Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for ARC. More of a 4.5⭐ read for me!

Bad Graces is a YA thriller with body horror elements and themes of abuse of power & grooming. Author Kyrie McCauley incorporates tension well, and yes, things get downright gorey at times. And yet, despite the graphic, heavy content, this novel actually felt like a comfort to me overall, as a reader who used to be a teen girl myself. The growing ties and solidarity displayed amongst the six main characters made me feel like coming home to a longtime group of sister-friends who understood the horrors of a world that is not always kind to teenage girls. Marooned on an island with just their wits and one other, they work to stave off starvation, harsh elements, and a stalking creature that terrify them day by day.

"Maybe it's a man, and maybe it's a beast. But we're teenage girls. We've all been prey before," says one of them—a line that stuck with me throughout the novel. Because when you're preyed on—by grown men, by the media, by a society that demands and consumes all that you can offer—what's one more monster? By combining both fantastical and real-world terrors, Bad Graces succeeded in making my skin crawl.

On the surface, you have our POV character, Liv, whose struggling background, social class, and family troubles is a sharp contrast to the other more privileged girls of the group. But on the island, all the superficiality and materialism are stripped away, and you get a raw and real tale of youngsters struggling to survive with anything they've got. Secrets kept from each other are revealed, or risk distrust in a situation that could mean life or death. Some might find it "unrealistic" that there wasn't more vicious infighting among the six, but I personally enjoy it when girls aren't "catty" for cattiness' sake. When they do argue, it comes from a place of hurt borne out of misplaced good intentions, rather than calculated malice with no regret afterwards. Each character grew on me so much that I was invested in their survival, every one of them.

McCauley also gives us not one, but TWO sapphic relationships in the story. I was expecting the typical sole (oft token) queer character in the group, but 4 out of 6? Massive kudos. I'll be thinking of this novel for days to come.

This is my first venture in to the writing of Kyrie McCauley and it will not be my last! McCauley has a way with words. Almost immediately I was drawn in to this story, and from there it almost felt like an addiction — while the girls were stuck stranded on this island with no escape, I wasn’t allowed to leave either. I was there to bear witness to the horrors implemented in their minds, and the changes of their bodies as they became more and more united with the island.

I thought this novel was well structured, and has a good mix of quiet, yet big, reveals. I thought the reveals were well placed in the story, and the pacing was brilliant. I do think towards the ending it went a bit too fast before it reached its conclusion, and I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more of what life was after the events of the book however I understand that this was not the story the novel set out to tell.

I really liked the body horror aspects of this novel, and how the girls all morphed and changed in unique ways which was representative of them as people and also their trauma. Trauma is such a key word because this book has buckets of it in all different forms and I feel like it represented and explored them well.

As an English Literature girlie, I really loved the incorporation of Shakespeare in to this and felt those influences weaved seamlessly into the novel. It was excellent.

I loved that the girls got to be ‘imperfect’. I love that we got to see them angry. I loved that we got to see them forgiving. I just loved, loved, loved that they were multi-faceted and had such different and complex relationships with each other.

All in all, I think this is such a special novel and I’m finding it hard to discuss without spoiling some of the reveals and big moments from the book. And I don’t want to do that. This is a novel that needs discovering.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction | Magpie for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 stars

A dark, eerie, YA, survivalist horror that follows the journey of a group of teenage girls that are shipwrecked upon a mysterious island that is not all that it seems. If you loved <i>Yellowjackets</i> then this is definitely your vibe. The opening chapter is absolutely engrossing and had me hooked from the start; in fact, I completed this in two sittings in under 24 hours. The chapters are short enough and the tension throughout meant I struggled to tear myself away from reading what happened next.

The preternatural island itself was my favourite part of the reading experience with the deeply descriptive prose of its unruly forest, enchanting waters, and otherworldly mycelium that spawns from every crevice. The girls soon discover that they're not alone on the ominous island and that the injuries they incur begin to mutate. While this is marketed as YA and reads as YA, there are some pretty descriptive moments of obscure and grotesque body horror and dark themes that run throughout the story. I just loved the whole bizarreness of it all that read almost like a fever dream/psychedelic trip throughout.

The characters begin rather two-dimensional but throughout the novel, we begin to understand them a little more. There is a light sapphic romance element but this is only lightly touched upon. However, I didn't find myself particularly overly emotionally attached to any of the characters and was far more fascinated with the growth of the mutations. This was my first Kyrie McCauley read and I'm definitely adding some of their other titles to my TBR.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

"Bad Graces" is a ya survival horror written by Kyrie McCauley. A dark, eerie and bewitching novel that absorbed me completely from the very first lines. A sinister, at times disturbing story centered on a group of young girls suddenly stranded on a wild and hostile island. An ominous and isolated location, marked by unexplained phenomena and the hunting ground of a mysterious predator. A place that, slowly, with each injury they suffer, begins to mutate their very bodies. Seriously, I loved the idea behind the story! The compelling and evocative prose, fast pace and short chapters kept me glued to the pages, with no moments of boredom or heaviness. I was captivated by the insidious island with its dark forests, treacherous creaks and various sinister events that pervade it. I found it a highly atmospheric setting, vividly described and extremely effective. The story convinced me in its development, with an ending that fully satisfied me. In my opinion, the author managed to depict both the more tense moments and the quieter scenes incredibly well, creating a fantastic narration. Too bad only for the characters, the focus of the novel, who unfortunately did not convince me. I followed them with interest in their misadventures, but I don't know, they seemed rather superficial, poorly portrayed, so much so that I struggled to bond with them. In the end, however, it is a book that I enjoyed and recommend to lovers of the genre!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The book description was STRONG- injuries causing their bodies to change??? I was all in and I had a delightful time, I absolutely plowed through this book.

I would describe this book best as a YA survival horror with saphic romance and strong feminism values. This would be an excellent book for a teenage girl (aside from just being an excellent book for anyone).
The horror is tame in my opinion, so it shouldn't scare you. There's just obvious body horror, injury and graphic dead bodies.
The romance is tame, nothing explicit but there are two cute FF couples.

What I loved most about this was that this book can somehow take what would be a horrendous situation and turn it into a kind of fun girls trip? It's a strangely beautiful thing to see these girls come together and create a sanctuary from a terrible situation.

(Small spoiler) I was sad to see that Everly and Violet didn't reconcile though.

Bad Graces by Kyrie McCauley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Out 20.06.24
YA Thriller

As with most of the books I read, I go in blind, only knowing the genre of book. So when I first started reading this story, it felt a little too young for me and like it was going to be about a group of annoying, obnoxious, rich, famous girls. I realised it has more to it than that. The more I read, the more I really felt for the group of girls. Their characters progressed and transformed throughout the story into truly likeable people. The whole book, you see it through the main female characters' eyes and experiences, Liv. She is a strong person who has had a tough life. I don't want to go into too much detail as I feel it would take something away from the story.
However, the bulk of this book for me was how the group of females all with big personalities bonded through trauma, building a solidity and solace amongst themselves in order to survive.

Throughout reading Bad Graces, there is a good balance between character development, plot, and love story. I like that the latter wasn't the main focus of this book. It builds the suspense where needed and gives a sense of foreboding throughout. Kyrie McCauley describes the forest beautifully. The magical and mystical element really came alive inside my mind, I could sense what the girls were feeling around them.

With the flow of this book, you could quite easily read this in one sitting. It has short chapters, which helps. It held my attention and was quite captivating in parts.

This would be a perfect story for any teens wanting to venture into a book with a bit more of an adult feel. It does tackle some heavy themes and has some gory parts in it, too.

All in all, I did really enjoy reading this book. It makes for an eerie, fascinating, and mysterious read. The only thing that niggled me was I felt the ending a little rushed and I wanted it to delve into the magical side a little more. A good solid read overall.

Synopsis
A group of young girls get stranded on a deserted island and try to find a way to survive. When all is not what it seems, and unusual, mysterious occurrences happen, they find themselves entwined with the island.

This book really surprised me with how much I enjoyed it.

The plot was creative and enticing with lots of twists and turns. All the characters were dynamic and fleshed out. The pacing was perfect for me. A lovely medium with building tension towards the end. The description was great, nothing whimsical (which is usually my preference but that wouldn’t have worked for this story). The author really captured a great group dynamic between all the women and the trust and solidarity a group of women can share in extreme circumstances. The story really grew as the characters grew together in friendship and harmony.

I loved the relationship between Liv and Miri, I loved seeing Miri through the eyes of Liv and how it clearly turned from a small crush to lust to trust and love. The description of Miri and her character were probably my favourite.

I think I was most surprised with the fantasy/magical development as I was not expecting it, it made me curious but parts did confuse me a bit and in the end I don’t think I fully understood how the the system worked. There was no explanation into the mythical/magical creature in the island and I would have like to explored that more.

I felt the end was slightly rushed with the few quick time jumps and think the book could have been slightly longer to allow for more details into those time periods.

But overall, I very much enjoyed this book and would recommend!

4/5⭐️

4.5 stars... I'M OBSESSED

In my review of All the Dead Lie Down I said I could see the potential for Kyrie McCauley to spiral into madness even deeper and trust me... SHE DELIVERED!!

This was such a bizarrely fantastic, yet deeply tragic story. Please check for trigger warnings as this is a story about trauma and FULL of body horror. If maggots and fungi creep you out, be warned!

I almost finished this in one sitting! That's how easily readable it is, the plot moves fast and the mysterious nature of what was truly going on on this Island literally made me feel trapped alongside the girls in the story!? I HAD to know where this story was going to go.

I will say though that yes, I did see some flaws. Parts of the dialogue or descriptions made me cringe (If I remember, I'll come back and update with quotes once the book is published) I truly think Kyrie McCauley is held back by the YA label because her themes are pretty heavy and could be explored sooo much further if given the freedom to do so without having to cater to a younger audience.

And no, I'm NOT saying YA books cannot handle heavy themes and discuss trauma well (The Honeys is a perfect example) but for a story like this, with a group of girls stuck on island, I think an extra 50-100 pages or so would have been perfect to really dive into the girls' minds -maybe even a POV switch?- whilst also giving us that sense of isolation, and more time to witness their personalities change the longer they're stuck on this island? I don't know!? I still LOVED it anyway so there's that haha.

The eerie atmosphere was EVERYTHING, some of the body horror truly made me feel uneasy, I felt the pain of the girls' trauma, and I could feel the sand on the beach, the cold wind, the creepy forest, and this genuinely creeped me out! From today I'll be silently praying that Kyrie McCauley decides to write an adult novel one day...

If you're a fan of House of Salt and Sorrows + House of Hollow... I think you'll enjoy this!

*Thank you to Netgalley + HarperCollins for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

-Sarah

I really loved this book! The comps for this are spot on!

It was a perfect mix of girlhood, horror and action. The storm scenes were so tense and I honestly had no idea how the plot was going to progress after they were stranded on the island. I loved that the strange happenings weren't really explained as it would of made everything much less tense or creepy for them to have found a scientific way of explaining everything. It's also queer in a perfect way! I loved how everyone's relationship grew (romantic and platonic) and how they became a great team and supported each other. I was so glad that there wasn't a lot of drama and that they instead choose to focus on surviving.

I look forward to seeing what this author writes in the future as this really was a treat! A perfect read for summer!

I have to keep this short to ditch spoilers because the plot is truly thrilling! The author's writing style is great and keeps you on the edge of your seat - plot wise.
I had some issues with the characters since I wasn't able to connect to them well and have to admit I rolled my eyes at their thoughts/decisions here and there. But the plot made up for it.

Bad Graces grabs you from the very first sentence and you'll struggle not to read this fast paced novel in one sitting. For Fans of the shows The Wilds, Yellowjackets & Lost, also books/graphic novels like Wilder Girls & The Cull.

Liv earns the chance to visit a movie set alongside its stars (with a tiny bit of subterfuge), unfortunately on the way there they begin to run into troubles that start on the yacht. Mysterious reactions from the ships captain and a storm find these six stranded on an island. Shelter, food, water and injuries become the least of their concern as they discover a monster.

The island's mysteries grow as changes occur to our survivors all whilst they struggle to survive and find a way home.

Bad Graces was a riveting read, I'll admit that I'm a sucker for island survival stories in whatever format! The romances were great and I loved all the character dynamics, they were all really fleshed out characters and a lovable group. Liv's ingenious survival methods that helped the group against all odds were standout (that makeshift net!) highly recommend giving Bad Graces a read!

Ohh, this was all vibes and I loved it!

A star studded yacht trip turns deadly when a storm sends the craft ashore, stranded on a tiny island… Now, this group of girls must lean on each other and survive however they can.

Something else is on this island though… something that is changing them. As they grow closer, bonds growing and forming out of necessity, they begin changing. Even little injuries form these terrifyingly beautiful alterations in them.

The people they are when starting this trip are not the people they find themselves to be, now. I thought the journey getting there was told so beautifully.

I’m trying to be vague on purpose, because I went in to this read totally blind! I love the author and knew that I was going to enjoy this. This was eerie and stunning at the same time. It gave me Lost vibes. The character dynamics were among my favorite aspects of the book. I highly recommend it!