ruthsic's review
3.0
3.5 stars
Rep: bisexual main character; Black main character; gay Black secondary character; disabled secondary character
Warnings: domestic violence; self-harm, including prescription drug abuse; body horror including related to insects and arachnophobia; vomiting; homophobia; derogatory/outdated language towards PoC; graphic violence; snakebite; human sacrifice
Well, Burn the Dark is definitely leaning well enough on the dark part, taking this urban fantasy about a witch-hunter well into horror territory. Robin is a witch-hunter who puts her hunting videos on YouTube as a show, and the monetization bankrolls her travels to different parts of the country to kill witches. Now, she is back in her hometown, five years after her mother was killed, out to get revenge against the witches' coven that did it. The other main character, Wayne, is a fifth grader who, along with his dad, are the new tenants of Robin's old house. Wayne has his mother's ring, through which he can now see doors that act as portals. Robin's return to the town also stirs up something in her house, something that has also been lurking around Robin since her first witch kill.
The story, for the most part, feels like it is going nowhere in terms of plot. It starts with her first kill, and then jumps 2 years ahead to present day, where she is back in town, and surprisingly reunites with her childhood friend Joel. For a girl bent on revenge, she does nothing to, you know, prepare for the witch hunt. No staking out the witch coven's house, a house that she used to escape to as a kid, and no recognition of the witches themselves? Most of her story in this book concerns her getting reacquainted with Joel, getting to know Kenway, a veteran-turned-artist who came into town a while ago. Wayne's PoV has him making friends, getting into trouble when the new group goes exploring the woods for a shortcut, and Wayne finding the magic in his mother's ring. Their stories don't cross paths until like the last third of the book, and then the direction of the plot makes sense, and this is where the story picks up, truly, after establishing all this backstory.
The best part of the book, however, may be the horror element - it does those scenes so well, it feels like you are there. The creeping fear of the dark and the unknown is executed brilliantly in some key scenes - like Robin's nightly bathroom visit interrupted by something supernatural, or Wayne waking through the creepy Dark-House, or, hell, even the oh-no-this-is-going-to-end-bad date that Joel went on. The atmosphere is established well; it is just that the plot takes a while to pick up and go forth in a direction.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from Tor Books, via Edelweiss.
Rep: bisexual main character; Black main character; gay Black secondary character; disabled secondary character
Warnings: domestic violence; self-harm, including prescription drug abuse; body horror including related to insects and arachnophobia; vomiting; homophobia; derogatory/outdated language towards PoC; graphic violence; snakebite; human sacrifice
Well, Burn the Dark is definitely leaning well enough on the dark part, taking this urban fantasy about a witch-hunter well into horror territory. Robin is a witch-hunter who puts her hunting videos on YouTube as a show, and the monetization bankrolls her travels to different parts of the country to kill witches. Now, she is back in her hometown, five years after her mother was killed, out to get revenge against the witches' coven that did it. The other main character, Wayne, is a fifth grader who, along with his dad, are the new tenants of Robin's old house. Wayne has his mother's ring, through which he can now see doors that act as portals. Robin's return to the town also stirs up something in her house, something that has also been lurking around Robin since her first witch kill.
The story, for the most part, feels like it is going nowhere in terms of plot. It starts with her first kill, and then jumps 2 years ahead to present day, where she is back in town, and surprisingly reunites with her childhood friend Joel. For a girl bent on revenge, she does nothing to, you know, prepare for the witch hunt. No staking out the witch coven's house, a house that she used to escape to as a kid, and no recognition of the witches themselves? Most of her story in this book concerns her getting reacquainted with Joel, getting to know Kenway, a veteran-turned-artist who came into town a while ago. Wayne's PoV has him making friends, getting into trouble when the new group goes exploring the woods for a shortcut, and Wayne finding the magic in his mother's ring. Their stories don't cross paths until like the last third of the book, and then the direction of the plot makes sense, and this is where the story picks up, truly, after establishing all this backstory.
The best part of the book, however, may be the horror element - it does those scenes so well, it feels like you are there. The creeping fear of the dark and the unknown is executed brilliantly in some key scenes - like Robin's nightly bathroom visit interrupted by something supernatural, or Wayne waking through the creepy Dark-House, or, hell, even the oh-no-this-is-going-to-end-bad date that Joel went on. The atmosphere is established well; it is just that the plot takes a while to pick up and go forth in a direction.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from Tor Books, via Edelweiss.
scriptlyss's review
dnf @ 140pg
I really debated finishing this to at least give it a fair rating. I was enjoying the novel initially, but it became increasingly difficult to get through. I kept having difficulty with inconsistencies in the writing style: some scenes were written very well and were super enjoyable! Others... not so much. In fact, more often than not, not so much. It became very repetitive, perspectives would swap suddenly and confusingly, and while the first chapter was pretty exciting, it was the *only* exciting chapter. For the rest of the story, it didn’t feel like anything was happening at all.
I really debated finishing this to at least give it a fair rating. I was enjoying the novel initially, but it became increasingly difficult to get through. I kept having difficulty with inconsistencies in the writing style: some scenes were written very well and were super enjoyable! Others... not so much. In fact, more often than not, not so much. It became very repetitive, perspectives would swap suddenly and confusingly, and while the first chapter was pretty exciting, it was the *only* exciting chapter. For the rest of the story, it didn’t feel like anything was happening at all.
lu3's review
4.0
I thank Netgalley and the publisher for this book, received in exchange of an honest review.
Robin Martine is not the usual girl. She's an orphan, she can use swords and knives, she runs a Youtube channel, she travels around America recording her adventure in...witch killing. Robin is a witch hunter and the witches are not like Sabrina Spellman or any kind witches seen on television. They are cruel, they are known to siphon life to them through spells and sacrifices and they are immortal. They killed Robin's mother, Annie, blaming her violent father.
After being instituzionalized, because Robin spoke the truth about the witches and doctors made her believe she was crazy, filling her with medications and shock therapies, she's rescued by a family friend, Heinrich. He reveals her the truth about witches and starts training her. Haunted by a green eyed monster, for years, Robin fights against supposed hallucinations and spells, while trying to do her job.
The story is built with flashbacks and memories and starts when Robin comes back to Blackfield, in her old city. For Robin, coming back home means reconnecting with Joel, his old best friend and to know Kenway,with whom Robin right away get along, dragging both of her friends in her caotic and dangerous life and revenge. Her path crossed Wayne's and his father, who they just moved in her old house. While she's keen on getting her revenge on the Coven that killed her mother, Robin starts to understand she may have been underestimated the situation.
I really liked this book. Robin is a great main character, funny, determined, stubborn and keen on discovering the truth about her family, her mother, the creature that haunts her. She wants to kill the coven that murdered her mother, the dangerous Lazenbury. Joel is a fantastic and ironic best friend and I love her relationship with him and how she found someone in him and Kenway to rely on. Kenway is another amazing character. He's a veteran, he went through hell and back and, like Robin, he's full of memories and scars.
I loved how Robin's plot crossed with Wayne's, the new kid. I like Wayne, a lot. The author did a fantastic job writing his character. Wayne lost his mother to cancer, his father went through a bad moment, drinking and, deciding to move from Chicago to a little city meant for him changing his whole life, school and friends, while still grieving for his mother. He's a strong character, friendly, smart and I liked reading about he having new friends. He was forced to grow up faster when his father started to drink.
I found really sweet his habit to put her mother's wedding ring near his eye and see through it. I love how important that ring became in the book., too.
Leon, his father, a teacher, found himself involved in witches, monsters and spell, involving witch hunting, magic rings and creature from other dimensions. I liked reading about Robin's mentor and savior, too, Heinrich, even though he's less present in the book and I hope to read more about him in the sequel, because he seemed an interesting character.
The book is captivating, full of twists and revelations and it kept me hooked until the end. It was amazing reading the multiple POVs, Robin's, Joel's, Wayne's, Marylin's and see through the "villains' " eyes too. I liked reading about witches, their powers and dryads, goddesses and so on. I'm really happy to have read this book and I can't wait to know more about Robin's story.
Robin Martine is not the usual girl. She's an orphan, she can use swords and knives, she runs a Youtube channel, she travels around America recording her adventure in...witch killing. Robin is a witch hunter and the witches are not like Sabrina Spellman or any kind witches seen on television. They are cruel, they are known to siphon life to them through spells and sacrifices and they are immortal. They killed Robin's mother, Annie, blaming her violent father.
After being instituzionalized, because Robin spoke the truth about the witches and doctors made her believe she was crazy, filling her with medications and shock therapies, she's rescued by a family friend, Heinrich. He reveals her the truth about witches and starts training her. Haunted by a green eyed monster, for years, Robin fights against supposed hallucinations and spells, while trying to do her job.
The story is built with flashbacks and memories and starts when Robin comes back to Blackfield, in her old city. For Robin, coming back home means reconnecting with Joel, his old best friend and to know Kenway,with whom Robin right away get along, dragging both of her friends in her caotic and dangerous life and revenge. Her path crossed Wayne's and his father, who they just moved in her old house. While she's keen on getting her revenge on the Coven that killed her mother, Robin starts to understand she may have been underestimated the situation.
I really liked this book. Robin is a great main character, funny, determined, stubborn and keen on discovering the truth about her family, her mother, the creature that haunts her. She wants to kill the coven that murdered her mother, the dangerous Lazenbury. Joel is a fantastic and ironic best friend and I love her relationship with him and how she found someone in him and Kenway to rely on. Kenway is another amazing character. He's a veteran, he went through hell and back and, like Robin, he's full of memories and scars.
I loved how Robin's plot crossed with Wayne's, the new kid. I like Wayne, a lot. The author did a fantastic job writing his character. Wayne lost his mother to cancer, his father went through a bad moment, drinking and, deciding to move from Chicago to a little city meant for him changing his whole life, school and friends, while still grieving for his mother. He's a strong character, friendly, smart and I liked reading about he having new friends. He was forced to grow up faster when his father started to drink.
I found really sweet his habit to put her mother's wedding ring near his eye and see through it. I love how important that ring became in the book., too.
Leon, his father, a teacher, found himself involved in witches, monsters and spell, involving witch hunting, magic rings and creature from other dimensions. I liked reading about Robin's mentor and savior, too, Heinrich, even though he's less present in the book and I hope to read more about him in the sequel, because he seemed an interesting character.
The book is captivating, full of twists and revelations and it kept me hooked until the end. It was amazing reading the multiple POVs, Robin's, Joel's, Wayne's, Marylin's and see through the "villains' " eyes too. I liked reading about witches, their powers and dryads, goddesses and so on. I'm really happy to have read this book and I can't wait to know more about Robin's story.
aleesquer's review
adventurous
medium-paced
3.5
*I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway*
I loved the premise to Burn the Dark. Urban witchcraft plus an ass-kicking Youtuber? I'm in.
I enjoyed the book, though I wish it tried to cover less material than it did. The choice to split the narrative between two protagonists was interesting, for example, but at times made the book feel like two books that had been spliced together. I think I partially felt this because of the age difference between Robin and Wayne, even though the narrative voice for both was very similar (it actually took me a good chunk of time to realize that Wayne was supposed to be much younger). I think spread-too-thin feeling also came from the ensemble cast, which was a little unwieldy to deal with at times.
I did, however, love the mythology of this book. The worldbuilding was excellent, and by far my favorite part of the book. All in all, I enjoyed the novel, and have recommended it to some friends.
I loved the premise to Burn the Dark. Urban witchcraft plus an ass-kicking Youtuber? I'm in.
I enjoyed the book, though I wish it tried to cover less material than it did. The choice to split the narrative between two protagonists was interesting, for example, but at times made the book feel like two books that had been spliced together. I think I partially felt this because of the age difference between Robin and Wayne, even though the narrative voice for both was very similar (it actually took me a good chunk of time to realize that Wayne was supposed to be much younger). I think spread-too-thin feeling also came from the ensemble cast, which was a little unwieldy to deal with at times.
I did, however, love the mythology of this book. The worldbuilding was excellent, and by far my favorite part of the book. All in all, I enjoyed the novel, and have recommended it to some friends.
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