3.3 stars
For the first half of the book I found things ok
I liked Mari’s dynamic with her brother Sammy, I didn’t really care for the insta attraction with Yusuf and really disliked Alec and his enabling Piper. The second half of the book got stronger, the jumps between scenes was much smoother and as we learn about Mari’s heavy reliance with weed to deal with her ptsd of bedbugs (which although I don’t have trauma to that extent, I can definitely say encountering bed bugs is scarring). I thought there would be something more with the whole sham religious guy selling seeds but a company making a plan to make the townspeople set fire to their own town so that the company can kick start mass gentrification is so much more realistic and sinister. I really hope Jon Jon got out and I think the ending just happened way too quickly. I really did like the progression of the relationship between Piper and Mari. Mari finding her annoying and just chatting a bag about Piper to whoever was so realistic of an older sibling who is not the best person but is tired but deep down does care. I loved their resolution at the end. I also loved how the family kind of came together towards the end of the book, from the scene where the town confronts them for being the only house with electricity onwards: Alec actually stands up for Mari for once, Piper holding onto Sammy, Sammy holding onto Mari, Raquelle defending Mari.
But again, it just ended so quickly. I feel like it ended like how slasher movies, which is when the main characters escape the final danger.
The Scott preacher guy having the final lines was something I could not endure though.
But I really liked this book and will be checking out more of the author’s works