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Burn Our Bodies Down
From the author of the New York Times bestseller Wilder Girls comes a new twisty thriller about a girl whose past has always been a mystery—until she decides to return to her mother’s hometown . . . where history has a tendency to repeat itself.
Ever since Margot was born, it’s been just her and her mother. No answers to Margot’s questions about what came before. No history to hold on to. No relative to speak of. Just the two of them, stuck in their run-down apartment, struggling to get along.
But that’s not enough for Margot. She wants family. She wants a past. And she just found the key she needs to get it: A photograph, pointing her to a town called Phalene. Pointing her home. Only, when Margot gets there, it’s not what she bargained for.
Margot’s mother left for a reason. But was it to hide her past? Or was it to protect Margot from what’s still there?
The only thing Margot knows for sure is there’s poison in their family tree, and their roots are dug so deeply into Phalene that now that she’s there, she might never escape.
Ever since Margot was born, it’s been just her and her mother. No answers to Margot’s questions about what came before. No history to hold on to. No relative to speak of. Just the two of them, stuck in their run-down apartment, struggling to get along.
But that’s not enough for Margot. She wants family. She wants a past. And she just found the key she needs to get it: A photograph, pointing her to a town called Phalene. Pointing her home. Only, when Margot gets there, it’s not what she bargained for.
Margot’s mother left for a reason. But was it to hide her past? Or was it to protect Margot from what’s still there?
The only thing Margot knows for sure is there’s poison in their family tree, and their roots are dug so deeply into Phalene that now that she’s there, she might never escape.
352 pages, Paperback
First published July 7, 2020
355 people are currently reading
43819 people want to read
About the author
Rory Power
11 books3,134 followersRory Power grew up in New England, where she lives and works as a crime fiction editor and story consultant for TV adaptation. She received a Masters in Prose Fiction from the University of East Anglia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,023 reviews
February 27, 2022
Check out my instagram to see my dance moves with this book! 💃🏻📚😂
I’m seeing the stars! THIS IS…. THIS BOOK… THIS STORY… THI…TH…T… I lost the words! Please somebody tell me my lines! Oh boy, weklcjoj4ffejewoi! Oh no, I lost my cognitive skills! I lost my brain! I lost my mind! I lost my mouth! Oh no, how can drink wine without my mouth? Who is talking now? Did I become a ventriloquist? WHAT THE HELL I JUST READ!!!
I carry three heads right now! I hold something in my hands: a secret recipe of the best mind bending novel I’ve read lately.
Here is the formula: We have a table spoon “Children of Corn” and stir it with two cups of “Sharp Objects” and add some Stephen King and Paul Tremblay’s eerie, spooky, earth shattering, mind crushing thriller elements, mix it with literature’s most batshit crazy mother-daughter dysfunctional relationships starting from Carrie White and Margaret White to Beloved’s Sethe and her spirit daughter. And then cook it over a fire! And let’s sing the DISCO INFERNO’S “Burn baby burn” chorus, then continue with “come on baby light my fire”! But be careful not to be burned!
And let’s talk about this unconventional, complex, mind spinning plot:
Margot is her last days of 18 and she has a dysfunctional, unhealthy, weird, dependent, a kind of obsessed and sick relationship with her mother. I’m not sure if Margot is the real mother and her mother Jo already lost her marbles from the beginning, having no idea how to raise a kid.
Margot feels trapped and save herself from their party of two lives and bring more family members into the equation. But her mother rejects to give her any information about their family history. And one day Margot accidentally finds out she has a grandmother who lives at the weirdest town that the world already forgot it existed, named Phalene. She thinks she found her missing piece, a real opportunity to have a big family including lots of stupid cousins, gossiping aunts, wanker uncles, okay I’m kidding, of course she wants to be a part of real family and make changes with her life so she questions her mother to learn more but she still keeps her mother shut. Margot finally decides she’ll learn everything from her own way!
And as soon as she takes her first step to the eerie, ominous town waiting in silence the storm’s coming (or let’s say the big fire’s approaching!) she meets with Tess and Eli and finds out her grandmother’s land on fire. When she reaches her house, she sees a girl lying motionless. As soon as she saves her from fire, she realizes the girl looks just like her and she is dead! And the officers catch her besides the girl think she is responsible from the fire and the girl’s dead.
But don’t worry! Grandmother the dearest comes to the station and berates the officers for frightening her granddaughter the sweetest. So Margot goes to the house of grandmother the sneakiest and she finally finds out she already opened dozen cans of worms! She slowly absorbs the secret structure of their family history. And I stop here… because after Margot’s arrival at grandmother’s house, this book turns into something breathtaking, astonishing, grey cell terminator, shocking, twisty, surprising, explicit but also dark, wild, terrifying.
I kept mumbling to myself : ‘WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF!” and my husband found me at the living room, sitting on the floor, numb, saliva dripping down my mouth, pale, eyes widened as if I’d seen first 27 minutes of “Saving Private Ryan” over and over again!
THIS IS SOOOO CRAZY, NASTY, MIND SPINNING EXPERIENCE and I liked every word, sentence, page, ink of it!
I enjoyed the “Wilder Girls” but for the love of mind-bending books, this is so unexpectedly splendid masterpiece and I highly recommend the readers who like something extra ordinary, different, out of your comfort zone! Rory Power rises and shines with this fast pacing, surprising novel!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for sharing this incredible ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review. I LOVED IT SO MUCH!
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I’m seeing the stars! THIS IS…. THIS BOOK… THIS STORY… THI…TH…T… I lost the words! Please somebody tell me my lines! Oh boy, weklcjoj4ffejewoi! Oh no, I lost my cognitive skills! I lost my brain! I lost my mind! I lost my mouth! Oh no, how can drink wine without my mouth? Who is talking now? Did I become a ventriloquist? WHAT THE HELL I JUST READ!!!
I carry three heads right now! I hold something in my hands: a secret recipe of the best mind bending novel I’ve read lately.
Here is the formula: We have a table spoon “Children of Corn” and stir it with two cups of “Sharp Objects” and add some Stephen King and Paul Tremblay’s eerie, spooky, earth shattering, mind crushing thriller elements, mix it with literature’s most batshit crazy mother-daughter dysfunctional relationships starting from Carrie White and Margaret White to Beloved’s Sethe and her spirit daughter. And then cook it over a fire! And let’s sing the DISCO INFERNO’S “Burn baby burn” chorus, then continue with “come on baby light my fire”! But be careful not to be burned!
And let’s talk about this unconventional, complex, mind spinning plot:
Margot is her last days of 18 and she has a dysfunctional, unhealthy, weird, dependent, a kind of obsessed and sick relationship with her mother. I’m not sure if Margot is the real mother and her mother Jo already lost her marbles from the beginning, having no idea how to raise a kid.
Margot feels trapped and save herself from their party of two lives and bring more family members into the equation. But her mother rejects to give her any information about their family history. And one day Margot accidentally finds out she has a grandmother who lives at the weirdest town that the world already forgot it existed, named Phalene. She thinks she found her missing piece, a real opportunity to have a big family including lots of stupid cousins, gossiping aunts, wanker uncles, okay I’m kidding, of course she wants to be a part of real family and make changes with her life so she questions her mother to learn more but she still keeps her mother shut. Margot finally decides she’ll learn everything from her own way!
And as soon as she takes her first step to the eerie, ominous town waiting in silence the storm’s coming (or let’s say the big fire’s approaching!) she meets with Tess and Eli and finds out her grandmother’s land on fire. When she reaches her house, she sees a girl lying motionless. As soon as she saves her from fire, she realizes the girl looks just like her and she is dead! And the officers catch her besides the girl think she is responsible from the fire and the girl’s dead.
But don’t worry! Grandmother the dearest comes to the station and berates the officers for frightening her granddaughter the sweetest. So Margot goes to the house of grandmother the sneakiest and she finally finds out she already opened dozen cans of worms! She slowly absorbs the secret structure of their family history. And I stop here… because after Margot’s arrival at grandmother’s house, this book turns into something breathtaking, astonishing, grey cell terminator, shocking, twisty, surprising, explicit but also dark, wild, terrifying.
I kept mumbling to myself : ‘WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF! WTF!” and my husband found me at the living room, sitting on the floor, numb, saliva dripping down my mouth, pale, eyes widened as if I’d seen first 27 minutes of “Saving Private Ryan” over and over again!
THIS IS SOOOO CRAZY, NASTY, MIND SPINNING EXPERIENCE and I liked every word, sentence, page, ink of it!
I enjoyed the “Wilder Girls” but for the love of mind-bending books, this is so unexpectedly splendid masterpiece and I highly recommend the readers who like something extra ordinary, different, out of your comfort zone! Rory Power rises and shines with this fast pacing, surprising novel!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for sharing this incredible ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review. I LOVED IT SO MUCH!
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January 7, 2021
"It's not love, to give your wounds to someone else."
Rory Power is carving out that space for gritty, haunting, and disturbing, sapphic YA and I love to see it.
I can't tell you what expectations I had for this book but they were met. This cover exudes brittle, burning heat amongst other, darker feelings and I must say that not many covers hit the nail on its head like that. I still can't say that I love the cover - it looks muted and flat? - but it's genius in its own way.
I'm not going to say much about the plot because I would immediately give away far too much and you best go into this book without knowing much about it. It's a family thriller/mystery with a twist. Let that be all you know. Now I loved this book because I loved This Darkness Mine and Dig. and it felt like a weird combination of the two. (By the way, if you loved any of these three books, I recommend you read the others as well.)
The most important aspect of successful storytelling are the characters at its heart. At least, that's true for me. I need complex, flawed, interesting characters rather than shallow figures that have as much depth as the next puddle on your sidewalk. And all Rory's characters are super intriguing, their relationships frayed, often toxic, and very well written. Here's one of my favourite lines from the novel:
But she's shaking her heard. "You can't tell me what I meant."
I struggle to take a deep breath. "But it sounded that way to me. Doesn't that matter? Doesn't it matter how you made me feel?"
You see, good intentions are useless when the effect of your words or actions cause pain. Taken out of context, this can be widely applied, especially to conversations about white privilege and racism. Just a sidetone.
There's something about Rory's writing that I can't quite put my finger on. Something that causes an emotional disconnect and therefore fails to captivate me wholly. While I live for the horror and gore, and while I generally enjoy the prose, the words blur together and I often find myself skimming a few sentences before I can stop myself. I also found the ending ever so slightly anticlimactic. There were a few chapters when Rory had me glued to the pages and then, rather than ending with a bang, it was more of a rattle.
Still, it's a deeply fascinating novel, one that I believe would make a perfectly disturbing and moody film. I need it.
Find more of my books on Instagram
Rory Power is carving out that space for gritty, haunting, and disturbing, sapphic YA and I love to see it.
I can't tell you what expectations I had for this book but they were met. This cover exudes brittle, burning heat amongst other, darker feelings and I must say that not many covers hit the nail on its head like that. I still can't say that I love the cover - it looks muted and flat? - but it's genius in its own way.
I'm not going to say much about the plot because I would immediately give away far too much and you best go into this book without knowing much about it. It's a family thriller/mystery with a twist. Let that be all you know. Now I loved this book because I loved This Darkness Mine and Dig. and it felt like a weird combination of the two. (By the way, if you loved any of these three books, I recommend you read the others as well.)
The most important aspect of successful storytelling are the characters at its heart. At least, that's true for me. I need complex, flawed, interesting characters rather than shallow figures that have as much depth as the next puddle on your sidewalk. And all Rory's characters are super intriguing, their relationships frayed, often toxic, and very well written. Here's one of my favourite lines from the novel:
But she's shaking her heard. "You can't tell me what I meant."
I struggle to take a deep breath. "But it sounded that way to me. Doesn't that matter? Doesn't it matter how you made me feel?"
You see, good intentions are useless when the effect of your words or actions cause pain. Taken out of context, this can be widely applied, especially to conversations about white privilege and racism. Just a sidetone.
There's something about Rory's writing that I can't quite put my finger on. Something that causes an emotional disconnect and therefore fails to captivate me wholly. While I live for the horror and gore, and while I generally enjoy the prose, the words blur together and I often find myself skimming a few sentences before I can stop myself. I also found the ending ever so slightly anticlimactic. There were a few chapters when Rory had me glued to the pages and then, rather than ending with a bang, it was more of a rattle.
Still, it's a deeply fascinating novel, one that I believe would make a perfectly disturbing and moody film. I need it.
Find more of my books on Instagram
July 13, 2020
THIS WAS SO WEIRD AND CREEPY AND AMAZING
November 5, 2023
**3.5-stars rounded up**
I feel like one of the few people left in the YA book world who hasn't read Wilder Girls. I own it and have added it to numerous TBRs since its release, but still haven't read it.
When I received an early copy of Rory Power's second novel, Burn Our Bodies Down, I was shocked and elated.
I couldn't wait to pick it up and then, I just didn't. Long story short, I am a horrible reviewer, but if you read my reviews, you may already be aware of this.
I finally decided to give this one a shot over my week-long Christmas vacation. I really enjoyed it. Why didn't I pick this up months ago!?
Burn Our Bodies Down is equal parts weird, disturbing, suspenseful and oddly heartbreaking; some of my favorite characteristics to find in a book.
The story follows, Margot, a teen who has been dealing with her mother's mental instability her entire life. They have no other family and any time Margot presses for info about their past, or where she came from, her mother loses it.
Their relationship has always been contentious. Margot has never felt wanted, or loved, and lives her life walking on eggshells.
Just as Margot gets to the end of her rope, she discovers a clue. The only hint she has ever had in regards to her mother's early life.
It's a photograph, tucked into a family bible, signed by someone who she believes is her grandmother. In addition to a phone number, the photo also indicates a town name: Phalene.
She's shocked. Phalene isn't even that far away. She decides to go there, find her grandmother and finally get some answers.
Arriving in town, Margot meets a couple of local teens she tries to needle information out of. While she is with them, they receive news of a fire on her grandmother's farm.
The kids rush to check out the scene and end up finding the fields in flames, as well as a body.
Upon further inspection, they discover the body is a girl, about their age and most disturbingly, she looks exactly like Margot.
Thus begins the head-scratching drama that surrounds Margot's family farm. I can't even begin to tell you how confused and intrigued I was by what was going on in this town.
Margot meets her Grandmother, Vera, and stays with her, but continues to be brushed off when she tries to get definitive answers about her mother's childhood, or where she came from.
Margot learns many things in her first few days in Phalene, including the existence of family members she never knew about, including her mother's twin sister, Katherine. During her investigation, she also ends up making a couple of friends along the way.
There is a dark feeling of unease that spans this entire novel.
You know, deep in your heart, that something is very wrong in Phalene and Margot's family is at the heart of it, but what!?
I would classify this as a Horror Novel, a genre I have been enjoying quite a bit lately.
I personally loved Power's writing style, although I did think some of Margot's musings eventually bordered on repetitive. With this being said, Power's ability to write body horror is top-notch; that cannot be denied.
I would recommend this one to Horror readers, particularly if you read and enjoyed Silvia Moreno-Garcia's, Mexian Gothic. I would say the two stories channel a lot of similar vibes.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Delacorte Press, for providing me with a copy of this to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity to provide my opinion and will definitely be picking up Wilder Girls now!
I feel like one of the few people left in the YA book world who hasn't read Wilder Girls. I own it and have added it to numerous TBRs since its release, but still haven't read it.
When I received an early copy of Rory Power's second novel, Burn Our Bodies Down, I was shocked and elated.
I couldn't wait to pick it up and then, I just didn't. Long story short, I am a horrible reviewer, but if you read my reviews, you may already be aware of this.
I finally decided to give this one a shot over my week-long Christmas vacation. I really enjoyed it. Why didn't I pick this up months ago!?
Burn Our Bodies Down is equal parts weird, disturbing, suspenseful and oddly heartbreaking; some of my favorite characteristics to find in a book.
The story follows, Margot, a teen who has been dealing with her mother's mental instability her entire life. They have no other family and any time Margot presses for info about their past, or where she came from, her mother loses it.
Their relationship has always been contentious. Margot has never felt wanted, or loved, and lives her life walking on eggshells.
Just as Margot gets to the end of her rope, she discovers a clue. The only hint she has ever had in regards to her mother's early life.
It's a photograph, tucked into a family bible, signed by someone who she believes is her grandmother. In addition to a phone number, the photo also indicates a town name: Phalene.
She's shocked. Phalene isn't even that far away. She decides to go there, find her grandmother and finally get some answers.
Arriving in town, Margot meets a couple of local teens she tries to needle information out of. While she is with them, they receive news of a fire on her grandmother's farm.
The kids rush to check out the scene and end up finding the fields in flames, as well as a body.
Upon further inspection, they discover the body is a girl, about their age and most disturbingly, she looks exactly like Margot.
Thus begins the head-scratching drama that surrounds Margot's family farm. I can't even begin to tell you how confused and intrigued I was by what was going on in this town.
Margot meets her Grandmother, Vera, and stays with her, but continues to be brushed off when she tries to get definitive answers about her mother's childhood, or where she came from.
Margot learns many things in her first few days in Phalene, including the existence of family members she never knew about, including her mother's twin sister, Katherine. During her investigation, she also ends up making a couple of friends along the way.
There is a dark feeling of unease that spans this entire novel.
You know, deep in your heart, that something is very wrong in Phalene and Margot's family is at the heart of it, but what!?
I would classify this as a Horror Novel, a genre I have been enjoying quite a bit lately.
I personally loved Power's writing style, although I did think some of Margot's musings eventually bordered on repetitive. With this being said, Power's ability to write body horror is top-notch; that cannot be denied.
I would recommend this one to Horror readers, particularly if you read and enjoyed Silvia Moreno-Garcia's, Mexian Gothic. I would say the two stories channel a lot of similar vibes.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Delacorte Press, for providing me with a copy of this to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity to provide my opinion and will definitely be picking up Wilder Girls now!
January 16, 2022
3.25
It's been 4 hours since I completed the book and I am still lying on the floor and my mind is racing , it's endlessly racing in spirals and flames!
1. Did I liked the book?
no, well idk it was stupid at times but honestly idk.
2. Was it weird?
The weirdest y/a mystery I have ever read , it was not only weird but at times stupid too with its lame plot points and illogical conversations and turns.
3. How about the characters?
I think they were MEDICORE I didn't connected with them but I think what they did was at times acceptable !
4. Why I continued reading it?
To test how smart I am !
Well after like half of the book was done I was pretty sure if most of the twists and turns but I wanted to continue reading it to know whether I am correct or not !
Guess what I was!
And honesty it wasn't that tough !
And for the biggest twist remember think of the wildest guess or if you can remember high school biology the answer is there !
5. How about other things like plot,writing?
Plot:- ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Writing :- ⭐⭐
Characters :- ⭐⭐⭐
Average :- ⭐⭐⭐
6. Did I enjoyed it?
Yes because it was weird and I am weird and I like weird things, no matter it's supernatural or dark or whatever.
7. Any message for author?
She is insanely genius! Nobody in right mind can think that!
And I am ready to read kinder girls coz I have already fallen in love with the cover!
8. Would I recommended it?
Not everything makes sense sometimes but if you enjoyed it you should recommend it!
I enjoyed this book and I will recommend it !
I am going back to lying on floor and thinking how insane that shit was that happened in this book!
Why ??
Coz it's 2020 and nothing makes sense to me now!
It's been 4 hours since I completed the book and I am still lying on the floor and my mind is racing , it's endlessly racing in spirals and flames!
1. Did I liked the book?
no, well idk it was stupid at times but honestly idk.
2. Was it weird?
The weirdest y/a mystery I have ever read , it was not only weird but at times stupid too with its lame plot points and illogical conversations and turns.
3. How about the characters?
I think they were MEDICORE I didn't connected with them but I think what they did was at times acceptable !
4. Why I continued reading it?
To test how smart I am !
Well after like half of the book was done I was pretty sure if most of the twists and turns but I wanted to continue reading it to know whether I am correct or not !
Guess what I was!
And honesty it wasn't that tough !
And for the biggest twist remember think of the wildest guess or if you can remember high school biology the answer is there !
5. How about other things like plot,writing?
Plot:- ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Writing :- ⭐⭐
Characters :- ⭐⭐⭐
Average :- ⭐⭐⭐
6. Did I enjoyed it?
Yes because it was weird and I am weird and I like weird things, no matter it's supernatural or dark or whatever.
7. Any message for author?
She is insanely genius! Nobody in right mind can think that!
And I am ready to read kinder girls coz I have already fallen in love with the cover!
8. Would I recommended it?
Not everything makes sense sometimes but if you enjoyed it you should recommend it!
I enjoyed this book and I will recommend it !
I am going back to lying on floor and thinking how insane that shit was that happened in this book!
Why ??
Coz it's 2020 and nothing makes sense to me now!
June 15, 2020
"If it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt."
-Matthew 26:39
WOOF. Gather round, children, and listen to the tale of how my most highly anticipated YA release of 2020 ended up being a flippity flop of epic proportions. (Obviously this is a biased opinion, and one woman's trash is another's treasure, so please check out all the positive reviews as mine remains clearly in the minority thus far.)
I've been sitting here for two days trying to organize my thoughts into a somewhat coherent review, and I'm left with a similar, albeit slightly worse feeling as I had upon finishing Wilder Girls last year. Whenever I read books that feature anything along the lines of fantasy, dystopian, or even historical, I'm of the camp that craves detailed atmosphere and character building; the more the better! And while Power is a phenomenal powerhouse of creating elaborate, intriguing ideas and beautifully oppressive atmosphere, I'm not sure the characterization and pacing are up to snuff here.
"Look at you," Gram whispers. She bends down, kisses the back of my head, and she's holding my shoulders so tight that I can feel bruises setting deep under my skin. I don't mind. It's about time love left a mark on me."
In the same vein as the author's debut, Burn Our Bodies Down is horror set in a world similar to our own, but gone bad. Margot has lived on her own with her mom for as long as she can remember, and is forbidden to ask questions about her extended family and where they come from. After she finds a clue leading her to her remaining family, Margot runs away to meet her Gram at the Nielsen farm and hopes to find answers to her many questions surrounding her origins. Shortly after arriving in town, there's an incident that introduces disturbing questions that need answering, and the remaining 70% of the book is us following alongside, curious as to what's wrong with this place.
I won't beat around the bush; the only reason I pressed through this book was to find out if my guess, around the 30% mark, of what was going on was correct. Spoiler alert: it was. This could be chalked up to reading more than my fair share of mysteries, but I felt the clue given after the first major event happens only left a small pool of options, especially knowing that this would fall into the supernatural realm and that we would be thrown a red herring or two before the ending. My main concern is that, while there are ample descriptions of this dry and crumbling small town (which I loved), the dialogue is stilted and many characters and plot threads are introduced that either have little to no bearing on the story, or just provide filling repetition. We are briefly told near the beginning of the story that the MC is either a lesbian or bisexual, but then this narrative is all but dropped for the remainder of the story, other than occasionally alluding to some tension between Tess and Margot. Eli is introduced as a staple in Tess's household, and we are constantly lead to wonder whether him and Tess have a relationship beyond friendship, but again this is never really addressed.
The final 80% truly picked up in pacing, and I loved how this played out, but it felt as though all the gore and shock value was spared until this moment, which gave the book as a whole a very "safe" feeling. I think maybe if a less distracted focus had been set on a few elements of the story, and if I had been able to form any sort of connections to the characters rather than reading about them at surface level, this would have been a 4-5 star experience. This is likely where I part ways with Ms. Power, but I sincerely wish her all the best, and I highly recommend you check this one out for yourself and form your own thoughts about this thought provoking read.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
*Content Warning:
-Matthew 26:39
WOOF. Gather round, children, and listen to the tale of how my most highly anticipated YA release of 2020 ended up being a flippity flop of epic proportions. (Obviously this is a biased opinion, and one woman's trash is another's treasure, so please check out all the positive reviews as mine remains clearly in the minority thus far.)
I've been sitting here for two days trying to organize my thoughts into a somewhat coherent review, and I'm left with a similar, albeit slightly worse feeling as I had upon finishing Wilder Girls last year. Whenever I read books that feature anything along the lines of fantasy, dystopian, or even historical, I'm of the camp that craves detailed atmosphere and character building; the more the better! And while Power is a phenomenal powerhouse of creating elaborate, intriguing ideas and beautifully oppressive atmosphere, I'm not sure the characterization and pacing are up to snuff here.
"Look at you," Gram whispers. She bends down, kisses the back of my head, and she's holding my shoulders so tight that I can feel bruises setting deep under my skin. I don't mind. It's about time love left a mark on me."
In the same vein as the author's debut, Burn Our Bodies Down is horror set in a world similar to our own, but gone bad. Margot has lived on her own with her mom for as long as she can remember, and is forbidden to ask questions about her extended family and where they come from. After she finds a clue leading her to her remaining family, Margot runs away to meet her Gram at the Nielsen farm and hopes to find answers to her many questions surrounding her origins. Shortly after arriving in town, there's an incident that introduces disturbing questions that need answering, and the remaining 70% of the book is us following alongside, curious as to what's wrong with this place.
I won't beat around the bush; the only reason I pressed through this book was to find out if my guess, around the 30% mark, of what was going on was correct. Spoiler alert: it was. This could be chalked up to reading more than my fair share of mysteries, but I felt the clue given after the first major event happens only left a small pool of options, especially knowing that this would fall into the supernatural realm and that we would be thrown a red herring or two before the ending. My main concern is that, while there are ample descriptions of this dry and crumbling small town (which I loved), the dialogue is stilted and many characters and plot threads are introduced that either have little to no bearing on the story, or just provide filling repetition. We are briefly told near the beginning of the story that the MC is either a lesbian or bisexual, but then this narrative is all but dropped for the remainder of the story, other than occasionally alluding to some tension between Tess and Margot. Eli is introduced as a staple in Tess's household, and we are constantly lead to wonder whether him and Tess have a relationship beyond friendship, but again this is never really addressed.
The final 80% truly picked up in pacing, and I loved how this played out, but it felt as though all the gore and shock value was spared until this moment, which gave the book as a whole a very "safe" feeling. I think maybe if a less distracted focus had been set on a few elements of the story, and if I had been able to form any sort of connections to the characters rather than reading about them at surface level, this would have been a 4-5 star experience. This is likely where I part ways with Ms. Power, but I sincerely wish her all the best, and I highly recommend you check this one out for yourself and form your own thoughts about this thought provoking read.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
*Content Warning:
August 6, 2020
MEH.
This book didn’t make any fucking sense.
I feel so stupid after reading this.
More like a 2.5 STARS.
This book didn’t make any fucking sense.
I feel so stupid after reading this.
More like a 2.5 STARS.
March 10, 2021
I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book.
Burn our bodies down is a masterpiece!!
It reminded me of Children of the Corn (Movie series) so much with the very similar atmosphere and small town vibe (and corn), but the story was very different and oh my God, it was soooo good.
I have to admit that it wasn't the love at first sight.
The writing style was great, and it kept me reading and reading (plus I loved Power's debut Wilder Girls), but Margot was not the character I would root for, and her reading about her relationship with her mother was bitter for me, because of my own relationship with my own mother.
In this period of my life, when I really don't have time to read, I managed to finish Burn our Bodies Down in four days.
It was just too interesting and I cleared my schedule of everything just so I could read.
My favourite part of the story was the atmosphere and horror elements, and as I already said in my review for Wilder Girls, I want to read everything Rory Power writes.
I highly, highly recommend Burn our Bodies Down!
Burn our bodies down is a masterpiece!!
It reminded me of Children of the Corn (Movie series) so much with the very similar atmosphere and small town vibe (and corn), but the story was very different and oh my God, it was soooo good.
I have to admit that it wasn't the love at first sight.
The writing style was great, and it kept me reading and reading (plus I loved Power's debut Wilder Girls), but Margot was not the character I would root for, and her reading about her relationship with her mother was bitter for me, because of my own relationship with my own mother.
In this period of my life, when I really don't have time to read, I managed to finish Burn our Bodies Down in four days.
It was just too interesting and I cleared my schedule of everything just so I could read.
My favourite part of the story was the atmosphere and horror elements, and as I already said in my review for Wilder Girls, I want to read everything Rory Power writes.
I highly, highly recommend Burn our Bodies Down!
August 5, 2020
One might say: There are different levels of different.
Read this book and you might say: Out of the box that is within a circle.
Just let that sync in. Go ahead, take a minute. Read it again.
Out of the box that is within a circle.
Now follow the number trail down. You will get it at the end.
5
4
3
2
1
And Snap! Now you have all the answers! It all makes sense, right?
WRONG!!
I can come up with a fancy looking phrase and dress up the experience, but if it is gibberish, it is still just gibberish no matter how pretty you make it look!! "Out of the box that is within a circle". That makes about as much sense as this book did in the end.
It has always been just Margot and her mother. Her mother is somewhat emotionally abusive and extremely manipulative. She has always refused to share any information about her past, where she is from, including her own mother, Margot’s grandmother, who is still alive. Margot desperately wants to learn more about her family’s origins and her mother’s past. One day, she decides to visit her grandmother. While staying with her, Margot notices it is certainly a different world where her mother grew up and she understands some of the reasons as to why her mother is the way she is. Additionally, there is a mysterious death that hangs over her visit as well. Her arrival in her grandmother's town was met with an immediate disaster. A huge fire in her grandmother’s corn fields. Margot runs into the fire because she sees someone. They pull her out of the fire, only to discover she is already dead, but most disturbingly she looks identical to Margot’s mother. This woman is not her mother so who is she? What was she doing in the field? How did she die and where did she come from? What is going on??
This book had very pretty writing that I enjoyed reading and the initial plot had me intrigued. This is where my "likes" list ends. It becomes a long drawn out story that gets deeper in baby steps and weirder in adult steps. This alone made my interest wan. In addition, there was so many little strings of plot pulled in tiny directions that do not end up materializing into significant pieces to the final plot, therefore they mostly leave you stretched and uncompelled. I was brain half in half out by the time of the big reveal. So yes, it is certainly a bizarre and unexpected twist! Some readers think it is awesome. Unfortunately, I was ready for it to be over and even that crazy ending wasn't going to save the 90% that was way too long and overly disjointed. Ultimately, it felt like an attempt to salvage the book with a rare and outré ending. Yes, I just used the word "outré" and yes, I get 100 points for that!
*Thank you to Random House Children's via NetGalley for providing me with the digital review copy.
Read this book and you might say: Out of the box that is within a circle.
Just let that sync in. Go ahead, take a minute. Read it again.
Out of the box that is within a circle.
Now follow the number trail down. You will get it at the end.
5
4
3
2
1
And Snap! Now you have all the answers! It all makes sense, right?
WRONG!!
I can come up with a fancy looking phrase and dress up the experience, but if it is gibberish, it is still just gibberish no matter how pretty you make it look!! "Out of the box that is within a circle". That makes about as much sense as this book did in the end.
It has always been just Margot and her mother. Her mother is somewhat emotionally abusive and extremely manipulative. She has always refused to share any information about her past, where she is from, including her own mother, Margot’s grandmother, who is still alive. Margot desperately wants to learn more about her family’s origins and her mother’s past. One day, she decides to visit her grandmother. While staying with her, Margot notices it is certainly a different world where her mother grew up and she understands some of the reasons as to why her mother is the way she is. Additionally, there is a mysterious death that hangs over her visit as well. Her arrival in her grandmother's town was met with an immediate disaster. A huge fire in her grandmother’s corn fields. Margot runs into the fire because she sees someone. They pull her out of the fire, only to discover she is already dead, but most disturbingly she looks identical to Margot’s mother. This woman is not her mother so who is she? What was she doing in the field? How did she die and where did she come from? What is going on??
This book had very pretty writing that I enjoyed reading and the initial plot had me intrigued. This is where my "likes" list ends. It becomes a long drawn out story that gets deeper in baby steps and weirder in adult steps. This alone made my interest wan. In addition, there was so many little strings of plot pulled in tiny directions that do not end up materializing into significant pieces to the final plot, therefore they mostly leave you stretched and uncompelled. I was brain half in half out by the time of the big reveal. So yes, it is certainly a bizarre and unexpected twist! Some readers think it is awesome. Unfortunately, I was ready for it to be over and even that crazy ending wasn't going to save the 90% that was way too long and overly disjointed. Ultimately, it felt like an attempt to salvage the book with a rare and outré ending. Yes, I just used the word "outré" and yes, I get 100 points for that!
*Thank you to Random House Children's via NetGalley for providing me with the digital review copy.
Read
May 23, 2020
August 7, 2020
I went into this one with pretty low expectations because
Wilder Girls
didn't really work for me, but somehow I still came out of it feeling disappointed. This had all the makings of a book I should love: queer characters, rural small-towns, strained mother/daughter relationships, but something about this really just didn't click for me. I feel like I never really got to know the main character, which kept me from bonding to her or the story or honestly caring about anything that happened. I will say, while the story as a whole didn't super work for me, I did listen to this one as an audiobook and I honestly found the narrator's delivery to be the best part of my reading experience. I would say that if you DO want to read the one, the audiobook would be the way to go. Overall, I found this one to be pretty meh and I don't think I'll be reading more from Rory Power in the future. Womp :c
February 10, 2021
Fires, secrets, mothers and daughters, the ties that bind and the ties that break, and sinister overtones come out to play in Rory Power's tour de force sophomore novel.
Writing: ★★★★★
Plot: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★★★
Atmosphere: ★★★★★
Margot and her mother could be sisters, they look so much alike. Margot doesn't see this as a compliment. Her relationship with her mother, Jo, is anything but sister-like—it is one of flight, fight, and fear. Margot's mother has been running from something all of Margot's life.
Margot is done with it. Now 17, she's decided it's time to find the family that her mother abandoned, with the hope that anyone—anyone—will accept and love her better than her own manipulative mother. When Margot finds the phone number in her mother's things, she doesn't hesitate. She gives it a ring.
Phalene is the type of Nebraskan small town in the middle of its decline. Once a booming farming community, there's almost nothing left. Margot's family, the Nielsens, used to be the source of the town's success. Now it's just Gram, and her weird golden corn that looks dead yet grows, and the secrets that the Nielsen farm keeps to itself.
Margot doesn't mind. Her mother has made her used to so many weird things. In her desperation for acceptance, Margot accepts everything about her Gram and slots herself into the Nielsen farm.
But Gram's not exactly normal, and Margot found a dead body of a girl who looks just like her on her first day in town. The town thinks Gram's hiding something, and Margot agrees.
Did she jump from the frying pan into the fire? There might be a reason her mother was so afraid after all...
My thoughts:
This is a novel that will attract a certain type of reader, but keep only a few as it's not exactly what it appears to be. I think Rory Power might just be that type of author—which works for me, because I'm now 2/2 with her books. I've loved them both.
The story delivers on its advertising: this novel is SPOOKY, and the atmosphere was so taut throughout that I got a kink in my neck from holding myself so tense. If you like creeping suspense and lingering horror, this is the novel for you. There are no jump scares, no dramatic whodunits, but the lingering horror...is intense.
However, the main core of this story is not its plot, its genre, or even its character composition. It's in the character relationships. I make that nuance here because Margot, Jo, and Gram are not the most fleshed out characters. But their relationships with each other ARE, and that's where this novel sings. Mothers and daughters. Manipulation, secrets, and the ties that bind and break. This multi-generational character study of one family's method of parenting is singular in its focus and honestly fascinating in its rot. I would never want these relationships in my life—talk about unhealthy—but in their black and white reality it was easy to see the bones of fights I've had with my own mother, and vice versa. The growing pains of teenage girls versus their mothers is something most women can relate to, and in a way this is a horror novel about that experience amplified by a ton of speculative elements. Extremely cool, and extremely well done.
Thank you to Delacorte Press via NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.
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Writing: ★★★★★
Plot: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★★★
Atmosphere: ★★★★★
Margot and her mother could be sisters, they look so much alike. Margot doesn't see this as a compliment. Her relationship with her mother, Jo, is anything but sister-like—it is one of flight, fight, and fear. Margot's mother has been running from something all of Margot's life.
Margot is done with it. Now 17, she's decided it's time to find the family that her mother abandoned, with the hope that anyone—anyone—will accept and love her better than her own manipulative mother. When Margot finds the phone number in her mother's things, she doesn't hesitate. She gives it a ring.
Phalene is the type of Nebraskan small town in the middle of its decline. Once a booming farming community, there's almost nothing left. Margot's family, the Nielsens, used to be the source of the town's success. Now it's just Gram, and her weird golden corn that looks dead yet grows, and the secrets that the Nielsen farm keeps to itself.
Margot doesn't mind. Her mother has made her used to so many weird things. In her desperation for acceptance, Margot accepts everything about her Gram and slots herself into the Nielsen farm.
But Gram's not exactly normal, and Margot found a dead body of a girl who looks just like her on her first day in town. The town thinks Gram's hiding something, and Margot agrees.
Did she jump from the frying pan into the fire? There might be a reason her mother was so afraid after all...
My thoughts:
This is a novel that will attract a certain type of reader, but keep only a few as it's not exactly what it appears to be. I think Rory Power might just be that type of author—which works for me, because I'm now 2/2 with her books. I've loved them both.
The story delivers on its advertising: this novel is SPOOKY, and the atmosphere was so taut throughout that I got a kink in my neck from holding myself so tense. If you like creeping suspense and lingering horror, this is the novel for you. There are no jump scares, no dramatic whodunits, but the lingering horror...is intense.
However, the main core of this story is not its plot, its genre, or even its character composition. It's in the character relationships. I make that nuance here because Margot, Jo, and Gram are not the most fleshed out characters. But their relationships with each other ARE, and that's where this novel sings. Mothers and daughters. Manipulation, secrets, and the ties that bind and break. This multi-generational character study of one family's method of parenting is singular in its focus and honestly fascinating in its rot. I would never want these relationships in my life—talk about unhealthy—but in their black and white reality it was easy to see the bones of fights I've had with my own mother, and vice versa. The growing pains of teenage girls versus their mothers is something most women can relate to, and in a way this is a horror novel about that experience amplified by a ton of speculative elements. Extremely cool, and extremely well done.
Thank you to Delacorte Press via NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.
Blog | Instagram
July 9, 2020
Well this one definitely threw me for a loop. I‘ll admit I was pretty cocky and thought I knew exactly where this book was headed, but even when I was on the right track, I got the degree very, very wrong. At one point when I was maybe halfway through reading I commented on Chelsea’s status update that I was “waiting for everything to go off the rails”, and through time and space Rory Power HEARD me and decided to grant me that request. Be careful what you wish for, y’all!!
The story starts with 17 year-old Margot and her mom, Josephine, barely getting by in their small apartment and meager income. Beyond poverty, there’s a massive amount of simmering tension between the two of them, at near-constant risk of erupting. Eventually this leads to Margot seeking out the family that her mother has always kept hidden from her.
I’m always down for a complex family dynamic. I appreciated the relationship between Margot, her mother and grandmother, Vera, and loved dissecting what each microaggression (or full-on aggression) lobbed at one another meant. There were plenty of secrets that we get to uncover along the way, especially since none of the women are particularly forthright.
“Does understanding her mean I have to forgive her?”
I also adored Power’s writing. She captures these really specific, human moments between her characters just beautifully. My Kindle copy is filled with highlighted passages, and I’m guessing anyone who’s had even a somewhat-toxic relationship with a family member will be struck by her insights. I ended up skipping Wilder Girls last year and clearly that was my mistake. I know people were guuuushing about the cover, but I hope that the book itself ends up being just as engrossing.
That said, I still feel like the story was missing something. Parts just felt underdeveloped. Tess was promising, but both her and Eli seemed like they were added as a means to and end. I never quite understood Josephine, and I think some of her ‘quirks’ needed to be explained a little more. It felt a bit rushed, especially by the end, and I wish Power had taken more time to elaborate on this really creative premise. And it felt pretty dark for a YA novel; I get that the heroine is a teenager, but I don’t know if I would market this to teenagers. In all, there was a lot of good stuff to work with, but it still felt unfinished. I am absolutely interested in reading more from her, though, and I can’t wait to see what she puts out next.
*Thanks to Random House Children’s & Netgalley for an advance copy!
The story starts with 17 year-old Margot and her mom, Josephine, barely getting by in their small apartment and meager income. Beyond poverty, there’s a massive amount of simmering tension between the two of them, at near-constant risk of erupting. Eventually this leads to Margot seeking out the family that her mother has always kept hidden from her.
I’m always down for a complex family dynamic. I appreciated the relationship between Margot, her mother and grandmother, Vera, and loved dissecting what each microaggression (or full-on aggression) lobbed at one another meant. There were plenty of secrets that we get to uncover along the way, especially since none of the women are particularly forthright.
“Does understanding her mean I have to forgive her?”
I also adored Power’s writing. She captures these really specific, human moments between her characters just beautifully. My Kindle copy is filled with highlighted passages, and I’m guessing anyone who’s had even a somewhat-toxic relationship with a family member will be struck by her insights. I ended up skipping Wilder Girls last year and clearly that was my mistake. I know people were guuuushing about the cover, but I hope that the book itself ends up being just as engrossing.
That said, I still feel like the story was missing something. Parts just felt underdeveloped. Tess was promising, but both her and Eli seemed like they were added as a means to and end. I never quite understood Josephine, and I think some of her ‘quirks’ needed to be explained a little more. It felt a bit rushed, especially by the end, and I wish Power had taken more time to elaborate on this really creative premise. And it felt pretty dark for a YA novel; I get that the heroine is a teenager, but I don’t know if I would market this to teenagers. In all, there was a lot of good stuff to work with, but it still felt unfinished. I am absolutely interested in reading more from her, though, and I can’t wait to see what she puts out next.
*Thanks to Random House Children’s & Netgalley for an advance copy!
Read
October 24, 2019content warnings available here: https://itsrorypower.com/books/burn/
always updating - if you find something is missing from this list, please let me know via my website
always updating - if you find something is missing from this list, please let me know via my website
September 2, 2020
Yo what the fuck did I just read??
I was provided a finished copy of this book for review by Underlined. All thoughts are my own.
Content Warnings: emotional abuse by parental figure, violence, death, gore, teen pregnancy
I have never in my entire experience of reading YA read anything like this book. I mean I'm still genuinely attempting to figure out where Rory Power got this whole idea/concept from. I'm going to try to write this review in the most concise manner because I don't want to spoil ANYTHING for anyone. This is one of those books where I think that it's best that you go into it blind. Burn Our Bodies Down is the second book from Rory Power. I had not read her first book Wilder Girls so I was excited to check this one out especially when I heard it was like a mix of horror, mystery, and thriller. It centers around a young girl by the name of Margot who has a very toxic relationship with her mother and knows absolutely nothing about her other family members. She seeks to find solace and an identity through discovering more about her family, but of course when she takes that journey she ends up learning a lot more than she bargained for.
While I feel the need to hold off from saying anything regarding the plot of this book I definitely have a lot to say about the writing. I really enjoyed it. Power writes in a way that keeps the plot moving. If you've followed me for anytime on GR then you know that I'm super critical when it comes to pacing because I have a short attention span. By page 85 Power threw in a plot twist that I did not see coming. I just felt engaged the entire time while reading this book and it explains why I finished it over the course of 2 days. Power also has the ability to keep you guessing until the very end. I mean this book is weird. There's no other way to put it and when you get to the end Power will have you questioning everything that you thought you knew and understood about these characters. It was strange, but beautifully done.
I also appreciated Power's ability to craft such important discussions into a book that seems to be defined as both a thriller and a horror. Emotional abuse by parental figures is a huge theme in this book. Power seamlessly wove in discussions regarding generational trauma caused by emotional abuse and how it's hard to break that cycle when the affected person doesn't seek the healing and counseling needed to help themselves. I didn't expect that going into the book. I knew that Margot and her mother were going to have a difficult relationship but I didn't expect the commentary. I really enjoyed that aspect of the book and I'm hoping to see more of those important themes and discussions in her other books.
My recommendation is that you go into this book blind and that you don't do too much reading about it. It's strange, but stick with it because that ending....it had me blown away.
I was provided a finished copy of this book for review by Underlined. All thoughts are my own.
Content Warnings: emotional abuse by parental figure, violence, death, gore, teen pregnancy
I have never in my entire experience of reading YA read anything like this book. I mean I'm still genuinely attempting to figure out where Rory Power got this whole idea/concept from. I'm going to try to write this review in the most concise manner because I don't want to spoil ANYTHING for anyone. This is one of those books where I think that it's best that you go into it blind. Burn Our Bodies Down is the second book from Rory Power. I had not read her first book Wilder Girls so I was excited to check this one out especially when I heard it was like a mix of horror, mystery, and thriller. It centers around a young girl by the name of Margot who has a very toxic relationship with her mother and knows absolutely nothing about her other family members. She seeks to find solace and an identity through discovering more about her family, but of course when she takes that journey she ends up learning a lot more than she bargained for.
While I feel the need to hold off from saying anything regarding the plot of this book I definitely have a lot to say about the writing. I really enjoyed it. Power writes in a way that keeps the plot moving. If you've followed me for anytime on GR then you know that I'm super critical when it comes to pacing because I have a short attention span. By page 85 Power threw in a plot twist that I did not see coming. I just felt engaged the entire time while reading this book and it explains why I finished it over the course of 2 days. Power also has the ability to keep you guessing until the very end. I mean this book is weird. There's no other way to put it and when you get to the end Power will have you questioning everything that you thought you knew and understood about these characters. It was strange, but beautifully done.
I also appreciated Power's ability to craft such important discussions into a book that seems to be defined as both a thriller and a horror. Emotional abuse by parental figures is a huge theme in this book. Power seamlessly wove in discussions regarding generational trauma caused by emotional abuse and how it's hard to break that cycle when the affected person doesn't seek the healing and counseling needed to help themselves. I didn't expect that going into the book. I knew that Margot and her mother were going to have a difficult relationship but I didn't expect the commentary. I really enjoyed that aspect of the book and I'm hoping to see more of those important themes and discussions in her other books.
My recommendation is that you go into this book blind and that you don't do too much reading about it. It's strange, but stick with it because that ending....it had me blown away.
December 2, 2020
3.5 stars!
This was such an interesting read.
Burn Our Bodies Down is my first Rory Power and it was really surprising. I don't read as much YA as I used to, but the thought of YA Horror was very appealing to me and that's why I requested the audiobook from NetGalley.
This starts with Margot living with her mother, and they have an unstable relationship. When Margot discovers that she has a grandmother, she escapes town and goes to her grandma's farm. Coincidentally, the plantation is burning when Margot gets there and she finds a body amongst the flames. The story kicks off from there.
I had a bit of a problem with the writing of this book: it is very descriptive in every way, from the scenario to the main character's emotions. But I just wasn't feeling it: it was a lot of family drama and it became repetitive fast, especially since the audiobook narrator was intense every time that Margot was getting emotional (and she was angry for most of the book). But the ending of this: wow. I did not expect that plot twist at all, everything came full circle and I just admire Rory Power's creativity. If you like your YA totally twisted and disturbing, here's a good one!
(NetGalley Audiobook)
This was such an interesting read.
Burn Our Bodies Down is my first Rory Power and it was really surprising. I don't read as much YA as I used to, but the thought of YA Horror was very appealing to me and that's why I requested the audiobook from NetGalley.
This starts with Margot living with her mother, and they have an unstable relationship. When Margot discovers that she has a grandmother, she escapes town and goes to her grandma's farm. Coincidentally, the plantation is burning when Margot gets there and she finds a body amongst the flames. The story kicks off from there.
I had a bit of a problem with the writing of this book: it is very descriptive in every way, from the scenario to the main character's emotions. But I just wasn't feeling it: it was a lot of family drama and it became repetitive fast, especially since the audiobook narrator was intense every time that Margot was getting emotional (and she was angry for most of the book). But the ending of this: wow. I did not expect that plot twist at all, everything came full circle and I just admire Rory Power's creativity. If you like your YA totally twisted and disturbing, here's a good one!
(NetGalley Audiobook)
August 2, 2020
3 Stars
Margot is a seventeen years old girl who lives with her mother in a small town. They are isolated and she doesn’t know any of her family members, she even doesn’t know about her father. And whenever she asks her mother about them, she shuts her down. So after finding a trace of her grandmother, she decides to take the matter in her own hands and go after her lineage. She runs away from home but after she finds her Grams something feels wrong, but what?
Burn Our Bodies Down was my first read by this author and it was a disappointment. First, the story dragged at some places. Second, I guessed the main twist. Third, I hate when the mystery is mixed with the supernatural. And that’s what happened here. I wish I knew this sooner because if I knew, I would never read this story. Told in single POV, 1st person, it’s a standalone novel. Overall, this wasn’t my cuppa but I hope you like it more than me.
Margot is a seventeen years old girl who lives with her mother in a small town. They are isolated and she doesn’t know any of her family members, she even doesn’t know about her father. And whenever she asks her mother about them, she shuts her down. So after finding a trace of her grandmother, she decides to take the matter in her own hands and go after her lineage. She runs away from home but after she finds her Grams something feels wrong, but what?
Burn Our Bodies Down was my first read by this author and it was a disappointment. First, the story dragged at some places. Second, I guessed the main twist. Third, I hate when the mystery is mixed with the supernatural. And that’s what happened here. I wish I knew this sooner because if I knew, I would never read this story. Told in single POV, 1st person, it’s a standalone novel. Overall, this wasn’t my cuppa but I hope you like it more than me.
December 29, 2021
This was legitimately incredible. Such a wild, strange, eerie ride and I loved every moment of it.
January 12, 2021
Well. That was a book I read...
December 16, 2020
I had no idea what was happening throughout most of this book but I had a thoroughly good time reading it!
Read
August 7, 2020Aimless and detached from start to finish.
August 22, 2021
The first thing I will admit in this review was I was not a huge fan of Wilder Girls. Now you may ask so why pick up Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power? Well, again, this young adult horror sounded really good so I figured I would give the author another shot as I did find some things I liked and that I thought had potential.
Burn Our Bodies Down introduces readers to Margot. Margot has spent her young life in the care of her mother, or is that caring for her mother? Regardless, as soon as Margot gets a hint of more family existing she packs up her things and heads to the small town, Phalene, that she thinks she is from. Once arriving Margot starts getting the sense that this is not the happy little place she pictured it would be and things are just not right in Phalene.
Well, I will say my three and a half stars for Burn Our Bodies Down is an improvement over my feelings for Wilder Girls. I did think this one had a rather creepy setting and story that kept me engaged while reading. But, I also found that the story wasn’t that surprising to me when I got to the end of it, perhaps again simply because I read too much but still disappointing. Since I did like this second attempt more than the first I would probably give the author another go as it is rather hard to surprise me with horror these days.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Burn Our Bodies Down introduces readers to Margot. Margot has spent her young life in the care of her mother, or is that caring for her mother? Regardless, as soon as Margot gets a hint of more family existing she packs up her things and heads to the small town, Phalene, that she thinks she is from. Once arriving Margot starts getting the sense that this is not the happy little place she pictured it would be and things are just not right in Phalene.
Well, I will say my three and a half stars for Burn Our Bodies Down is an improvement over my feelings for Wilder Girls. I did think this one had a rather creepy setting and story that kept me engaged while reading. But, I also found that the story wasn’t that surprising to me when I got to the end of it, perhaps again simply because I read too much but still disappointing. Since I did like this second attempt more than the first I would probably give the author another go as it is rather hard to surprise me with horror these days.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
July 13, 2020
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Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are mine.
How to keep a fire burning.
How to stitch a fight up until it's only a scar.
That's the kind of thing you learn with a mother like mine.
Mostly, though, you learn how to be loved without proof.
A book lover often has a difficult time reading the books that they're interested in. Just when the opportunity arrives to finally dive into that story you've been wanting to read for months, about five other books release and you once again fall behind. That's why, despite the popularity of Wilder Girls last year, I never had the chance to enjoy it. Seeing a new and upcoming release from Rory Power seemed like the perfect opportunity to become acquainted with her imagination.
The writing itself is very good. There are no hiccups, no floundering about, and it flows smoothly. Rory Power gets to the point that she wants to make without beating around the bush. I really wanted to enjoy this story, however, and sometimes we want something so strongly that it slips away.
While the writing is straightforward, the pace was not. The novel took so long getting to the meat of the plot that I got slightly bored along the way. I didn't really connect with any characters except our lead, something that is at times the case often when a book is written in first-person. I felt for Margot and her plight. That's one thing that can be said for this book: you feel the desperation, frustration, and need coming off this young woman to have the love and family that she has wanted her whole life. It screams out through the pages.
Was the true horror and mystery of it all worth it when it finally arrived, however? Yes, it absolutely was. There is something sickening, twisted and disturbing about the history behind the horror of Margot's family. And for that, this book is well worth the read. That something so seemingly small would make me feel as uncomfortable as it did, speaks well for the way that the author unfolds it into the rest of the writing. But it arrived quite late, and developed far too fast for me to properly enjoy.
Burn Our Bodies Down has a Stephen King-esque vibe that hit me more than once, and I've noticed that other readers have felt the same. It's this nagging little thing at the back of your head that you notice here and there and can't let go of. I appreciated it, even if the whole of it fell a little more off the mark than I'd hoped. There's merit to this novel, I just wish that more of those daunting details which pop up near the end and made me uneasy—while making everything charged and fraught with terrible possibility—had been delivered a little more starkly from the start.
Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are mine.
How to keep a fire burning.
How to stitch a fight up until it's only a scar.
That's the kind of thing you learn with a mother like mine.
Mostly, though, you learn how to be loved without proof.
A book lover often has a difficult time reading the books that they're interested in. Just when the opportunity arrives to finally dive into that story you've been wanting to read for months, about five other books release and you once again fall behind. That's why, despite the popularity of Wilder Girls last year, I never had the chance to enjoy it. Seeing a new and upcoming release from Rory Power seemed like the perfect opportunity to become acquainted with her imagination.
The writing itself is very good. There are no hiccups, no floundering about, and it flows smoothly. Rory Power gets to the point that she wants to make without beating around the bush. I really wanted to enjoy this story, however, and sometimes we want something so strongly that it slips away.
While the writing is straightforward, the pace was not. The novel took so long getting to the meat of the plot that I got slightly bored along the way. I didn't really connect with any characters except our lead, something that is at times the case often when a book is written in first-person. I felt for Margot and her plight. That's one thing that can be said for this book: you feel the desperation, frustration, and need coming off this young woman to have the love and family that she has wanted her whole life. It screams out through the pages.
Was the true horror and mystery of it all worth it when it finally arrived, however? Yes, it absolutely was. There is something sickening, twisted and disturbing about the history behind the horror of Margot's family. And for that, this book is well worth the read. That something so seemingly small would make me feel as uncomfortable as it did, speaks well for the way that the author unfolds it into the rest of the writing. But it arrived quite late, and developed far too fast for me to properly enjoy.
Burn Our Bodies Down has a Stephen King-esque vibe that hit me more than once, and I've noticed that other readers have felt the same. It's this nagging little thing at the back of your head that you notice here and there and can't let go of. I appreciated it, even if the whole of it fell a little more off the mark than I'd hoped. There's merit to this novel, I just wish that more of those daunting details which pop up near the end and made me uneasy—while making everything charged and fraught with terrible possibility—had been delivered a little more starkly from the start.
October 11, 2020
"There is a stranger with my face"
What the hell just happened? This was book full of so many twists and so many mindblowing moments and I cannot believe what I just read. I won't like, I think I prefer Wilder Girls to this book, but it still and amazing and twisted book and I cannot wait to read more books by Rory Power.
In this book we follow Margot as she wants to learm more about her family. Ever since she was born, it's just been her and her mother. Nobody else, just them. But one day, she finds a photograph that brings her in Phalene, to her grandmother. Only, once there Margot realizes that this was not what she bargained for.
The plot of the book was so intriguing and I just kept turning the pages until I finished this book! It was shorter that I expected, but still good. How the hell did Rory Power managed to write a book like this? How? It's so mindblowing!
As in any thriller books I did not really get attached to any of the characters. But that's not really because you cannot get attached to them, but mostly because I try my best not to since who knows how this book will end. I really hoped that we would get more hcaracters apart from Margot and her grandmother. Like yeah, we also got Margot's mom, Tess and Eli, but I feel like they could have been mlre present through put the book.
In the end this was an amazing thriller book, perfect for the Halloween, spooky season and I am so happy that I read it!
What the hell just happened? This was book full of so many twists and so many mindblowing moments and I cannot believe what I just read. I won't like, I think I prefer Wilder Girls to this book, but it still and amazing and twisted book and I cannot wait to read more books by Rory Power.
In this book we follow Margot as she wants to learm more about her family. Ever since she was born, it's just been her and her mother. Nobody else, just them. But one day, she finds a photograph that brings her in Phalene, to her grandmother. Only, once there Margot realizes that this was not what she bargained for.
The plot of the book was so intriguing and I just kept turning the pages until I finished this book! It was shorter that I expected, but still good. How the hell did Rory Power managed to write a book like this? How? It's so mindblowing!
As in any thriller books I did not really get attached to any of the characters. But that's not really because you cannot get attached to them, but mostly because I try my best not to since who knows how this book will end. I really hoped that we would get more hcaracters apart from Margot and her grandmother. Like yeah, we also got Margot's mom, Tess and Eli, but I feel like they could have been mlre present through put the book.
In the end this was an amazing thriller book, perfect for the Halloween, spooky season and I am so happy that I read it!
August 4, 2021
What the hell did I just read? I seriously don't know how to write a review on this severely dark, bizarre and unrealistic story. Sometimes that can make a story great, but for me this one just didn't set well for me. I'm most likely an outlier on this one. This book has many good reviews, so if you are considering reading this, maybe check out those reviews.
Margot is seventeen years old and it has always just been her and her mother. No other family. Her mother and her have an odd relationship with very little love and affection. Margot finds an old Bible that belongs to her Mom and in that Bible she discovers that she has family. Margot leaves town and finds her long lost grandmother. Grandma welcomes Margot with open arms. This is where the story turns weird. The town doesn't like her family, her family has dark secrets and no one wants to talk about it. Margot starts digging into her family's past and what she discovers is unbelievable. This is where the story becomes so bizarre and unbelievable to me. I had to keep reading of course because I had to know how it all played out.
The author did a great job of creating an eerie atmosphere and a unique story. It just wasn't what I was hoping for.
Margot is seventeen years old and it has always just been her and her mother. No other family. Her mother and her have an odd relationship with very little love and affection. Margot finds an old Bible that belongs to her Mom and in that Bible she discovers that she has family. Margot leaves town and finds her long lost grandmother. Grandma welcomes Margot with open arms. This is where the story turns weird. The town doesn't like her family, her family has dark secrets and no one wants to talk about it. Margot starts digging into her family's past and what she discovers is unbelievable. This is where the story becomes so bizarre and unbelievable to me. I had to keep reading of course because I had to know how it all played out.
The author did a great job of creating an eerie atmosphere and a unique story. It just wasn't what I was hoping for.
April 15, 2022
““Because there is a stranger wearing my face. And she’s dead.”
Ok, so I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as Wilder Girls.
Margot has always lived with her mum. She is the only family she has ever known and when she asks about other family her mum clams up.
When Margot finds a photo of her mum and a place name she runs there to see if she can find out more about her history.
But Phalene is a place full of secrets and none of the locals trust a Neilson. Her Gram is unexpected and definitely hiding something.
When a fire at her Gram’s farm causes a young girl to die, a young girl who bears more than a passing resemblance to Margot, things get even weirder.
The reveal didn’t really do anything for me. It was too out there.
Like I said. Weird as. I will still read other books by this author. I’m particularly looking forward to her new fantasy book.
Ok, so I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as Wilder Girls.
Margot has always lived with her mum. She is the only family she has ever known and when she asks about other family her mum clams up.
When Margot finds a photo of her mum and a place name she runs there to see if she can find out more about her history.
But Phalene is a place full of secrets and none of the locals trust a Neilson. Her Gram is unexpected and definitely hiding something.
When a fire at her Gram’s farm causes a young girl to die, a young girl who bears more than a passing resemblance to Margot, things get even weirder.
The reveal didn’t really do anything for me. It was too out there.
Like I said. Weird as. I will still read other books by this author. I’m particularly looking forward to her new fantasy book.
September 7, 2022
The only family Margot has ever known has been her mother. The two of them face the world together, but rarely form an united front to do so. Margot raised herself and now, with her teen years soon ending, she wants to find someone less cold and less calculating. She wants to find someone more willing to welcome her with open arms and a loving heart. She wants to find her family.
Margot was a brilliant protagonist and represented everything I love to see in my characters - resilience, vulnerability, a rebellious spirit, and a relentlessly curious nature. She had me invested in her fate, equally as perplexed by the mysteries surrounding her, and ever willing to venture into the murky past to find the answers she sought.
This was a tale just as dark and mysterious as Wilder Girls. However, the first and last quarters were by far my favourites with those inbetween feeling a little repetitive in events. I really appreciated the focus on themes of generational trauma and family bonds, and how sensitively they were confronted. I also really loved the slight vein of magical realism that run throughout, and tainted all events with an added miasma of bewilderment. This presented an abundance of mysteries and I remained relentlessly interested in finding the truth. However, I longed for something other than the cycle of events that occurred for much of the novel. I concluded the book satisfied and yet still, somehow, longing for something more. More events to have occurred, more secrets to have been unearthed, and ultimately, more of the magic that so captivated me throughout.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Rory Power, and the publisher, Blackstone, for this opportunity.
Margot was a brilliant protagonist and represented everything I love to see in my characters - resilience, vulnerability, a rebellious spirit, and a relentlessly curious nature. She had me invested in her fate, equally as perplexed by the mysteries surrounding her, and ever willing to venture into the murky past to find the answers she sought.
This was a tale just as dark and mysterious as Wilder Girls. However, the first and last quarters were by far my favourites with those inbetween feeling a little repetitive in events. I really appreciated the focus on themes of generational trauma and family bonds, and how sensitively they were confronted. I also really loved the slight vein of magical realism that run throughout, and tainted all events with an added miasma of bewilderment. This presented an abundance of mysteries and I remained relentlessly interested in finding the truth. However, I longed for something other than the cycle of events that occurred for much of the novel. I concluded the book satisfied and yet still, somehow, longing for something more. More events to have occurred, more secrets to have been unearthed, and ultimately, more of the magic that so captivated me throughout.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Rory Power, and the publisher, Blackstone, for this opportunity.
October 8, 2020
“I am supposed to be quiet, I am supposed to be good, but I was born at war and I can only keep from fighting for so long.”
WOW, this book, guys, was everything I wanted and more. I can already say that it will not be a book for everyone, I'm sure there will be many polarities of opinions and they'll all be super valid, but I'm happy to be part of those people who have loved it. I adore the author's style, it really resonates a lot with my soul, I adore how atmospheric this book is, and above all the originality of the story and the emotional weight it carries, as well as the complexity of its characters. Incredible work, I don't give 5 stars often, but this book deserves them.
5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
you can find more of my reviews & fun content on my blog A Book. A Thought.
In this twisted story full of secrets we follow Margot who has never had the best relationship with her mother, therefore one day she decides that she has had enough of this toxic relationship and all the secrets that her mother has hidden from her, and guided by an old photograph she has found, she leaves her house on the way to Phalene, her mother's hometown, to discover where she comes from, desperate to create a connection with a family she has never met. But once there, Margot will begin to understand why her mother escaped from there so many years ago, and soon she understands that she may never leave.
This book is made just for me, I love every vibe that came to me while reading it, it's super creepy and you have that feeling of discomfort while reading it, but also you felt very intrigued to know what's happening since the plot is super uncertain in the beginning, and then it takes really wild shapes, which I love. It's also super atmospheric, it's a book that transports you completely to another place and even to another time, it feels kind of historical although it's not really. I love the small-town vibes, where there are many secrets and lies and strange conspiracies happening, it's my jam & I loved how the plot developed, .I think it's very well thought out, there's a lot of work put here and it shows, the author has a brilliant mind that managed to inspire me a lot to continue writing my own project Reading this book was a very strange, but incredibly exciting and compelling experience, it has some grotesque and twisty scenes, but if you've read Rory Power before you know what you can find and it's like her unique style. I loved it, I think from my heart that it's an incredible work, I'm very excited to read whatever she has planned for us in the future.
Of course, the writing style is super captivating, it envelops you in a way where you can read many chapters without even noticing it, and that's obviously due to the great talent of the author when designing and writing her stories. I love how easy it was to read, even though it feels complex at the same time, the author struck a fine balance between plot and characters, making the latter incredibly complex.
This book is highly focused on super toxic family relationships, so I want to note this in case it's triggering for you, it also contains gory and graphic scenes.
The relationships in the book are extremely interesting to read and follow, they develop a lot throughout the plot and it was very interesting to explore them further. Especially Margot's relationship with her mother Josephine, whose relationship is charged and marked by many secrets and things that aren't said, but then as you learn more about them and their stories, you understand on a deeper level what's really happening, and that was very well done, I loved it. Another relationship that I found interesting was that of Margot with Vera, her grandmother, I can't share much of this relationship, but it was so incredible, it shows a special vulnerability in both characters, they're so different, but at the same time very equal in certain aspects & Last but not least, Margo's relationship with Tess, it's brilliant, it's adorable at times, but it also shows an honest and new bond for Margot, I'll tell you more about the characters below, but I wanted to highlight the relationships that the book focuses on because I think it's the most important thing and the relationships that have the most weight in this story.
The characters as such are incredible and you can see the work in each of their personalities. Margot's a great main character, she has grown up with many insecurities and fears due to the lack of care and love on the part of her mother, so seeing her grow and evolve made me very happy. I think that showing such a vulnerable character with so many problems to connect and communicate was super intense to read and gives another tone to the story, and a greater impact on the development of it, I was all the time on her side and although I didn't I agree with each of her decisions, I understand where it comes from and that most of her actions and decisions are taken for her need to be loved, cared for and accepted in a family. Then we have Vera and Josephine, characters with a very dark veil over them, many secrets and extremely manipulative personalities, but extremely interesting to follow, as well, these characters keep you on the edge of your seat and you never know what their true intentions are until the end, what I loved & Tess, is great, I think this character came into Margot's life to give her a little light, hope, and fun, you know? and in the book we see the beginning of a beautiful friendship that marks Margot in unimaginable ways, she's a great character to explore within this type of plot.
There's no romance as such in this book and I liked that very much, it focuses 100% on family dynamics and personal development and searches for the truth, as well as many other very creepy things that I cannot explain lol. There are some friendships happening and we know that this can be as or even more significant than a romance, and in this book it undoubtedly is, it's a beautiful and super important complement.
One aspect that I loved to see is that Margot is lesbian and seeing this character expressing how she feels about this was very well explored, especially because I like that there's a sapphic character that it's not involved in a romance, you know? It's not necessary for a person to be involved in a relationship with someone to know who you are and how you feel and that's fantastic.
This book has an extremely different and unexpected twist, that I don't want to even hint at because I don't want it to be ruined for you, but I do want to share that I think it was very unique, and I know it won't work for everyone, but it did for me. It's weird..... sooooo weird, so be prepared to have thousands of theories and still be surprised in the end.
I think I mentioned this briefly before, but this book is set in a small town where there are several farms, called Phalene - Fairhaven, and the small and somewhat old towns are the perfect settings for this type of plot and I hope you agree with me on that because I love them completely. Margot's grandmother has a farm and it's there where most of the events take place, and let me tell you, I grew up part of my life as a child on a farm since my grandparents live there, and there's nothing more creepy than a farm on daylight, I just saying lol. Amazing choice of setting, I loved it.
I loved the ending, I think it is extremely unexpected and very rare, but in the best way, at some point, I may have thought it would happen, but I discarded it because I couldn't understand how the author would tie all the loose ends that this story has, but she did it in a brilliant way. I feel good about Margot's ending, I think I would love a sequel just to know what will happen now with the characters and how everything will develop, it's such a unique plot but the characters get my applause, especially Margot, I love how her development towards the end lit a fire inside her and I adored follow her going through everything to find out the truth about herself and her family lineage. Parts of the ending really shocked me because of how shocking they were, just WOW.
Obviously, I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to read something extremely unique and original, with a very creepy vibe, full of secrets, lies, mystery, and suspense. I also recommend it if you want to read about morally gray characters, you know that I love that and this book has them all, but also the characters are very complex and unpredictable. It's a story focused on the family and on self-discovery and self-development, but it also focuses a lot on giving the reader some impact and high tension, reading this book is quite an experience and I know you cannot miss it, I simply loved it.
The complexity of the plot, the characters, and the creation of the setting and the vibe are perfect. I LOVED IT and although it's not for everyone, I hope you can enjoy it too, especially if you have enjoyed the author before.
First Thoughts 10/05/20
I loved this book SO much!! *screaming with excitement*
I'm super excited right now, I'm so glad I gave the author a second chance because even though I liked Wilder Girls, this ONE IS PERFECT FOR ME. I love her writing style. I LOVE how atmospheric this story is, I love how weird it gets while you read it, it's a very weird book, but I was expecting it and it's also very addictive and I couldn't stop reading it, it's amazing.
I LOVED it and the paced was perfect.
July 21, 2020
While I didn't enjoy Burn Our Bodies Down nearly as much as Wilder Girls, I still thought it was a decent book.
I could have done without Margot's constant internal monologue analyzing EVERYTHING everyone said and did. It made the book feel really repetitive, and it just made me annoyed with her character. I wish the author had taken all of that and expanded on the mystery instead. The last 75 pages were great, but I wanted so much more.
Still a solid 3, but considering how much I loved Wilder Girls, this was a disappointment.
I could have done without Margot's constant internal monologue analyzing EVERYTHING everyone said and did. It made the book feel really repetitive, and it just made me annoyed with her character. I wish the author had taken all of that and expanded on the mystery instead. The last 75 pages were great, but I wanted so much more.
Still a solid 3, but considering how much I loved Wilder Girls, this was a disappointment.
July 11, 2020
Is july going to have a lot of five star reads? This was my first book by the author and I really want to read wilder girls now! Super creepy and loved it soo much! Also thanks to netgalley and Delacrorte press for sending me an e-arc of this and sorry for the late mini review!(:
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