I won’t pretend to be an unbiased reviewer when it comes to V.E. Schwab. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is one of my favorite books of all time, so when I found out about a new release, I was ecstatic and even more so to see the author at her book launch event.
BURY OUR BONES IN THE MIDNIGHT SOIL is, according to Schwab, “A love letter to Anne Rice.” I also like her other wrap-up description of how the story concept began, “Toxic Lesbian Vampires.” Both sum up the general feeling of this book.
The story is told from the perspective of three women – at three different points in time, who are turned vampires, though each seems a little uneasy with the word vampire itself. Each experiences the life of a sapphic woman at different moments in history, as well as a deep thirst - arguably for more than just blood.
The novel starts with Maria, in the 16th century – a woman with a sharp will and great cunning. In a time of very little choice for women, she is determined to claw her way to freedom. Later, we meet Charlotte, in the 19th century. Charlotte is a bit timid, but just as determined to live truthfully- whatever it takes. And last in the timeline is Alice, a Scottish-born college student in 2019 Boston – a bit fearful in her own skin at first – but at the top of the novel Alice goes to a college party determined to be someone else for the night and wakes up completely changed.
The novel is horror, mixed with a bit of historical fiction, and V.E. Schwab’s writing style has the lyrical beat of a poet (which is how the author started her literary career). The verse at the book’s core seems to permeate the story and sets the meter by which she writes:
“Bury my bones in the midnight soil, Plant them shallow, and water them deep, And in my place will grow a feral rose, Soft red petals hiding sharp white teeth.”
There are love stories in the book, but this is not an HEA story. Horror is not my typical genre, so I will not pretend to be able to compare this novel to other authors, but I thought it was very well executed – a testament to Schwab’s writing process, which involves sharp crafting of her novel from the offset that is very character driven. I also appreciate the fine line of a story that was not so much terror that I was squeamish, but enough that I got a twinge of dread in key moments.
BURY OUR BONES IN THE MIDNIGHT SOIL, therefore, gives engaging insights into the internal struggles of how each woman navigates their thirst, something that can never be sated, no matter how much they drink, as well as living as a queer woman in times when the world affords only freedom to men, and even in some cases, excuses abuses. Vampirism gives these characters the power to live as they wish by taking out the fear of pain and death, but it comes at a cost. The book also poses the dilemma of how creatures living a very long life can start to lose their own humanity.
All in all, it was a beautiful, expertly-fashioned horror novel that left me with a little bit of my own thirst for more when it was over.
LIMITED FIRST PRINT RUN--ALL first edition copies will be signed by the author! Signed copies available only for a limited time and while supplies last. From V. E. Schwab, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: a new genre-defying, unforgettable novel to sink your teeth into.
Santo Domingo de la Calzada, 1532. London, 1837. Boston, 2019.
Three young women, their bodies planted in the same soil, their stories tangling like roots.
One grows high, and one grows deep, and one grows wild.
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