Nah I wanted to see Don suffer at the end! Honestly figured he wasn’t dead but still! Jade like girl what do you mean lol like everyone hon suffer sorry and Allison poor manipulated Allison sigh! Anyways this was a good novel! Perfect for October not scary but the myth is explored we’re definitely interesting to say the least! I wanted to dive in more on the snakes past and world! Perhaps a sequel or prequel! 3.75✨

This was one of my most anticipated books of Fall 2023. And it did not disappoint. Not only is it creepy/scary because of that huge ass monster, there’s also a lesson buried in there too. Those are my favorite types of books. A hidden lesson and some things to talk about. Definitely a good book to use for a book club or even my library’s event, Tournament of Books.

Ok so first things first. The monster itself wasn’t creepy, but I’m not scared of what it is. (Now if she writes a book about that crow one that was mentioned in the book? THEN I’ll be scared.) Now if you’re scared of these animals, please be aware that this thing is mentioned A LOT so please be careful with yourself. But I didn’t really find this thing actually scary, but it is considered horror because it’s ancient evil, monster typed horror. And I LOVED it.

This was my first book by Lewis, but I can tell you now I put her witchy book on hold already because if this was that good?! Then yeah I need it. I was hooked. I wanted to read this in one sitting, but with a toddler and me reading a trillion books at one time, it just didn’t happen. But please know, that I wanted it to. The characters were amazing, the premise had me biting all my nails off and everything. I was so on edge every time she had to make a decision on what she wanted to do to the people. One thing that stood out to me about this book is how Lewis not only gives you an actual monster, but she also explores what it’s like to be monstrous. Like is she just as terrible as them for wanting revenge? Does this not count? And as the reader, how did you feel by rooting for her to exact revenge? I like that it makes you think deep about the kind of person she is and you are.

And there is so much drama in this lol I was not expecting it to be that way, but the way these characters were? Lordt they had a lot going on. And they were all crazy! I know what she was doing, using them to get the info she needed, but mayne come on! I agreed with the monster. You are NOT supposed to get on their good side and forget what you were supposed to be doing. But then again, that’s where they monster bit comes from. And that small bit about who the love interest was?! I legit said out loud, “GIRL, WHAT?!” It was a lot. And I was said that Latavia didn’t even get to have that. Because Lord knows if anyone broke my leg and left me to get eaten, I’m coming for EVERYONE. And like the way they were acting, like they didn’t understand why she was doing this. And begging her to forget what was done to her because that was her relative? Ain’t no damn way. I would have still done it because she WAS my relative. You’re supposed to keep me safe, and you did THIS? Naw.

The romance is full of wtfs tho lol I was hesitant to like them, and then I just out right disliked her, and then I DID like her, and then I HATED her again when all the secrets were out. I went through a lot of different emotions when reading this ok lol I don’t think I’ve ever been so indecisive. I wish I had recorded my reactions tho because I know I was going through it.

I don’t know if there’s a sequel, but I would like to read one. If nothing else I’d like to see the other monsters. Like the crow thing that was mentioned. Scared as I am of birds, I’d read that lol Also, them people in Hollywood says they can’t find any BIPOC stories to bring to life as movies, well this one is perfect. Make it come out in the fall and it will be a hit I’m telling you!

A girl who was meant to be a sacrifice to an old monster in the woods flips things upside down and joins the monster in getting revenge. Okay, I'm here for it.

I thought this was great, Latavia was strong and a fighter, not about to let the people of this town take her down. As the story goes on and we learn about the town's history, you start to question who the real villains are and how far can you take revenge before becoming a villain yourself.

This was fast paced and exciting, with some good surprises and an open ending. I could have left out the romance, but it wasn't the main part of the plot so I'm not too concerned.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I need to preface this review by saying that for a large chunk of my reading of this book (and in fact, right now, as I'm writing this review), I was/am a little zooted on cold medicine thanks to the case of covid I caught, so if I'm making no sense, we'll just go ahead and blame it on that, ok?

This book was such an interesting ride - I did see several of the "twists" coming, but that didn't necessarily detract from my enjoyment in reading. I do love reading about girls and women who own their power and become what society might deem monstrous, and this book delivers a solid example of that. The author did a really nice job of making all sides seem simultaneously reasonable and monstrous, making it difficult to arbitrarily judge who was right or wrong on all issues. A nice, well-balanced read with a fun ending (that, spoiler alert: might annoy some people).

Monstrous is an intriguing concept of who is offered as sacrifice to a giant snake. She is kidnapped and assaulted. Latavia strikes a deal with the snake to stave off being eaten. She will help him get his revenge on the person who wronged him so many years ago.

The book was interesting in the beginning but kind of veered off to repetitive plot points. I wish there was more. More anything. At times I felt underwhelmed by the storyline. The ending lacked a climatic battle.

I did enjoy how the author tackled PTSD and other serious issues. I really enjoyed the author’s debut, Bad Witch Burning. This entry just didn’t grab my affections the same way.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

Monstrous was a wonderfully twisted horror novel that kept me on the edge of my seat. The ending really left me dissatisfied however, so that was a bummer. A fun book for spooky season though!

I am DISRAUGHT!!!!
This book gave every IOTA it was supposed to give. I could (and might) spend years breaking down all of the things it did amazingly especially with the double edged sword of the complex reasons people do horrible things against the fact that victims have every right to be mad they were hurt and that bystanders didn't save them.
Or how people's perspective on how to handle something can change when they've been through it but because they've been through it they're dismissed or devalued.
The only thing I didn't like was early on there were a few moments of Allison showing some insecurity about her weight and Avie's response to was pretty harsh even thinking something along the lines of "nobody cares about your size.". And IRL, that's just not true, fat phobia is alive and well. But also in the book we learn that she was abused and her size was a part of it. There is a general "I was so rough on her" statement, but with the way it was written I would've either preferred an explicit "Damn, I was gaslighting her about this" or Avie could have simply had a more empathy about the topic to begin with if she had to have strong feelings about it at all.
Luckily that's only an issue that briefly comes up twice early on. Otherwise.
Phenomenal book. I can't recommend it enough!!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This story follows Latavia Johnson. She is going to Sanctum, Alabama to spend 6 weeks with her aunt before leaving for college. Upon her arrival she could tell something was off about the little town and her Aunt’s rules only make the town sound weird. After being offered as a sacrifice to the towns monster Latavia strikes a deal the will keep her alive and help the monster get revenge on the town.

This was my first read from this author and from this I know I’ll be picking up Bad Witch Burning to read asap. It was great storytelling with well thought out characters. Loved the authors writing style although it started off confusing to me that why I gave it 4.25/5 stars

Thank you Random House Children's, Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I'm still currently reading Monstrous by Jessica Lewis. Somehow contradictory, I am both bored and intrigued with this book. It doesn't start how I expect. The monster isn't the secret of the book, which is what I was expecting. Avie is staying with her aunt in a small, very odd town, with many mysterious deaths. Right away, Avie knows something is up. But rather than her spending the entire book trying to solve the mystery, the mystery is solved probably around 15% of the way through. You find out what's wrong with the town, and it then turns into Avie having to work WITH the mystery. I'm sure I'm not explaining it well, but it's intriguing and I'm very curious to see where this is going. On the other hand, I'm bored. None of the characters are likeable, the romance almost feels instant with no tension or build up. I'll definitely be finishing this book and I have pretty decent hopes that it'll be at least a 4 star read. It fits a good fall/spooky themed read!

I really enjoyed this book. I felt the relationship between the characters was very well developed and fit very nicely into the story. The story read very well and would be a great addition for the fall and spooky season for readers. This story follows Latavia, a 18 year old girl who is sent to live with her Aunt and Cousin in a mysterious Alabama town that is hiding an over 200 year old secret. Don’t go into the Red wood forest . This is all Latavia knows upon her arrival, but she will soon learn what lies within the forest and this will change the course of her life. We see what happens when greed, survival ,and revenge all collide .This is a wonderful YA read for when you want something to read by a fire or even with the lights out (of course with a reading light ). My only gripe would be that I wanted to know about the monster who lives in the forest.

This book was absolutely amazing! I couldn't ut it down. It was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it hit every mark!I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

After Bad Witch Burning, I was willing to give anything Jessica Lewis writes a try, and Monstrous raises that already high bar. Latavia, kicked out of her mother's house for being gay, is spending the last few weeks before college with her aunt and cousin in the small town of Sanctum. Sanctum is odd, with far too many closed casket funerals for a town of 300 and strict rules about going near the woods, but Latavia is willing to overlook it all, until the sheriff arrives and she is beaten, tied to an alter in the woods, and offered to a giant snake. Now all bets are off as Latavia makes a deal with the snake to bring down the town and everyone willing to condone murder for their own comfort. Passionate and fast-paced, Monstrous exposes the hollowness of some of our moral dilemmas, particularly around the violence we accept and the violence we condemn, as well as why we expect victims to play by the rules of their oppressors. A must read for teens and adults who care about justice.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Monstrous follows Latavia, who is spending the summer in her strange aunt's tiny town when she is suddenly dragged from her house in the middle of the night and presented as a sacrifice to a monster.

This twisty horror read was such a fun time! Jessica Lewis has such a way with weaving together a rich story of vengeance with delicious horror elements, and that combo in Monstrous made for an unputdownable reading experience. I loved the way the ending was kind of open, and the way we got to see our main character sort of lean into her own dark side. Definitely a great book to pick up for spooky season!

Lewis' writing was incredibly exciting and brought something I found completely fresh to the table. I always enjoy an exploration of vigilante justice and female rage, taken to bloody extremes here. However, I just did not love that ending.

Monstrous was a phenomenal book from start to finish. It throws you in the deep end, immersing you in the dark and chilling town of Sanctum.

It’s full of very real horror and monsters, but it’s also very deeply about the monstrous side of humanity.

But despite the darkness and horror, and the monstrous acts humans can commit, this book had so much heart in Avie, Allison, and Jade.

Their love for each other was a shining light in the darkness. And the ending was such an emotional payoff.

4.5 stars!

I don't care what anyone says; this book was freakin' fantastic! Dark, unhappy, bloody and traumatic but freakin' fantastic!
I loved this one.
I have a freakin' book hangover cuz I refused to stop reading way past my bedtime.
Honestly, this book takes the idea of people becoming the monsters we make and runs with it. Gives it flesh. And scales. And fangs.

Trigger warnings: religious trauma, homophobia, betrayal, blood, violence, domestic abuse, child abuse, abandonment, snakes.

I mean, some of y'all can't do the snake thing so I thought I'd warn you. He ain't all cuddly and cute. Just sayin'.

Seriously tho, I loved this book. So far my fave for this month. All other books are gonna have to work way hard to knock this one off it's pedestal. 🧐☺️😜

Latavia knows that something is up in the town of Sanctum. For one thing, there’s been a funeral every two weeks, and for another, there’s a mysterious rattling sound in the night. Nobody will talk to her about it, though. Not her aunt, not her cousin Jade, and not the pretty girl she has a crush on. Latavia is determined to find out more, only to regret it when she is taken by a group of townspeople and placed on an altar to be sacrificed to the monster in the woods. When the monster comes, though, Latavia makes a deal with it instead. She’ll help free it, in exchange for it helping her take revenge on those who wronged her. The people who put her on the altar will pay, even her aunt. Because Latavia refuses to let anybody hurt her again.

I received an advanced reading copy of Monstrous in exchange for an honest review.

Monstrous is a young adult novel by Jessica Lewis. Lewis is also the author of Bad Witch Burning, which I read and loved some time ago, so of course, when I saw this book pop up, I knew I had to check it out.

Like Bad Witch Burning, Monstrous is a scary book, with both horror and fantasy elements coming together. It was honestly impressive how quickly it grabbed me. From the moment Latavia is taken to be placed on the sacrificial altar, my heart was pounding. In fact, it was beating so fast that for a moment I thought I would actually pass out. I was hearing rushing in my ears and everything!

I didn’t faint though, thank goodness, and while the rest of the book calmed down slightly from that absolutely terrifying and stressful moment, the tension continued to be pretty high. After all, Latavia has just made a deal with an actual monster, and she knows that failing is not an option, not when failure means getting eaten by the monster, or killed by the people you’re trying to get revenge on. There’s also plenty of twists, and in fact, I didn’t know what to expect a lot of the time. I loved how the book basically broke the expectations I had in the beginning, where I thought the whole thing would be about Latavia creeping around, trying to figure out what the monster actually was, and what the town was hiding from her, and has the monster showing up early on. It was so clever!

I also loved Latavia as a character. She is so wonderfully flawed and so so angry. It’s great to see characters like her being written about, since it really feels like an average teenager who got put into this situation. She makes poor choices, she lets emotions get the better of her, and she makes deals with monsters in the woods. Like any teen, right?

But what also made this feel much more real was the fact that, during the rest of the book, she continues to be affected by what happened to her. She doesn’t shrug off being kidnapped in the middle of the night and almost fed to a monster. Instead, she has nightmares and flashbacks and panic attacks. She lashes out and is afraid. She has PTSD. I can’t really speak to all experiences, but for myself, who has also had a pretty awful experience that continues to affect me to this day, it felt really real. It felt so honest to what the mind goes through when one of the worst things that can happen, happens, and suddenly your whole world stops making sense.

Monstrous was a heart-pounding read, and one I would recommend to fans of horror, of monsters, and of flawed main characters who are also bad-asses. Definitely worth a read if you’re looking for a reason to stay up at night!

Monstrous will be released on September 12. You can preorder your copy from Delacorte Press here.

I loved the premise of the book the most. A young girl siding with the enemy for revenge has always been one of my favorite tropes (and not done as often as I'd like) Latavia isn't messing around. She wants those who nearly had her sacrificed, dead so much I could feel her rage through the page (I love it when my reviews turn into poetry) She has a bum leg for almost the entire book and still manages to slay.

Unfortunately, some parts were a slog. My issue was with the middle of the book and all the back and forth and opening chapter dream sequences. I felt like there wasn't enough tension during this time and it felt redundant. The reveals were also done without flair and had me reading it over like, did she really do the twists like that? The end was like a deflated balloon.

All in all, I had a good time for the first 25% of the book and then it went downhill for me. This is still a great book about the power of healing from trauma and the power of love.

I am NOT a fan of snakes by any means, yet this book managed to make me sympathize with a giant one.

Avie is staying with her aunt and cousin in the small town of Sanctum before she can escape on her track scholarship to college. But things in Sanctum are weird. When Avie ends up a sacrifice for a giant snake, she'll do anything to survive. Including making a deal with a monster. She won't die for anyone. Not the town, not her aunt, not even for the cute girl Avie likes.

Jessica Lewis takes morally gray to a whole new level! Avie is an incredibly strong protagonist who finds herself torn between revenge and saving the ones she cares about. She's written as having PTSD, but I think what she experiences falls more under Accute Stress Disorder that could have developed into PTSD.

This is my first time reading this author but definitely won't be the last!

Wow, this is not what I expected when picking up this book!

Latavia (Avie), sent away by her mother, has been living with her aunt and cousin for the last six weeks. The town is weird and the rules there are strange, not to mention all the funerals… At least she has her cousin Jade, and Jade’s friend Allison, the girl with golden hair and the sweetest smile. She is crushing on this girl hard, making this town just a bit more bearable.

Sanctum, Alabama has tons of secrets, and Latavia becomes embroiled in the whole thing, but not of her own free will. But, she is an outsider and they let her know it. Inside the Red Wood, where people are NOT permitted to enter, lives something ancient and monstrous, and now Avie is ripped from everything she knows and forced to learn the true ways of the town and the pastor who runs the show.

Life for Avie will never be the same again, if it even continues at all… but she makes some unexpected allies in her determination to get revenge on those who have wronged her.

This book was phenomenal. This doesn’t skirt that line of right and wrong, but shows that bad things can be done for good reason. I loved Avie. She was so strong, persevering through pain and anguish. I love the alliances she made and the way she fights for herself, no matter what.

Monstrous was an energy filled thrill ride that I simply could not put down. It depicts the monstrosity in humanity for the sake of power, and showcases the ways in which connections with unlikely friends can mean righting wrongs long since past.