Claire Legrand

"From the New York Times bestselling author of Furyborn comes a breathtaking and spine-tingling novel about three teenage girls who face off against an insidious monster that preys upon young women ..."--From publisher website.

Sawkill Girls

kelsey

“girls hunger. and we're taught, from the moment our brains can take it, that there isn't enough food for us all.”

holy shit. this book. i really can't even put into words how powerful this book is. 

lgbt girls. girls who go against old balding men who think they know best. girls who kick ass. 

this is a book that everyone needs to read. past the horror there's a deeper meaning of how strong women are. i love stories like this.

you can move mountains. you are breakable. you will never break.
you must keep fighting. you must never stop fighting.

I will always love a good YA horror/thriller/paranormal mix book and this one was no exception. All three main characters were so likeable for me and I found myself unable to put this book down. Something that really stood out to me in this book were the descriptions of emotions and feelings—they were extraordinarily detailed and gut-wrenching to read and I kept feeling like I was punched in the gut whenever I read them. Such a good read and such a good recommendation from my friend! 

Alexa M

menna

I'm still not entirely sure how I feel so I'll just give it four stars for now

dija

"What I'm saying," Marion said, now looking right at Zoey, her grey eyes bright, "Is that girls hunger. And we're taught from the moment our brain can take it, that there isn't enough food for us all."

HOLY SHIT I LOVE AND WOULD DIE FOR THESE GIRLS 

This was the first horror-ish book I've ever read and even though i wasn't scared i was still scared because damn that little shit was creepy af 
Honest to my bones, i didn't know what the hell this book was about when i picked it, the cover did the trick BUT IM GLAD I PICKED IT UP although i was debating whether i give awkward 3 stars or pretty 4 stars but then decided to go with the latter because this book crossed 3 firsts for me!!! 

●This is the first horror book I've ever read. 
●The first book with a main f/f relationship AND THEY ARE SO ndjdkdkd MY BEAUTIFUL POWERFUL DAUGHTERS TOGETHER THEY WILL RULE THE WORLD
●The first book with an asexual main character, Zoey can literally kill me and i will thank her.

The writing style was really beautiful and i loved reading from the girls' pov, they were all so different and yet the same.

Jamieson

does anyone else feel like YA fantasy has been kinda dropping the ball lately? Because I'm here to report yet ANOTHER one has let me down and I don't know who to blame at this point. 


  “Beware the woods and the dark, dank, deep. He'll follow you home, and he won't let you sleep.” 


Sawkill Girls is a fantasy horror set on Sawkill Island - where an unusual and alarming amount of young girls go missing without a trace. No bodies, no word, no clues. When Zoey's best friend becomes the next missing girl - she decides it's time to find out what is happening on Sawkill once and for all. 

We follow three main characters, whose lives on the Island begin to intertwine as they confront the islands hidden secrets, and the evil that lurks in the shadows. 

🌲 Zoey Our main character - Island inhabitant who lost her best friend and wants to know what happened. Notoriously called out Val for stealing her best friend, and will do anything to find out what happened to her. She is asexual, black, and attracted to both girls and boys. Her father is also the town sheriff, and her ex Grayson plays a role in the book. 

🌲 Valerie/Val The islands queen bee who comes from a long line of wealthy women who live on the island. She has a secret and is part of a dark family legacy she cannot escape. She is also sapphic, but doesn't have a label. 

🌲 Marion A new comer to the island. She moves to Sawkill with her sister, but soon becomes embroiled with the mystery of Sawkill Island. She becomes friends with both Zoey and Val, and is part of an f/f relationship in this book. 


  “Tragedy had touched Sawkill, again and again and again, but after each girl’s disappearance, once a respectable amount of time had passed, everyone seemed to stop caring.”



First of all, there is plenty to like here. Sawkill Girls is the spooky, atmospheric horror book that is perfect for cuddling down in bed with around Halloween. Legrand did a good job at constructing atmosphere here, and bringing a creepy aesthetic to the book - which included moth infested rooms, dark things crawling in the woods, scattered human body parts, demon children and plenty of blood, gore and trauma. There were parts of this book which genuinely creeped me out, especially those involving demon entities, and I really liked that this book managed to creep me out a little. 

I also really enjoyed the romances and relationships in this. The f/f relationship is WONDERFUL and I really loved how literally every character in this was sapphic. The romance was sweet and while it wasn't a major part of the story, it was there just enough to keep me happy and satisfied. The secondary relationship between Grayson and Zoey, which isn't really a romance but is more a friendship where they used to be exes was also GREAT. I love seeing exes in books because I feel it is so rare, and I adored their dynamic and friendship SO much. 

But for me what just didn't work was the characters, and part two. 

The characters were enjoyable to read about, but I didn't find myself particular invested in them. This may be because of the audiobook narrator, but I often found myself mixing them up and forgetting which one was which, and what their story or role was. Marion and Zoey especially I was getting mixed up. 

I also think part two of this book relied a lot on me being invested in and believed in their frienship as a trio which .. I wasn't feeling so much. While I think it was there, it didn't pull me in to the degree I would have liked, and I didn't feel convinced by what Legrand was putting down in this. 

I also found part two extremely predictable. While I loved the set up in part one, and the mystery elements, the second part didn't really stick the landing for me. The major plot points were obvious, and some felt a little cliche. There was really only one scene in part two I REALLY REALLY LOVED and the rest I just enjoyed, but didn't feel particularly strongly on. 


  “Decades of dead girls. Poor girls and rich girls. Black and brown and white girls. All of them Sawkill girls.”


That all being said, I think this is a book many could love. Even though I'm giving it a three star (which still means I liked it) I would 100% recommend it. This did have a really enjoyable set up and some great, creepy, atmospheric writing and scenes. The romances were wonderful, and there wasn't anything wrong with the plot - it just didn't grab me as much as I needed to rate it higher. But if you like creepy books - and if you liked books like Strange the Dreamer or even The Raven Boys I think you could definitely like this !

Izza

4.5 stars | I don't even know, guys. This book. I'm obsessed with it. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to start it all over again. The writing is beautiful, so atmospheric and eerie. I was actually spooked a couple of times while reading (which never usually happens). A sad story about monsters and strong, queer girls. It sort of gave me Stranger Things vibes. I love it.

LGBTQ+ rep: asexual main character, bisexual and/or lesbian main characters.

Rebecca

The book is about strong girls that come together to save their home and the people they love. 
This book was recommended by a friend. So I didn’t know what to expect. This book ended up being a very good read! Well written, great details, & totally different than anything I have read before. 

The only reason I didn’t give it a 5 star is because I feel like the end dragged on longer than it needed to. I didn’t like Grayson too much. He was always cleaning, cooking, & waiting on Zoey hand and foot, even though they weren’t dating. He also apologized for men randomly multiple times. 

Other then that it was a good read for me!

Zahia Saeed 

The fact that this book managed to scare me enough to keep me awake and scared of the dark says it all.

Savannah Winchell

3.75⭐️
Some of the best teen relationships and queer rep I’ve read in a while
- but yeah I hated the whole knights sub plot

emily

Lincy

It was a fast read for me, the pacing was ok, amd it had a lot of diversity with the characters but as the story kept developing it got a bit weird for me.

To be fair, I prefer traditional horror/mystery not paranormal. I didn't expect this to have magical elements, so that threw me off since the beginning.

Carolina

O sea no estuvo mal, pero como que lo sentí medio...inmaduro. El final lo disfruté más igual. Also surprise ace character is always a great thing. Medio que le estoy subiendo una estrella solo por eso JAJAJ y porque me siento medio garca (?

“Reader, hang on for dear life. Sawkill Girls is a wild, gorgeous, and rich coming-of-age story about complicity, female camaraderie, and power.” —Sarah Gailey, author of River of Teeth “An eerie, atmospheric assertion of female strength.” —Mindy McGinnis, author of The Female of the Species Fans of Victoria Schwab, Nova Ren Suma, and Netflix’s hit show Stranger Things will crave this frightening stand-alone contemporary teen horror novel about three girls who take on an insidious monster that preys upon young women. Who are the Sawkill Girls? Marion: The newbie. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find. Zoey: The pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is. Val: The queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives; a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies. Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires. Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight…until now.

Sawkill Girls ()

Grace O'Callaghan

*2.5 ⭐️

Buddy read with Fatimah

CW: Talk of suicide, gore, violence, parental abuse, acephobia, animal death, sexual abuse, talk of miscarriage

I have to say I was quite disappointed by this book. It had all the ingredients to be a perfect book in my eyes. Eerie island, group of girls, f/f romance, spooky legends and more. But I just felt that it was lacking something.

After losing her father in a car accident, Marion, her sister and her mother, arrive at Sawkill Rock for a fresh start. There Marion meets Val, Queen Bee of the island who keeps many secrets, and Zoey, who believes in the island’s legends about the Collector. The Collector steals girls away, never to be returned, but he can’t possibly be doing it alone, and Zoey thinks Val has something to do with it. In a spooky tale of secrets and fear, can these girls work together to figure out what’s really going on with the missing girls?

The atmosphere of this book was amazing. I could feel the wind in my hair and the salt coming off the ocean. Legrand’s writing just really made you feel like you were on Sawkill. The island itself was also a character, and not a setting which made the story feel even more vivid.

Something I wasn’t expecting was how gory this book was. I haven’t read much horror, but I may have to now. I just loved how much it made my skin crawl. It’s definitely not for everyone so please if you’re sensitive to any of the things mentioned in my content warning, don’t read this book.

I think the biggest disappointment for me was the characters. For whatever reason I just couldn’t come to care for them. I felt sympathy for them, but I never felt like I was really rooting for them. They just didn’t feel real to me. Marion was the weakest one in terms of personality, I can’t really tell you anything about her. Zoey was hot headed and that was pretty much it. Val was a bit more fleshed out and wasn’t just you’re typical mean girl.

I did appreciate the representation in this book. Zoey is asexual and it’s talked about quite a bit in the book. I’m not asexual so I don’t know about the accuracy, but all of the acephobia was dealt with in the text. Also loved that there was an f/f romance, it wasn’t my favourite, but I thought it was done well.

The book talked a lot about power and the patriarchy. About how some men make women fear them. This story was all about rising against that and showing how powerful girls really are. It’s a message I can get behind.

This plot seemed like something right up my alley, but it let me down. I feel like perhaps the book was too long so we were left with stretches of time where not much was happening. I just wasn’t engaged all the way through. I may have even DNFed it if I wasn’t buddy reading it.

The ending was also very unsatisfactory. Of course I won’t go into spoilers, but it did things I absolutely detested. If you’ve read it you know what I mean.

Overall, this was a good book with some creepy elements and mediocre characters. I would recommend it to anyone that loves atmospheric islands. I do think this was a good book, but wasn’t really executed in the way I wanted it to be. I may pick up more from Claire Legrand but I don’t plan on it anytime soon.

Tiffany Robinson

This book was so good! I thought it was very interesting and kept you on the edge of your seat all the way through.

"I’m sorry for your loss, Marion.
Her loss. As if she’d misplaced her car keys."

i knew i'll like this book from that quote that's on page 7ish... and i was right! books about dealing with grief can be something so personal...

was this one a fave? eh, debatable because i had my fair share of eyerolls and dramatic sighs, but overall it was enjoyable. i love it when girls discover how strong they are (physically and emotionally) and then kick men's (and demons') asses.

sometimes the description got a bit too much and i had to skim through the paragraphs, but that’s on me since i'm not a fan of description. it does help the reader picture whatever is happening pretty clearly. 

the characters omg! all three of them are so different from one another, they all have their personal struggles and journeys, so reading their povs was captivating. oh, the rock (not dwayne, although this too was about drive and power) was such a compelling character, too. i love the idea of this "being" that's not entirely a being having a voice in stories.

also, all men are trash except for the ones who bake cookies and obsessively clean the house when they're stressed and can't help but love and cheer for their badass (ex-)girlfriends. grayson, this one is for you, my little meow meow!

trigger warnings: body horror, child neglect, death of a sibling, death of a parent, emotional abuse, gore, suicidal thoughts.

Charlotte Rayfield

I can’t even I can’t it’s just ugh so good 😘

Candyce Kirk

3.5 stars

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I started Sawkill Girls, but it definitely took me by surprise. One of our main characters, Marion, moves to Sawkill Rock. When it's first described, it definitely sounds like a place I wouldn't mind living. It sounds beautiful and peaceful, but it's not that at all. Girls have been going missing and no one can seem to solve the case. 

The author had me from the start and I had a creepy feeling while reading this book. I felt like I was there and I can just imagine how it all looks like. While Sawkill Rock seems interesting, after reading this book I think I'll avoid islands for awhile, haha! That's definitely a compliment to the author's writing! I love when they're able to make me feel like I'm in their world.

The mystery and legends of this place added even more to the creepy feeling it gave me. I thought it was a really nice touch. I loved that as readers we got little pieces of the story at a time and that made me wonder what was going to happen! This together with the setting was a perfect match. I also love that in stories like these there is always someone who thinks they know what's going on and thinks that they can solve it. It never turns out as planned and that always give such an interesting twist to the story!

Now let's talk about the characters. Sawkill Girls is told through three POVs: Marion, Zoey and Val. Marion is our main character that just moved to the island. She was my favorite in the end I think. Even though she's going through so much already, when more gets added to her plate, she doesn't just sit around, but it determined to fight! Someone who is dealing with so much grief, but still manages to be worried about others is the perfect way to describe Marion. She's independent and won't let anything take her down. Even when things start happening that make her doubt herself, she keeps on going.

Zoey is funny and feisty and I loved her. She's asexual and I loved how it was incorporated to her story. Even though this book isn't heavy on the romance, her story is told in such a good way! The author made this fit perfectly in the story. Zoey's one of the first to start realize something is going on and wants to fix it! Another strong character who is willing to do just about everything to make this island safe again.

Then there's Val. I really didn't like her in the beginning. She seems like a character you'd see in the movie Mean Girls. Val is popular and comes from a rich family. It seems like she has everything she wants, but it turns out to be a lot different than expected. I really felt for Val. Her family's legacy didn't make her life easy and all she wanted was to make it stop. Again, Val is another really strong character and really fought even when everything was working against her.

These three girls don't always see eye to eye, but they team together to make everything go away. I loved how it all came together and after the halfway mark, I didn't want to put this book down. I really loved how everything played out and then the author did something I hate (I don't want to say too much, because I don't want to spoil) and kind of ruined the strong ending for me. Don't get me wrong, up until that point I loved every minute of this book.

If you're looking for a group of strong female characters (who don't need men to help them), feminism, creepy settings, mystery, a little romance and a diverse cast of characters, Sawkill Girls is definitely for you!

Kristina Masone

3.75/5 Stars. Sawkill Girls started off strong, but ended off just okay. Would definitely read again. 

**Read during a readathon, so it's possible I was rushing myself to get through this to get to the next book, which altered my feelings about the book**

**Read for Camp Weekendween 2021

danielle bush

I wasn't really sure what I expected going in to this book, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought it was very atmospheric, that thing in the woods was extra creepy.. I loved the friendship between Zoey and Marion. I thought it all worked together so well.

“Reader, hang on for dear life. Sawkill Girls is a wild, gorgeous, and rich coming-of-age story about complicity, female camaraderie, and power.” —Sarah Gailey, author of River of Teeth “An eerie, atmospheric assertion of female strength.” —Mindy McGinnis, author of The Female of the Species From the New York Times bestselling author of Furyborn comes a breathtaking and spine-tingling novel about three teenage girls who face off against an insidious monster that preys upon young women. Perfect for fans of Victoria Schwab and Stranger Things. Who are the Sawkill Girls? Marion: The newbie. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find. Zoey: The pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is. Val: The queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives; a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies. Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires. Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight…until now.

Samantha Stone

TW for violence/gore, mention of sexual assault, physical abuse
Sawkill Girls is a YA horror with a bit of a fantasy element to it. Marion's mother and sister have just lost their father, and they move to an island called Sawkill Rock to live in a cottage on the Mortimer's property and become their maids. This novel follows Marion's persepctive, as well as Val and Zoey who already lived on the island. Young girls have been going missing for decades, and when the killing rate increases drastically, these three girls find themselves tangled up in a dangerous world of monsters they never knew existed. 
This is the first horror novel I've ever read, so I didn't know what to expect. I'm happy to say I was VERY happy with this book. While being a horror, there was some fantastically developed parts of the book, and that made me like it even more as a fantasy lover. Legrand also did a good job at writing something scary, because I had to put the book down at times from being so spooked out (and reading in a basement by myself at 2 am). Despite being something I'm not used to reading, I flew through this book and didn't want to put it down. Sawkill Girls is also queer and Sapphic. I feel like the relationships in the book are well developed, and Zoey's love interest makes me absolutely swoon!
I am definitely interested in reading more horror, and I am stoked that this is the one I started the genre with because it's amazing. 

Katie

If I had known just how appropriate for spooky season this book was, I would have read it like 3 weeks ago. Still, it's amazing for this time of year! While the actual story takes place over a summer, the setting of a New England island evokes autumn feelings. The prose is atmospheric and drags you kicking and screaming into the horror of a monster that lurks on Sawkill Rock.

I loved the three main characters. Their voices were distinct and, although I can normally easily choose a favorite if there are multiple main characters, it's really difficult to choose between these three! They all have their own struggles and are stronger when they come together. It's really wonderful to see the progression of their various types of relationships with each other and with other people throughout the book.

The tone did occasionally swing wildly from "straight up horror" to "Buffy-esque girl power" pretty quickly, and that type of whiplash is what brings me to 4 stars instead of 5, but I would still say this book is amazing and if it sounds like something you will enjoy, you should give it a shot!

Jane The Bookaholic

⭐️ 3 Stars ⭐️

It was a fun read. I just love the genre of YA horror so much, and the creepiness and uniqueness of it. I loved the idea of the story but I think that half way through I felt like I’m getting less interested in the story. 
Overall a nice read, I will check more by this author.

Jordan Robinson

** spoiler alert **
           How am I supposed to feel about this book? 
First of all, the first half of the book: GREAT. WONDERFUL. INTRIGUING. 
The second half... uh, weird and slightly infuriating. 

I don't usually write reviews for books, however, I have strong feelings after reading Sawkill Girls. If you don't know, the basic premise is that a girl, Marion, moves to an island with her mother and sister after her father tragically died. Girls are constantly going missing on this island though, and none of them have ever been found. That's all I'm gonna say about that. 

If you're interested in that premise, I would recommend it. It's written well enough and the plot feels well thought out. 

I have a few complaints about the book though. 
1. The writing / cringy dialogue. While reading, I found myself being pulled out of the story by the unrealistic reactions of the characters. Or the weird, forced dialogue. Usually from Zoey or Grayson. Legrand writes well, but again, I was taken out of the story by her wordiness and found myself mentally editing her sentences. 
And the most annoying thing about the writing/characters in this book was how many times the CHARACTERS CRIED. When I got about 150 pages into the book, I decided to annotate the page anytime a character mentioned with "tears springing to her eyes." After pg. 150, main 3-4 characters are described with tears in their eyes or crying 15 times. I've never rolled my eyes so much while reading. 

The last bit that really annoyed me is a spoiler, so BEWARE. *****SPOILERS AHEAD*****


The romance between Marion and Val was INSUFFERABLE AND COMPLETELY UNREALISTIC. 
How in the name of Lucifer is a teenage girl gonna FORGIVE someone who manipulated her sister then allowed her to be BRUTALLY murdered? Not only forgive her but FALL IN LOVE WITH HER. Fuck no, Claire. Fuck no. That would never happen. Even in the fantastical, creepy world equipped with monsters and portals, you've constructed... That would never happen. I can suspend my belief, I can stretch like crazy but THAT cheesy ass, fake-ass, ain't-no-one-gonna-believe-that-shit kind-of romance is too far fetched. My belief, being fully suspended, can't even see it because it's so far out there. 

Ugh. I'm glad I got that out of my system. I don't hate this book. I think it's a strong 3 stars. I just really struggled through some bits.

Sawkill Girls

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