romance ... I had almost lost the mood until this.
I couldn't put it down!
For every fan of "From Blood and Ash", this story has the whole deception you could find there and so much more!
An incredible combination between past and present , just enough to make you understand why something happens but not enough to spoil the whole plot to the reader.
A sort of enemies to lovers trope that I think will make you bite your tongue, waiting for a final "DO IT NOW", and throughout it all , magic and mystery surrounding an unknown Eden where nothing and everything is what is seems ...
The writing-style makes it so much easier to get into it and follow the story-line while creating empathy with some of the characters' feeling.
This plot and this story has so much potential I can't wait to find out what's going to happen to this characters in the future ... because there's gonna be a future !
"I can't get a sense of him. I can always get a sense of people. How am I supposed to know what to think of him?"
"Oh, Lucifer forgive me, but I want nothing more than to hold her face in my hands and kiss away her fears"
" 'Tis so easy to see in others what we cannot see in ourselves ... We are all human, yet we are not the same in the least"

Synopsis Excerpt: The secret to Redd’s past is locked away in a 400-year-old box that mysteriously appears every year on her birthday. For her entire life, her mother has kept them running from whatever lurks inside it. But Redd’s had enough of not knowing who she is. So when the box shows up where only she can find it, she opens it…and awakens a link to the evil her mother fought to keep dormant.

Ok, first things first.. I truly enjoyed this book. I think I saw that this is going to be the first in a series and I really hope so because I can't wait to get my hands on the rest. I loved the hounds from Hell and I hope they continue to make an appearance.

This novel follows three main characters: Redd, John, and Eleanor. Most of Redd and John's stories are told in present time while Eleanor's is told in past tense starting in the 1500s. I tend to not enjoy books that have multiple points of views that take place in different time periods, but this was executed very well. I liked how the author kept each time period change and each character change in separate chapters. This really helped me stay on track with the book. At about 25% of the way through the book, I could really see and piece together the multiple points of view and how they all affected each other.

This book has a lot of dark fantasy and historical fiction elements with a dash of romance. I say a dash of romance because that really what it is majority of the book. I felt like the romance between Redd and John included heavy heavy build up and then just kind of lead no where. I am hoping that in the next book, we get more of an explanation of this and maybe they will pick up their love again. If the romance would have been more developed this would have been a 5 star.

Redd lives a controlling life by her mom who keeps her in the dark of her history, her genetics, and what makes her who her she is. They have spent every year of Redd's life moving and hiding from people that Redd has never been able to get answers about. Redd has always done what he mother has told her but as she has gotten older, she has decided to figure things our for herself. Including her mysteries powers she possesses.

Definitely recommended this book if you like dark fantasy and historical fiction.

This was such a unique story. I too am fascinated by the mystery of Roanoke. What an absolutely intriguing fantasy based around this bit of history. The plot was engaging, characters well-developed, and relatively fast-paced. Hayoz keeps you engaged from the first chapter to the last.

Sometimes when authors time jump the impact of the overall story suffers. This was not the case here. I really felt that it enhanced the reading experience, and kept me reading when I really should have been sleeping.

A gripping page-turner with a cliff hanger ending that leaves you screaming for more!

This was my first book by this author, but I will look to see what other books this author has written.

I enjoyed reading this book a lot, it grabbed my attention from the first page to the last. I couldn't stop reading. The premise of the book was very interesting.

It is told from different POV’s and slowly the pieces of the puzzle fall together. I look forward to reading the second book because I want to know what happens next.

Growing up in North Carolina, the mystery surrounding the Roanoke colony has long fascinated me. When I realized that the premise of this book tied into that, I was all in and immediately requested an early review copy.

I thought the storyline that the author created around this was quite clever. It was told from multiple points of view and in different time periods. All of this lent to an efficient way to dispense information as needed, but never too early. It was a good way of handling things in order to keep a bit of the mystery in place. However, I was putting pieces together long before it was all spelled out for us....primarily because I become obsessed with trying to figure out a plot line as quickly as I can. I just can't help myself.

I felt that the author did a good job with character development. It's sometimes difficult when you are trying to keep some of the storyline under wraps. However, I felt as if I had a good sense of who they were and what their motivations were....at least as much as they understood their own motivations themselves.

The setting was eerie and creepy ....completely perfect for the storyline.

I enjoyed the book. The only complaint I have is that it appears the sequel won't be out for roughly another year. I look forward to seeing how the author continues this story. There is so much more I'd like to know.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it. The opinions contained within are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

I honestly thoroughly enjoyed reading this book!!! I am not as history buff but i really enjoy reading books that involve history… more so if it’s FANTASY!!! This book gave me Outlander vibes and some aspects of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue?

It’s a great retelling/lore of the mystery that surrounded the Roanoke colony and their disappearance during the first English settlement in the 1500s. The novel is in the POVs of three characters who are all bound by a 400 year-old curse (haha get it):

Redd, an 18 year old who lived in present time in a tower called Hidden is being as followed by a box that shows up on her birthday.

John, who lives in Eden, was tasked but his town to go and find Redd and bring her to their village.

And we have Eleanor, who tells her story and the story of the Roanoke colony.

This novel is filled with little historical Easter eggs that the are just so smart and imaginative. It made me want to know more and read more about the history of the Roanoke colony. Not the author’s shortcoming but my dumb brain took quite a bit to piece together what the story was about but once I remembered my history class, I was all for it and devoured this book! I mean, this book literally made me want to learn history hahaha. It that doesn’t intrigue you, i honestly don’t know what will.

If you like history, multiple POVs, time travel, and invisible devil dogs, you should check this book out!!!

It might help to have an idea of the Roanoke Tragedy while going into this book, because it is a re-imagining of events with characters who actually existed - John Smith, Virginia, and Eleanor Dare.

The story imagines what could have happened when they reached the island and before they disappeared. There are some fantasy/supernatural elements in the story, and two different timelines that tie the story together, along with an alternate world.

Ahreddan (Redd) dreads her birthday every year because there's a box, like a treasure chest, that shows up on her doorstep every year on her birthday. No matter what her mom does to lose or destroy the box, it always reappears, and then they have to run away yet again every year.

On her 18th birthday, she decides that she's tired of running and tired of being lied to by her mother, Agnes. This time, when she finds the box, she decides to open it, thus unleashing a series of events that turn her world upside down and shakes the foundations of her beliefs.

She meets John, who has come from somewhere vague, seeking Redd to take her back there. He reveals the shocking truth about her mother, and Redd is mad that her mother has lied to her about everything.

The problem is, John is lying to her too. But why? And why is Agnes always so paranoid about letting Redd out of her sight for even a few minutes? And who is it that she keeps warning Redd about? Most interestingly, how does the story of Eleanor Dare, which took place in 1512, tie in with Redd's story in the present day?

I found the plot engrossing, and could feel the frustration and angst of a teenage Redd, rebelling against her overprotective and annoying/controlling mother, Agnes. I kept picturing Ansel Elgort as John, and how can I resist that cute face? Most of the characters are well etched-out and you can clearly visualise them.

There was not a very vivid portrayal of Eden. Though there were a lot of elements that were other-worldly, I felt it lacked the more in-depth and intense world-building expected of a fantasy book. Maybe we'll get to see more of that in the next part of this series that I am so looking forward to reading, even if it's just to meet the Devil again!

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Rating: 4.25/5 stars

Every year on Redd’s birthday, a box appears, one she knows holds the answers to who she is, the answers her mother keeps from her. Every year, her mother hides the box before Redd can open it—until her 18th birthday.

This book was so incredibly well written, I am in awe. There are three point of views, and all three have such distinct voices; Redd and John and Eleanor all feel so completely their own characters, with even the writing style between the three adopting its own flavor. I’m sometimes iffy about multiple first person POV books, but this is honestly one of the best written ones I have ever read.

Plot wise, the pacing of The Curse That Binds Us is outstanding. The tension increases so fluidly throughout the story, and everything is revealed at a time that makes complete sense and that delivers such a strong punch. Redd trying to find the answers to who she really is drives the story, and John’s moral struggles mixed with Eleanor’s recollection of the past guide this along. I was constantly hooked, reading attentively waiting for the next new juicy detail to come to light.

One issue I have with a lot of books is how often the main character is the last to reach a conclusion that’s long been made clear to the reader; here, though, Redd made the connections quickly enough, and in a timeline that made complete sense with the plot. The only real reason my rating drops a bit is how frustrated I grew with how Redd reacted to these reveals. However!! This is something that is just a downfall of being someone who reviews based on emotions, because no matter how annoyed I could get, I always understood exactly why Redd reacted how she did. It was all consistent with her character, and all an understandable response based on what she’d experienced until that point.

All this to say, even the very few parts that bugged me were incredibly well done. I can’t recommend this book enough; and I can’t wait for the next installment!!!

On Redd's 18th birthday, the box appears. It's the same one that has shown itself every birthday as far back as she can remember. Every time it finds Redd, her mom hides it away, and they pack up and move to a new city to escape it. Her mom won't answer her questions about the box or where it came from, so Redd decides the find the answers herself. But opening the box brings a curse from her family's past right to her front door.

One highlight of this novel is how the storyline is laid out. Each chapter is told from a different character's perspective, bouncing between the past and the present. So the tension builds slowly throughout the novel, with the reader getting small pieces of the story and having to put them all together to determine what happened. It's similar to The Empirium Trilogy in how it unfolds. The readers get miniature cliffhangers at the end of several chapters, and it forces us to keep reading to see how it's resolved.

Now that we've discussed the how we have to mention the what. The what in question is the plotline itself. It's so incredibly well written that readers won't know exactly where the plot is headed until well into the novel, past the point of no return. The details in each character's dealings with the curse, how those who live in Eden have come to terms with it, and how it all came to be all combine to create a chilling, heartwrenching, high tension mystery.

Something readers may struggle with is that the story starts very slow. Because of how it's told, the readers need to get through three separate introductions to the world, rather than just one. However, once the stage has been set, it takes off fast. The second is that the romance seems a little underdeveloped. They both feel the instant connection, but it isn't given much time to deepen before they're both acting completely head over heels.

Overall, The Curse that Binds Us gets four out of five stars. The issues stated can easily be overlooked because the plotline and worldbuilding far outweigh them.

Due to the language, mild adult content, and violence, this is a novel for an audience of 18+. But if you're a fan of mysterious curses and headstrong protagonists, The Curse that Binds Us is the perfect read for you. Just be prepared to dangle off the proverbial cliff until the next installment.