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kaylinvm94's review against another edition
dark
tense
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, and Abortion
gwenswoons's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’m an Ashley Winstead superfan (ever since reading The Last Housewife! Maybe my favorite thriller ever?) so it pains me that I really didn’t love this one. I found the pacing and narrative too slow and too local — the main character seems almost willfully naïve, both in the flashbacks (which, fine, teenage kid raised in a bigoted evangelical church, I get it) and, more irritatingly, in the present. The setting is vivid and the characters are interesting! But I felt over and over like this could have been considerably shorter — edited for less repetition, for hemming and hawing that, even if it perhaps felt necessary to Winstead for character building(??), wasnt always the same. I think this book somehow gets a little stuck between trying to be beautiful in the language and world-building and leaning into Winstead’s huge skill as a craftsperson of plot, tension, and thrill. There was a really exciting crescendo for a bit toward the end (though the end itself…..huh?), so I bumped it up to 3 stars — but the majority of the book felt like a 2ish-star slog to me. I thought Sarah Welborn’s southern-accented audio narration was really well done, even if it somehow also underlined the things about this book that didn’t really work for me (repetition, fluffy/insubstantial inner dialogue, etc.). I will still pre-order and read Ashley Winstead’s other books (I’ve read all but one romance from her backlist — her romance writing is really good!)! But this one was not a fave for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
lauracatereads's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
This book was WILD. (P.S. for sure check the trigger warnings on this one).
At no point did I have any idea where exactly it was going until about 70% through in which I knew exactly where it was going and it had the biggest “oh shit?” moment of a book I’ve read in a very long time.
Where to start on this book? First of all, this is for the girlies who were raised in oppressive, fundamentalist churches in the South. Raise your hands my fellow Jezebel spirits. 🙋🏼♀️ This book would not have been remotely the same without the setting and what a wickedly beautiful one it is. Swamplands, humidity, supernatural storms, LSU references, Bible bumper hypocrisy, the Piggly Wiggly? You name it, Bottom Springs has it.
These characters were wicked and I loved it. Not morally grey, just straight up kinda morally evil. I had to sit there most of the novel and say “Cool motive, still murder” and yet Winstead writes it in such a compelling way and paints Ruth & Everett with just enough of a sentimental light that you want to sit there and say that it was all justified. (TBH, it kinda wasalthough Everett was totally a complete and utter psychopath
Also the finale??? should not have given this book any bad reviews, it was FANTASTIC. I love an unresolved ending. If you don’t have the imagination to make an ending for yourself than you simply just aren’t much of a reader. Anyways, nothing good starts in a getaway car 😉
Ruth Cornier, you would’ve LOVED Preacher’s daughter by Ethel Cain. Everett Duncan, you would’ve LOVED I Did Something Bad by Taylor Swift.
The only thing stopping me from 5⭐️ is the combo of Ruth’s naivety and the constant miscommunication trope that could’ve saved them so much.
At no point did I have any idea where exactly it was going until about 70% through in which I knew exactly where it was going and it had the biggest “oh shit?” moment of a book I’ve read in a very long time.
Where to start on this book? First of all, this is for the girlies who were raised in oppressive, fundamentalist churches in the South. Raise your hands my fellow Jezebel spirits. 🙋🏼♀️ This book would not have been remotely the same without the setting and what a wickedly beautiful one it is. Swamplands, humidity, supernatural storms, LSU references, Bible bumper hypocrisy, the Piggly Wiggly? You name it, Bottom Springs has it.
These characters were wicked and I loved it. Not morally grey, just straight up kinda morally evil. I had to sit there most of the novel and say “Cool motive, still murder” and yet Winstead writes it in such a compelling way and paints Ruth & Everett with just enough of a sentimental light that you want to sit there and say that it was all justified. (TBH, it kinda was
Also the finale??? should not have given this book any bad reviews, it was FANTASTIC. I love an unresolved ending. If you don’t have the imagination to make an ending for yourself than you simply just aren’t much of a reader. Anyways, nothing good starts in a getaway car 😉
Ruth Cornier, you would’ve LOVED Preacher’s daughter by Ethel Cain. Everett Duncan, you would’ve LOVED I Did Something Bad by Taylor Swift.
The only thing stopping me from 5⭐️ is the combo of Ruth’s naivety and the constant miscommunication trope that could’ve saved them so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexism, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Mental illness, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Abortion, and Pregnancy
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
You may not like this book if you are a fundamentalist Christian, as it deals with some of the hypocrisy of a fictional pastor, I'm sure modeled after some real ones. It also deals with an incorrectly labeled fictional Wiccan sect which was much more Satanist than true Wicca.
That being said it was an excellent book, in my opinion, very dark, but a good romantic thriller. However, the end left me unsatisfied. I'd have liked an epilogue of what happened to the town after, and if the MCs made it through.
I found the journey enjoyable, and it had some unpredictable twists. Overall, an excellent book.
Narrator Rating: 4.25 stars
Well the narrator did a good job, she didn't do enough tonal shifts for different characters' voices.
That being said it was an excellent book, in my opinion, very dark, but a good romantic thriller. However, the end left me unsatisfied. I'd have liked an epilogue of what happened to the town after, and if the MCs made it through.
I found the journey enjoyable, and it had some unpredictable twists. Overall, an excellent book.
Narrator Rating: 4.25 stars
Well the narrator did a good job, she didn't do enough tonal shifts for different characters' voices.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Medical content, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Drug abuse, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical trauma, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Colonisation
The graphic animal cruelty & animal death were not too drawn out and at the start of the book. The other animal death wasn't on the page, just some parts with talk or one of the characters having a dead animal (snake and deer).tiiiger35's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I really enjoyed this book, I’d have given it 5 stars if it wasn’t for the ending which was open ended.
It’s definitely a southern gothic thriller with an underlying supernatural element.
It’s set in a religiously zealot small town, the author does a great job of describing the hot, humid, swampy, surroundings of the Deep South.
Ruth, the pastors daughter is naive, submissive and too easily influenced. Her blind ignorance towards her surroundings irritated me a lot.
I was very drawn to Evers’ character, a tormented soul who’s been mistreated his entire life. His vulnerability around Ruth is endearing & balances out his lingering darkness.
I see a lot of people slating the Twiligjt references but what they don’t get is that young girls are drawn to books like that and figures Edward Cullen because it’s a love interest outside of society and morality. This cries out to a girl like Ruth confined by religious beliefs & restrictions. It’s no wonder she looked at Ever, as her idea of a dark romance waiting to save her.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book.
It was hard to put down at times and I raced through it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
sstewart89's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, and Abortion
caidyn's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Given how long the wait there was on this book from my library, I expected a lot from this book. But I was let down in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Abortion
teganbeesebooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
alindeman's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Wow. Just wow. It’s only January but this may just be the best book of 2024.
Every aspect of this book is so fucking compelling. The investigation, the cult that is Christianity, the impact of patriarchy, Ruth’s war within herself, Ruth & Ever’s relationship, and most importantly, the discussion around morality.
This is executed with *immense* skill and thoughtfulness. Ashley Winstead is an incredible writer and storyteller. I especially liked her responses to the q&a at the end of the book, it’s a great reflection on the overall message and themes of this book. This book reflects on the chains of patriarchy, the control religion wields, and the hypocrisy and cruelty and selfishness of men.
I think this book is so special to me because it reflects the development of my own worldview- that morality is not synonymous with legality and certainly not synonymous with holiness. I loved getting to see Ruth come to this conclusion and the battle that occurs within herself to arrive here- all she has to reject and unlearn. I also loved Everett. The quintessential morally grey antihero. (I hardly consider him an antihero personally tho) He sees himself as this monster the town has painted him to be, this force of evil, when in reality he is removing evil from the world. He talks of the voice in his head, this voice for violence, that is truly a voice for justice. The great criminals of this story are truly the great heroes.
Incredibly powerful, compelling, and inspiring book that I would recommend to anyone and everyone.
I can’t wait to read the rest of her works!
Plot summary (spoilers) for when I forget:
This story takes place in an ultra religious, ultraconservative backwards ass miserable ass town in Louisiana. The story follows Ruth, daughter of the town’s pastor. Naturally, he is an awful, awful man who rules his house (and town) with an iron fist- and wooden cane. Ruth is never good enough, never holy enough for her father. Why? She has dreams. Aspirations. Emotions. She finds refuge in a stolen hidden copy of Twilight. God- what it would be like to be loved like that!
Well she *is* loved like that, not that she knows it. Ruth & Everett’s relationship begins when he saves her from an awful evil man trying to rape Ruth. He attacks him, but the man overpowers him and begins choking him to death. Ruth hits him in the head with a rock to save her savior. He is still alive, but Everett finishes the job, citing a mercy kill. (Was that really the motivation?) they chop his body up and dump him in the swamp for the gators.
Since then, Ever has moved away and returns every summer.
This summer that he returns, a skull has been found in the swap. Ruth is terrified their crime is going to be uncovered. But it turns out the skull does not belong to the man they killed, but the owner of the massive fishing company that employs half the town, that went missing a while back. There are also weird witchy symbols on trees in the swamp.
Then they find the skull of the rapist.
Everett tells Ruth of a local gang called Sons of Liberty that runs drugs, a scheme that Ever’s dead father was a part of. They go into Ever’s dad’s mechanic garage and break into his safe and find a deed to the rapist’s mom’s house, collateral he left to prevent him from stealing the drugs they were running. Ever comes up with a plan to plant this deed at the Sons of Liberty’s den, call in an anonymous tip, and hope the cops would piece together that the gang killed him and they would be off the hook.
They succeed with the plan but no arrests are made. Clearly the cops are covering for the gang.
Ruth goes on a quest to discover the truth of the town. It turns out- everyone is fucking evil, especially her dad. All the men of the town had a little witchy ritualistic thing going on, which involved beating the shit out of Ever. So fucking holy are they. All of this is because there was a big drug scheme. They funneled drugs from the local hospital and the fishing company trafficked them. The rituals were to promote success with this “business endeavor”. All so the reverend could have money for him and his church- something he is “entitled” to as a messenger of god. Puke.
His father even protected a pedophile who was actively abusing children so he could stay in the good graces of his rich ass super powerful father, the owner of the hospital. Who, upon his death, willed the entire hospital to the reverend. SUS.
Ok what else.
The deputy Barry, her supposed to be fiancé, tells Ruth that Ever killed his father, Fred the fishing dude, and the rapist. He’s a serial killer. Well first of all Ruth knows he didn’t kill his dad bc -surprise- Ruth killed his dad to save Ever from his relentless and brutal bearings. Good for her. Unfortunately she’s been bearing this secret and living swamped with guilt, chaining herself to her miserable life in this evil swamp as penance.
She runs to ever and tells him this secret, in exchange for his own. He tells her he knew and he could never hate her for it, she was protecting him. She suspects his secret is that he’s a vampire. Lol. I kinda thought that too ngl. He’s kind of hurt that she put this fantasy onto him. While he isn’t a vampire, he tells her that he is a monster in his own right.
Ever tells her he did kill Fred and the “accidental” death of the pedo wasn’t an accident after all. He is actually the serial killer they’ve been saying he is. Ruth decides this does not make him a monster. The real monster is her father, and justice will be served.
The town is a mob waiting to hang Ever without trial. They make a plan. They walk to the church, where they spot Ever and he leads the mob on a chase into the swamp. Ruth enters the church, where her parents and the fisherman’s wives are. She carries a torch and, as one last test of her fathers goodness, tells him to answer her questions truthfully or she’ll start a fire. She starts questioning him about everything. The drugs. The pedophile. The rituals. The child abuse. He denies it all, tho the fisherman’s wives are scandalized and the damage is probably already been done. With each denial he lights something on fire. She lets the woman go because she decides they shouldn’t be collateral damage. With her last move, she lights the will to the hospital on fire. He begins to choke her and she lights him on fire. She tosses the burning will over the bannister (they’re on a second floor) and he jumps to rescue it, falling to his death. Her and her mom leave the church. The mom lives or whatever but she fucking sucked too. She was a victim but she let her child be abused so fuck her. Anyways- the church is burning to the ground. “The Holy Fire” Baptist Church. How wonderfully symbolic. She escapes to a meeting point where Ever arrives in his car. They are going to escape and be in love and maybe every once in a while kill some bad guys. A few hours outside of town they are pursued by cops attempting to arrest them for arson and murder. They approach a bridge on the Texas border and the cops are raising the bridge. Ruth and Ever decide to brave the jump and hope the car lands on the other side. I like to think it did.
that’s how it ends! So abrupt I was shook.
Every aspect of this book is so fucking compelling. The investigation, the cult that is Christianity, the impact of patriarchy, Ruth’s war within herself, Ruth & Ever’s relationship, and most importantly, the discussion around morality.
This is executed with *immense* skill and thoughtfulness. Ashley Winstead is an incredible writer and storyteller. I especially liked her responses to the q&a at the end of the book, it’s a great reflection on the overall message and themes of this book. This book reflects on the chains of patriarchy, the control religion wields, and the hypocrisy and cruelty and selfishness of men.
I think this book is so special to me because it reflects the development of my own worldview- that morality is not synonymous with legality and certainly not synonymous with holiness. I loved getting to see Ruth come to this conclusion and the battle that occurs within herself to arrive here- all she has to reject and unlearn. I also loved Everett. The quintessential morally grey antihero. (I hardly consider him an antihero personally tho) He sees himself as this monster the town has painted him to be, this force of evil, when in reality he is removing evil from the world. He talks of the voice in his head, this voice for violence, that is truly a voice for justice. The great criminals of this story are truly the great heroes.
Incredibly powerful, compelling, and inspiring book that I would recommend to anyone and everyone.
I can’t wait to read the rest of her works!
Plot summary (spoilers) for when I forget:
Well she *is* loved like that, not that she knows it. Ruth & Everett’s relationship begins when he saves her from an awful evil man trying to rape Ruth. He attacks him, but the man overpowers him and begins choking him to death. Ruth hits him in the head with a rock to save her savior. He is still alive, but Everett finishes the job, citing a mercy kill. (Was that really the motivation?) they chop his body up and dump him in the swamp for the gators.
Since then, Ever has moved away and returns every summer.
This summer that he returns, a skull has been found in the swap. Ruth is terrified their crime is going to be uncovered. But it turns out the skull does not belong to the man they killed, but the owner of the massive fishing company that employs half the town, that went missing a while back. There are also weird witchy symbols on trees in the swamp.
Then they find the skull of the rapist.
Everett tells Ruth of a local gang called Sons of Liberty that runs drugs, a scheme that Ever’s dead father was a part of. They go into Ever’s dad’s mechanic garage and break into his safe and find a deed to the rapist’s mom’s house, collateral he left to prevent him from stealing the drugs they were running. Ever comes up with a plan to plant this deed at the Sons of Liberty’s den, call in an anonymous tip, and hope the cops would piece together that the gang killed him and they would be off the hook.
They succeed with the plan but no arrests are made. Clearly the cops are covering for the gang.
Ruth goes on a quest to discover the truth of the town. It turns out- everyone is fucking evil, especially her dad. All the men of the town had a little witchy ritualistic thing going on, which involved beating the shit out of Ever. So fucking holy are they. All of this is because there was a big drug scheme. They funneled drugs from the local hospital and the fishing company trafficked them. The rituals were to promote success with this “business endeavor”. All so the reverend could have money for him and his church- something he is “entitled” to as a messenger of god. Puke.
His father even protected a pedophile who was actively abusing children so he could stay in the good graces of his rich ass super powerful father, the owner of the hospital. Who, upon his death, willed the entire hospital to the reverend. SUS.
Ok what else.
The deputy Barry, her supposed to be fiancé, tells Ruth that Ever killed his father, Fred the fishing dude, and the rapist. He’s a serial killer. Well first of all Ruth knows he didn’t kill his dad bc -surprise- Ruth killed his dad to save Ever from his relentless and brutal bearings. Good for her. Unfortunately she’s been bearing this secret and living swamped with guilt, chaining herself to her miserable life in this evil swamp as penance.
She runs to ever and tells him this secret, in exchange for his own. He tells her he knew and he could never hate her for it, she was protecting him. She suspects his secret is that he’s a vampire. Lol. I kinda thought that too ngl. He’s kind of hurt that she put this fantasy onto him. While he isn’t a vampire, he tells her that he is a monster in his own right.
Ever tells her he did kill Fred and the “accidental” death of the pedo wasn’t an accident after all. He is actually the serial killer they’ve been saying he is. Ruth decides this does not make him a monster. The real monster is her father, and justice will be served.
The town is a mob waiting to hang Ever without trial. They make a plan. They walk to the church, where they spot Ever and he leads the mob on a chase into the swamp. Ruth enters the church, where her parents and the fisherman’s wives are. She carries a torch and, as one last test of her fathers goodness, tells him to answer her questions truthfully or she’ll start a fire. She starts questioning him about everything. The drugs. The pedophile. The rituals. The child abuse. He denies it all, tho the fisherman’s wives are scandalized and the damage is probably already been done. With each denial he lights something on fire. She lets the woman go because she decides they shouldn’t be collateral damage. With her last move, she lights the will to the hospital on fire. He begins to choke her and she lights him on fire. She tosses the burning will over the bannister (they’re on a second floor) and he jumps to rescue it, falling to his death. Her and her mom leave the church. The mom lives or whatever but she fucking sucked too. She was a victim but she let her child be abused so fuck her. Anyways- the church is burning to the ground. “The Holy Fire” Baptist Church. How wonderfully symbolic. She escapes to a meeting point where Ever arrives in his car. They are going to escape and be in love and maybe every once in a while kill some bad guys. A few hours outside of town they are pursued by cops attempting to arrest them for arson and murder. They approach a bridge on the Texas border and the cops are raising the bridge. Ruth and Ever decide to brave the jump and hope the car lands on the other side. I like to think it did.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, Rape, Violence, Trafficking, and Murder
Minor: Pedophilia, Abortion, and Pregnancy
ariana3's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I surprisingly liked this! There's nothing exciting about the story, but I couldn't put it down and read it quickly! About the daughter of a reverend (religious fundamentalist that's abusive) and her friend (outcast, son of an alcoholic, known as Satan's son) and their relationship. Her friend, Everett, has killed people he wanted revenge on or to protect her, Ruth. She didn't know it was him so she feels like her adult childhood was a bit of a lie. Her father is a crazy religious preacher, was abusive, and ringleader of this town-wide drug circle which is why they have all their money. Ruth and Ever uncover it together and runaway together (now romantically involved...finally - it was teased the ENTIRE book), but do they survive?!?!?!?! The ending is ambiguous - I have hope that they did
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Bullying and Abortion