Thank you to Random House Children’s and Delacorte Press for an electronic arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was very intrigued by the synopsis especially mentioning the monster and the time period. (I love a good historical fiction)

However, I kept forgetting when this was supposed to be taking place. The use of modern phases and words was what caused that confusion for me,

Overall though, I enjoyed the characters and I really felt like they were well fleshed out. The pace of the story felt quick and steady as well.

Ultimately. I did end up DNFing this book, however, it could just be a case of right book wrong time.

The writing style and overall story are the positives I thought of when reviewing this book. The main thing that brought it down was the confusing modern terminology mixed in.

2.5 stars - Unfortunately, this was a pretty average read for me. While I can really appreciate that this was written to be a feminist reimagining of the Beast of Gévaudan, it fell far from feeling like a historical fiction novel. I tried to get past the more colloquial language used in the novel because I wanted to enjoy the themes that were presented in the novel (as, for them to work, the characters and setting needed to feel more modern than the 1700s) but it started to grate on me the longer I read the novel. Besides slight mentions here and there of menageries (and the lack of women's rights), I kept forgetting that the novel was set during this time period - it could have very easily been set today and I don't feel like it would have made much of a difference (which can be seen as more of a critique of our current society as well I guess). While I enjoyed reading from our characters and appreciated the mission they took on within the plot of the novel, the storyline just did not pull me in enough for me to really care what was going on.

I had huge hopes for We Are the Beasts that unfortunately fell a bit flat for me. From the synopsis, I was SO excited to read about the struggle for freedom of this cast in the 1700s. I really adore historical based novels but there just was not many mentions that reminded me of the time period for this novel. Besides some quick mentions of the Seven Year War, this could have been set nearly anytime in the past. I did enjoy the characters and I felt it was a quick read. While that was a huge highlight for me, I felt that the overall novel could have been grounded better. It was a fun, female-powerful read but just didn't hit those high marks for me. Thanks

Thank you to Gigi Griffis, NetGalley, and Delacorte Press for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited when I read the premise of this novel: 1700s France, the legend of the Beast of Gevaudan, and the mystery of numerous missing young women. The story follows Josephine, a 16 year old shepherdess living with her best friend Clara. They live in a small village in the mountains with a harsh reality: daily risk of starvation and abuse from the village men. They live a hard life, but they have each other.
The village is plagued by a series of missing or brutally murdered young (mostly) girls. Josephine and Clara come upon a situation where they feel like have no choice but to use the mystery of the beast as an opportunity to fake the deaths of young innocents until they can escape the horrible men in their village.

This book was a pretty easy read. I thought the book started off strong but started to get bored in the middle, which is why I rated it 3 stars. However, I liked the character development, I thought Josephine and Clara's relationship was fun to read. I was just hoping for more horror.

We Are the Beasts by Gigi Griffis introduces a new historical horror inspired by the Beast of Gévaudan.

As a total history nerd, the premise sounded intriguing. I was all on board to love this book. However, it’s spoiled by a bizarrely modern narrative voice and shoddy technical writing.

For starters, the story is supposed to take place during the mid-1700s, and yet the writing is choppy and feels like it belongs more to a contemporary comedy. It’s filled with modern phrases like “not today, Satan. I’m not sure if the author was trying to appeal to a younger audience, but it felt so tonally off and completely took me out of the story.

The author also continually begins sentences with “And.” While this is grammatically incorrect, I’m fine with authors occasionally splitting conjunctive clauses to create emphasis and for artistic effect. However, the author abuses this technique to the point that it loses its impact and disrupts the flow of the writing.

Overall, I appreciate that the author covered a more obscure historical mystery, but the writing style itself drove me up the wall.

Thank you, NetGalley and Delacorte Press, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story was better than I thought it would be. I enjoyed how Josephine and Clara planned and got away with staging the deaths of their friends. I was also glad that they were the ones in the end that the beast was like them. I think it's fun too that it was actually a lion. From the description of it I couldn't tell at first. I was also glad how Belle helped everyone in the end. I enjoyed her as a character, along with Louis.

wow. i was not expecting this story going into this book. i was not expecting to have rage boil inside me in face of all the injustice and truths we learn in this book. Whether it was about how we value men and what they say way more than women or simply how fear can create monsters where they don't really exist.

this read as a tale and i feel as though there's so much we can learn from reading it. how women can find strenght together and how love is able to heal what was once broken.

i would like to end this review with a few of the most impactful quotes in this book:

"If a little girl would rather face the dangerous woods than the men running toward us, what have they done?"

"These are the kinds of choices we will make now, I realize. Perhaps the ones we've always made. Face the monsters we know or risk the ones we don't."

"Can it be inappropriate for ladies to see violence and yet somehow appropriate for them to be the target of it?"

"Men fancy themselves our protectors, but what have they protected us from?"

"Perhaps that's the end result of everything these men are working toward: making our bodies no longer our own."

Full disclaimer: I finished We Are the Beasts two weeks ago and have been putting off writing a review because I'm so terribly conflicted. I love everything this book sets out to do--feminine rage, thriller vibes, historical settings, queer-and-female centric cast of characters--and yet I ultimately didn't gel with the execution.

We Are the Beasts is a historical horror that uses the real-life unsolved mystery of the Beast of Gevaudan to pose the question: what if the real monster here is the patriarchy? It's a theme that's been done again and again, and yet I can never get enough of it. In this sense. We Are the Beasts soars. Main character Josephine is a young woman who knows firsthand how horrible the men of her village can be--from a father who abandoned her to a priest who preaches about the immorality of young women while leering at them (and worse)--and she's full of rage because of it. It was refreshing to have a character so willing to embrace her anger in a YA novel (and a historical one at that) so kudos to Griffis! Josephine was easily my favorite part of the book. I liked the other teens of the village as well -- Clara's a quieter, but still strong, character, and Belle ends up being a refreshing take on a tired trope.

Outside of character and setting, though, I felt there was a lot of unrealized potential here. As other reviewers have pointed out, the anachronistic language is a huge barrier. In one breath, Griffis's writing will be elegant and striking, cutting you to the bone...and the next sentence is "not today Satan." I was willing to give it a pass for being YA, until I realized that quite a few YA historical fiction authors (and YA historical horror authors!) write relatable characters without ever being anachronistic. Every time I got into the story, a phrase would just stick so awkwardly that I'd have to put it down. And the plot itself, I felt, struggled with forward momentum. After such an explosive opening, it just sort of mired itself, and didn't get going again until the middle.

I would still pick up another Gigi Griffis book--like I said, the POTENTIAL--but the execution fell rather flat for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Delacorte Press, and Gigi Griffis for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I like the principle of the book which is essentially feminine rage but overall struggled to separate the language usage from the setting. The use of certain phrases and words threw me off when reading because I'm imagining a different setting for the book. I think that historical accuracy - even in fantasy - is somewhat important to add a touch of realism to an otherwise made up world/setting. But entertaining.

We Are the Beasts has beautiful prose and a very promising plot, but for some reason, I just could not get through this book. I, unfortunately, had to dnf this book at 20%. I think it was something about the dual mystery of the men in the village and the beast in the woods, they felt like they were fighting for my attention but neither of them held enough weight to me.

I really enjoyed this book, but I'm having a hard time with it being billed as horror. To me this was not at all horror, it was dark sure, but nothing about it really fits the horror genre for me.

DNF-ed. I couldn´t get even to the half-point honestly. I guess it wasn´t for me. It sounded interesting and the story wasn´t bad. I just didn´t connect with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's | Delacorte Press for the digital ARC of “We Are the Beasts” by Gigi Griffis.

From the first sentence of the book, I was entranced. It started with such a lighthearted look at a troublesome little lamb, slowly shifted to the concerns about ‘a beast’ that lives in the woods, and ended with butterflies dipped in blood. The brutal imagery of a corpse juxtaposed with the delicate nature of the butterfly and child had me gasping.

The rest of the book was shrouded in mystery, waiting for the beast to be revealed, and each time the 'beast' struck more of the dark nature of humans was revealed.

It felt like the book was aptly named - a reminder that humans can be the most dangerous beasts of all.

5/5

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this arc


Honestly, I am kinda tired to reviewing this book so I will be back tomorrow to do so

DNFed book, just could not get into this book. I was just bored, sorry. I chose a one star rating bc I just planet didn’t like it. It just plain and boring. I thought it was going to be better.

I want to thank NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

This book mixed two of my favorite things: the Beast of Gevaudan and the religious persecution of girls and women. The story was phenomenal. I loved the tender relationships between the escaping characters, it was a great mix of found family and communal survival. I also really loved this interesting take on the origins of the beast and how that was tied into the strength of women, the depth of their love, and their willingness to sacrifice themselves. The exploration and development of the relationship between Josephine and Clara was so sweet, it felt so loving and pure that it could have taken any form but its final form felt so endearing and satisfying. I will absolutely be putting this on my list for Female Rage Recommendations.

Great book! I really enjoyed the dark atmosphere of this book.
I will be buying a copy and I look forward to reading more books from this author.

A story inspired by the Beast of Gévaudan with a light sapphic romance and the bonds between girls. When a string of mysterious deaths begin to happen in the quiet French hamlet of Mende, people think that they've been punished by God for their sins. Two girls, Sixteen year old Josephine and her best friend Clara know its not just a curse...its an opportunity. The girls of Mende have been living in a nightmare, with men who abuse them and restrain them... it feels like a prison and this could be their chance to finally escape. Using the creature's attacks as a cover story, both Josephine and Clara set out to fake their friends' deaths and hide them until its safe for them all to run away,,, but things only get further complicated when a hunting party comes into town saying they are here to hunt the beast and they demand food and soldiers... everyone is suspect and the lies are only growing... can the girls escape or will they face something worse than the beast? This was a delightful read that blends with historical inspiration with fiction and I absolutely enjoyed it. The relationship between Josephine and Clara was sweet and strong, they are best friends, they love each other, and they'd do anything to protect each other. It's a fun read and one I'd absolutely recommend!

Release Date: December 10,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Children's | Delacorte Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

We Are the Beasts is a gripping blend of historical horror and feminist defiance, set in a quiet French hamlet haunted by whispers of a murderous beast. Sixteen-year-old Joséphine, a determined and resourceful protagonist, sees the creature’s reign of terror not as a curse, but as an opportunity to save her friends from the daily horrors of abusive homes. Together with her best friend, Clara, she orchestrates an audacious plan to fake the girls’ deaths and hide them in the wilderness until they can escape for good.

The novel’s atmosphere is immersive, steeped in the chilling isolation of a community on edge and the ever-present threat of discovery—whether by villagers, the beast, or the upcoming reality of a harsh winter. Joséphine’s courage and ingenuity make her a compelling heroine, and the stakes feel intensely personal as she and Clara navigate the dangers of their mission. The pacing keeps readers on edge, balancing moments of quiet tension with bursts of heart-pounding action.

Griffis skillfully weaves themes of survival, solidarity, and resilience into a story that’s as much about the bonds between girls and those who don't fit into societies strict norms as it is about the looming danger outside. While the beast itself adds a layer of menace, the true horror often lies closer to home, highlighting the courage it takes to stand up against oppression.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Synopsis:

A beast terrorizes a small village, snatching shepherdesses and ripping them to shreds. But what exactly is the beast? Supposedly, no bullet can harm it. It’s too big to be a man and looks like no creature anyone has ever seen. Some think the creature is a curse sent to punish them for their sins. Others think a witch must be responsible. The only thing that is certain is that the beast has developed a taste for young girls.

My Thoughts:

What drew me to this story is that it is inspired by the real-life brutal attacks attributed to the Beast of Gevaudan in the 1700s. What kept me reading was the characters and the bonds that formed between them. The story is a bit of a slow burn, in my opinion. The beast is more of a background fixture than anything—always lurking, rarely attacking. The soldiers that come to “save” the villagers are despicable, making you question who’s more monstrous, the beast or them? The men of the village are just as bad, neglecting and abusing the women in their lives. That is, until those women decide to grow claws.

All in all, I enjoyed this story. I was satisfied with the explanation of the beast, but mostly, I just enjoyed reading a story about young women supporting, believing, trusting other women.

Read if you like stories with:

Small isolated villages
Mysterious murders
Lots of sheep
A cheeky parrot
Women standing up for other women
Friendship / Love story


⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ /5