Honeysuckle and Bone by Trisha Tobias was such a great experience of a book. What a story!!!! I rated this book 5 stars because I loved the experience of reading it.

On the run from her own dark secrets, a teen girl becomes the nanny for a prestigious family on their extravagant Jamaican estate. But things aren't quite as they seem, and she quickly discovers that even paradise may be haunted.

I was drawn to this book by its concept and was immediately hooked from the first chapter; it does a great job at enticing you and making you want to read on to find out what our main character is hiding but also follow her on his journey to uncover the secrets the Hall family is hiding. Honeysuckle and Bone has a great balance of thrill and suspense but also contains flawed multi-dimensional characters that allow them space to self-reflect and grow.

This book teaches you a lot about owning up to your mistakes, not running from the past and putting that effort into moving forward and building a future.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read an early version of this. I was gripped throughout my entire read.

I've been struggling with my last few reads, so this has been a breath of fresh air. I'm a sucker for ghost stories where an outsider arrives in an old place that is haunted, and has to figure out who the ghost is and what skeletons are hiding in the closet (literally). And this is that, with a healthy dose of family drama, some teenage drama (and trauma) and all that in a Jamaican setting. Lots of mystery, friendship, Jamaican patois language, maybe even romance?!

I initially thought that the reveal of Carina's "crime" was underwhelming, but now I feel like that was part of the point. She's just a teenage girl, and there's bigger monsters here. I also wanted there to be something romantic between Carina and Dante, but I guess that didn't work out, huh?

I liked that Carina struggles with her identity - she's Jamaican, but she's never been to Jamaica, and in the past she'd clung to stereotypes to feel connected to her culture, which was interesting.

Overall an interesting read, the mystery and the characters were both very intriguing, and the setting/atmosphere also.

Ooooh the vibes of this were excellent. Adored the way this built up really slowly, leaves you feeling tense and on edge.

Love the combination of Jamaican culture, finding your place in the world AND a ghost story.

Not sure I was wholly sold on the plot twists but a gripping read with lots of fun and interesting elements!

Overall a great book, great characters and an enjoyable read!
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC

This wasn't a book I could keep reading. The beginning is filled with so many words yet shows us nothing. Far too much foreshadowing, and theres constant repitition about keeping the secret, and not getting caught, panic, hitching breath, its too much. Authors need to show us instead of telling us everything.
The writing itself is incredibly simple so it may be that this book just isn't for me. I love worldbuilding, descriptive language and enjoy reading between the lines trying to figure out whats happening, who's lying, who isnt. But this book tells you everything off the bat. Do we have to be told right at the start that she isnt Joy? Couldnt that have been a dramatic twist that we find out later on? Its rather anti climatic. Im just too bored to continue reading which is a shame as I did really enjoy the books summary!