erinarkin20's profile picture

erinarkin20 's review for:

Eventide by Sarah Goodman
4.0

I really enjoyed this book! Having read the book, I have to say that the cover is amazing and I think it is perfect for it.

The main character is Verity Pruitt and immediately we find out that she and her little sister, Lilah, are orphans. With their mother dead and their father going mad, they have been sent on a train to Arkansas with the hopes that they will be adopted. While this is their situation right now, Verity has plans. Her goal is for them to get adopted together and stay there just until she is old enough to take her sister back to New York so she can go to school.

As you can guess, that isn't what happens. Lilah is quickly adopted and that's when Verity realizes that this was always the plan. What she also realizes is that if she wants to stay near her sister, she will have to indenture herself as a farm hand...which she does. I honestly liked the family she was with more and even though she had to work day in and day out, I think she ended up with the better option.

As the story progresses, it is clear that there is something weird about the town they now live in. The woods have strange things happening in them, some of the people act a little off, and over a short period of time, Lilah begins to change. As Verity tries to figure out what is happening and why she and her sister are involved in the weirdness, she and those she loves are put in danger.

I thought Goodman did a great job with building out the characters in this story and pulling me into their world. From the second they got off the train, I couldn't stop feeling like something was going to go wrong and I wanted things to be ok for Verity. I thought the way her relationship developed with Abel was done well and when the twist happens, my heart hurt for her.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and if you're looking for a historical YA with a bit of a gothic feel, you should check this one out. I'll be looking for more books by Sarah Goodman in the future.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.