Andrew Joseph White

teen/adult - riveting post-apocalyptic horror with queer and trans protagonists, extremist cult murderers, and monsters.

read this more or less in one sitting.

4.5
A gothic tale with mutilated lady ghosts, feisty women committed against their will and trans-love.
I enjoyed it but felt the protagonist was a touch passive (but her believing she must be “a good girl” is repeated) for me to really enjoy it.

Gr 9 Up—Resistance to life as a wife and mother lands Silas a diagnosis of Veil sickness and conscription to a
torturous conversion facility masquerading as a boarding school. Horrific fictional violence parallels the real
psychological violence of forced conformity, but Silas finds redemption in community.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

This was a fantastic ghost story, the writing and the visuals were striking and unique, and the main character was someone you were rooting for the whole story. The characters had a lot of depth, and the relationship between Silas and Daphne was fantastic.