Wow... I will never see a Red Door or view deja vu in the same way after reading the Unmaking of June Farrow! I devoured this story and never wanted it to end! This was an amazing story and had me hooked from the very beginning. It was a fast-paced read with a touch of time travel and magical realism... left me with so many what-if questions for our own lives! The characters were well developed and will stay with me as a reader for a long time. It had all the elements of an amazing five star read! June Farrow was hard to step away from and I finished it in less than 48 hours... I did have to go back and re-read the first few chapters after I finished the book to fully grasp all the details of the story.

I cannot wait to add this title to my High School Library collection and share it with my students and staff! Well done Adrienne Young... you are an amazingly talented writer. This story will appeal to both Young Adults, as well as, Adult Readers. Thank you for such a wonderful story spanning generations and a variety of genres!

Thank you to to NetGalley & Random House Publishing for the opportunity to read an ARC of The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young!

Adrienne's best yet. No bookstore shelf will be labeled properly to do this story justice as it's sprinkled with elements of time travel, suspense, mystery and romance. Hold on tight, it's an amazing journey.

“You’ve been waiting for me to come back, haven’t you?"

Every family has secrets, but June Farrow knew her family’s secret was different from the rest. The Farrow women have been afflicted by a curse that drives them to madness. June always knew she would eventually succumb to the effects of the Farrow curse, but never did she realize that it would come for her sooner than she expected. It begins with hearing noises, whispers that carry her name, and seeing a red door.
Knowing that the Farrow curse is inevitable, June decides the curse will end with her, should that mean being unable to live the life she would want. Diving into the unknown of her mother’s disappearance and the history of the Farrows, June would discover more questions and the true impact of her curse and the mysteries surrounding the town of Jasper in both the past and the present.

Adrienne Young has done it again. After falling in love with the world of the Narrows from "Fable", I was incredibly excited to see how her writing would capture the beauty and the mundane seen in "June Farrow" and I was not disappointed. I genuinely find this genre of magical realism mystery to be her bread and butter. While her fantasy series are still highly enjoyable and I recommend them, I think her ability to describe the atmosphere and beauty of these small towns with hints of magic is her true element. Her writing made it feel as if I were living in Jasper, North Carolina and smelling the flowers and enjoying the breeze.

Much of the story focuses on June and her experiences. Spending much of her life trying to uncover the reality of her mother and learn about her family curse ends up contributing to who June would become. A woman who thought she would never have the chance to enjoy life may yet have the chance to change it.

While "June Farrow" may not have many intense moments or highly dramatic moments, Young’s ability to keep the pacing on track by slowly unfolding the mystery of this tale is magnificent. Never once did I feel that the story was moving slowly despite seeing a day in June’s life as there was always something adding to the atmosphere and overall theme of self-discovery, generational relationships, and sacrifice. While pacing is subjective to the reader, I encourage you to push on as the story does develop as you continue and you will know when you’ve hit that particular point.

To me, this book really captures the essence of an unfolding mystery and as you read, you slowly realize how early Young was building up the mystery shrouding Jasper and the Farrow curse. The implications of time travel in this book are intricately planned, though at times I did have to think about what was being explained after I finished a chapter. I did enjoy the ending of the book, and learning more about June and her family and the town of Jasper was an enjoyable experience.

While some points of the book did not entirely make sense, and I felt that certain character arcs ended fairly prematurely (a time where the book would have benefitted from being a little longer). It left me feeling a bit cheated despite spending a fair bit of time with these individuals in the story. I think a little more nuanced story-telling in explaining time travel and the effects of it could have been useful as I had to personally write down my own thoughts and go back to reread a few parts to confirm or deny my theories. The idea was well planned, but at times the explanation and execution fell a little flat for me. Despite these minor complaints, the story itself was well-written and I enjoyed the mystery.

Overall a fantastic and atmospheric read. I highly recommend to fans of mystery with a touch of thrill and a delightful amount of magical realism. The writing is captivating and the secrets of the Farrows will be sure to keep you wondering what will happen next.

4/5 stars

Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a review!

What in the world did I just read.

This was such a wonderfully unique and complex story, I’m still having a hard time wrapping my brain around what I just read. Young has such an incredible talent for writing beautiful stories full of depth, and this book really showcases that skill. This story went a completely different direction than I originally thought it would, and following along June’s journey to discover herself and what is happening to her and her family was just so fascinating to me. The twists and turns were so intense, and 99% of the time my brain was struggling to keep up. By the end everything came together so perfectly, Young just really nailed it 🤌🏻

I definitely recommend this one for anyone that loved Spells for Forgetting, but also I can’t think of a group of readers that won’t enjoy this book. Thank you so much to Random House, Adrienne Young and NetGalley for my review copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

My review is posted on my bookstagram as well as goodreads now!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CvkimHBLZ5E/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

This book was unexpected and unexpectedly delightful. Idk what I expected when I started reading but it was nowhere close to what the book was. It's a beautiful, unique story about family and love and self and memory and so much more. June is a great, multi-faceted character that's easy to root for. The setting is lush and the prose paints such a vivid setting I felt like I was there. It's a bit slow, but that's kind of the point. Really really enjoyed it!

“The Unmaking of June Farrow” by Adrienne Young is a genre of novels that I don’t usually read, but the books description immediately caught my interest. This beautifully written and unusual story.Is a tale of a generational curse in a family of women that will leave you on the edge of your seat while devouring each page. I’m not going to give too much away other than to say if you enjoy the concept of time travel, interesting family dynamics, with lots of unexpected twists and a little mystery, you will love this book!

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Publishing and Adrienne Young for allowing me to review this book.

What a gem. I will never get over Adrienne Young's ability to create a world that really pulls the reader into the story. Her writing is beautiful and compelling in a way that always makes me excited to get back to reading. The Unmaking of June Farrow is no exception. I think it's best to go into this one with as little information as possible so I don't want to say too much but I do want to emphasize that I haven't had this much fun reading in a long time. I never wanted to put it down.

June's story is a complicated one that is layered in love, self discovery, and strength. It's everything from mysterious to devastating to hopeful and I loved getting to meet her. Young also created a supporting cast who's passion and charm are equal to June's and I found myself desperate to learn where all of the story's twists were going to lead them.

I highly recommend making room for this book in your fall TBR. It is a perfect not-so-spooky read for spooky season!

Extremely readable, with writing that pulls you into the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

I usually read more “turn up” Sci-Fi/Fantasy books (you know where you feel really messed up afterward and you don’t even know who you are anymore), but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was so scared it was going to be cheesy and cringe but it was none of that. Even though I never really connected to the main character, I still felt really invested in the story from start to finish.

I thought the pacing was immaculate- which I think is pretty hard to do with this type of story where we don’t have overtly insane events to keep us entertained. I also felt the relationships between the main characters were extremely well done. I am not a romantic at all but even I was anxiously waiting to see what would happen with certain relationships. I think it just goes to show just how talented Adrienne Young is as a writer.

Although I am personally into more of the high-stakes, heart-racing type of stories, I have to give this 5/5 for the writing and the pacing. I cannot overstate how difficult it is to pace like this and I was extremely impressed.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the ARC!

*My social media review will be done on Oct 17.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is a mind-bending, time travel story of June Farrow, who, at age 34, is the last surviving woman of her family. The novel is beautifully written, and weaves together elements of suspense, romance, and mystery. The story is mesmerizing, utterly unpredictable, and full of raw, charged emotion.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an advance e-reader copy of this book!

This was such a good read! I was fully sucked into the story right away and I really enjoyed the characters. The journey the author took these characters on was exciting and unique which is something I am really interested in with books now. I will be recommending this book to all of my friends and family.

June has always known that the women in her family are cursed to fall into madness. None of them know when it will come about, but they all know it's coming. After her grandmother dies, however, she realizes that she wasn't told the whole truth. Now she is unraveling the mysteries of the women who came before her, as well as her own.

I absolutely adored this book. The way Adrienne Young addresses something as dark and heavy as generational trauma in a way that intertwines it with magic and wonder is beautiful. The imagery she uses makes you feel like you're on this journey with June. The pace is slower in parts, but there's enough mystery and intrigue that I never felt like the story was dragging. And even though some of the content is a little dark and heavy, the book overall has a warm and cozy feel. It's perfect that it's coming out in October.

The Unmaking of Jane Farrow is one heck of a twisty story! I had a difficult time putting it down. I was actively a bit sad whenever I had to put my copy of thr book down because I wanted to find out what would happen next.

It blends multiple genres together very well. I highly, highly recommend going into this book with as little knowledge as possible.

The romance was very sweet and felt real. Young is a new author to me, and I'm very excited to read more of her work!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

The Unmaking of June Farrow is Adrienne Young's adult standalone follow-up to last year's Spells for Forgetting. I found Spells truly magical and was so excited to dive into this book.

June Farrow is the last in her line of women destined to eventually lose their minds, and their sense of reality. She is determined to always be the last and has decided to live a life alone, with no lover or children, after helping her Gran Margaret in her last years of life, she knows first-hand what the "curse" on Farrow women will bring and she wants to be the last. The Farrow women have lived in Jasper, NC for several generations, making their lives as flower farmers. June may be single, but she is not alone, as she has friends in her neighbors, people who look out for her and know about the curse as well. After the death of her Gran, June receives a cryptic piece of mail, a photo of her mother with a man from a time that would be impossible. From there, June dives into trying to figure out what is real and what isn't, all while those around her seem to know more than they let on.

I feel that I can't really say more about the plot without potential spoilers. I will say the mystery slowly unfurls and is plotted and paced really well, slowly the pieces fit together, and June begins to understand the Farrow curse, and how to resolve it. For me, this book didn't quite feel as good as Spells for Forgetting, primarily because I felt there were threads of the story left unexplored, and it ended up being a few too many loose ends for me. That said, it certainly fits that autumnal cozy magical realism slot I was looking for, and will absolutely recommend this book to others, especially those who enjoyed Spells last year.

Thank you to Random House Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

Such an amazing story! The curse on the Farrow women was not exactly what it seemed to June. She put little pieces together here and there enough to really hook you into the story. The love story between June and Eamon is one for the books When you add in Annie your just sunk wondering what June will choose when that door returns ❤️
Ends beautifully 👨‍👩‍👦 Read this book, you won't be Disappointed

This book was amazing! Full of twists and turns and puzzle solving. I had such a fun time navigating through this mystery with June!

I fell in love with Adrienne Young's story telling with Fable, and this new book did not disappoint. I was kept guessing for so much of this story. What a different idea, with fantastic world building. There were so many twists and unexpected revelations.
This is a new-to-me take on time travel, centering around June Farrow and the women in her family.

wow wow wow- this one really took me by surprise. i loved this. thanks netgalley & the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this. The Farrow women are known for two things: their flowers and a mysterious curse that has followed generations. Presently, June is being raised by her grandmother after her mother, Susanna's, disappearance. For the past year, June has been hearing and seeing bizarre things like a door appearing or hearing chimes. June knew this was all coming, but desperately wants to end the curse even if it means making her own sacrifices regarding her own family and even love. Once June's grandmother dies, June discovers clues about her mother's disappearance, which only serve to confuse her even more. June decides to re-visit the door that appeared to her, and learns that it is real and that she can go past it. In going through the door, June learns that she can change all sorts of things, find answers to age old questions, and find love - but in the end, she has to make a decision to stay or go back through the door.

This was a book that checked a lot of boxes for me, so if you love fantasy, magical realism, and time travel, definitely pick this book up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Unmaking of June Farrow
By Adrienne Young
Pub Date: October 17, 2023
Delacorte Press
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
* magical realism
I would recommend this for readers who like: small town mysteries, magical realism, rich family history and second chance romances.
Great book! I read it in one day,
4 stars