Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Alice, Charlotte and Maria all hunger for a life different than circumstance has afforded them.

An enjoyable read with a slightly different take on vampires. I love the title, and the twists to classic vampire lore Schwab plays with. Much of the book is historical fiction, and also queer, both of which I find appealing.

While I found the stories of Maria and Charlotte most engaging, Alice’s used a few tropes I am thoroughly tired of. Her chapters were the ones I least enjoyed. I also found the denouement somewhat lacking. Otherwise, a fun read with well-defined characters and interesting storylines.

I’m a fan of Schwab—she always delivers. Not sure why, but I was surprised this turned out to be a vampire novel. Lesbian vampires! Schwab makes some interesting tweaks to the lore, like how walking on graveyard soil is deadly to them. And explores how immortality affects them differently; the way some are less/more successful at hanging on to their humanity. A sad, hollow ending though. On the longer side, but unlike many of the other books I’ve read this year that should’ve been shorter, this (mostly) knew how to tell a good story.