This was an absolutely scrumptious read! 4.5 stars.

I purchased this on an overstocked book site primarily based on the beautiful cover and because I recognized the author, so I really had little expectation and knew little about Small Favors before reading it. Let's just say I was quickly emersed in the story. I dug its Wayward Pines vibe; wonderfully unusual and so very clever.

Small Favors is set in the small town of Amity Falls, where the townsfolk are living a secluded yet harmonic life (definite cult-like vibes), that is until strange things start happening (monsters, death, crime, sabotage, odd birth defects in animals), and the town begins to go completely mad. Ellerie Downing, a spirited, self-reliant, and intelligent 18-year-old, finds herself taking care of her family, the farm, the bees, and to her dismay, very, very entwined in the mysterious happenings that are plaguing her small town.

My only critique is the ending... while I enjoyed parts of the ending (all that transpired with Whitaker and Ellerie), I felt like it was rushed, and I still had questions and areas of closure that needed to be had.

“It was a marvel to me, the way these little insects could see the bigger picture and strive for the greater good, forsaking their own needs to protect the hive.”

“There's a power in names, don't you think? Once your name is given away, you can't help but be pulled along by those who have it.”

“Be careful what you say in the dark of the night, Ellerie Downing, lest you promise something you might regret.”
― Erin A. Craig, Small Favors

Now I am really excited to read House of Salt and Sorrows, which has been on my BTR for far too long! ( )

teen/adult audio (14 hrs, 20 min) CW/TW: threats of violence by people and creatures, birth defects in animals, traumatic fire, alcoholism, death by hanging, bloody gore, demonic visions.

2024 reading challenge: takes place in a small town, beginning of autumn/fall through a birthday, Christmas, a desperate winter, and into spring.

first impressions: yes, this does resemble "The Village" a lot in the beginning -- teen protagonist (and beekeeper's daughter) Ellerie Downing longs to leave her isolated God-fearing community of Amity Falls surrounded by forest, which strongly fears "the outside" but more recently is terrorized by enormous creatures with silver eyes, and then things get even weirder/creepier. Audio narration is mostly ok but several of the voices can be annoying (little sister Sadie infuriatingly so, mysterious boy "Whitaker Price" at first as well, but also nearly every female voice that is not the narrator's normal speaking voice) so would strongly recommend the print version instead if you enjoy creepy horror stories.
Also, for my tastes, this audiobook was 6 or 7 hours too long, as I lost interest in following the (horror-filled) story as the villagers were predictably manipulated and increasingly hysterical (with annoying voices), and I quickly tired of the would-be romance between the main character and this "Whitaker" who, from the reader's perspective, has actually done very little to deserve her adoration. It got better towards the end (especially after she stopped talking to the villagers), but I was certainly glad when the book finally ended.

tldr: If you like the genre you might enjoy the print version, not the audio. ( )

So, imagine The Village, by M. Night Shyamalan. The idyllic little town surrounded by a creepy forest with a creepy secret and a hand-me-down legend, right? Now imagine that there's no twist and it ended up being genuinely freaky. That's Small Favors. Good read, would bargain again. ( )

This is a thinly veiled Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale retelling.
But you likely won't make that connection until almost the end of this YA novel.

What you get in the mean time is lots of shades of "Salem Witch Trial paranoia on the frontier" vibes.
Something mysterious/supernatural/frightening is causing the people in a cult-like small town to spiral out of control; one disturbing incident after another leads to the community becoming even more isolated.
But the horror is that it isn't clear what is to blame and who is friend or foe.

I loved learning about honey bees, which play a major role in the story. ( )

Came in with good expectations as I loved Salt and Sorrows, but this was just okay. For me the beginning just kind of dragged along. I did enjoy the last 150-200 pages. ( )