I have loved every book that I have read by V.E. Schwab, I have always said my favourite book of theirs is A Conjuring of Light but I think that has just changed.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is toxic, sexy, emotional and incredibly complex. The way Schwab is able to create characters with such amazing depth is showcased across her catalogue but this title in particular I think is her best character work yet. They are all so flawed and simply enthralling. Schwabs prose is also nothing short of twisted and lyrical in the best possible way.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil sucks you in and doesn't let you go. I found myself staying up almost all night just to stay in the minds and lives of these characters. This book is full of feeling, I feel as though that draws you in far more than the plot but I wasn't mad at it at all. It is filled to the brim with obsession in so many forms and I found myself obsessed with it in return.

I know this book has been said to be closest to Addie LaRue out of Schwabs titles but I found the characters and dynamics far more reminiscent of Vicious which I personally loved!!

I won't be shutting up about this book anytime soon and just bought a ticket to Schwabs release tour!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC.

VE Schwab is an auto-read for me, so I went into this completely blind. I had NO idea what the story was about except that it revolved around 3 different women in different timelines. In short, This was everything that I WANTED Addie LaRue to be. My two big complaints with that book were that I felt like she really missed a trick by not having Addie remark on or engage with the history happening around her and that it felt like it was the same story on repeat just in different timelines. In this story, Schwab rectified both of those shortcomings while maintaining the emotional rawness that she brought to her writing in Addie LaRue. Addie LaRue felt like a real departure from her other works in presentation and style, and this one seems to be following in those same footsteps. This story is very character driven, but not so much that the characters are all that's happening here. That being said, these women are raw and brutal and so well written, and while there is a villain here, that villain is introduced in such a way that the reader sympathizes with the character (intentionally not using pronouns to leave things as unspoiled as possible). Schwab artfully ties the three women's timelines together and slowly reveals the how and the why of the present day dilemma. Not only do her characters remark on the historic events happening around them, they engage with them, and this story never feels stagnant. It moves and breathes and keeps pushing forward, setting it apart from Addie LaRue, in my opinion. Where that story felt like "girl meets boy, girl sleeps with boy, boy doesn't remember her" on repeat for hundreds of pages, this one is original and complex. I loved it. If you liked the writing of Addie LaRue, I think you will love this one, as it adheres more to that style of Schwab than the Schwab we saw in the "Shades of Magic" or "Villains" series. Definitely recommend.

THIS BOOK IS SO FREAKIN GOOD!!!! 😆✨
I always want to be a vampire…but now I want to be a lesbian vampire 😭😭🧛‍♀️
This has taken badass FMC to a whole level!

Definitely a new favorite for me!!!
I loved EVERY second of it!
I took my sweet time reading this because I truly did not want it to end.
The writing in this book, WOW!!
I was there and no one can tell me otherwise in every century!! (I’m still there 😭)

HIGHLY recommend!!…and recommend going in totally blind like I did. This story will suck you in and it’s phenomenal 🖤🖤

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil aligns with your strong preference for historical fiction with dark, emotional themes (e.g., war, family, survival) and interest in vampiric elements, as seen in Twilight, The Originals, and Dracula. The book’s queer sapphic focus and exploration of immortality could appeal if you enjoy fresh angles on familiar themes like forbidden love or rebellion. However, its nonlinear structure across three timelines feel disjointed. There is an emphasis on toxic relationships. Before enjoying consider whether you’re drawn to experimental storytelling that weaves fantasy into historical settings or prefer tighter, era-specific plots grounded in realism.

I've always loved the way V.E Schwab builds her worlds, and this is another read that had me hooked from the start. I initially felt for Maria (Sabine), but she certainly took her lust for blood and connection to a different level - I enjoyed this immensely!

Thank you so much to Tor and NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy of this book.

I wanted so badly to love this book. The concept of a Sapphic vampire love story mixed with an uncommon villain arc was an excellent idea on Schwab's part. I don't think there is a story told quite like this one that doesn't have a male at the center and I enjoyed that part. Schwab's writing is always poetic and beautiful. she articulates the characters feelings very well, no notes there at all.

The problem is just that it was all too much. Too long (it took me over a month to read) too much unnecessary detail, too much trauma bonding, it suffered from being a little indulgent. Some editing to trim up the overly descriptive visuals of people's hair, people's clothing, estates, homes, ballrooms, it just got us too far off of the plot. The ending was too quick, and frankly just not believable. Not to spoil anything, but it was all too easy after everything we'd been through with these characters.

I wish I had enjoyed it more but the plot suffered from purple prose and the ending was rushed. I think people who are extremely visual on their minds will take to it more than I did, but otherwise I wanted it to be more focused on plot and storyline.

unfortunately this one just missed the mark for me. The setup had me so intrigued, but when we hit over the halfway mark and I still had NO idea what the point of the story was... I kinda lost interest. We spent so long on Sabines story and imo irrelevant details and characters, and didn't even meet Lottie, until late in the story. Alice's story was the one I was most interested in, but the conclusion to her story was so unsatisfying to me. The ending as a whole felt rushed and I was left with a "wtf did I just read" moment, and I still dont know what the point of the story was. Nevertheless thank you for the ARC, this one was just not for me, but I am sure other readers will enjoy it!

V.E. Schwab was put on this earth to be a storyteller. My god.

She continuously proves that no one can write switching timelines like she does. You get sucked into these characters’ minds, only to then be snapped out of it and see things clearly from the outside, but then she tricks you into doing it all over again. They are all so flawed and fickle, but then, so is life (kinda the point here). It’s a slow disaster unraveling, and yet, it somehow ends in such a satisfying way.

Don’t crucify me (no pun intended) when I say this, but I’ve never been fully drawn to vampire media. So I don’t put this lightly when I tell you that this is one of my favorites from her. By far. Right up there with Addie LaRue.

first of all, huge thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me an e-ARC of this book. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025… and let me tell you, it delivered. at this point, i’d probably read v.e. schwab’s grocery list and give it five stars.

did someone say toxic lesbian vampires? because YES. this book gives us three distinct POVs, and i genuinely loved each one. the characters are so complex, flawed, dangerous, beautiful, and so full of rage and grief. i loved watching their stories unfold across different time periods and continents. this book most definitely felt like historical fiction wrapped in a dark fantasy shell and it carries a bite.

as a history nerd, i especially loved how we got to travel through different eras and cultures. you can feel the passage of time while you’re reading, the weight of it, and how it shapes each of these characters. the writing is very similar to The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, so if that’s a book you loved, i really think you’ll love this too. it’s lyrical and emotional but also deeply unsettling in the best way.

i’m already counting down the days until i can get my grubby little hands on a physical copy. i need it on my shelf. like now 🖤🥀🪦🗡️

"Bury my bones in the midnight soil, plant them shallow but water them deep, and in my place will grow a feral rose, soft red petals hiding sharp white teeth.”

4.5★ this book reads like a slow, strange dream. it’s quiet, a little messy, sometimes beautiful, and definitely hard to forget. it builds slowly, and before you realize it, it’s sitting heavy in your chest. (the perfect autumn read)

➺ the atmosphere is what grabbed me first. it's damp, cold, and unsettling, like stepping into a forgotten room where the air hasn’t moved in years. the world is shadowed and still, and the characters feel more haunted than alive. nothing is ever loud in this book.

➺ schwab’s writing focuses a lot on emotion and tone. it’s poetic, yes, but sometimes it felt too much. there were moments i needed more clarity, more structure. i lost track of the plot more than once, but i kept going anyway because i really do love her writing.

"Is it life, if there is never death to balance it? Or is its brevity what makes it beautiful?"

“Some people keep their heart tucked so deep they hardly know it's there. But you have always worn it like skin. It will make your life harder. But it will also make it beautiful.”

➺ this is a book built on mood. there’s a lot of pain, a lot of ache, and while the pacing dragged in places, by the last third i was fully pulled in. the story follows three women - maría, charlotte, and alice - across different timelines... and at first their lives feel disconnected, but eventually the pieces start coming together in a way that makes the slowness of the earlier chapters worth it.

"Life is messy. People, too. And you can tie yourself in knots, trying to make yourself feel better, or you can face the truth." "Which is?" "No one should play God. Least of all us."

➺ if you like stories that don’t rush to explain themselves, that live in gray areas, and that leave you feeling a little hollow when they end, then this might be for you. just don’t enter with expectations. some books don’t need to wrap things up neatly, they’re meant to be felt. it’s a story that stays with you, not because of what it explains, but because of how it makes you feel...

➺ tropes & themes:
– multiple timelines / interwoven lives
– morally gray characters
– toxic relationships
– lovers to enemies
– cat × mouse dynamic
– feminine rage
– forbidden love
– desperate bargains
– historical fiction elements
– coming of age through pain
– tragic beauty
– quiet horror / gothic vibes

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC.

I’m not sure what else can be said about Schwabs ability to pull her readers into a story and make them care so completely about her characters. When she says Toxic Lesbian Vampires she is not joking… the ladies of this story are just so captivating and the three timelines woven together so seamlessly shouldn’t have surprised me but it did. Schwab is a master storyteller and this one will be among her greats!

Thank you for the opportunity to read early!

3.5⭐! This is my third book by Schwab. It felt slower to me than the other two I read. But it was still intriguing and really well written. A Sapphic vampire romance told through three different times. 1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada, 1827. London, and 2019. Boston. Each woman's life is permanently changed when they become vampires. And each of them sees it very differently. These characters are fleshed out and I was actually most drawn to the modern day story, in 2019. This story slowly builds on itself as it goes on. It's moody, atmospheric, and I felt transported to the times. Yes, this was slower, but by the last third of the book, things picked up and started to all come together and was definitely worth sticking through it. I was happy that I continued.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

Three women. Three lives irrevocably turn upside down when they become vampires. One views it as freedom. Another torment. The last, a curse. Follow along the lives of these women as they intertwine with stakes larger than life involved.

Schwab has done it again. A Sapphic vampiric lovers to enemies tale that weaves history, paranormal, and the age old question: Is immortality a blessing or a curse? How do you survive at the hands of another's death? What does it mean to be alone or lonely?

I loved the premise of this book. I found the characters fleshed out and full of life (despite most of them being dead). The romance? To die for, easily. The three points of views were distinct, so no trouble keeping track of who's who and what's happening where. The ending did not quite land for me though. It felt like there was such lushness in the characters' pasts but the present? A little faded.

Overall, a stunning, terrifying, magical read.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

I feel I am in my gothic novels era. these dark tales of toxic romance just keep sucking me in. In Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, we are treated to toxic love-sapphic-vampire-gothic romance, and my goodness those are themes and tropes I never knew I needed together. This book is LUSH. It's like a delicious dark wine that you just want to savor. The writing is like poetry, truly atmospheric and modern day gothic.

The story itself; it takes a while to get going, because I promise, it's not going where you think it is. At least, not for a while. This is a story that you really need to take your time with but, but if you make it to the halfway mark you will not be able to put it down.

A lot of people are saying this book could have been shorter, and that it's too slow. I don't disagree - the middle part is much slower and more character driven, at about 60% the plot really picks up.... but I think this is one of the books where the slow burn really works. And actually the character driven parts were actually my favorite.

Another win for VE Schwab, cant wait to see what she comes out with next.

VE Schwab takes “toxic lesbian vampires” to a new level with this stunning novel about desire, darkness, and hunger.

Three women, in three different time periods, all intertwined in each other’s fates.

A dark romance, a slow unraveling of self, this book takes hold and doesn’t let go until the end.

Schwab knows how to spin a tale of intrigue and power play. This highly anticipated novel does not disappoint!

Lushly atmospheric & populated with characters with moral compasses that point anywhere other than true north, this book is a world unto itself. Schwab’s latest book is mood upon mood, beautifully built out through the story of three toxic lesbian vampires—all of them in dysfunctional relationships to themselves, each other, & history itself. A-glitter with gorgeous prose.

What I liked:
-The vampire lore
-The various historical settings
-V.E. Schwab's prose
-The way in which these vampires are given immortality but at a cost

What I didn't like as much:
-It has to be very hard juggling three POV's at once while also incorporating each character's backstory and motivations but it still felt clunky and I do not think that each girl is given their due time to develop.
-This truly feels like Addie La Rue 2.0 - girl from ye old time makes deal with a devil and lives through the centuries reacting to the changing times
- Schwab has a tendency to have her characters say something along the lines of "If I had known what I know now" at the beginning of sections- and it kind of takes the anticipation or surprise away from any twist coming down the pike when you tell your readers to expect it.
-The ending

Bury Our Bones In the Midnight Soil is a sapphic tale overflowing with lust, toxicity, and rot that I think fans of V.E. Schwab, Carmilla, and A Dowry of Blood will sink their teeth into with pleasure.

Schwab’s signature writing style absolutely bleeds through these pages. Every time and place transported me with ease while each character felt so real I might as well have known them in my own lifetime. Similar to Addie Larue in this way, the length of the book felt more like a result of the writing style rather than the plot — an aspect i found to be stifling when solely focusing on Addie but I think lends itself a lot better to the multiple povs in this story. I’m often hesitant to read books with multiple perspectives because I worry about the development, but I was happy and surprised to find that all three women felt fleshed out and compelling in their own right (even if infuriation was the source of my intrigue for certain characters oop). However, I wish the distribution of character perspectives were a bit more balanced. Maria’s chapters definitely felt like they suffered the most from this breakdown where parts of her story often felt repetitive simply due to their length and frequency — consequently (and unfairly), souring my overall feelings towards her as a character.

Even if the style wasn’t my usual fare (looking back I’m not surprised since i struggled through Addie as well) I’m so glad I pushed through! Things really started to come together by the 60% mark and suddenly i was completely hooked. Seeing the bigger picture come together was unbelievably rewarding and I think the dance between passion, pleasure, and power was done exquisitely!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for an ARC of this title!

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is a sapphic vampire story that deals a lot with female rage and independence. It follows different women throughout time until their stories come together in the end. I enjoyed this story for the most part, I enjoyed seeing Maria becoming the ruthless vampire that she is and I actually really liked how evil she was and how she didn't care about humans at all. It made her very interesting to read. My main problem with this book is that I was just kind of bored most of the time. This book is all vibes, no plot. And I just wasn't in love with the characters enough to overcome the lack of plot. I think this is a pretty common problem for me with V.E. Schwab books so I am confident that many of her usual fans will enjoy this book as well.

4.5⭐️ of feminine rage. 🤭 Chefs kiss!

VE Schwab is an auto buy author for me. Her writing is like poetry and a siren song and it just draws you in and you cant think of anything else!!

This story follows three sapphic vampires throughout different time periods. Sabine’s story starts in Spain in the 1500s, Charlotte’s in regency era 1800s London and Alice in America in 2019. You learn their individual backstories and how their lives are woven together into one toxics story . It is a slow build but so worth it when it all comes together. Trust!

This book explores toxic relationships, grief, loss, desire & morality and so much more. It has the beautiful and tragic story telling of Addie LaRue and the sexy and toxic violence and “games” of Vicious. But with lesbian vampires who you love to hate and hate to love.

I do think you have to take the time to enjoy this book. It starts slow but the payoff is worth it and the writing feels lyrical and atmospheric like Addie Larue but better. I have been sitting in silent thought since finishing it and all I can think about is how incredible this was. You can tell VE Schwab really poured her whole heart and soul into this one and I can’t wait for the world to sink their teeth into it. (see what I did there?) 😉

Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.