YOUR BLOOD, MY BONES, by Kelly Andrew, Scholastic Press, April 2, 2024, Hardcover, $19.99 (young adult, 14 and up)
A young woman returns to her childhood home only to find her best friend strung up in chains in the basement in Your Blood, My Bones, by Kelly Andrew.
Wyatt Westlock has one plan for the farmhouse she’s just inherited — to burn it to the ground. But during her final walkthrough of her childhood home, she makes a shocking discovery in the basement — Peter, the boy she once considered her best friend, strung up in chains and left for dead.
Unbeknownst to Wyatt, Peter has suffered hundreds of ritualistic deaths on her family’s property. Semi-immortal, Peter never remains dead for long, but he can’t really live, either. Not while he’s bound to the farm, locked in a cycle of grisly deaths and painful rebirths. There’s only one way for him to break free. He needs to end the Westlock line.
He needs to kill Wyatt.
With Wyatt’s parents gone, the spells protecting the property have begun to unravel, and dark, ancient forces gather in the nearby forest. The only way for Wyatt to repair the wards is to work with Peter — the one person who knows how to harness her volatile magic. But how can she trust a boy who’s sworn an oath to destroy her? When the past turns up to haunt them in the most unexpected way, they are forced to rely on one another to survive, or else tear each other apart. —Synopsis provided by Scholastic Press
Your Blood, My Bones is one of those books that you need to be in the right head space for. It’s dark and twisted and creepy. But, if that’s your thing, then you’ll definitely enjoy this book. Because author Kelly Andrew is great at writing this genre.
The book is told from the alternating viewpoints of Wyatt and Peter, though Wyatt has twice as many chapters. Wyatt has all the questions, and Peter most of the answers. Though they’ve been apart for years, they are still drawn to each other, which makes the only outcome worse.
Your Blood, My Bones features a number of potentially triggering or disturbing themes including animal death, allusions to abuse, violence, poisoning, cults, death and torture. It’s a big list, but it’s tastefully done.
Andrew’s writing has a visceral feel, and her opening sentence of “She meant to burn it down,” definitely grabs your attention. She’s skilled at setting a scene through worldbuilding and tone. The one thing that might trip readers up is the magic system, which I think is purposefully vague. Readers who want a full understanding of it may leave feeling unfulfilled.
Your Blood, My Bones isn’t the type of book I would generally be drawn to, but Andrew’s narrative is compelling enough that I kept with it. I suggest checking it out from the library if you’re not sure it’s a good fit.
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