The cover was why I picked this book I loved the detail and I just knew it had to be good. But it actually ended up being a really weird book. My favorite thing was how short the chapters were so it felt like I was moving along in the story quickly.

I thread the fine line of loving or hating YA lol so with that being said, I found this to be an interesting paranormal romance with gothic horror vibes. Lots of moments that were sensitive so check trigger warnings! I liked this but it wasn't my favorite.

This one was a weirdly fun read. It gave me all the elements I love: mystery, religious cults, horrormance, gothic and lush. I really enjoyed the dark whimsical atmosphere. Plus this gave me all the plant imagery, which I loved. Although this book had elements I loved, I felt like things were a bit rushed and not fully explained. I wish the author would've taken their time to flesh out the fantasy elements of this. The conclusion was bittersweet, but I wish it would've been explained more.

Skyla Arndt's debut novel is a heavy hitter, tackling toxic family dynamics, a culty church, and a missing person. Together We Rot follows estranged childhood besties Wilhelmina (Wil) and Elwood, whose friendship fell apart after Wil's family accused Elwood's of being involved in Wil's mom's disappearance. Of course, it's not hard to be suspicious of Elwood's family, given that his dad is the pastor of a church that seemed a lot more like a cult to me, and he's been grooming Elwood to take over. When Elwood learns of his dad's actual intentions, Wil reluctantly lets him back into her life to keep him safe, in exchange for Elwood helping her figure out what actually happened to her mom.
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Arndt does a really good job unpacking the animosity between Wil's and Elwood's families while showing them rebuilding their relationship. Wil struggles after her dad falls into a depression, and Elwood feels stuck with the strict expectations placed on him by his family (and also dealing with some serious scrupulosity) . It's also pretty shocking to read about how far the reach of Elwood's family's church/cult is in their small town, especially as he and Wil begin to dig into its history. Wil and Elwood also begin to explore the depth of their feelings for each other, which motivate them in the story, and also adds a little bit of levity to a really heavy book.
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Fast-paced, but also heart-pounding.

This was absolutely wild and creepy and made me emotional?? I was so spooked by this book, but I also couldn't put it down.

First, I'm not a horrormance fan--I have to say that up front, because I was surprised at how much I loved this one. I put that down entirely to Arndt's writing. She has rich descriptions and I loved the back-and-forth of the characters. They felt alive. There was definitely a good amount of the eerie/creepy, but it wasn't TOO much, even for me. Really enjoyed it, and felt like she managed to both break my heart a little, but mend it by the end. Just a really fun read.

A creepy small town cult, supposedly dangerous or haunted woods, and a secret nobody really knows. I went mostly into this book blind and enjoyed every moment of it. Part YA cult thriller, paranormal horror, and small town mystery, this book is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. Just buckle up and enjoy the ride, I highly recommend going in blind!

Prickly girls, gothic horror, cults, ritualistic sacrifice, religious trauma, grief, parental abuse, and love are woven together in this darkly beautiful narrative.
Together We Rot follows two former best friends who have been torn apart by loss and familial loyalty. Wil's mom disappeared a year ago and she is convinced she was kidnapped by Elwood's dad, but no one will listen to her. Now her dad has fallen into an alcohol and grief-fueled stupor while Elwoods family plans to buy and demolish the rundown motel they own and live in.

This was a great read for spooky season. I loved the gothic and paranormal setting to the book. I enjoyed the interaction between the main characters, though the story was a bit short.

I enjoyed this book. It was very unique and eerie.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this as an arc!

When Will's mom went missing a year ago, she didn't only lose her. She also lost her dad, who is physically there but in no other way, and she lost her best friend, Elwood - because Will is certain his family has something to do with her mother's disappearance. Elwoods parents are the leaders of a church that is very popular in town, and once Elwood finishes High School he will become his fathers sucessor. It's always been meant to be that way. But then Elwood has to realise his parents lied to him, too, and he was never meant to take his father's place.
This was a wonderful book. The athmosphere and the characters were so vivid and well done and the story was well thought through. I really liked Will and Elwood as characters, although the way they found back into their friendship went a little quick for me. The worldbuilding was interesting and I liked the resolution of the story a lot. Will definitely pick up Skyla Arndt's next book!

Wil’s mom went missing and she has been looking for the truth for some time. She has been to the police and without getting help, she takes things into her own hands to further investigate the disappearance of her mother. Wil decides to form an alliance with her former best friend, Elwood. Elwood’s family life is tragic to say the very least. He’s the son of a pastor where they have a congregation called the Garden of Adam. After having a goodbye party with his friends to fall in his father’s footsteps, Elwood quickly realizes that he is not his father’s successor - but his sacrifice. Elwood goes on the run, and has help from the only person who believes him, Wil.

There are a lot of potentially triggering subjects including: abuse by a parent, grief, alcoholism, and cultism.

I very much enjoyed this debut and I’m really looking forward to reading more from this author. There were gothic and horror vibes to this book which I’m usually not a fan of, but I think Skyla Arndt did a wonderful job with the descriptions and writing.

The ending of this book was my favorite part for sure. There’s a lot of mystery in this book, but I didn’t expect to cry at the ending. I’m an emotional girl, but dang!! It really tugged on my heart strings.

this book was a little eerie, I couldn't imagine being in this situation

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this book to review.

This was a really interesting idea, but I think it fell a little short. I don’t really buy the romance between the MCs. The FMC went from hating the MMC and being super snarky, to Big Love from one paragraph to the next, and it was pretty jarring. The romance took front stage, as far as the story goes, but I think it should have been more of a supporting arc. There was so much going on in the actual plot, I think the author would have benefited from fleshing it out more and not ending it so abruptly

Many thanks to Netgalley for providing me with the DRC and allowing me to provide my honest review

Haunting and atmospheric, “Together We Rot” intricately weaves a tale of YA romance with spellbinding horror elements.

Will is determined to find her missing mother, who she believes has succumbed to something sinister and not skipped town as everyone else says and left her behind. In her quest for the truth, she reluctantly teams up with her former friend Elwood Clark to go up against his own family, who she believes is responsible for her mother going missing.

But the Clark’s aren’t just any family, they are the most powerful and influential religious family of her town, hiding corruption and secrets that they work hard to keep hidden, as Will and Elwood uncover dark truths that will challenge everything they know, and everything Elwood had believed about his family.

I only wish the book was longer! The story development felt as though it was missing parts, the arc felt a bit rushed and so did the development of the relationship between Will and Elwood, and this left me feeling unsatisfied at times or wanting elaboration on different elements of the story. I felt there was more potential for a deeper dive into the characters themselves and for a more closure in the ending, however I still enjoyed it.

Gut wrenching and beautiful, “Together We Rot” was a unique and captivating story of young love, adversity, and truth seeking that sets it apart from most YA novels I have read.

This was a book I was super excited about and it didn't disappoint! I will definitely read anything Skyla puts out. Thank you for the early copy!

I picked up this book for the cover, yes.
Then I started for the plot and I continued for the characters but I finished in tears.
Really liked it

Thank you Penguin Books for Together We Rot. I know I am a year late reviewing this book, but I put this review off for that long. For me, Together We Rot had an interesting premise, which is why I requested the book in the first place, however, I found myself bored at times and feeling like this book dragged. However, the topics covered in the book were well done and I for the most part enjoyed the book.

Together We Rot sets to create a new sub-genre within romance, and I am eager to see more from this author. The intriguing and sinister plot makes this a gripping read.

Together We Rot is a fun and unique horror mystery with well developed and fleshed out characters. The story moved a little fast initially but didn’t seem to diminish the quality of the story itself.