The Dead and the Dark

this was so fun and spooky with a really nice sapphic romance! the small town energy was on point. i was really glad to see such an upfront portrayal of comphet and how easy it can be to lose yourself in others' expectations. i didn't realize this was a debut until i hit the acknowledgements and was really impressed with Gould's writing. i think some things in the final act didn't quite work for me, but this was still so compulsively readable that i tore through it in just a couple sittings. i'm so excited to see what Gould comes out with next (more lesbians, she's promised) and have already decided that she's an auto-buy author for me.

content warnings: Homomisia & homomisic slurs; Hate crimes; Death of a child; Murder & attempted murder; Gun violence; Attempted drowning; Vivisepulture (being buried alive) (per the Trigger Warning Database)