First, can we talk about this cover? This is not a book that you walk past. This cover comes home with you and jumps to the front of your #tbr line.

Lucky for you I know what is beyond that cover and I will share: Secrets / Time travel / Family / Friendship / Mystery / Romance / Horror.

@britney.s.lewis filled these pages with a story that made me swoon, laugh, and gasp.

Set for release in August 2023, The Dark Place should be on your TBR list.

This is an honest review. Thanks to @disneybooks, Disney Hyperion for the advanced copy.

I don't even know what to say about The Dark Place. This book was captivating and everything I wanted it to be. Britney S. Lewis has a writing style that I absolutely love. I loved her descriptions and how easy it was to read this book. I also flew through it, wanting to know what would happen at the end.

One of my favorite things about The Dark Place is how she intertwined a little romance in a book with some creepiness. And I enjoyed the time travel/multiverse plot; it's not something I see in books that I read, so it was fresh, and I think her spin on it was done well enough that while introducing it, it didn't have to go so in-depth with it that you still could appreciate it and understand everything that was happening. I also loved every single reference, from Marvel to Frank Ocean; they made my heart smile big.

Britney is passionate about this genre, and I hope she continues to write masterpiece after masterpiece. I will always purchase a copy of everything she puts out. Also, her covers are always phenomenal; they alone make me want to read her books, even without knowing what they are about.

Thank you, Britney S. Lewis, NetGalley, and Disney Publishing Worldwide/Disney Hyperion, for providing me with an eARC of The Dark Place. This review is being left voluntarily, and all opinions are my own.

✨politely yells✨
ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR

I seriously hope this review does The Dark Place justice. Because this book deserves all the hype, love, and attention.

Britney’s writing is unlike anything I’ve ever read before. It’s poetic and descriptive in a way you don’t expect. It’s lush with details and full of what I can only call magic.

The story is full of twisted imagery and turns that can be guessed and some that just…can’t. It had me turning pages faster and faster to uncover more. I loved Hylee, she’s a not-so-typical teenager that is truly just trying to find her way through grief and past trauma’s. She’s raw and real in a way that is relatable.
Don’t even get me started on Eilam. He’s precious and should be protected at all costs. I love how he carries himself, and how open he is. His character really rounds out the whole plot.

It’s been a while since I’ve read a whole 300+ book in less than 24 hours, but this one had me hooked, like I still want more. I’m consumed by the thoughts of The Dark Place. Thank you NetGalley and Hyperion Books for sending me an advanced copy. This review is being left voluntarily. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to Britney, Disney Publishing Group (@disneybooks) and @netgalley for this ARC.

The Dark Place explores time, and space, and reality, whilst wrestling with grief and learning moving on does not mean forgetfulness. Britney S. Lewis's prose is lyrical and sharp, and her characters are vividly drawn.

The book follows the story of 17 y/o Hylee Williams, a girl who against her will is transported to the dark place - a twisted version of the night her older brother went missing. She's yanked before she can fully process what's happening. One thing is clear though. She believes it might hold the key to her brother's disappearance. As Hylee navigates her disappearances and searches for answers, she begins to realize that the answers she's looking for may not be the ones she wants.

Hylee is a deeply complicated and complex character, and her struggles with grief and guilt and loneliness are portrayed with sensitivity and nuance. The other characters in the book, including the enigmatic Eilam who is a comfort to Hylee through her journey, is equally well-written and engaging.

The Dark Place is for anyone seeking a layered story featuring a swoony romance and a lot of emotional resonance! I highly recommend.

The Dark Place by Britney S. Lewis
⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

Before the review, I need to thank Disney Publishing Group (@disneybooks) and @netgalley for this ARC.

17-year-old Hylee has started disappearing, literally. It begins at a party; Hylee vanishes in front of all her family only to find herself reappearing in a twisted version of reality. The people she loves have no eyes and sewn-shut lips, with the house itself overtaken by vines and weeds. When it keeps happening, she realizes she keeps returning to the one night that changed her life forever: the night her older brother disappeared after a home invasion. But why?

🤔🤔🤔

I wanted to LOVE this book based on the premise, but the foundation of the plot is shaky. Time travel is introduced, and alternate worlds; when you decide to play with those things in a book, the key is to have rules and consistency and there isn’t any at all! The plot movement was both slow and rushed at the end. When I had 20 pages left, I thought surely that couldn't be. Confusing plot mechanics were introduced late in the book that had nothing to do with much else. Transitions between scenes were also clunky and left me confused, having to go back and reread more than once.

It was a fun read, though! I enjoyed Hylee as a character, and I felt for her. Really didn't love her family like, AT ALL (except for Bubba). When someone who could potentially help her came on scene, I was super excited, and I was hooked on the budding relationships Hylee had with her friends; the idea of her being able to still have those connections felt important.

Read this if you like:

📖 books that build up the mystery until the very end
📖 a mystery that unravels slowly
📖 stories about alternate timelines
📖 Stranger Things

Overall, a book that had some stumbles, plotwise, but did manage to provide a solid story about family and secrets, with truths slowly leaking out.

This was a powerful and thriller tale of how we navigate grief and loss. I really enjoyed this book, and how it showed how families deal with tragedies and unforeseen events. It was fast paced and had me smiling and scared at times. Also Eilam has my whole heart.

Life is Strange meets Haunting of Hill House in this YA Horror about a girl that keeps disappearing from the present and reappearing in a strange version of her childhood home

i really enjoyed this book, the only grievance that i really had with it was that the pacing seemed a little off for me. but lewis’ writing style is so easy to follow and i was loving hylee and her adventure in the novel. there were a lot of twists and turns in the books which kept me captivated to the story and wanting to know more about the events that unfolded.

this book is marketed as a book for 12 and up. however, i would personally think that the age rating should be higher up than that. i have never read a book that is marketed for 12+ to contain a numerous amount of f-bombs and swear words. so, if you’re a parent looking to get this to encourage your pre-teen to read, i’d be weary of some of the language in the book.

overall, i would say that this is a great book. i really, really enjoyed reading it and i would definitely recommend it to our audience on bookstagram. the reason for the three stars is my issue with the pacing and the pop culture references to instagram (that’s a big pet peeve of mine and find that it doesn’t help me escape reality if it reminds me of it).

thank you so much for allowing me to read this book prior to publication.