this was a beautifully done supernatural mystery novel, I had enjoyed previous books by Courtney Gould. It's a strong story that works in the genre and getting to know the characters within this novel. I enjoyed how good this was and getting to go on this journey. The writing worked well and I enjoyed getting to read a new book from Courtney Gould.

"She buries her hand in the popcorn bowl and shoves a fistful into her mouth. Katie collapses onto a beanbag facing the TV, leaving Beck with the last empty spot next to Jack on the love seat. Not ideal, but Beck swallows her anxiety and takes the spot. She’s going to keep it together tonight. She’s not going to worry Riley. She’s not going to look like a wreck in front of Avery. Not again."

3.75/5
I received this book as an ARC. This book will release in June 2023.
TL;DR:
An emotional, mysterious novel that deals with familial connections and trauma with queer representation. Definitely think will be great in audiobook format - easily digestible in writing style and with a fast-paced, atmospheric plot.


Wow. This book is very emotional, but not in a "I want to make you cry" kind of way, but in a way that makes you think.
This book follows two sisters who travel to a mysterious town in Arizona to hopefully find answers about their late mother who had an unhealthy obsession with said town. That's the basic gist of it, but it is truly complicated - no cars, no cemeteries, but most importantly, no memories.
This book battles with what it means to remember, and what we are willing to sacrifice for temporary happiness or perceived happiness. I started this book thinking that there would be a clear bad or good side for characters, but even the characters that I doubted in terms of being "good" had their reasons, which I am a huge fan of.

Now, for the cons, even though I really enjoyed this book. For probably about 75% of the book, I felt as though our main character, Beck, lacked a strong character background or development. She felt like a means to an end and only existed to take the story in a certain direction. It wasn't until that last quarter that I really started to feel I understood who Beck was as a person. While this may be intentional, sometimes I felt confused by her function: is she detail oriented? is she like her mother or not? It wasn't until the end that I felt I truly connected with her. Minorly, I felt this as well with the way Riley and Beck talked about their mother. Often, they use of the mother's real name - Ellery - within personal internal dialogue felt disconnected. We are introduced to Ellery as Ellery, not as "mom" or "mother". For a while, I assumed this suggested a separation from their mother and that they didn't have a huge connection with her. Of course, it is much more complicated than that, but it definitely led me in a certain way mentally.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed this book and really appreciated this read. I was very sick the week I read this and it was fast paced and interesting in a way that entertained me through sitting at home.

Thank you for providing me with this ARC!

Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
In essence, this is a story about grief and how far one will go to cope in all the wrong ways.
In practice, this narrative follows 17-year-old Beck and her younger sister, Riley, on a road trip to visit Backravel, a weird, isolated dessert town that holds plenty of secrets. The reason for this trip? Beck and Riley’s recently deceased mother used to visit the town, and in order to better understand their mother’s life and death, the sisters will first need to uncover the town’s secrets.
And Gould masterfully wove together the depth of grief and coming of age with the mysterious and engaging premise of the mind-bending town. I loved it!

Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Beck was a fantastic lead - savvy, caring, and just a little bit too curious for her own good. Riley played the little sister part well, both the role of needing help and being the one to help. I do wish we got a little more from her though.
An enigma at first, Avery ended up being an important and dynamic addition to the ensemble. Other characters kind of fell to the wayside, but I guess they weren’t totally necessary anyways.

Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gould penned such a great story about mourning the loss of a loved one. She represented the dizzying, almost surreal feeling of grief in such literal ways. To write a novel equal parts viscerally real and fantastical is impressive.
I also commend Gould for creating such an interesting fictional town. The setting was described so clearly that I felt like I was trudging along in the middle of the dessert.

Recommended to fans of adult fiction novels about grief, coming of age, and/or weird little towns.

4.5/5 stars (I rounded up)

Let me start this review off by saying I LOVE this book. It’s really hard for me to say I love a book that isn’t fantasy, but this one is up there. I actually sat down and read the entire book in a couple of hours without taking a break (it was that good!). Let’s get into it!!

The story starts off with Beck, a seventeen year old girl, driving through Arizona with her fifteen year old sister, Riley, on a spontaneous road trip. They are grieving the recent loss of their mother, Ellery Birsching, who was a journalist obsessed with a place called Backravel, Arizona. Their parents are separated so this story takes place on a two week long “vacation” shortly after Ellery’s death but right before they move to Texas to be with their dad. Ellery Birsching was obsessed with Backravel to the point where it broke up her marriage and consumed her life. Beck wants to find out why.

I love the trigger warnings in the very beginning of this book. It means a lot to me for an author to openly warn the readers what they are going to get into without spoiling any of the book. The transparency really means a lot to me as someone who has been unpleasantly surprised by triggers in many books.

This story will pull you in from the beginning. I don’t want to say much (to avoid spoilers) but this story takes a look into grief in both an understanding and open way. There is sapphic romance in it that didn’t feel forced or weird! It was, dare I say, perfect?

The only reason this is not a 5/5 stars for me is because the ending fell only a little flat for me. I would have liked one or two more chapters to really get into what happened to feel some closure. That being said, I don’t dislike the ending at all. I think it did wrap up nicely, but I would’ve preferred a little more explanation.

I highly recommend this book and I’m glad to be starting off 2023 with such a strong read. Thank you to Courtney Gould, the publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book and express that all opinions are my own.

I love the cover on this and it will draw in the target reading group! We have a slow burn taking place in Arizona. Two sisters decide to take a trip here after their mother mentioned it numerous times before she died. A lot of genre mixing which is popular in the YA world and I think this will be a hit for teens.

2.25/5 stars! First of all, the cover of this book is stunning. This book felt like more of a story about the Backravel location than a story about the main characters and their needs. I just wasn't drawn in by the characters which made this book read slowly for me. The story works as a YA thriller mystery but could stand edits for future stories.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

i’ve been anticipating this book since i read and loved the dead and the dark a couple years ago, and it was everything i wanted it to be. i love courtney goulds’ writing so much, and i was so easily drawn into this world. it was creepy and unsettling and the build was absolutely perfect. i loved the exploration of grief, from so many sides, i thought it was really well done. i just loved it so much!

This is a YA contemporary horror book, which is completely out of type for me, but I picked this up because the blurb was so intriguing - and I'm so glad I did!

From the very first chapter, the book pulled me in with the narration and the mystery. The plot was steadily developed over the course of the book, with more questions popping up with every answer, and the mysteries getting deeper and darker. The MC's and side character's emotions were also written really well, and that got me more invested in the book. Every mystery point was resolved so so well at the end, it was really perfect and satisfying.

The emotions and emotional resolutions in the last 30 pages were also insanely good, I was legit crying (on a flight too, lol) through those pages.

--- ty to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for giving me an advanced copy!

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this eARC!

I have never read anything by this author and I thought this may be a good introduction - I was right! The writing was great, I loved the atmosphere, the dynamics, I loved the LGBTQ+ rep, I loved the way it dealt with grieving... there was so much I was into. Also, loved the big reveal in the ending, really made the story for me. I can't recommend this enough and I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author!

Stunning cover! I could look at it all day.

I love the premise and idea. I like the twists/big reveal at the end. But was not a fan of the protagonist. It's hard to fully enjoy a novel when I just don't care about the main character. She repeatedly lied to her sister and dragged her along, even though she had stated she didn't want to stay in the weird town. Also, I had some issues with the pacing.

Overall, an interesting read. If you're interested in YA sapphic mystery novel with some sci-fi elements. Give this novel a try.

***I would like to thank NetGalley, Courtney Gould (the author), St. Martin's Press, and Wednesday Books for graciously sending me a copy to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.**

Where Echoes Die was so so incredible. It dealt with grief and moving through grief in such a beautiful and realistic way that I’ve never quite experienced before. The different dynamics between each character and their relationship with pain was fascinating. I was not expecting many of the turns that this book took and it made it all the more enjoyable. This one will definitely go on my reread list.

My sole complaint is that I felt like the relationship between Avery and Beck moved too fast at times. I wish there had been more of a chance to see their relationship develop, because it would have made Beck’s motivations clearer at the end of the book. However I don’t feel like this took away from the overall impact of the story.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book.

Setting: Arizona, USA
Rep: lesbian MC (describes herself on page as a lesbian); sapphic LI

Oh wow.

This book.

I already knew I was going to love every word Courtney Gould wrote after I read The Dead and the Dark, and this solidifies it. She's a phenomenal writer. The best sense of atmosphere and eeriness I've ever read. An absolute stunner of a book.

3.5 is rounded up to my head is extremely hurting and the main reason is not my terrible new year hangover, this book truly burned my last precious brain cells with its complex structure stars!

I feel a little numb! I think book hangover term might be real! I’m suffering from it!

Courtney Gould is so intelligent, brilliant author creating creepiest, most mind numbing, complicated, surrealist universes! I liked her previous work! “When Echoes Die” is also interesting and extremely intriguing work contains different genres like mystery, thriller, sci-fi, fantasy, romance!

It’s a little slow burn and characters are not much likable but Backravel - the mysterious Arizona town of the city has its own ominous, tempting, secretive character that draws you into its black hole!

You want to learn more about its big mystery! When was it founded? Why it looks like a ghost town? Was it initially military testing site? Why there’s no animal, no church and no cemetery in the town? Why everybody rejects driving a car? And what’s the purpose of the treatment center? Who is the mysterious Ricky working on treatment center?

Sisters Beck and Riley decide to have a vacation without informing their father before moving to Texas to live with him. Their mother has passed away and Beck has a secret agenda to choose Backravel/ Arizona as their vacation place. Because that’s the last place her mother was insisting to come to at several times before she died because of brain tumor. She was investigative journalist and she tried to solve a big mystery about this town, leaving bunch of inconsistent notes like breadcrumbs behind.

Beck wants to solve the entire mystery and finish what her mother started by coming here, digging out, talking with the people! As soon as she starts asking questions, her path crosses with town’s young tour leader Avery and her mysterious father Ricky who seems like treating the entire population of townies!

Everybody seems keeping secrets, spiraling, acting like robots! As Beck digs out deeper, she realizes by coming to this town she just stepped into very dangerous zone where she could not return back!

Overall: the town’s big mystery and its unfolding were truly interesting! I couldn’t connect with the characters! But it was still smart, intriguing, unconventional novel!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press /Wednesday Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

i adored courtney gould's debut the dead and the dark, one of the surprises of the year, and I'm very glad to report how much i also enjoyed where echoes die. gould has such a great way of creating atmosphere

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Where Echoes Die by Courtney Gould is an atmospheric YA mystery and thriller that you won't be able to forget. The story revolves around Beck, who is traveling with her younger sister to Backravel, a mysterious town in Arizona. Their mother, an investigative reporter, sent them a letter after her death that says "Come and find me." But after they arrive, they encounter mystery after mystery. Will they be able to find out what happened to their mother?

Here is an atmospheric excerpt from the opening chapter:

"In Arizona, on the road between nowhere and somewhere, there is a moment where sunrise and sunset look the same.
Or maybe Beck's been driving too long. She's got that twitch in her calves, the kind that scuttles through her legs and begs her to get moving beyond the shift of her foot from the gas pedal to the brakes. She holds a hand up to block the light from her eyes, palm facing the sun, and she feels the last heat of the day die behind the jagged horizon.
Roads in the Southwest aren't like the roads back in Washington, all tunneled with trees so thick you can't see the sky. There's no deer crossing signs, no falling rock warnings - actually, Beck can't think of the last sign she saw on this highway. Deep in the desert, the road is like a weathered conveyor belt, rolling the car through an unchanging backdrop of red dirt and sky."

Overall, Where Echoes Die is a wonderful YA thriller that will appeal to fans of Twin Peaks or the webtoon Stagtown. One highlight of this book is the LGBT representation, which is sorely needed in the YA thriller genre. Another highlight of this book is the eerie atmosphere. The author is a master in establishing the mysterious setting of Backravel. I definitely won't forget this book for some time. I enjoyed it that much. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA thrillers in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes in June!

What a cool book! Courtney Gould has certainly done it again with this novel! Where Echoes Die is a unique, queer novel with mixed elements of horror, thriller, and sci-fi. I definitely got some Don't Worry Darling vibes but if DWD had been queer and with more of a sci-fi twist to it, which was fun to read. Beck and Avery's attraction to each other was gorgeously done and feels realistic. How many straight pairings have I sat through where they were like, "I don't know why I'm drawn to you...but I am *dramatic smolder*" and people act like it's the second coming of literary romantic Christ? Too many. Beck and Avery are the perfect queer girl balance to that, and I loved it!

I don't want to say much more about this book because the plot twist is so worth it to uncover on your own. But I highly recommend this book, and even though I was sold on Courtney Gould's work after reading D&tD, she has become, without a doubt, a must read author for me!

Well, I only loved this book with my entire being.

Seriously, the plot is so intriguing! Within the first few pages, I was thoroughly in and didn’t want to come up for air.

I loved our main character and her sister and my heart broke for them a thousand times.

While the mysterious person in the desert wasn’t quite so mysterious (knew who that was IMMEDIATELY), it also didn’t matter because I was waiting for our characters to realize it.

Utterly unique concept and very entertaining read.

Love.

• ARC via Publisher

Thank you, St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, for allowing me to read Where Echoes Die early.

Gould wrote one of my favorite books in 2021 and I was sad when this one got post-poned until 2023. Anyhow, I loved it and the way the authors writes dark atmospheres and queerness.

I have to admit that one of the main reasons I wanted to read this book was I liked The Dead and the Dark and the fabulous cover. The story sounded promising so I was eager to give it a try.
Once I started reading this book, I was hooked and ended up having a great time with it. The ideas behind world-building and characters are so intriguing. This was such an interesting read that I'd definitely recommend to people who enjoy sapphic YA books.

A special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press & Wednesday Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5

I am so happy to have received an e-ARC of Courtney Gould’s new book! Having read ‘The Dead and the Dark,’ by her last year, and liking it, I was really excited to read her next book. This is an intriguing YA horror novel, with some sci fi ish elements as well. I think this book really fell a bit flat in said sci fi elements. They weren’t explained as well as they could have been. Another issue (one I find common with books that involve situations where it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s not) is that since our MC is confused nearly the whole book, the reader is as well. The explanations aren’t easy to comprehend and the last few chapters I honestly wasn’t sure what was going on.
I also felt annoyed with Beck for most of the book, and I didn’t really connect with her much either. I much preferred Riley, and I wish the book had been dual POV between the sisters.
The romance between Beck and Avery was very underdeveloped and quite forgettable to me as well. I wish they had more depth. I just didn’t feel the chemistry between them.
That being said, the book itself is fast paced, has a pleasant writing style, and is creepy enough to keep you wanting to keep reading.
I’m a bit underwhelmed, but I think Courtney has lots of potential as an author, and I’m very excited to see what she writes next!