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

It's unfortunate to be excited about a book after reading the synopsis and seeing such a gorgeous cover, but here we are. I had to DNF this book at chapter 10 (31% of the way through) because the writing style was just so weird and all over the place. I really tried my best to push through, but even so far into the book I was still having trouble. There were certain parts where the reader was addressed randomly by the narrator in the middle of a chapter, weird tidbits of what was happening to another character were put in parentheses in the middle of another character's chapter (this just felt like lazy writing instead of the whimsy I'm guessing it was going for), and the sheer amount of character point of views was a bit confusing at times.

There was a lot of LGBTQ+ rep, but I can't speak to how well it was written as I don't identify as part of the community. There was also POC rep, specifically black characters, and I'm not black, but I felt uncomfortable with a white author writing black trauma, and I've read some reviews that have said there's even more later on in the book (I can't say whether this is true, I couldn't bring myself to keep reading).

Overall, I have no urge to finish this book.

I was so excited for this book. The cover is gorgeous, the premise was interesting, and I heard good things about the authors writing.

Overall this book just didn't work for me. I never felt like I got enough details about anything or anyone to get attached. It was really slow.

There was also no subtlety. Each character had a specific attribute and you could not read that chapter without that one thing being brought up 10 times (ie David is soooo large and people are intimated by him. David is huge and people shift away from. His large size made people uncomfortable. I GET IT.)

There were also quite a few aspects I found problematic. I saw the reviews but I wanted to form my own opinion and it was not a positive one pretty early on.

eARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

We All Fall Down follows four residents of River City, once ruled by a king and rich with magic. Now, the magic is disappearing, and it is up to two of our characters to bring it back… but at what cost?

I wanted so badly to like this book! The cover is gorgeous, the premise is interesting, the rep was promising. But by the end, all I felt was honestly kind of bored. We All Fall Down is the first book in a duopoly, and while I understand that that means that the story won’t wrap up in a neat bow by the end, I ultimately found myself wishing that both installments had just been combined into one longer book. After all, there’s nothing wrong with a hefty fantasy, and then the time spent watching our characters do basically nothing would feel like it was maybe worth it.

I’d love to say this novel was character-driven, because I did feel like that was the intention; we cycle through close-third perspectives of our four main characters, following them even as they do kind of mundane things like get jobs and teach college classes. But the flaw in this is that I don’t feel like I really know any of them, and I mean know on a deep, emotional level. Sure, I know facts about them, I know most of their parentage, but we don’t even really fully know what David and Jesse’s relationship was like pre-River City. Beyond being siblings, I have basically no clue why Jack cares literally at all about her sister, who seems to mostly just be a troublemaker with vague motivations. The character I felt we knew the most about was Turing, and that I think was mostly because we got to see her when she was completely alone — and she was alone a lot.

I wouldn’t mind, honestly, the shallow character development, if there was heavy lifting in the plot to compensate. But I closed this book and thought, “What even just happened?” These characters spend the whole book standing around, waiting for Carnival, and then Carnival happens. That’s pretty much it. Yeah, there’s cage fights and romantic trysts and dabbling in magic, but it all felt like a waste. Perhaps these moments will have more meaning as the plot plays out in the next book. I just feel like I am sitting in front of a 100-piece puzzle, but the box only came with like 20 pieces.

Even beyond the plot, I’m not sure I actually understand the world, or the magic system, or the why of the city. I got whiplash when a bus was mentioned in the first chapter. This just stands to make the plot and the characters all the more befuddling, because how can I really understand them when I don’t even understand the world they live in?

Another thing I struggled with with this book was the representation. I loved the way Jesse was presented as sort of gender fluid, and the way their journey was shown at its start and at the point where they were truly comfortable with their identity. I honestly wish we’d had the opportunity to see more of their internal life, to really dig into what that journey felt like. Turing frustrated me, as she always was referred to by she/her pronouns in her own close-third sections, but everyone else referred to her with he/him pronouns up until the last 10% or so of the book. While I think there is space for the narrative to use this as part of Turing’s journey to finding her identity, the same way Jesse found theirs, I just am not sure that it was handled as gracefully as I would have liked. Because Turing already knew her pronouns and self-identified with them before coming in contact with any of the other characters, it just felt weird and uncomfortable to see her silently deal with being misgendered for the bulk of the novel.

And then, of course, there’s David. In the same way that Turing’s misgendering wasn’t effectively addressed by the narrative in a productive way, David was the direct victim of blatant harmful racism, and that went almost entirely unquestioned. There’s a half-hearted attempt by Astrid to point out that turning David, a six-foot-ten young, fat Black man, over to the police for a murder he did not commit, is objectively wrong, but Astrid doesn’t actually put any real effort into getting Jack to understand the error of her ways. And then we’re supposed to just continue to roll with Jack being a main character, rooting for Jack’s romance, and seeing Jack as some kind of hero?

Lastly, I think this book was mischaracterized as YA. I know the NA category is something that somehow still hasn’t really caught on, but with all the characters being actual grown adults, it feels odd to call this book YA.

Overall, this book was a bit of a let down, especially since I didn’t dislike the writing and I do think all of the ideas have a lot of potential. Even so, I think I’m going to give the sequel a chance when it comes out, in the hope that it makes this book make more sense and feel more justified.

This is a dark queer urban fantasy set in a world where magic has dwindled. The story is set around tropes like Heroes an The Chosen One. Magic has been lost because of the failings of the last Chosen Ones. This story is about a new generation of those who were chosen being drawn in by Fate to bring magic back.

What an interesting story! The use of tropes reminds me of Book Lovers by Emily Henry. I love how both authors decided to use the idea of tropes to move the story forward. It makes it almost satirical. The characters and storyline are both complex and intriguing. The rep and diversity is on point and there are lots of hard situations that the characters experience that are very real-life situations. Because of this, I would read any trigger warnings before reading.

This is the first book in a duology so there is a definitely a cliffhanger that will keep people on the edge of their seats for the next installment.

I would recommend this for readers who enjoy books like Six of Crows or other dark fantasy books.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC!

Wow. So many thoughts on this novel! I will admit, halfway through I had no clue what was going on, but kept reading because the writing is gorgeous and lush. Up until the Carnival section I wasn’t totally sure what was going on. But then it all clicked. I loved the representation of so many members of the LGBTQ+ community, the diversity, and the characters in general. It was extremely slow paced, but I really didn’t mind because again, the writing? Flawless. I seriously can’t put my finger on what it is, other than a combination of so many elements (like figurative language, descriptive setting without being overkill, character arcs, etc). Can’t wait to read what happens next since this was the first in a duology!

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Farrar, and Straus and Giroux (BYR) in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 30% so I won't give a rating. This book has a looong list of trigger warnings and I would suggest checking out reviews from Black and trans reviewers as they are far more qualified than I am to speak on the problematic aspects of this novel. But how gender and race is handled is concerning.

I'm really not here for a book that uses police brutality against a Black man as a plot device written by someone not within that community (and that also doesn't really explore it). I enjoyed Szabo's slightly confusing writing style in WHAT BIG TEETH but here at this far in... I have no idea what's going on because the plot is so convoluted and at 30% in, I'm not invested in what happens to any of the main characters. This novel jumps points of view a lot giving a voice to too many characters from the start which further muddles everything. The synopsis was interesting and I was really looking forward to reading WE ALL FALL DOWN. But this was a flop for me.

The cover art is to die for though. It's truly stunning.

I was so incredibly excited for this book!! I love the author and their debut, What Big Teeth was my favorite read of the year of it’s release. So when I heard about this one, I jumped at a chance to read an early copy.

Unfortunately, this was not at all what I was expecting and I am thoroughly disappointed. The representation was good and bad at the same time. There is a whole LOT of different rep, but not all of it is good and in the world today, these things seem icky, like how most people of color in the book were portrayed.

I really wanted more of David and Turin, who would seem like that most important part of the story, ultimately. And I really disliked Jack through most (not all) of the book. She was just problematic and didn’t seem to care.

Aside from that, the world building and the story itself was really well crafted. The writing was there, but the execution of the characters and the things that happen to some of them didn’t sit well.

2.75 stars.

Rose Szabo writes books about white women inflicting violence upon gay men. This is a plot choice they have made in both of their published novels. This hardly seems to be a coincidence.

In Szabo's debut novel, What Big Teeth, protagonist Eleanor (and her grandmother) manipulated and enslaved a gay man for their own ends, and the book ultimately left each of its gay male characters dead, dying, or destitute. The author failed to confront either the internal bigotry baked into the narrative or the characters' explicitly harmful actions. The end result was a book that seemed to prioritize a white woman's victory, no matter the collateral damage. [My review here]

A similar dynamic exists in We All Fall Down.

This is a book about the murder of two police officers. Tiny white lesbian Jack knows who the murderer is—her sister. Said sister is trying to pin the murder onto an eight-armed monster-girl in order to stir up racially motivated panic amonst the citizenry. In order to deflect suspicion from her sister (who isn't great at plotting), Jack points the finger at a person she 100% knows to be innocent.

Who?

David. A seven-foot tall gay Black man who everyone is already terrified of by reason of his race and physical size.

It'll be fine, Jack tells herself, as she uses her incredible privilege as a white woman to frame a stranger. He's a professor at the university, he must be rich and well-connected and able to sort this out.

The police arrest David and hold him without charging him. They subject him to interrogation and torture in order to coerce a confession.

Jack's only apparent regret with this situation is that, when the police eventually let David go, she hadn't been able to point the finger at a more plausible suspect. She displays no awareness or insight the actual harm caused to David or how she might make amends.

And the novel itself ultimately portrays Jack as the hero and David as the villain. David's rightful quest for vengeance against the woman who attempted to frame him for her sister's crimes is Wrong and Selfish and Upsetting the Balance of Magic. In contrast, Jack is the capital-H Hero who must stop David from creating cosmic unrest as a result of his rampage. So the sequel to We All Fall Down is, apparently, going to be about Jack and her girlfriend stopping "evil" David?

The optics of this book are shit.

Rose Szabo keeps trying to tell stories about subjects that they are just not able to tell due to their own lack of perspective. You cannot write a book about police brutality against monsters but then have your hero subject a gay Black man to police brutality. You can't then take the Black man's completely justified anger at the violence done to him and turn it into an "anger is bad and forgiveness will heal the world" lesson. Some things are not forgiveable, and oppressors have no right to demand that the people they have harmed put aside their righteous fury.

(I should add that this is a fantasy novel that takes place in the American South. David has already lived in fear of falling victim to "existing while Black" his entire life, so the fact that the police who arrest him are Magic Police instead of Human Police is irrelevant, and only makes Szabo's authorial choices more egregious.)

I don't know what Szabo's deal is. They're a very good writer. But there seems to be a repeated lack of insight into the way their narratives reinforce and condone bigotry and the weaponization of white female fragility.

I wanted to like this, but it was just a lot.

A modern fantasy novel, 'We All Fall Down.' follows a set of characters as their paths cross following the disappearance and murders of two police officers. Most of the characters are morally gray, which I normally appreciate in novels, but in this one, it started to fall short towards the middle and left me feeling uncomfortable.

CW: A black man is accused of murder by a white woman, and she sees absolutely nothing wrong with it, feels no remorse at any point for it. It feels inappropriate for a white author to use black trauma to advance the story, especially when at the end of the day, it accomplished nothing. Szabo even specifically added a scene in the beginning where the man, David, is harassed by the police for just existing. Also, by the end of the book, David is villainized for reasons that are not made clear. He was easily my favorite character, but maybe because we didn't see too much of him. For a book with discrimination against people with animal features, it's a bad look to just overlook the blatant racism that still exists.

The world building succeeds in some areas, and fails in other. I loved the idea of a city beyond our boundaries, formally run by magic. But the downfall and everything around it was not fully explained, so I don't know why the magic disappeared. Maybe I missed it, or it will be expanded on in the sequel, which I honestly don't know if I will pick up. Jack's actions were beyond awful, and Szabo tried so hard to still make her sympathetic, making me think they want her as the principle protagonist. I'm not about that.

The premise is interesting, and I'm sad to see the execution did not do it justice.

No longer interested in reading this book, due to other reviews citing insensitive portrayal of race and other issues. I absolutely adored What Big Teeth and wanted to read this but for personal reasons I can not bring myself to do so. Unfortunately, after seeing initial early reviews on both NetGalley, Goodreads , I do not feel comfortable reading and reviewing this title.

Thank you to MacMillan and NetGalley for this eARC for review.

Thank you to MacMillan and NetGalley for this eARC for review.

Unfortunately, after seeing initial early reviews on both NetGalley, Goodreads, and from friends on Instagram, I no longer feel comfortable reading and reviewing this title. I am told there are themes, decisions, and plot points within the storyline that I personally don't feel comfortable addressing nor reading about, especially since I am not a part of the groups mentioned and used for the plot points. It would be insensitive for me to voice my opinion on such matters, and I do not feel I would give them adequate justice to what they deserve. Apologies to the publisher for the lack of a true review.

- WE ALL FALL DOWN has a fantastic premise. I love this idea of cycles that require certain players in place: it allows for some excellent plotting and meddling and self discovery.
- The main characters are all wonderfully sweet and queer (yes, even the ones with hard shells are sweet). There's a fluidity to people and things in this world that's lovely.
- I do have some beef with it, though. Given that it's set in a place sort of stuck between a magical world and our world, and that one of the main characters is Black, there are some scenes and plot elements (sorry, being vague to try not to spoil) that touch on his fears and experiences as a large Black man, but they aren't really explored or followed up on in any meaningful way. It's like the author was trying to have it both ways: our real world and a magic world where race and gender don't matter, but it ended up just making these important factors in the story just kind of get glossed over to not ruin the magic.

*thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
First of all the cover is what initially made me want to read this book. Also the blurb sounded very intriguing. I had a hard time really getting into this one however. I just felt as if the plot was all over the place and I really did not enjoy the multiple povs. Usually I love multiple povs in books. The povs in this one just confused me a lot. This is supposed to be a YA novel but I definitely think it is more of a New adult book. The characters were in their 20s and the topics and things that happen in this book just wouldn’t fit YA in my opinion. I wasn’t a fan of the characters and honestly maybe it was just me but it was just a confusing story and world building. I’m sorry but it just wasn’t the book for me.

This was a really uncomfortable book to read. I actually DNF’d this book which I normally do not do. I found the writing to be rather confusing in that things weren’t really explained well. We as readers are kind of dumped into a whole world and it just keeps going. I don’t like information dumps per say but do like some details. I will preface with that I am Asian but I felt some of the examples of racial discrimination and blatant racism were very uncomfortable. It hit really close to home with what is currently happening in real life and the lack of repercussions were triggering. I didn’t quite understand the inclusion of it. I think this could have been a great book it had an interesting premise and I applaud it for trying to be inclusive but it really just fell flat.

Thank you Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review

I really liked the characters in this book. They were interesting and engaging. This book was full of lgbtq+ representation, which was fantastic and honest. I really enjoyed the vibe of this book. The concept was really cool and I enjoyed the way the magic system worked. The world building was not quite as developed as I prefer. There were aspects of the plot that weren’t explained fully, but I’m hoping the sequel fills those gaps.

Very interesting premise but overall it just fell flat, I feel like a lot of components in this book were supposed to come off as lyrical and deeply thought provoking but instead came off as confusing and brash. I appreciate the journey thé author was trying to take us on but it just didn’t work well as a reader. The gender representation we see through the characters is important and valuable but in this story it just didn’t come off right.

I don’t feel like I understand a single aspect of this book. The plot? No idea what it was. The characters? Who are they??? What happened??? What is this book??? I don’t know???? But boy oh boy it was fun to read and I feel like I’ll be thinking about it for a long time, even if it’s just in confusion.

This whole story felt like an inside joke that I didn’t understand but that I could still laugh at!!!

When I read the blurb, I was expecting a darker urban fantasy with queer characters who try to bring back magic. I wasn't expecting to see characters coming into their various sexualities and genders with such a natural feeling. We All Fell Down felt like a long fantasy story told by one of my close friends about people they met on a trip, so vibrant and real I could have plucked them right off the page for a cup of tea.

I loved seeing so many different queer main characters in the same book, and all the different adventures they experienced in this new world. I truly hope this series continues.

Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for this eARC. These opinions are my own. I've been finding myself struggling lately with fantasy novels. It doesn't really have anything to do with the author or the story itself I just have struggled to get into them. It was the same with We All Fall Down. I loved the premise of the book but when it came to all the world building it was just hard for me to really delve into it. I didn't end up finishing this book but the characters were really interesting and again I think the premise was really cool, personally I just struggled to get into. I think if you like fantasy and I know if you like LGBTQ+ fantasy then this book is worth the read!

Okay, first the cover is beautiful. I could use a lot more covers like this in the future.

Onto something I hate doing.....I have to be honest by saying I DNF'd this book at 18%. I truly wanted to love this book because the story line seemed wonderful and interesting. When I actually got started, I could not force myself to keep reading, so I put it down and read another book before trying to pick it back up. Again, I could not get past the story line that fell flat and some problematic themes that need to be addressed.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this before release in return for an honest opinion. I apologize I had to give Net Galley my first DNF review, but it had to happen.