megatronix's review
3.0
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
I really, honestly, love the concept of this book, even if I don’t see any aspects of The Craft (which I also love). I’m also a big fan of the author’s writing style, and the setting of this book is kind of dreamy and mystic, which I loved.
Unfortunately, as others have said in their review, it’s a little too similar to The Lost Boys, and I also don’t think there was any strong characterization? Everyone just seemed kind of… floaty and vague which I know is not helpful but I don’t know how else to describe it. Like, I’m not sure many of the motivations for a few of the main characters. I also don’t think the plot came through very strongly? I know the water is magic, the family is tied to the water, and there’s vigilantism (all fun in theory), but none of it is super well developed.
I really, honestly, love the concept of this book, even if I don’t see any aspects of The Craft (which I also love). I’m also a big fan of the author’s writing style, and the setting of this book is kind of dreamy and mystic, which I loved.
Unfortunately, as others have said in their review, it’s a little too similar to The Lost Boys, and I also don’t think there was any strong characterization? Everyone just seemed kind of… floaty and vague which I know is not helpful but I don’t know how else to describe it. Like, I’m not sure many of the motivations for a few of the main characters. I also don’t think the plot came through very strongly? I know the water is magic, the family is tied to the water, and there’s vigilantism (all fun in theory), but none of it is super well developed.
cafeyre's review against another edition
2.0
Mayhem Brayburn is a young girl living in the shadow of her stepfather. He is loved by everyone in their town; however, no one knows about his dark side. He is very abusive towards her and her mother.
One day he went too far so they packed everything and left. They moved back to Santa Maria, the city her mother was born in. They moved in with her twin sister and three of her adopted kids. Mayhem finally felt that she is in a place that she belongs to. The name Brayburn was very well known by people all around the city.
There is a mystery behind it and even Mayhem did not know what exactly it all means. Her grandmother’s diary gives her a small insight into the story; however, it didn’t answer all her questions. Besides the mystery of her heritage, her family and the whole city are concern about the past kidnaps of teenage girls. Mayhem together with her cousins tries to solve this mystery.
It’s so hard for me to write this review. I was delaying it for the whole month and I still have trouble to put all my thoughts together about this book. It’s mostly because I’m not a fan of this book. I didn’t enjoy reading and very often I just wanted to skip some parts because they didn’t interest me in any case. I think the worst thing for me is that the plot didn’t make any sense for me. The whole book was focused on the powers of Brayburn women, but they don’t explain is it for power? There wasn’t a clear explanation of this subject. Moreover, the characters in this book were on one side exaggerated and on the other side boring. They didn’t sell the story and didn’t make this story interesting. I think that it’s mostly because the plot was lacking something important.
I think that the characters that annoyed me the most in this book were Neve and Roxy. I just wanted to skip everything they were saying. However, I’m not going to lie I really liked Jason and Kidd. I felt really bad for them and what happened to them. I feel like Jason was the opposite of Neve and they really wanted to protect Mayhem and Kidd from the Brayburn curse, even if he knew he couldn’t. Kidd on the other side was the only one who from the beginning wanted to get to know Mayhem.
I’m actually surprised if this book will have a continuation because the story ended in this way. Anyway, I would like to thank NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Estelle Laure for providing me this copy to review!
One day he went too far so they packed everything and left. They moved back to Santa Maria, the city her mother was born in. They moved in with her twin sister and three of her adopted kids. Mayhem finally felt that she is in a place that she belongs to. The name Brayburn was very well known by people all around the city.
There is a mystery behind it and even Mayhem did not know what exactly it all means. Her grandmother’s diary gives her a small insight into the story; however, it didn’t answer all her questions. Besides the mystery of her heritage, her family and the whole city are concern about the past kidnaps of teenage girls. Mayhem together with her cousins tries to solve this mystery.
It’s so hard for me to write this review. I was delaying it for the whole month and I still have trouble to put all my thoughts together about this book. It’s mostly because I’m not a fan of this book. I didn’t enjoy reading and very often I just wanted to skip some parts because they didn’t interest me in any case. I think the worst thing for me is that the plot didn’t make any sense for me. The whole book was focused on the powers of Brayburn women, but they don’t explain is it for power? There wasn’t a clear explanation of this subject. Moreover, the characters in this book were on one side exaggerated and on the other side boring. They didn’t sell the story and didn’t make this story interesting. I think that it’s mostly because the plot was lacking something important.
I think that the characters that annoyed me the most in this book were Neve and Roxy. I just wanted to skip everything they were saying. However, I’m not going to lie I really liked Jason and Kidd. I felt really bad for them and what happened to them. I feel like Jason was the opposite of Neve and they really wanted to protect Mayhem and Kidd from the Brayburn curse, even if he knew he couldn’t. Kidd on the other side was the only one who from the beginning wanted to get to know Mayhem.
I’m actually surprised if this book will have a continuation because the story ended in this way. Anyway, I would like to thank NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Estelle Laure for providing me this copy to review!
pearcactus3's review
adventurous
dark
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
meganmreads's review against another edition
3.0
Mayhem was supposed to be a mix of The Craft and The Lost Boys. I didn’t get many vibes of The Craft, but it was a slow paced story involving a family, a weird pull of something otherworldly, and a beach. I’ve never seen The Lost Boys, so I can’t say whether it pulled in elements of that story.
Mayhem was good, both beachy and gothic, slow and lyrical, and ultimately an enjoyable book. I feel like some parts of it dragged a bit, but I was always wondering what would happen next while reading it.
I can’t put my finger on what I didn’t like, but I felt as if something was missing the entire time I was reading it, like there was a disconnect or something. The era was definitely something right up my alley, but the characters seemed young and better identified with by younger readers. I don’t know that younger readers would connect with the setting as much, though, so it just feels like it sits in between, not really for either age group.
I do still recommend reading this one and ultimately enjoyed it.
Mayhem was good, both beachy and gothic, slow and lyrical, and ultimately an enjoyable book. I feel like some parts of it dragged a bit, but I was always wondering what would happen next while reading it.
I can’t put my finger on what I didn’t like, but I felt as if something was missing the entire time I was reading it, like there was a disconnect or something. The era was definitely something right up my alley, but the characters seemed young and better identified with by younger readers. I don’t know that younger readers would connect with the setting as much, though, so it just feels like it sits in between, not really for either age group.
I do still recommend reading this one and ultimately enjoyed it.
smittenforfiction's review against another edition
4.0
I am a horrible book reviewer. I wouldn't even blame you if you didn't read this. I haven't posted anything since July 6th. I don't even know why. Just, unproductive. Reading lots, but not writing much. I'm going to try and post a bunch of reviews over the next few days to get caught up, or maybe I'll do full reviews just for the ARCS and Blog Tours then mini-reviews for backlist books. Let me know if you have a preference on that. Today, I'm here with a book review for Mayhem by Estelle Laure.
About The Book
amkra2ft's review against another edition
It was slow, and felt like it was hinting at really cool things to come (maybe magic? maybe really wild family history?) but I didn’t really care about the characters. There was an at-arms-length-ness about the writing that made me feel detached. Not my jam.
knockoffrainbow's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, and Addiction
Moderate: Violence, Alcohol, and Vomit
Minor: Grief, Blood, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Death
missprint_'s review against another edition
3.0
California, 1987: Mayhem Brayburn and her mother have never been like everyone else. May can see it in her mother Roxy's constant pain, her pull to the water, the gaping hole of her father's absence in the wake of his suicide years ago.
When her step-father goes to far, Roxy and Mayhem make their way back to the beach town--and the family history--that Roxy left behind when May was a baby. Santa Maria is everything May always hoped it would be. She meets her aunt's foster kids, finds the family she always wanted and, amazingly, discovers her own connection to the Brayburn family's long line of magic.
But not everything is magical in Santa Maria. Girls are going missing. Soon, Mayham's own efforts to find the culprit draw her into a strange world of vigilante justice and revenge as she learns more about the town--and her family's--darker secrets in Mayhem (2020) by Estelle Laure.
If this standalone fantasy sounds a lot like the 1987 film The Lost Boys, that's because it is. While Laure imbues Mayhem with its own magic and world building, the story stays close to the original plot of the classic vampire film complete with brief appearances by the iconic Frog brothers. Laure also brings more diversity to the cast in her update--the Brayburns are white but May's farther was Brazilian and Jason and Kidd are biracial (Black and white).
Questions of why this story had to be set in 1987 instead of modernized are also inevitable and not well answered by any authorial choices.
How you feel about this book might depend on your familiarity with the film and your feelings about it. Mayhem includes a lot of nods to the original film but shifts in surprising ways to make space for the Brayburn's family history as seen in a mysterious diary Mayhem finds upon exploring her new home. Unfortunately these two storylines don't always mesh well feeling more like two separate stories than one, cohesive plot.
Mayhem is ideal for readers who like their witches fierce and their vampire references vintage.
Possible Pairings: The Wicked Deep by Shea Earnshaw, Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis, The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman, Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand, The Lost Boys
When her step-father goes to far, Roxy and Mayhem make their way back to the beach town--and the family history--that Roxy left behind when May was a baby. Santa Maria is everything May always hoped it would be. She meets her aunt's foster kids, finds the family she always wanted and, amazingly, discovers her own connection to the Brayburn family's long line of magic.
But not everything is magical in Santa Maria. Girls are going missing. Soon, Mayham's own efforts to find the culprit draw her into a strange world of vigilante justice and revenge as she learns more about the town--and her family's--darker secrets in Mayhem (2020) by Estelle Laure.
If this standalone fantasy sounds a lot like the 1987 film The Lost Boys, that's because it is. While Laure imbues Mayhem with its own magic and world building, the story stays close to the original plot of the classic vampire film complete with brief appearances by the iconic Frog brothers. Laure also brings more diversity to the cast in her update--the Brayburns are white but May's farther was Brazilian and Jason and Kidd are biracial (Black and white).
Questions of why this story had to be set in 1987 instead of modernized are also inevitable and not well answered by any authorial choices.
How you feel about this book might depend on your familiarity with the film and your feelings about it. Mayhem includes a lot of nods to the original film but shifts in surprising ways to make space for the Brayburn's family history as seen in a mysterious diary Mayhem finds upon exploring her new home. Unfortunately these two storylines don't always mesh well feeling more like two separate stories than one, cohesive plot.
Mayhem is ideal for readers who like their witches fierce and their vampire references vintage.
Possible Pairings: The Wicked Deep by Shea Earnshaw, Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis, The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman, Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand, The Lost Boys
amber_lyn's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
Please read the trigger warning before picking this read up. The author does provide a list at the beginning of the book.
Mayhem and her mom’s relationship is complicated and at the heart of the story. There’s generational trauma, beachside murders, and some fantastical mystery mixed in.
Mayhem and her mom’s relationship is complicated and at the heart of the story. There’s generational trauma, beachside murders, and some fantastical mystery mixed in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Drug abuse
Moderate: Murder and Rape
p_ivy's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
All I ever do anymore is swim. I like how the world is muffled underwater.
Everything comes with a price. Every victory has a trail of blood behind it. Maybe the sorrow I am dragging behind me means a victory is coming my way.
I’m glad we came to Santa Maria. Things are finally real, they’re finally happening. I can finally sleep.
“Be one of us,” Neve says. “Save your town. Live your destiny.”
How do I tell her I don’t want to be an innocent anymore?
Innocents get hit. I want to hit back.
Brayburn lady coming for you.
I enjoyed this! Late-night coming-of-age movie vibes.
Everything comes with a price. Every victory has a trail of blood behind it. Maybe the sorrow I am dragging behind me means a victory is coming my way.
I’m glad we came to Santa Maria. Things are finally real, they’re finally happening. I can finally sleep.
“Be one of us,” Neve says. “Save your town. Live your destiny.”
How do I tell her I don’t want to be an innocent anymore?
Innocents get hit. I want to hit back.
Brayburn lady coming for you.
I enjoyed this! Late-night coming-of-age movie vibes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Physical abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Death of parent and Rape