Pretty Little Dead Girls

by Mercedes M. Yardley

"Run, Star Girl."

BRYONY ADAMS IS DESTINED TO BE MURDERED, but fortunately Fate has terrible marksmanship. In order to survive, she must run as far and as fast as she can. After arriving in Seattle, Bryony befriends a tortured musician, a market fish-thrower, and a starry-eyed hero who is secretly a serial killer bent on fulfilling Bryony’s dark destiny.

Mercedes M. Yardley’s Pretty Little Dead Girls: A Novel of Murder and Whimsy is a dark, lovely fairy tale with lyrical language and a high body count. It features a cover by Hugo Award Winner GALEN DARA.

Genres: Horror, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Fiction, Young Adult, Thriller, Short Stories

280 pages, Paperback

First published September 27, 2014

About the author

Mercedes M. Yardley is a whimsical dark fantasist who wears red lipstick and poisonous flowers in her hair. She is the author of numerous works including Love is a Crematorium and Other Stories, Darling, the Stabby Award-winning Apocalyptic Montessa and Nuclear Lulu: A Tale of Atomic Love, Pretty Little Dead Girls, and Nameless. She won the Bram Stoker Award for Little Dead Red and “Fracture.” Mercedes lives and works in Las Vegas. You can find her at mercedesmyardley.com.

Reviews

[Mark Lawrence]

This was an interesting book. It's short, and easy to read. Some chapters are just a few lines long. I can't say it gripped me - I took a while to read it despite its brevity - but it did intrigue me.

The style is the book's defining quality. It's written in a way I've not seen before. The setting is modern America but the style is fairytale/mythic - the dialogue is not the least bit realistic, or intended to be, the narrator breaks the fourth wall many times, the prose is elegant and interesting...

The story concerns a young girl (and later: young woman) who everyone who lays eyes on her can plainly see is destined to be murdered. This fated murder is an open topic of discussion among all the characters.

Beyond that strangeness and the aforementioned unworldliness of the prose, it's a simple tale of young Bryony evading her fate while other pretty little girls get murdered left right and centre in her wake. We see her grow up, leave home, make friends, get married etc, and finally there's a big show down with the murderer who seems likely to finish her off.

If you've read too much fantasy and are jaded, then this certainly has enough novelty to cleanse your pallet.

If you're a fan of poetic prose ... well, the language here is not as flowery as the fonts (which are extremely flowery) ... but there are quite a few good lines and Yardley's prose is enjoyable. There's a gentle humour throughout, which is also fun.

I didn't 100% buy into the vibe, but I applaud the effort at changing things up, and I hope that some of you will give it a try.


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[Sadie Hartmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Wow!
I've never, ever read a book like this before. Pretty, Little Dead Girls is a dark fairytale incorporating a classic, lyrical style of narrating into a modern day storyline & setting.
"Bryony is destined to be murdered."
I loved Bryony. Star Girl. I could see her very clearly in my mind.
This tale of a beautiful, ethereal girl with a dark, deadly prophesy looming over her head is so sweetly sinister. I loved the way the author, Mercedes Yardley employed different, romantic narratives to lure her readers into her imaginative story. Sometimes this book reads like it's straight out of Grimm's Fairytales and sometimes it felt like a modern serial killer-thriller.
But this isn't just about the girl. There's lots boys that come in and out of her life as well, some trustworthy and some not so trustworthy and I enjoyed how they were introduced on the page so that the reader could enjoy wondering how they would choose to handle their encounter with such an unusual girl.
I especially liked Eddie, the guitarist from Seattle.
One of my favorite parts was when Bryony decided to protest the mark of death that haunted her life and she decides to "fall in love". She goes on a dating spree:
"...love is ever so shiny and desirable and so desperately worth pursuing, we are told, and so two Kens, a Nick and a Johnny later, she came across a Jeremy, who was tall and darling."
"You're going to die Star Girl." he said, his thick lashes dropped over his eyes.
"Yes, I know."
"That's cool."
I could see this whole scene as a movie with really modern, clever camera work and direction.
Mercedes' writing is just so freakin' scrumptious. The ending was a bit abrupt--sort of left me hanging a little but overall, everything was just perfect.
I highly recommend this book to literally everyone--fans of all genres but especially, dark fantasy, romance, murdery books and horror.
A real delight for the senses.

[Maja (The Nocturnal Library) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please excuse all the fangirling that is about to ensue. If you knew what I know – how brilliant and utterly gorgeous Mercedes M. Yardley’s new novel is – you would not only forgive me, but you would undoubtedly join me in singing her praise. Before all else, it needs to be said that Pretty Little Dead Girls is a thought-provoking book that allows us many different readings. It can be read superficially and still be described as exceptional, but one could also spend months on allegorical interpretations, trying to find non-literal meanings and likely only partially succeeding.

In her strange, memorable but unassuming way, Yardley manages to raise some very important philosophical and existential issues. Her protagonist, Bryony, has always known that she would one day be murdered, and so did everyone around her. It is a simple fact of life, nothing to fuss about, and everyone who looks into her eyes even once knows that she will end up as someone’s victim. As Bryony waits for her destiny to be fulfilled, people around her keep dying instead. You see, fate tries and aims, and often misses by a narrow margin. So Bryony’s friends die, and she stays alive, at least for the time being.

Narrative-wise, Pretty Little Dead Girls is innovative and very postmodern. Yardley uses metafictive devices to constantly draw attention to the narrative itself. She keeps opening a direct communication between the book (or rather the omniscient narrator) and the readers by asking them to participate with their opinions. Third person omniscient point of view is also a somewhat unusual choice for contemporary literature, but for Yardley, it works extremely well. The effect of this simple choice on the story is tremendous and I dare say brilliant. It speaks volumes about Mercedes M. Yardley and all the things we can expect from her in the future.

Pretty Little Dead Girl is deeply, yet quietly romantic. There is love for Bryony, but like everything else, it comes without much fuss and it remains constant and reliable throughout. It is, I think, the most beautiful thing about this novel – the matter-of-fact approach to everything - life, love and death alike.

This is a weird, whimsical tale perfect for weird, whimsical people; artists and dreamers, creative thinkers and free spirits. Paradoxically, Yardley’s style is oddly formal and playful at the same time, which reflects the overall mood of the story perfectly. If you only take one risk this year, a single read you’re unsure of, choose this one. Even if it’s not your type of story, you’ll be able to appreciate the beauty and the quality of Yardley’s writing.

I, however, revel in this type of thing, and I so rarely get a chance to read something so perfect for me. My heart is full, my mind is blown, and every book I try to read just pales in comparison.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars!

PRETTY LITTLE DEAD GIRLS, by Mercedes M. Yardley is a novel that caught me off-guard by the very bluntness of its synopsis: "Bryony Adams is destined to be murdered . . . " There is never any mention of an explanation for this, simply that she--and everyone she meets--instinctively knows and accepts this inevitable outcome. Each day Bryony--often referred to as the "Star Girl" for her ethereal beauty and tenacious hold on life--is still breathing, it is almost a surprise to those around her.

"Death isn't a very good shot . . ."

Mercedes Yardley writes the novel in an almost fairy-tale way, her prose often as dreamlike and poetic as her marked heroine. Her emphasis on certain words or phrases leads the readers' minds onto so many other, branching-off paths.

"Such a difference one little word makes. Such weight and significance that word carries . . . "

However much she is "destined to be murdered", Bryony wants to live.

". . . Human nature dictates that we want what we want, and we want what is scarce. We want to enjoy things before they are taken from us . . . "

And so she runs.

No matter how long or short of a stay we get with each character in this novel, Yardley infuses them all with lives full of hopes, dreams, emotions, and ambitions. Even those that are only in a single chapter, we leave feeling as though we "knew" them. The author has a phenomenal gift in the art of characterization, making it appear so easy with her words; and yet, in reality, this is a very difficult task for many writers to master. Fairy-tale feeling aside, you will undergo each of Bryony's adventures and each person whose life she impacts with her mere presence.

"You must know this: There are not always happy endings . . . "

Throughout this entire tale of a girl who was born destined only for death, we are besieged with the most human of all emotions, love and hope. Each new character she comes in contact with becomes fair game for the fates that crave her blood. You will read on with apprehension, wondering at their own final destinies now that they've crossed Bryony's path--but read on, you will. Yardley's incredible ability to capture the readers' attention and keep them in the worlds she creates is remarkably considerable.

This is the tale of Bryony, the girl who must run to escape her own future. One thing you will take away from this riveting novel is that: ". . . life was not meant to be fair, it was meant to be lived."

Highly recommended!

[Heather ~*dread mushrooms*~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started off interesting enough, but ultimately it become only okay for me. It's described as a fairy tale, and I think that's pretty accurate. For example, we know that Bryony is destined to be murdered. She is going to die. Somehow every single person she meets or comes into contact with knows it too, and this becomes the theme of the book: How do we, Bryony's friends, keep her alive?

Seriously. That's the entire book. Bryony loving life, almost getting killed, and always getting saved in various ways.

So yes, that could carry a fairly short fairy tale, but it's a bit thin as the plot of an full-length book. Combined with the flowery, whimsical writing, I began to lose interest after a while. It's not that this was badly written, but it was just so much. Yes, the desert howls. Yes, Bryony glows. I'm not really a fan of breaking the fourth wall either, and it's done a lot in this book. People talk without using contractions, making their dialogue unnatural and all alike. There were also some editing issues, such as two instances of repeated passages, and a handful of other random typos. I don't know much about Crystal Lake Publishing, but the errors were glaringly obvious and someone should have noticed.

Some of the writing was very pretty, and I thought the characters were well done (aside from the odd dialogue). It's a different sort of story, and I can see why people like it. I guess this book turned out to be a touch too precious for my tastes.

2.5 stars

Previously:

"starry-eyed hero who is secretly a serial killer"

WHERE DO I SIGN UP

[Lukasz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so don’t expect me to be objective. I want everyone to read it. Pretty Little Dead Girls is gutting and dark, but there are lightness and beauty to it, especially in the prose.

“Bryony Adams was the type of girl who got murdered. This was always so, and it was apparent from the way that men looked at her as she adjusted her knee socks to the way that women shook their heads in pity when she rode by on her bicycle.”

Everyone who knows Bryony knows, the moment they meet her, she’ll end up murdered. Doomed at birth, she remains bright, loving, and friendly. She lightens the lives of people around her, making them better, even if for a while. She comforts those who mourn, in advance, her unavoidable death. Her natural charm and openness allow her to make friends with everyone, including a charming serial-killer destined to fulfill her dark destiny.

I loved observing Bryony navigate her doomed life. We’re all born to die, but it doesn’t mean we should wring our hands and despair. There’s so much to experience and enjoy. Despite living on a borrowed time, Bryony makes every moment worthwhile.

Yardley’s captivating writing style conveys emotions (love, happiness, fear and pain) with ease and impact. Her lyrical style awed me. I don’t know another author able to create such a dark and disturbing atmosphere in such a charming style. Like in this passage where the killer runs after his victim:

"He was sprinting, because he did not need to make it to the edge of town: he only needed to make it to the girl. His feet hit the ground like pistons, cold and mechanical, and he held the knife tightly in his grip, blade down. Oh, oh, how tragically this shall unfold."

Her style resonates with me. I praise her not only for imaginative wordsmithing but also for excellence in handling a third-person omniscient narrative voice. Not only is the narrator omniscient, but they also break the fourth wall throughout and… it works! The narrator engages readers, questions their assumptions, and plays with their emotions. And it works every single time. Incredible. And gut-wrenching.

A killer is just a tool of sinister fate and personified Desert for which Bryony's demise is the only acceptable outcome. Whenever her friends rescue her or interfere with her fate, the desert gets angry. But nor for long, because

"The desert had a trick up its sleeve, oh yes it did. For it may be thwarted at the moment, but it will not be thwarted for long, and even now there was a rumbling deep underground that made the desert cease feeling sorry for itself. In fact, it began to smile, a harsh smile, a terrible smile, and anybody who witnessed it certainly would have been frozen in horror, pierced by the chill one feels when they drop something fragile, something that was given to them by somebody very dear who is now dead, and now they have nothing with which to remember them, and shall never be able to recall their features exactly ever again."

Yardley described Pretty Little Dead Girls as a novel of murder and whimsy, a perfect description. It's a horror that doesn't revel in gore. It's a romance that twists the genre. It doesn't shy away from brutal truths of our existence but even when it tugs at your heartstrings it leaves you with a sense of wonder. Despite darker elements, it left me with a sense of hope and wonder at the end. This book gets a well-deserved place on my all-time favorites list.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mercedes is a great storyteller. Her prose is effortless and her characters are unique and refreshing. No cookie cutter bullshit here. Very three dimensional and surprisingly deep work. Reminds me a bit of Neil Gaiman, in the best kind of way. Well Done. 4+ Stars

[Jules · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty Little Dead Girls is a young adult magical realism fantasy with a sort of dark fairytale feel to it and a splash of horror.

I didn’t fall in love with this story, but it was enjoyable and I thought it was well narrated.

I borrowed this in audiobook format through Kindle Unlimited.

[Dona's Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite horror novels in a long time. I rarely see the fusion of the horror genre, especially the slasher tropes, with a lush, elaborate, feminine style, and even more rarely do I see it succeed. I love slasher, and I love soft and feminine, and Yardley uses those elements in Pretty Little Dead Girls to create setting, mood, and tone unlike anything I've seen since Angela Carter's Saints and Strangers. This is a gorgeous, thrilling novel and horror fans who are craving something that will remind them a little of Carrie and a lot of Conjure Wife, if either of those had Yardley's womanly style, will find a rich, satisfying reading experience in Pretty Little Dead Girls.

*Review Update 10/08/2020

Obviously, I've been a fan of this book for a while. But I wanted to do a second reading and a proper review for my Halloween Season reviews this months. After my second reading, let me go ahead and tell you what exactly I like and don't like about Mercedes M. Yardley's little gem of indie horror, Pretty Little Dead Girls:

Likes:

1. "Bryony Adams was the type of girl who got murdered" (page 1.) Regardless of what kind of feminist you are, that's the kind of first line that makes you grab hold with your teeth. It also sets the perfect tone for the rest of the work, which is exactly this dramatic and dark, gothic if you will, for the rest of the story.

2. One of the most delightful aspects of this story is how Yardley develops the characters to have absolute faith in the main character Bryony's doomful fate. The protagonist is convinced she is going to die, which is one thing, and charming enough in Yardley's hands. But also every single character we meet, no matter how minor their connection to Bryony, also believes deeply and poetically that Bryony needs their protection and emotional investment to avoid impending death. This built-in group dynamic makes for a wonderfully dramatic story, increased tension, and deepened intimacy between characters. I invested far more than I usually do in the character relationships between secondary and primary characters.

3. Yardley's style drapes on the page like curtains of jungle flowers. In a contemporary literary landscape dominated by minimalist styles, not all of which are managed well, a market in which the discovery of even a decent medium style is to be celebrated, it's a pleasure to read an author who can deftly handle a full style.

4. Throughout the narrative, Yardley uses the perspective of a character that she identifies as "the murderer" to generate wonderful, potent moments of foreshadowing. For example, enjoy this passage from page 9: "[Bryony] slid through school as if her death had come and she was a ghost, one foot tethered on earth and the other already off in the stars. It made it not quite so bad, this thing that he was about to do." I think when I read this, I actually said out loud, "Oh God!" And I found dozens of these wonderful little heart-stoppers.

5. This book is full of beautiful, original descriptions. From page 21, "[Jeremy's] death decorated her spirit with sharp, crystalline stars of sorrow...." And from page 43:

[Eddie] was intimately familiar with the awfulness of murder and the way it destroys everything from the inside out. There is the murder itself, a gruesome thing, and then there is the parasite it leaves behind, worming and gnawing its way through everybody near enough to touch. The Paranoia of the landlord, the suspicion of the neighbors, the heartbreak of the church congregation and the guilt of the loved ones.... Oh, the guilt of the loved ones.

I've never heard anyone ever write about the aftermath of murder as "a parasite," such an effective and useful image.

6. I have never read any other book like this; it's completely unique. Here, a paragraph of profound, poetic concern, from "the murderer's" perspective, as though he too is powerless from wanting nothing more than to relieve Bryony from her curse. On page 129:

She was a woman born of grief, and yet somehow she was breaking under the weight of it. It was a lovely thing to see, actually, like the branches of a tree snapping under an ice storm, a sort of beauty in the pale horror of the event, but at the same time, he didn't enjoy seeing her suffer. She moved him in a way he hadn't often been moved. It was like watching a ghost fade away after you had grown accustomed to it. It was a difficult thing.... Well, he would see what he could do.

7. Like any good horror, Pretty Little Dead Girls has something to say. You could chalk it all up to Yardley's smart, scathing humor, but I choose to read a little bit more into the nameless, faceless women she writes about who, on pg. 132, "are supposed to look fabulous in a little black dress. They rear children, are the workplace's brainy sexpots, and cook delicious ... dinners. They write best-selling novels and monitor the house's internet use while clipping coupons." But when it came to getting murdered, these women were just too darned tired to fight for their lives, choosing instead to lay down and die, which "the murderer" found terribly disappointing, at the end of the day. Sound like anyone you ladies know?

8. The murderer is a hilarious, lazy moral relativist, which are the best murderers (in terms of a story element) because their motivations are completely selfish and often illogical. They often hardly even know of their own evil. It's like leashing chaos for your antagonist. What fun for the writer and the reader!

9. Yardley engages in some wonderful throwback techniques, such as glossing for her chapter titles, a practice in which the author provides in subtitles brief highlights covering what will happen in the next story section -- such as Chapter 57, which Yardley calls, "In Which the Murderer Becomes a Hero." Another old-fashioned technique she employs to lovely effect is allowing long bits of dialogue to transpire between two characters, when one of them happens to be grappling with a third character.

I know it may have seemed like I would never get to this part, but there are actually a few thing I did not like about this book.

Didn't likes:

1. This is an indie book, and I've read a lot of them that need just so much work in the grammar category. Any grammar issue you find in this book will be minor; it's almost not even fair that I'm bringing this issue up here, because this book is without question the best I've ever seen in this category for indie books.

2. Yardley utilizes the fourth wall break for effect in this book, and typically when the narrator addresses the audience directly, the instance is clever and entertaining. Sometimes, it contributes to the overall tone and mood of the work, like here on pgs 30-31:

"Well, perhaps it concerned him, maybe a little bit," you say, because you are a sweet and gentle reader, and are apparently hoping for the best. And that is very gallant of you to think, but no, you'd be wrong. For Chad thought of no one but himself.

I'm of the opinion that if the narrator or author is going to break the fourth wall and address the audience, it better be for a very good reason, either stylistically, or narratively. Yardley never meets one of these thresholds, so I wish she had chosen a different technique here.

3. Yardley indulges in the annoying habit of calling out her ironies. I hate this for two reasons. First, it's akin to the jerk who laughs at his own unfunny jokes -- sometimes they're just not funny and no one wants to watch him slap his own knee. Second, sometimes, authors call out ironies that aren't actual ironies, but maybe merely coincidences or sarcasms or sometimes nowhere even close to an irony. When this happens, it is just painful, because that massive error is in print. When a writer makes an irony in print, they should just make the irony and leave it to be discovered by those who can gather it from the context. Ironies are not for pointing and screaming. This has been a public service announcement.

4. Because so many things can go wrong at the end of a story, I give a lot of books a pass on a bad ending, and this one is no exception. I still think this is a great book. I'm not going to say too much here, because I don't want to ruin this great book for anyone. Besides, I've found most people aren't as hard on endings as I am. I thought it was tricky, as in Yardley decided to pull it out of her bag of tricks instead of from the considerable material of the story. But I'll let you decide.

And that's it! That's it? Lol this one was too long, but I seriously love this book. I hope you love it too! Happy Halloween my fellow spooky folks!

[Ingerlisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

“There was a murder you see, and this murder ends something that could have been beautiful, as murders often do.”

This is a book about Bryony, a girl destined to die and follows her life and as such the near misses, the close calls and the odd people drawn to her destined doom.

“She was a woman born of grief and yet somehow she was breaking under the weight of it.”

“She was the girl who was born to die, and so never really lived, even though she had certainly tried.”


As you can see from the quotes throughout this review, the writing at times is beautiful. It is a whimsical, magical and dark fairytale in which the fourth wall is often broken down and I actually really liked this.

What I struggled with was to connect with the characters. They were very far from realistic, their speech was very poetic, lyrical almost which was beautiful but difficult to connect with nonetheless. I think this is a personal issue though and if you are craving a fairytale type read this will most likely be perfect for you. It was such an enchanting and unique story but unfortunately the more I read the less I enjoyed.

“life was not meant to be fair, it was meant to be lived.

[Clay Sanger · Rating 5 out of 5]

With the author herself having labeled this as a "novel of murder and whimsy" I was both amused and unsure what to expect from Mercedes Yardley's "Pretty Little Dead Girls."

What I encountered was one of the most beautiful and haunting tales I've read in YEARS.

"Pretty Little Dead Girls" is a stylistic trip and a grim delight, a roller coaster of sweet one moment, and utterly savage the next. Resonating through it all, from the first page to the very last, is the central theme, typified by one of my favorite quotes from the book:

"...This woman who dragged the mantle of certain destruction behind her like a ragged blanket."

You mourn and fear and cheer for Bryony Adams, doomed to die on Page 1, with every sentence you read. You can't help it. Like the characters (friends, loved ones, and even hungry killers) who gravitate to the poor, doomed heroine, you find yourself as the reader joining the circle of champions trying desperately through sheer force of will to KEEP THIS GIRL ALIVE in a gluttonous universe conspiring to undo her at every turn.

I was mesmerized by this book. It is utterly unlike anything I've ever read. A strange trip down the grimmest and darkest of rabbit holes (the surety of destruction) seen through the prisms of Bryony's would-be-killers, her friends and family, and most especially, through the ever-optimistic eyes of Bryony herself. Of all the people in this tale, she has the most legitimate claim to despair and hopelessness, but she manages to reject it - in ways that are indeed both whimsical and archetypal... but also painfully real and genuine.

That is one of the true high points of the artistry of this novel --- Yardley manages to collect the fanciful and whimsical on the same page with the gritty, brutal, and viciously realistic. A truly admirable feat.

If you want to know how it all ends for our cosmically doomed Pretty Little Dead Girl.... well... you'll have to read it for yourself. No spoilers here.

I cannot recommend this book enough. If fanciful whimsy and grim murder are your cup of tea, then you are in for the treat of the year. If you don't think that sort of tale IS to your liking... I DARE you to try it anyway --- it genuinely and truly is THAT good.

Bravo, Miss Murder. Can't wait to see what comes next.

[Rodney · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave this one my best effort, and I wanted to like it, but ultimately it was just disappointing. It looks like I am the minority here, but after forcing myself to finish, there wasn't enough there to balance the overwhelming whimsy. The narration was irritating, consistently saying the same thing many times, changing the wording only slightly. Breaking the fourth wall is part of how the tale is told, however I couldn't help but feel like I was being talked down to at times. From the start, the plot was predictable and contrived. Overall, bland and forgettable.

[Jess the Shelf-Declared Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. It was very morbid, but it was expressed candidly with a large amount of wit, which was unique. It almost had a fairytale feel to it. I would recommend it.

[T.O. Munro · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are books born of a single premise, a key idea. Some find their ambition has overreached the grasp of their central theme, that the concept is incapable of sustaining the story and is either stretched too thin or bloated with a weight of distraction and fluff masquerading as subplots.

Others find a perfect blend of imagination and style to take one sentence and turn it into a story you literally cannot put down; "Pretty Little Dead Girls: A Novel of Murder and Whimsy" is such a book.

Its simple theme is that the central character Bryony Adams is doomed to die, but not in the sense that we are all making a journey from birth to death. Bryony will die young and she will be murdered. She knows it and everyone around her knows it, from her kindergarten teacher to the guitarist who looks into her eyes and runs away from the fate that awaits her. The book is then about how do you live life, a life of short but indeterminate length in the shadow of such a fate, and how do those about you who care for you manage the burden of their own knowledge.

But more importantly than that, how do you write a story that has such a grim, albeit surealist spine to its tale.

I have read many books that have death as a theme or even a character. "The BookThief" by Marcus Zuzak and "Before I Die" by Jenny Downham and those works of John Green’s that I’ve read also have a certain commonality of more or less doomed central characters. But there is a difference there. To know you have a terminal disease, to be snatched unawares by some accident, to live in the shadow of war with Death your constant companion, these are more credible ends that are served by a more orthodox treatment. But a story about living in the certain knowledge that your life will be taken by some as yet unknown murderer is, literally, incredible and it requires a special kind of style and skill to deliver such a tale.

Mercedes M. Yardley delivers through a light conversational narration that reminded me of the snippets of Lemony Snicket that I had read. The omniscient narrator who delivers their tale with many an ooh and an ahh and a sharp intake of breath at the vicissitudes of life. This is a narrator who does not so much tell you the story, or even read it to you, they stand over your shoulder and add a commentary as you devour Bryony Adams’ short bright life through the words on the page. But whereas The Series of Unfortunate events had the palpable if multiply disguised figure of Count Olaf as its ever present villain, the growling hissing antagonist for Bryony Adams is fate itself, a fortune set at her birth that will not be denied. Determination, the love of friends who want to buy her time in any way they can, and the spectacular inaccuracy of fate’s blunderbuss all combine to postpone what everybody in the book, including Bryony herself, has known is inevitable. She can run, but she cannot hide, but my how she runs.

And for all the certainty laid out in its opening premise of a dark and unavoidable ending, this is a book that is joyful and life affirming. What would any of us do in Bryony’s situation? Seize what life offers? Fear for her friends who must be left behind to mourn. Treasure each moment of now.

But, death stalks the book’s pages too, not just any death, but murder. People die around Bryony Adams as the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune are loosed with devastating force but little precision. There is no great titillation in each murderous act, merely a tiny detail here or there, a glimpse into each victim’s life or death that reaffirms the darkness of the shadow fate casts over Bryony, and by implication, over the many who love and care for her. The people who are determined to do all they can to give fate a damn good kicking and so buy Bryony whatever time they can.

There is a point in the book where one character reflects that he could cope with Bryony dying through some accident, through choosing just the wrong day to take up hangliding, or tripping and stumbling into a pit of rattlesnakes. But it is the nature of her fate, rehearsed for us in advance by a variety of unfortunate victims of fortune’s inaccurate aim, which takes the theme of anticipated death and loss and gives it a sharp twist – well actually in a plot that wriggles as evasively as Bryony herself, it delivers quite a few heartstopping twists up to its long foretold heartstopping moment, and through those twists and turns the reader learns to love Bryony Adams just as much as the author did.

A book can be judged by many things and, incidentally, this book has an excellent cover. But like all art, a book is about interactions not absolutes. Its quality is known, not by the mere words on the pages but by the response it engenders in the reader. This is a book I read in just two sittings, its length, its pace and its story line sufficient to draw me in and on when sleep should have long since claimed me. It is a book too, that left its mark on my mind, echoes of the story and the characters filling my thoughts the morning after so much so that I could not wait to try and capture some sense of the impression it had made through the medium of a review. The last book to enthral me in the same way and linger on so powerfully after the last page was closed was “The Girl WithAll the Gifts” by M.R.Carey another enthralling heroine facing an impossible situation.

Why would anyone read such a book – a book haunted at every turn by murder and death, and again not just any murder but the vicious and sadistic theft of young women’s lives by a variety of persons unknown. And this is where Mercedes M Yardley strays beyond the reassuringly fantastic world of Lemony Snicket style writing and perches her tale right on the border of our own world, our real world, peopled by dark deeds and vulnerability. The lyrical writing floats like a butterfly around dark realities of life and death and it is the style that saves both the story and the reader from engaging in a wholly macabre flirtation with darkness.

There may be others who will not warm to it as I did, who will not be swept along by its surrealist theme, its whimsical narration, or its captivating heroine. There will be people who struggle to suspend their disbelief, or are uncomfortable with a book that flirts so lightly with murder and murderers. But it is a unique story well told and I commend it.

[Jerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

The desert is alive, the weather and the sky have a mind their own, they roil and writhe. Events unfold with clarity and precision. Deliberate, strangely slow and frantic all the same. If you choose to read this story, you will be taken for a ride, you will become an observer of this amazing world, the deep and whimsical characters. The strength of blood, the fate of kin and friend alike. Take it in, take it all in, and prepare for immersion in the past and the present and maybe the future... of the Star Girl.

Bryony once again felt the fangs of death striking at her ankles, pricking her skin but not wounding her directly.

And then fate shook its head and narrowed its eyes, growling deep in its throat as it remembered how crafty and venomous it could be. And when that venom is stoked by wrathful humiliation, well. Well. Careful, Star Girl. Your time has nearly come.

Something about her eyes. Something about the soft paleness of her throat. She seems to run above the ground, not necessarily across it. I think she was not created for this earth, but from the stars. And to the stars I will release her.

Of course I want to hurt her. We're each other's destiny, she and I. I was born to kill, and she was born to die, and isn't that convenient? Lovely, really.

Deep within all of us swims a primal fear of the dark and stealthy creatures that inhabit it, and no matter how polished and mature and respected we become, when we are alone and it is quiet, the ancient things of the night whisper to us that they are there, and we are quite defenseless. We are no match for the evils so much older than we.

[Two Envelopes And A Phone · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say, except that it's brilliant because it is the opposite of everything it appears to be. The sweet is horrendous. The lighter the light gets, the darker it becomes. And best of all, right near the end, of course it doesn't read like a fairy tale; it just...can't...and that is the point. Oh, but, you wanted a fairy tale ending to the horrible things that happen to women, you were going along nicely with that vibe, and reality lashed out all of a sudden. Alright, have it your way...

This is a very strange read; I was not sure how I felt, in the first 20 or so pages, especially with a very intrusive narrator. But once I felt I understood why a novel featuring such a disturbing series of events - events that happen every day in our world and are not usually filtered through to us in this "sweet" manner - I quite got into what this book was up to and why it is the way it is. Parallel to my reading this, I got into reading some reports on a cold case solved forty-eight years after it happened, that involved a sixteen year old girl on her way to a pizza place to meet her friends, and never arriving. She was preyed on by a man who had fled from somewhere far away, where he had already done the same thing. Predators, and the lifelong threat inherent in a trip to the pizza place, or jogging, or meeting someone, or giving a nice-seeming guy the benefit of the doubt when he asks for directions...or a date.

Maybe reading the news-report version of the story that is in this novel, while actually reading this novel, was that little bit of extra help to appreciate what is really being said here - but whatever, I think this is a brilliant and troubling novel, the sweeter it seems.

[Seregil of Rhiminee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally published at Risingshadow.

How often have you felt frustrated when you've begun to read a modern dark fantasy flavoured novel or an urban fantasy novel with dark fantasy elements? Have you, for example, said to yourself "No, not this again!"? If you're tired of reading clichéd stories and want to read something totally different, Mercedes M. Yardley's Pretty Little Dead Girls is a perfect novel for you. It's excellent antidote for readers who have overdosed on bland modern fantasy and want to read a good novel.

Mercedes M. Yardley's Pretty Little Dead Girls is a darkly beautiful and strangely compelling fairy tale for adults. It's a fascinating combination of dark fantasy and urban fantasy elements. I was impressed by the dark and original story, because it was different from other stories in many ways (I have to mention that I don't recall reading anything quite like this before). I don't often praise this kind of novels, but in my opinion, this novel deserves to be praised for being a boldly different kind of a novel and the author must also be praised for writing it.

Dark happenings, death, beauty, whimsiness and everyday life blend in an irresistible way in Pretty Little Dead Girls. In less capable hands this novel might have been a total disaster, because it contains common elements that can be found in many fantasy novels, but Mercedes M. Yardley manages to use these elements in an exciting way.

It's great that author intentionally avoids clichés. You don't have to be afraid of being annoyed when you begin to read this novel, because the author has done her best to create a memorable story that contains lyrical language. She has managed to create a story that both terrifies the reader and attracts him/her to find out what happens to the protagonist at the end.

Pretty Little Dead Girls is a beautifully written story about Bryony Adams who tries to survive and stay alive. Bryony is destined to be murdered, but she tries to live her own life while she awaits her dark destiny to be fulfilled. This novel tells of how Bryony lives her life and what happens to her.

Bryony is totally different kind of a protagonist than normal protagonists in dark fantasy and urban fantasy novels, because she's a woman who knows what's going to happen to her. She knows that someday she will die. Wherever she goes people die around her - it's like death is targeting around her, but doesn't find its mark. Reading about her life was interesting, because her life was haunted by death and dead bodies.

Bryony's relationships with different people are handled well, because she has her own way of dealing with relationships and other people. The lives of the different people spin around her in an interesting way, because those who are near her have a feeling about her forthcoming fate and it affects their relationships with her.

The author writes fluently about people involved in Bryony's life. Eddie (musician), Chad (market fish-thrower) and the killer are all part of Bryony's life. The author has a way of drawing the reader's attention to the them and their actions, which is nice, because they deepen the atmosphere of the story.

I enjoyed reading about how the author wrote about Bryony's childhood and how she survived the first years of her life, because Bryony's life was revealed to the reader in a fascinatingly weird and beautiful way. Bryony knew from a young age that she was going to die someday and it affected her life and life style. She changed and began to live her life in a different way.

Mercedes M. Yardley's prose is good and surprisingly descriptive. I have to mention that I loved the prose, because the author easily created a dark and disturbing yet beautiful and heart-breaking atmosphere with her words and descriptions. There's a charmingly lyrical quality about the prose that emphasizes the fairy-tale-like elements of the story.

The cover image by Galen Dara looks beautiful and fits the story perfectly, because it manages to catch the terrible beauty of the story.

This is all that I'll write about this fantastic novel, because it would be a crime to reveal more things about its contents. It's a novel that needs to be experienced personally, because it's something different.

Based on this novel and the previous novel (Nameless: The Darkness Comes) I can say that Mercedes M. Yardley is definitely an author to watch. She's a talented author who can write original and compelling stories.

I can honestly say that this novel is one of the best modern dark fantasy flavoured novels I've read to date, because it's an original and well written novel that differs from other novels.

Pretty Little Dead Girls beckons to be found by readers who enjoy reading dark stories. This novel is beautiful, compelling and disturbing - what more could you possibly hope for in a dark fantasy flavoured novel? It's nearly impossible to deny the allure of the dark story, because it's an excellent story that draws the reader in immediately from the first pages of chapter one.

My final words are: This novel is fantastic entertainment for all who enjoy reading dark and lyrical stories!

[lady h]

i guess it's not REALLY a DNF if i only read one chapter, but i just wanted to mark on here that i'd given it a try and very quickly realized it was not going to be my thing. it's heavy on the magical realism and it reads almost like a fairy tale, and, idk, something about it just didn't work for me.

[Kačaba · Rating 1 out of 5]

Já se na tu obálku nemůžu vynadívat. Je opravdu moc krásná.
Ale to co je uvnitř? Kompletní a úhledně zabalený fekáloidní fekál. :)
Zpočátku to působí jako dost divná absurdní blbost, ale později... už jen jako blbost.
Nečtěte to.
Ušetřete čas na knížky, které za to stojí.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty Little Dead Girls by Mercedes Yardley is hard to describe, although she calls it a tale of murder and whimsy, I'm unable to find the right words. So we will stick with whimsical and really it makes no difference, all that matters is that it is so unique and fantastic that I find myself wondering why I have never read anything like this before.

Mercedes Yardley has a wonderful style all her own, one I have never come across in all the reading I have done. Pretty Little Dead Girls is a story of Bryony, a girl who's fate it is to die, but it's so much more, it's also a story of her desire to live. She is surrounded by death and finds death at her heels everyday of her life. She mets a wonderful man Eddie and makes many friends that can all see she is destined to die and do all they can to prevent this terrible fate. We have Peter who loves death and murder more than anything, he knows he and Bryony's fates are meant to be one. She is meant to die and he is meant to kill her.

The story is built with feeling and care and not driven by descriptions of scenery and typical character development or long dialogue. This is not to say there is no scenes and no descriptions, just that the story is narrated with Mercedes special way about her. It's the words and arrangement of them. I can only provide the following example: "Not that Peter believed that murder and sneezing were exactly the same, of course, but it certainly was an argument that downplayed the horrendous atrocity of his actions, and therefore it was an argument that he would very much like to make."  This kind of wonderful word usage fills the pages of the book and is really enjoyable to read.

The character's interactions are filled with their external words as well as internal thoughts. You're placed inside each character's head with their feelings, thoughts and internal conversations. After reading Beautiful Sorrows by Mercedes Yardley I knew I had stumbled across something uniquely fantastic. I knew I would have to read her next book and was given a copy for an honest review. It's a fantastically written book and again I'm left knowing I'll read her next book. I've recommend her books before and will continue to do so with this one. Pretty Little Dead Girls is the kind of book that sticks with you long after you've finished it.  I can't recommend it enough or give it higher praise.

[Lizzie J · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I was not expecting to love this as much as I did. I picked it up because it looked like it would be a quick little horror read with some spooky vibes, but I was not expecting it to be a beautiful and enjoyable as I found it.

The writing is so whimsical and romantic. It reads like a fairytale, but it's long enough for the reader to really grow attached to Bryony and the friends who surround and protect her.

The main plot of the book is, of course, the deaths that follow Bryony. And there is a lot of death. But part of what I love about the book is that, despite the death and horror, it still emphasizes the beauty of life and hope. Death isn't feared. It's accepted, but only after holding on to the hope of love and life. It makes the story very meaningful and deep.

I didn't give it a full five stars only because I felt like it did drag a little around the 2/3's mark (but that might only be because I originally thought the book was only 200 pages, instead of being closer to 300). I also thought that some of the plot points like her miscarriage and the reason Eddie didn't go with her when her dad died kind of dropped out of nowhere.

But still, not a disappointing read by any means. The story is nothing like I've read before, and it really hits deep.

[Andi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I'm definitely in the minority on this one. While I didn't love this book, I did enjoy it. Pretty Little Dead Girls tells the story of Bryony, who knows early on that she is destined to die a horrible death. The thing is, she accepts her fate and even embraces it, living a life filled with joy and good friends. What's odd is that others can also see her fate, but instead of running away, they only want to protect her from it. And that's where the title comes in, because protection sometimes comes with a price.

The writing was eloquent, and the author artfully speaks directly to the reader through the narrator. But while Bryony was likable, I wasn't necessarily drawn to her. And it was hard to care about her, knowing early on that she was destined to die.

This book brings up interesting questions on fate, and whether destinies are set or changeable. I'd you like books full of whimsy, you will likely enjoy this book.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guess what? I had 75% of this review written and I accidentally deleted it all. ALL OF IT. So, I'm going to do a condensed version because I need to not hulk smash my laptop and dance on the pile of broken pieces.

Dear Bryony. Dear sweet Bryony and all of her flowers.



She's sweet, innocent, kind, and destined to be murdered. Everyone who meets her knows it right away. Apparently, there is something about her that lets everyone know that she isn't long for this world. Even Bryony knows it. She's made peace with it. People try to protect her from it, but someone always dies. Fate, it seems, has terrible marksmanship. It is always those around her that die. So, to protect herself and the people around her, she runs. When she feels she's stayed too long, she runs again. Then one day, she runs to a place that she grows to love. She falls in love and makes friends. Unfortunately, one of the people she befriends sees that Bryony is destined to be murdered and decides that he wants to be one the to do it.

I think if you go into this book expecting anything other than a modern day Grimm fairy tale (like lumberjack hacking a wolf to pieces or stepsisters chopping off toes kind of thing) then you'll probably either think this book is just too weird or plain old silly. Then again, maybe it is. I know I enjoyed it. I actually listened to this book instead of reading it and I wonder if that made a difference. The narrator had a very particular way of reading it that made me feel like I was in 4th grade having a book read to me while we all sat on the floor. I mean that in the best way possible. I felt like a kid again, except this book had a much higher body count than Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

It's odd, it's melancholy, and a little deranged but I loved every minute. It certainly made preparing dinner a little different (my audiobook time). I'm 100% serious when I say this, but I actually burned my homemade croutons listening to this (don't judge me, I'm a celiac and I like croutons on my salads). It was right around the 80% mark and shit was going down. There I was, totally absorbed in this strange little book yelling "Get the knife Bryony!" and my croutons were burning. WHOOPS.



Don't worry, they were only burnt on the one side and therefore still delicious. I thoroughly enjoyed the croutons and the book.

[Mel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second read. I'll keep my first review below, but I have a lot more to say this time.

I've been on a voracious audiobook kick for the past couple weeks, finally catching up on my reading list. After finishing Less I wasn't sure what should be next out of the many library picks I have on reserve. It was to my own surprise that a nagging voice in my head told me that I should ignore all of those shiny new adventures, and return to this strange and obscure read from a few years ago. I couldn't resist it.

In my previous review, I mentioned that this story was interesting and unexpected but with unbelievable characters. Upon reread I've had to reconsider this. The premise is the only thing that has to be overcome with this tale, and once you accept that everyone who looks upon our heroine Bryony knows she is destined to die, the rest of the story unveils naturally. The characters are not unreal, but the narrator is cloying, mysterious, and a character herself, and she crafts the narrative in a way that dabbles more in the surreal than the concrete. On this reread, knowing what to expect, I was able to surrender to this more, and find the character depth hidden behind tropes and strange nicknames. There's a lot to read in between the lines in Pretty Little Dead Girls.

There's also something deliciously subversive in this tale. By having a main character who, by no fault of her own, is constantly looking over her shoulder and wondering when her time will come, the author perfectly captures that haunting preyed upon feeling that nearly every woman or vulnerable population has experienced before.

This is a brilliantly written tale, self-aware and sharp. I wish it was more well known and hope to read more of Yardley's work and find something equally worthwhile in her other stories. The audiobook narration truly adds to the experience.

----

First time reading:

Surreal and quirky. The characters weren't realistic but the tension was. I bought this audiobook on a whim because the cover looked neat and I was thoroughly surprised and pleased by it. Definitely recommend for those who like a Gaimanesque style, who like their realism magical and their magic realistic.

[Lani Lenore · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book floated past me on Twitter one day, and the cover art, matched with the title and description, drew me to it immediately.

Pretty Little Dead Girls is, essentially, a love story, but not in the traditional sense. It's a love story between a murderer and his victim, the fate that brought them together, and how they were meant to be. But that's only what the book boils down to.

We follow a girl named Bryony, an unfortunate girl who is destined to be murdered. Everyone who meets her seems to know this, but that doesn't stop her--despite knowing her own fate--from living her life. We follow her throughout her early years (her joys and her first loves) as she manages to avoid death, up until the point that she meets a murderer who believes that she is destined just for him.

This book is not horror, though it is full of vaguely terrible things. The Corpse Bride comes to mind somehow as an example of the 'grisly-but-not-really' vibe this book presents. I enjoyed the book, but there were a few things about it that kept me from loving it.

While the book certainly delivered in both the murder and whimsy departments, (and many lines were quite lyrical and lovely) the main thing that I disliked about this book was the writing style and voice. Not that it was terrible. It was just not my favorite. Sometimes I felt like I was instead reading Alice in Wonderland. Despite being set in Seattle, everything about it seemed so British, especially the dialogue, and that felt very strange to me. Sometimes the tense swapped back and forth as the narrator talked about the characters, but I think that was more of an editing issue.

As for the actual ebook itself, there were a few mistakes in editing and in layout, and there were a couple of sections where the text repeated itself completely over a paragraph or two. I'm pretty sure this wasn't intentional, and it had me flipping back to make sure I hadn't somehow gone back a page, but no.

If these things don't seem like they would bother you--if you're looking for something a little different--then by all means check out this book. It was an interesting read.

[Dana Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never have a read a book with more lyrical and beautiful prose. Bryony Adams is a girl with a target painted on her head and all who look at her see the marks of death upon her. All the days of her life she is aware that death knows her name and as the bodies begin to fall around her like desiccated daisies she grabs onto life and holds it tight. Much like the jonquil flowers she loves the most, this girl is dainty with stars in her eyes and magic in her hair. There is a sweetness like a thermonuclear butterfly just waiting to flutter across your heart. I loved it. Every second.

The desert calls for her bones and Bryony knows she must run as far and wide as she can...but death hasn't forgotten dear star girl...no. It plots and thinks and gnashes its teeth mindful of opportunity. The bodies, as they always do, start to fall and time begins to draw to a close. Her beloved husband knows the truth. That death will not stop until it breaks Bryony's bones in its teeth--and that he will do everything in his power to stop it.

What an amazing book. Mercedes M. Yardley is on my must buy list and as soon as I got even close to finishing this one (thank you Ragnarok for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review) I went out and ordered the e-book of one of her other titles.

There is not another author I have found who weaves a fairy tale out of cold blooded murder quite like Mercedes Yardley. It brought tears to my eyes and a bittersweet longing to my heart. I even drew a very sad and horrific picture for the release party but thankfully it was already over before I posted it so hopefully no one lost their lunch with my hideous drawing skills.

But I digress--if you love a novel that will take you away from the world and delight you with a tremendous state of bliss then you must meet Bryony and travel with her on her journey to outsmart death, the desert and one very particularly persistent serial killer.

I will find and read every bit of this author's work because I do not want the romance to end. Not now...not ever. It is...magic...

[Steven Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m certain I’ve never read a more charming, witty story about a girl fated to die at the hands of a serial killer. It’s a fable, a parable, and a murder tale all bundled into a sweet, seamless package, with a current of real-world grit percolating beneath the near-poetic way in which the devilish story unfolds. But the real star of the show is the wordsmanship; Ms. Yardley has such a tender skill with language, a true talent for describing everything, including—or maybe especially—the darkest of moments and the most heinous of acts in such a way that it all sparkles like a fairy-tale dream. Even supporting characters gleam in their page time under her assured telling as she weaves them in and out and back in again. She’s a modern-day Poe with an elegant magician’s touch, and an inspiration for other writers to up their game considerably.

[Michael Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so different from what I typically read I am having a hard time rating and reviewing it justly. I found it very intriguing from the start, it has a lyrical, almost fairy-tale-esque quality to the prose, though there are no true supernatural elements to it. As the story developed and the cast and setting that would persist through the rest of the story became settled, I lost a little interest, some of the boundless scope and energy it had was lost by constraining it to more mundane situations, but by the ending, and after reflecting on it a little I think I really liked this book quite a bit. It is definitely a tale of murder and whimsy, as the subtitle suggests. I think readers of modern fantasy, slightly off-kilter romance, and dark humor would find a lot of things to like about it too.

[Escheresque · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a new favorite of mine. If you know me, you know that I adore fairy tales, I collect fairy tales, and I write my own fairy tales -- some of my favorite memories have begun with the words "Once upon a time...". I love dark thrillers about serial killers, too, and Pretty Little Dead Girls reads like a movie directed by David Fincher, produced by Stephen King, and co-written by Oscar Wilde and the Brothers Grimm. It is available to purchase tomorrow, and I could not recommend it enough.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

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