It's hard for me to get invested in books where I can't connect with the characters, and that was the case for this one. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish it. It's also disjointed and super description-heavy in a way that doesn't contribute to the plot.

DNF - 20%

Whilst the overall concept of this book sounded incredibly interesting, unfortunately, I just found it very hard to connect with the characters, which for me can make or break a book. It was very heavy on the d’inscription side at the beginning and there wasn't too much going on in the first few chapters, thus I found my attention waning.

Major TW for child abuse!!!

It seems I have simply outgrown this story; if I'd read it back when I was a child, I would have enjoyed it so much more.

Thank you to Netgalley and BooksForward for giving me access :)

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I’m not a huge YA fantasy fan, but I’m all in when a good one comes along. This was not it. I skimmed the last 25% just to get this one over. There is a place for teen drama in books, but this one couldn’t decide if it was about teen drama or fantasy or abuse or one of the other many genres it touches on.

From Goodreads: The parents knew it had been a mistake to have a girl. At birth, the girl’s long, elegant fingers wriggled and grasped forward, motioning to strangle the very air from her mother’s lungs. As she grew older, she grew more like her father, whose ancestors would dream of those soon to die. She walked and talked in her sleep, and her parents warded themselves, telling the girl that she was evil, unlovable, their burden to bear only until her eighteenth birthday released them.

The average person on the streets of Los Angeles would look at the girl and see a young woman with dark chocolate eyes, curly long hair, and tanned skin of her Filipina heritage. Her teachers praised her for her scholarly achievements and extracurricular activities, from academic decathlon to cheer.

The girl knew she was different, especially as she grew to accept that the other children’s parents didn’t despise them. Her parents whispered about their pact as odd and disturbing occurrences continued to happen around her. The girl thought being an evil demon should require the skies to bleed, the ground to tremble, an animal sacrifice to seal the bargain, or at least cause some general mayhem. Did other demons work so hard to find friends, do well on their homework, and protect their spoiled younger brother?

The demon was patient. It could afford to wait, to remind the girl when she was hurt that power was hers to take. She needed only embrace it. It could wait. The girl’s parents were doing much of its work already.

If this were what the book was about, that would be a MUCH better book than it ended up being. But this was maybe 1/3 of the book. The rest was just unwarranted parental abuse and teenage drama. The reader isn’t clued into that abuse until over halfway through the book. And the abuse is a lot. Very verbal, emotional trauma. But the drama, oh my gosh, the drama. Whoooo… cares…..??? Sure, YA books are targeted to teens, but the drama felt so out of place in this book. It had the potential to be so much more. What a disappointment.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book. The Girl by Victory Witherkeigh was beautiful and haunting. The writing was absolutely stunning. The subject matter was heartbreaking. I think you should go in to this book knowing that the Girl is neglected and abused. It is hard to read at times because of this. Not having names is a very good way to feel like this could be anyone experiencing this. It also questions whether or not if you tell someone their whole life that they are a monster, will they become one?

(i received an e-arc from tor and netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)

what a lyrical masterpiece of a book. this story is the epitome of getting a long-lasting hug when you least expect it.

I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
This book follows a girl, unnamed, as she grows into an unsettling inheritance. Her family barely tolerates her because they feel that she is evil. The girl is unable to make friends or find love. She questions if this is because of what and how she is.
While I found this an interesting book and well written, the way the family and the protagonist were written caused me to disconnect a lot. There were so many other people that were named in the story, so not having a name for the girl or her family didn't work for me. I think it would have worked better for me if it had only been "the girl" while her family was treated normally. This would have added to that feeling of disconnection.
The abuse the girl suffers from her family is implied to be because of her innate evilness. I think this would have made a bigger impact if the reader was able to see more of how the brother was treated during family scenes.

This book was interesting. I don’t really like horror but it was ok. It wasn’t well written and I have a hard time connecting to characters that aren’t relatable.

This was such a difficult book to read, simply because of the subject matter. There is extensive child abuse, with blatant hatred constantly thrown at the main character. It was also difficult to connect with the characters as they didn’t have names, removing any personalization. The plot itself started off very slow, but once it picks up, it’s interesting.

What if you were born evil? Told all your life that you were bad? That you would be the reason for death and destruction? These questions are what the nameless protagonist, only referred to as “the girl”, asks herself over and over and over, when everyone in the world shuns, spites, or harms her because of who she is. The girl has to deal with a mother who wishes she was never born, a father who shuns her entire existence, a brother whom her parents love more, and school friends who would betray her at the drop of a hat, all because of a Filipino prophecy that deemed her birth as the herald of death.

The Girl is a chilling and despondent account of the life of the girl, from her oppressive and unloved childhood to her relationship struggles in high school. It’s mostly a realistic story, as the book tracks the eighteen years of verbal, emotional, and physical abuse the girl deals with daily from her parents (the main culprits), but also girl friends who take her for granted, and boyfriends who only want her for pleasure. The story is quite depressing because this is the main focus of the narrative - all the hardships the girl goes through, and not many achievements.

The horror elements come in with the Filipino prophecy and folklore, which, throughout the book, hint at the full capabilities of the girl’s true nature. The book is decently written and documents the spiral of the main character nicely, from the history of the prophecy to her emotional struggles and immediate thoughts. The realistic and horror elements sometimes feel separate from each other, and I wish we had more of the horror, and more of the girl using her demonic powers to save herself. But that only culminates in the final act when she turns eighteen, but then the book ends and we don’t get to see her do anything. Because of this, and that most of the story focuses on how much the girl suffers throughout her life, the book was a bit of a letdown: I wanted more horror/demon elements, and to see the girl fight back. The girl and her family are Filipino.

3.5 stars rounded to 4. The Girl is a unique, dark, young adult thriller which follows the life of a young girl of Filipino descent, growing up in Los Angeles. The Girl's birth fulfills an ancient pact - she is destined to be possessed by a demon. Her parents, knowing of the pact, subject her to abuse and neglect. Most of the story focuses on her childhood and young adulthood, and her difficulty in navigating friendships and romantic relationships as a result of her abusive, dysfunctional family and the presence of the demon's voice in her head.
The writing is captivating, but there are some temporal jumps which make the story difficult to follow, at times. I would have preferred fewer details of the school drama and more focus on the Girl's relationship with the demon. I enjoyed the Filipino folklore in the book.
This story could be interpreted as an allegory about how abuse and neglect make a child more vulnerable to being groomed by a predator.
Trigger warning for physical and psychological child abuse.
Thank you to BooksForward PR and the author for a copy to review.

A girl is cursed from birth to be a carrier for a demon of death. The parents know that death will follow the girl around and she will be a burden on the family. So the parents ignore the girl, tell her she is worthless and instead put all of their resources into their son. The girl knows that there is something different about her and especially her family. As the girl goes through school, she strives to be the best in order to win her parent's affection, to no avail. The demon makes itself known to the girl at the right time and tells her of her Filipino ancestors' history with Death and what it will mean for her when she embraces the demon inside.

The Girl was a unique thriller documenting the childhood and young adult years of a Girl fated to carry a demon of death. The device of never using the Girl's name made her seem ever more like a forgotten object. Since her family knew of this curse, they ignored, abused and made her feel worthless. Most of the story focused on the Girl's childhood and young adulthood growing up with this demon's voice in her head while dealing with her family's abuse. It was very difficult to read about the Girl's abuse, but it was well written and realistic. The Girl's methods of dealing with her situation were interesting to read, especially as she grew and matured, understanding more about what her family was doing. Sprinkled throughout the story were foreshadowing of when the Girl and demon finally embrace one another and meet at the end of the book. I would have loved to see the full potential of the Girl and the demon working together. I also enjoyed learning about the Girl's Philippine heritage and the battle of Lapu- Lapu and Magellan as the origin story of her family history with the demon. I'd love to see what's next for the Girl.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

I think this book will resonate with anyone who doesn't feel like they fit in. The main character and her family are referred to as the girl, the mother, the father, and the brother throughout the novel. All of the other characters are referred to by their names and we never learn the girl or her family's names. I think this was done so that the reader can identify with the character and/or to show how insignificant the character feels she is to those around her.

Long before the girl is born there is a prophecy about her birth and that she will be a demon. Her family then treats her as such. They provide for her physical needs but none of her emotional needs. To the outside world, she probably seems well cared for.

During the story, the girl and her family travel and the locations are described in great detail. Sometimes it feels a bit long winded but you really do get a picture in your head of where they are. I think this book does a great job of asking the question of who is deserving of love and do you only give love to those deemed worthy.

I thought the author did a great job of presenting information in a way that seems somewhat detached but still impactful. I also loved the information throughout regarding Filipino culture and the mix of old religion and customs with Catholicism. I also feel like it did a good job of depicting the experience of kids born to immigrant parents.

This book has short chapters, so it's easy to take breaks if you need to and come right back to the story. The book is told in a non linear timeline that was easy to follow throughout the majority of the book. However there was a time or two that I did have to go back and figure out where I was. Once I did it was easy to continue.

This book is dark but good. I really felt for the girl and had strong emotions regarding how she was treated. I think the internal dialogue is extremely relatable especially the chapters regarding dating and how some males cover up their behavior as compliments and jokes and the difficult for girls of navigating those situations.

The Girl is a YA dark fantasy set in the late 90s/early 2000s. It is inspired by Filipino mythology, with Filipino/Pacific Islander rep.

This book follows ‘the girl’ (who is never actually named in the story) from birth to college age. Her parents are convinced that she is evil and treat her terribly. This certainly explores psychological and mental abuse. There are hints of dark forces and a demonic presence throughout the girl’s life and as the story progresses, things are slowly revealed. Academia is a big theme in this book. There is a lot of detail about the pressures and dramas of the girl’s school life and interactions with her classmates. The trips that the girl took with her family are a major highlight of the book.

The focus isn’t so much on the demonic force itself. There aren’t many direct interactions. This also isn’t the kind of story where there are trips to the underworld or much of an explanation of the workings of such things. Rather, this is about the girl coming-of-age and realizing she is different, her relationships with family and classmates as a result, learning her family history and coming to terms with who she is. This is ultimately the story of a girl accepting and owning her power and her destiny.

I loved the girl’s coming-of-age journey, but I also would have liked if the dark and demonic forces played a bigger role throughout the story and there had been more direct interactions. I would have loved exploring that side of things and getting deeper explanations. Although I believe this is a standalone, this could certainly be continued and expanded upon.

I really loved the journey this book took me on and I look forward to what Victory Witherkeigh will write next!

Thank you Netgalley, Cinnabar Moth Publishing and Victory Witherkeigh for the opportunity to read and review this book! Also, a huge thank you to Books Forward PR for sending me a beautiful influencer box!!

The premise of the book was very intriguing, but the execution lacked in backing it up. I was expecting an awesome plotline with a morally grey protagonist and their struggles and such, but the story lacked in these aspects.

The beginning of this book and the treatment of the girl was off putting but I’ll be honest – just weird enough for me to keep going. It is the only book (that I can recall) where I’ve gone through the entire story without the main character (and her family) having no names. I’m not sure if it was to distance her and her family from what was going on or something else entirely.

Towards the end I noticed a couple of things that didn’t fit with the rest of the story – I’d say in the last handful of chapters. Even in the synopsis there are a couple of things that I don’t remember happening in the story. I also thought that the demon would play more of a role to deserve such treatment but superstitions are hard to squash.

One of my favorite things about this book was the vacations that the family took. The descriptions of the places that they went made me feel as if I was there. The backstory about the demon, Death & the girls ancestors were interesting as well. – especially Lapulapu.

Alright… I’m done with the book and I still have no idea how to categorize this book? A coming of age book for a part demon? Content warning: entirely too many to list, but the one that gets the most page time is abuse & all flavors of it. I’m still not sure what message(s) the author was meaning to send with this book but it was an interesting ride & there is enough base for a second book if she chose to write one. I believe that this book with some polish & some story massaging/addition/subtraction it would flow better. I would like to thank Books Forward PR for the chance to read this interesting indie title – all opinions are my own.

I am not really sure how to review this book but here goes. The writing is excellent and I look forward to more from this author in the future. I thought it was interesting that our main character just went by "the girl" for the entire book and we don't learn her name or the names of her family members. I had a hard time with the relationships in the book and felt uncomfortable but this is the intent I think. It all plays into the girl's journey and the very end of the book. I think anyone who ever experienced bullying, wanting to be liked and fit in and how hard that is to navigate will relate to the girl.

I want to thank Books Forward and the author for the gifted copy I received. I hope that you will consider checking out this book. It's different than a lot of things I've read before and while it's not my favorite type of book, I am glad I went out of my comfort zone and gave it a read.

I think there were some really compelling ideas in this story, and I think the descriptions of how familial abuse/trauma can systematically break someone down were excruciatingly accurate. However, I think there were a few things in the plot and how this book was structured which didn't quite come together in the end. I would've loved to see more focus on the mythical/supernatural elements of the story, which were the most interesting.

A haunting coming of age, that one wishes had a few more demons in it. The girl has a name, but she never tells us who she is. It's a hint that she believes in her lack of self-worth, as her family deems her evil.

An interesting slow burn about a girl that is destined to be possessed by a demon. Her parents know, don’t explicitly tell her, but still treat her as such. This book tells a story of how the girl grows up in this environment up until the moment of truth; will she be as evil as they say she is?

This book could potentially be very triggering as there is a lot of child abuse; physical as well as mental abuse.

I wasn’t too fond of the jumping back between the past and the present. I kind of wish it would’ve been more of a linear timeline of events. I kind of also didn’t care much for the high school drama aspect. I was kind of bored during those parts of the story, and really just wanted to read more about the demon part. That was what was most interesting to me.

I liked the use of “the girl”. I felt for the main character, but then it also kept this air of detachment. I think this added to the story even more because even the reader can’t truly connect with the girl. Overall I thought it was an interesting concept.

Thank you to Cinnabar Moth Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

A wonderfully disturbing and dark read soaked in Filipino mythology. I found this to be an immersive read and also very informative.