Hatchet Girls by Diana Rodriguez Wallach is a wild journey in old haunted Massachusetts. If you’re open to an unpredictable story, it’s a great read.

Tessa Gomez and her brother Vik are newcomers to Fall River, once home to Lizzie Borden of axe-murdering fame (which is a pretty cool setting). Tessa knows that her brother Vik hasn’t been acting like himself. But she also knows that he can't be responsible when police find him standing over an axe and the lifeless bodies of his girlfriend’s parents. Tessa searches for another answer and finds that Lizzie Borden is only part of Fall River’s ghastly legends, legends that could explain everything.

It’s a departure from the ordinary, a horror story with a twist of the supernatural. That threw me off at first, but I ended up liking the unusual directions this story took.

Hatchet Girls is firmly a YA read, though it wanders into an older jaded tone on occasion. No matter the audience, the characters seem a bit flat.

Four stars for a book that breaks out of all the boxes. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance read.

I really liked this book. I'm not normally into the paranormal/horror aspect but I really didn't see it all coming. I read it in a day. The only thing I would change is putting the explanation of Lizzie Borden at the front of the book, because I didn't know a ton about the case and had to Wikipedia it a little bit into the story.

Thank you Random House Children's, Delacorte Press & Netgalley for allowing me to read a copy of Hatchet Girls!

Summary: Tessa sees her brother, Vik, on the news being arrested for the axe murder of his girlfriend's (Mariella) parents. The setting is present-day Fall River, MA. The town is known for the axe massacre of Lizzie Borden's family in 1892. Now it seems to be happening again. Did Vik kill Mariella's family or was it something even more sinister at hand?

This is a YA paranormal horror story with mystery and a love triangle. The author did well tying together Freetown - Fall River geography, history, folklore, and true crime with her story. She even provides some factual background after the story, which I appreciated. This story has some pretty gruesome, bloody parts to it. And the supernatural aspect, especially when Mariella was sleeping was pretty creepy. The timeline hops between the days before, during, and after the murder. I liked the characters in the story good & bad. The author touches on themes such as grief, abuse, and relationships.

A wonderful book for those who are captivated by the legend of Lizzy Borden .

Tragedy befalls Fall River once again in a horrific axe murder to a prominent family. This time though, there might be a more magical reason behind the murders.

Hatchet girls will take you on a wild ride as a sister tries to uncover the real reason why her brother has been accused of murder when he has no violent history. You will read the points of view from Tessa, Vik's sister trying to save him and Mariella, Vik's girlfriend who accused him of murder.

Diana Rodriguez Wallach knows how to tell a great mystery/ghost story. If you enjoy this genre you will love this book!

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Great premiseand promise. The story just ended up losing its way a bit. Didn’t work for me overall.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinion was not affected by the free copy.

I'm a little torn on this one. I ultimately gave it three stars because there was some stuff I liked about it, but certain plot beats of the book really bothered me. I don't like going too much into spoilers but I feel talking about these beats is important for anyone who might be interested in reading it.

One of the things that really bugged me about this is that I was sold on the idea that the girls would be the instigators. It is called Hatchet GIRLS, after all. But no, a boy (a brown boy no less) is the one accused of being the next Lizzie Borden and his sister is trying to prove his innocence. So yeah, it really bothered me that the brown boy was accused and the victims were rich white people, with him being the boyfriend of the dead parents. But that's not all: later it's revealed that another boy basically drugged someone and was abusing her in her sleep. Just thinking about that scene where she's touched without her consent with no power to stop it upsets me.

If it had just been about the girls dipping into primordial forces or whatever other kind of magical realism was involved, that would have been fine. But because it was actually the boys-- either being blamed for the murders or controlling what was happening-- that made the whole book a lot less enjoyable. But I did still end up giving it three stars because I enjoyed the atmosphere and the magical realism. The ending did also tap into the way media treats white people versus colored in cases like this, which felt all too real, but also wouldn't have been necessary if the girls were the main cause of things.

So like I said, I'm torn on it. I think the author has some talent and the magical realism was very intriguing and creepy. Just let the girls have the power next time, for good or bad.

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House, and Delacorte Press for allowing me to read this book!!

I thought Hatchet Girls was an intriguing read and perfect for True Crime fans. The book was filled with twists, magic, and a little bit of ghosts. The book is told in two different perspectives. One of the perspectives takes place in the present while the other one takes place in the past. Where we see the story unfold and the puzzle start to come together. I'm not exactly unsure how I feel Mariella's perspective. I think it might have been better as Vik's. I also thought Hatchet Girls had an opportunity to address some of the ethical concerns surrounding True Crime; however, I am really glad the author respected Lizbeth's changing her name. Hatchet Girls is worth checking out!!

Review will be posted on social media closer to the publication date.

Crazy, fun and perfectly creepy. This will be a delight to read around Halloween. Highly recommended, especially to young adults.

Absolutely loved this one. A perfect halloween read. I recommend reading this around October! I had so much fun with this one.

Lizzie Borden took an axe,
And gave her mother forty whacks,
And when she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.

In the town and on the property that, that more than one hundred years ago Ms. Borden allegedly murdered her parents, history seems to have repeated itself. Vik is convicted of axing his girlfriend's family to death. But his family is certain he didn't dot it, couldn't do it. Tessa, Vik's sister and our main character, seeks to prove his innocence, and sets her sites on his girlfriend.

This was a horror roller coaster. Elements from nearly every horror genre and trope as well as lessons in society and justice weave through the shocking twists and explosive revelations. I couldn't put this down. A must read for Halloween.

Wow, really, a lot of wow. This book is so twisty and completely unexpected. Take the Borden murders, layer in a haunted swamp, zombies, city kids hiking, and a whole lot of crazy… I’m going to be thinking about this one for awhile, it’s multiple genres mixed up all together. The characters are great, I actually truly liked them. I only figured things out right before our main character-I bet you will, too. Read the last fifty pages way past my bedtime. Yes, you need to read this. And make someone else read it too, because you’re going to want to talk about it.

Once again I come back to having beef with multiple perspectives. It doesn't usually add anything to the story and it didn't add anything to this one for me either. It just left the narrative feeling disjointed. The story itself was interesting, if cliched at times.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Hatchet Girls is an absolute blood-soaked roller coaster of a novel. Wallach does a fantastic job of asking serious questions about morality and justice in a legendary setting. As a Massachusetts native, I loved seeing how Fall River was brought to life. It is the history of the place (the Bridgewater Triangle and Lizzie Borden) that makes Hatchet Girls a success. That being said, I do wish there was a bit more interaction between the original axe murders and the ones in the book—the narrative felt ripe for an exploration of history repeating itself. Still, the plot twists are well executed and make for a riveting read.

In Falls River, a town with a dark past, history has unfortunately repeated itself. More than 100 years after the notorious Lizzie Borden murders, Winthrop and Catherine are found murdered by an axe, and their daughters Mariella is accusing her boyfriend Vik of the murders. It doesn’t help that he’s covered in their blood. Vik’s sister Tessa knows her brother isn’t capable of the murders and goes on a missionto prove her brother’s innocence; but during the investigation she discovers something more sinister happening.
Since this book publication date is in October this will be the perfect quick Halloween read.I enjoyed how it incorporated not just the history of Lizzie Borden but the lore of the Bridgewater triangle area, but I did wish it would have went into more detail. Also I feel like some of the characters and plot points were developed more. Thanks NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Received an arc of this book. Premise sounded great who doesn’t know the story and rhyme of Liszt bordon. Book has a slow start characters not likable would not recommend

This creepy and eerie novel blends different genres brilliantly, including horror, paranormal, mystery, YA thriller, romance, and a touch of magical realism. If you're a horror fan interested in true crimes of the past, including Lizzie Borden's story, this installment is a perfect fit for you.

The story takes place in Fall River, where Lizzie Borden and her family lived, and where Lizzie's parents were bludgeoned to death. The Morse family owns most of the historical properties in town and rents the Borden Family House for touristic attractions, such as haunted mansion tours and a bed and breakfast. Many creepy outsiders prefer to stay in the same room where Lizzie is presumed to have axed her parents.

It seems there are cracks in Winthrop and Catherine Morse's marriage. Their princess daughter, Mariella, who is the "It" girl of the school, rebels by choosing to date Vik Gomez. Vik doesn't come from money like Mariella's social circle; he's an outsider who recently moved from Philadelphia with his family after his stepmother died in a hit-and-run incident. His sister, Tessa, and his mother are still dealing with their grief.

When Winthrop and Catherine Morse are found brutally axed in their house, Mariella points her finger at Vik, declaring him the murderer. Tessa believes that her father cannot hurt a fly and intends to prove it, even though her actions put her life in danger. She becomes suspicious of Mariella's behavior and her insistence on not leaving the house where her parents were butchered. Tessa asks for help from Philip, Mariella's childhood friend who works at the family business giving tours at the Borden house. Philip has a crush on Tessa, but he is also loyal to Mariella, making it harder for Tessa to get information about Mariella's secrets related to the night of the murders.

The increasing pressure, witchery, pagan rituals, and urban fantasy elements mix perfectly with the horrific atmosphere. The ending will make your blood run cold! Overall, I highly recommend this book to YA horror/paranormal fantasy lovers!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children's/Delacorte Press for sharing this digital review copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thank you Netgalley for access to this ARC. These opinions are my own.

I love a good horror book, especially one based on a real historical event, but this one was underwhelming. The switching of POV's was a bit jarring and I felt everything involved in the plot was spelled out and predictable. It was mildly entertaining but not something I would read again, nor would I recommend it to anyone.

I think that anything involving the Lizzie Borden mystery is fascinating to read about. I love seeing author’s twists on the story and their fictional recounts on what really happened. Hatchet Girls takes a different approach and takes place a century later but in the same town that the crime took place. In fact, there’s even a Lizzie Borden House, a haunted bed and breakfast, which is the only tourist attraction in town.

If you’re in it for the mystery aspect of this book, you pretty much find out what’s going on within the first 20% of the book. You don’t find out all the details of the supernatural/magic and how it comes about, but you do get an explanation of pretty early on that magic is involved. But, what isn’t revealed until further down the line is the details of what exactly this magic is, who REALLY is behind it all, and how everything will be resolved.

This is an extremely fast read, probably the fastest read that I’ve read in a while, so for those of you who like to whip through books quickly, this is a great addition to boost your reading count to meet your reading challenge goals. It’s a super easy, quick, read. It’s also very YA in tone which isn’t a bad thing, but I know some people don’t like YA books that actually feel like a YA book.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this book until I got to about the 70% mark, but I ended up LOVING this. I thought for sure it was going to be a 3 star read, but the ending made it 4 stars for sure. So visual and perfectly creepy, and most definitely a horror ending. Make no mistakes, this isn’t some thriller with magic and some supernatural sprinkled in, the ending is full fledged horror.

I also loved how the locations in this book are based on actual haunted locations in Massachusetts! It makes me want to do my own research about Bridgewater Triangle and Hockomock Swamp. And the fact that the author experienced weird supernatural occurrences after returning from visiting these places, yeah no thanks I’ll pass on that.

Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

This was a unique take on Lizzie Borden, I enjoyed how unique it was written. I enjoyed getting to know the main character and the rest of the cast. They all felt like real people and I felt like the curse was real. Diana Rodriguez Wallach does a great job in creating a tense tale with a good mystery going on. I loved the supernatural elements and thought everything worked together well.

"I’m just tired,” she said, her body feeling . . . off. Edgy. Cold. These woods could sap your sanity. She knew that all too well. Vik touched her biceps, then pushed up her baggy sleeve so abruptly that she stumbled. Her hiking boot caught on a rock, and Vik held her, restoring her balance, her sleeve shoved up to her elbow. The bruise he exposed was practically magenta."