Monday, October 12, 2015

Review & Giveaway: Daughters unto Devils by Amy Lukavics


Published: September 29, 2015
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
When sixteen-year-old Amanda Verner's family decides to move from their small mountain cabin to the vast prairie, she hopes it is her chance for a fresh start. She can leave behind the memory of the past winter; of her sickly Ma giving birth to a baby sister who cries endlessly; of the terrifying visions she saw as her sanity began to slip, the victim of cabin fever; and most of all, the memories of the boy she has been secretly meeting with as a distraction from her pain. The boy whose baby she now carries.

When the Verners arrive at their new home, a large cabin abandoned by its previous owners, they discover the inside covered in blood. And as the days pass, it is obvious to Amanda that something isn't right on the prairie. She's heard stories of lands being tainted by evil, of men losing their minds and killing their families, and there is something strange about the doctor and his son who live in the woods on the edge of the prairie. But with the guilt and shame of her sins weighing on her, Amanda can't be sure if the true evil lies in the land, or deep within her soul.

My Thoughts
Okay, that was pretty creepy! I actually had to create a new GR shelf for this book. I have never read a YA horror novel before, and Daughters Unto Devils definitely sets the bar! I am seriously creeped out! Yes that was quite the scary story there!

Amanda Verner has lived her entire life with her family in a mountain cabin. However after a horrible winter that left them traumatized to the brutal conditions of mountain living, her father takes the advice of Henry the post boy about moving to a prairie settlement where more subtle weather and spacious cabins would suit the Verner family much better.

So the family, including the mom, dad, Amanda and her sister Emily, as well as the smallest siblings Joanna, Charles and Hannah set off to the prairie in search of a new home and better life.

Immediately upon their arrival, the only available cabin is filled with blood stained walls and a sense of foreboding settles upon Amanda. As the days pass, she can’t ignore the evil she senses and soon begins to hear an infant crying, later to witness one standing upright in the dark woods. She’s the only one in her family that senses this danger and coupled with the demons she’s fighting within her, she knows she needs to get her family far from this place.

I am only scratching the surface to this story. There are so many layers that added to the chill factor Amy Lukavics creating in this YA horror novel. It all felt so real and played out like a movie, one that I normally wouldn't find myself enjoying, but I sort of did. Lukavics never tricks you into a false sense of security. She’s straightforward in setting the appearances that it’s a horror story so prepare yourself from some gruesome scenes, which by the way she delivered with detailed precision.

For anyone looking for a story that will end up in the freezer several times while you read it, I highly suggest this novel that spares no expense at scaring the pants off its readers! Well play Amy Lukavics… well played!
4 Snowflakes
If this sounds like a book you'd enjoy, I am giving away an ARC edition of Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics.  Simply fill out the rafflecopter and share a thoughtful comment below. 

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4 comments:

  1. Whoa! This book sounds AWESOME! I haven't read a lot of horror novels, more thriller, I'd say. The Never List was one I really enjoyed.

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  2. I haven't read a good horror in awhile but Gillian Flynn's Dark Places was a good thriller!

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  3. I don't think I've read a horror novel in years. I was scarred by Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD. That book really stuck with me.

    I'd like to read something like this one, though. Especially for Halloween time.

    Thanks for the giveaway!

    -Rosie
    @rkgutmann
    literaryhedonist.com

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  4. I haven't read a good horror book in a while but last 5 star read was Donners of the Dead by Karina Halle. One creepy awesome book.

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