Hey guys, this is Abi here,
And I was pretty surprised, when thinking of my next post, was a review. But then, isn't it the perfect time?
After all, I did finish a book two days ago. A book I've been, slowly but surely, getting through for the past three months.
Which was the perfect way to devour it all gradually, at my own pace.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.
Title: Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Horror
Status: Standalone
Release date: 10/6/2025
Pages: 533
Blurb: "Three young women, their bodies
planted in the same soil,
their roots tangling like roots.
One grows high,
and one grows deep,
and one of them grows wild.
And all of them grow teeth."
My Thoughts
Genuinely, didn't even realise it was a vampire book until the first character, Sabine, started draining people's blood. In hindsight, definitely should of realised, but when it's V.E. Schwab, and the only indicator is that the only common indicator is that they have teeth, it could literally be anything. They could have been cannibals for all I knew.
Admittedly, it was at this point, maybe 100 pages in, that I realised I wasn't motivated enough to finish it before the end of February.
So since then, I've been listening to the audiobook whilst doing RFID at work (shop is closed, so I can), and since then, I found myself drawn to it. Don't get me wrong, it was never going to take time away from my Skulduggery Pleasant re-read, but when that time rolled around again, I found I was a lot more invested and interested in the story.
Now. Where do I begin? There's the characters, the world building, the romance, how accurate the time period was. Even though I knew this was a twisted horror story, I absolutely loved reading about the time period. The hardships of each of these women: Sabine, in 1532 Santa Domingo de la Calzada, never seeing her family again after being whisked away by her decades-older husband, trapped until she produced a son.
Lottie, in 1827 London, pursued by a violent ex. Even crossing an ocean cannot keep the stream of death away from her.
Alice. 2019. Completely alone in Boston, with a newborn urge to drink blood after a one night stand. Cannot go forward, cannot go back to the past, when the stink of grief nearly overwhelms her.
All three characters are amazingly written. You can always tell which POV you're reading from, and whether it's past or present.
All of them amazing in their own right. There was a time in this book, when I found I wanted to read from each character, more than the others. Even if you asked me now, which was my favourite to read from, I wouldn't be able to tell you. I felt the frustration of each of them, Sabine in her trapped marriage; Lottie, in her desperation to finally be free; and Alice, in her confusion as for how her life had suddenly been cut short.
As usual, V.E. Schwab's writing was spot on. She wound a seamless tale of love, passion, obsession, anguish and sensuality. The romances and relationships that entered throughout gave the story a reason, a reason as for why these characters acted the way they did. It was the motivation behind the madness.
This book felt like a lot of my guilty pleasure themes all rolled into one book. I love period books about a young woman figuring out her worth when married off. I loved books about sibling rivalries- that feeling of never quite catching up to an older sibling, of constantly being in their shadow. And then there was Lottie's part, which I can honestly say I've never read anything like it.
Of course, this book was more than just the three main characters. There were friends, mentors that had some really touching, heartbreaking moments that make me want to give them the biggest squeeze. Is it safe to say my heart broke for the undead? I'd say yes, yes it is.
Overall, the only critique I have of this book is that the pacing was a bit slow in one part, but once I got over that part, accepted where the story was going, I got sucked in, and gained momentum until the very end.
If you like gothic, horror stories with lesbian vampires at the centre, then this is the book for you. I was in the entirely wrong mindset for this book when I first started it, because I'd just finished a gushy romance, but if it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have become quite so engrossed over a long period of time. And for that, I am eternally grateful (I gave this book 5 stars).
It doesn't have to be Halloween to read a gothic horror novel. Especially a V.E. Schwab one.
Okay! Those are all of my thought on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil! I hope you enjoyed it, and as always, feel free to comment what your thoughts were on the book/ my review!
Genuinely, I didn't plan on writing this review, but this review idea came into my head and refused to let me forget about it.
Okay, that is all that I have for you today- hopefully I'll be back at the end of the money, for the Skulduggery Pleasant update, but don't hold your breath on that.
I hope you have a wonderful evening and I'll see you all soon!
Byeeeeee!
-Abi xxxxxx
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