Trigger Warnings:
- Child abuse & neglect
- Domestic Violence
- Gun violence
- Pandemic
- Blood/gore
- Addiction
- Emesis

Night's Edge follows a woman, Mia, as she navigates life after her mom becomes infected with the Sara disease. It alternates between her as a 10-year-old in the immediate aftermath of her mom contracting this disease and her life now, once they've established a routine, and Mia starts feeling stuck in her caretaking role.

What really drew me into this book was the opening line, "I'm hungry and it's two in the morning. The fridge is empty. And Mom is dead on the couch." I had so many questions, I knew I had to read it. Unfortunately, after the initial opening, it seemed to slow down and became a bit of a slog to get through.

Nonetheless, it was still a good book. The depiction of Mia being groomed as a child, not even realizing she is in an abusive environment, along with her slow realization as an adult that she no longer wants to live that way but not knowing how to escape, was really well done. Mia loves her mom and only has her to rely on, which makes it that much harder for her to accept her current situation as she doesn't want to upset her mother and is scared at the idea of no longer having the stability or routine in her life and the introduction of potential danger that comes with leaving.

I am quite interested to read the second book, as how Kerin addresses Mia's escape from the abusive situation could greatly sway my opinions on this one as well. This book heavily focuses on the build-up to leaving an abusive situation, but doesn't address how that affects Mia afterwards, which is an incredibly important part of her story and why I think the second book will be so crucial to the story. ( )

This was really beautifully written, it's a stark look at addiction through the lens of fantasy. I really enjoyed the pacing, and the characters. ( )

The world has been invaded by a virus that turns people into vampires. Those that have been turned are living secretly in order to avoid being captured by the police and sent to "treatment" centers. Mia had the unfortunate luck to watch her mother get turned by a nasty vamp when she was 10. From that point onward, she has been taking care of her mother, hiding in their house and drawing her own blood into a cup nightly to feed her. The story moves back and forth from the past to the present where Mia is now 23 and craving a life of her own but still feels obligated to her mother. The creep that turned her mother returns and a lot of things start to change for Mia -- not only in how she looks at her mother, but also in how she looks at herself and if she can have a life of her own. The book is a slow build flipping back and forth in time to establish the history of Mia and her mother and by the time the real action occurs it's the end of the book. I am SO thankful that there is a second book coming out because this one is really just the beginning! I love the character of Mia and can't wait to see what happens next. ( )

I thought that this was very well done. This is one of those books that doesn’t fit nicely into any single genre box. There were elements of horror, some coming of age, a little bit of fantasy, and even a dose of romance. I thought all of these elements came together to tell a story that was almost impossible to put down. I had a great time with this well-crafted story.

The world has suffered an outbreak that has everyone on edge. Mia’s mom, Izzy, is a victim of this illness and now must live as a vampire (although I don’t think that the word vampire is ever used in the book). The story is told from two different points in time 2010 when Mia was a child and her mother was first turned, and the present day. Mia has been through so much in order to protect her mother and I really wanted to see her start to live for herself. I thought that Mia was a great character and my heart really went out to her. She starts to wake up and think about her own needs when she meets Jade and I loved seeing Mia making plans for the future.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that Chase Sui Wonders did a fabulous job with the story. I think that this is the first time that I have had the chance to listen to this narrator’s work and I enjoyed her performance. I thought that her voice was very pleasant and I had no problem listening to her narration for hours at a time. I am certain that her narration added to my overall enjoyment of this story.

I would recommend this book to others. I thought that this was a unique and entertaining vampire story. I was quickly invested in Mia’s life and was eager to see things work out for her. I hope to read more of this author’s work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from Macmillan Audio and Tor Nightfire. ( )

I just finished @lizkerin’s NIGHT’S EDGE from @tornightfire, and this book is one hell of a wild ride.

Imagine vampirism (here called Saratov’s syndrome) treated as a pandemic, with the world’s health organizations stepping in to try to cure the “disease”, and how the world tries to move on with the every day. Mia’s mom, Izzy, is a Sara (someone suffering Saratov’s), and the two have kept this secret for years by keeping to themselves and sticking to their strict routine. However, when Izzy’s abusive boyfriend who turned her, Devon, shows up in town, and Mia meets the magnetic Jade, a rebellious musician performing at an underground music event nearby, both decide it’s time to rethink their lives, but to disastrous results.

There is a lot to unpack in this book. Beyond the stigma of people suffering from an illness they have no control over, Kerin deals with issues of abuse (physical, psychological, and manipulative), mental health, budding young queer romance, and trying to discover your own identity. Add in a dash of cultish behaviors and you’ve got a recipe for a book that is actually more psychological horror than physical horror, despite the book primarily being about vampires.

Some may ask why I’m including this in my #pridemonth reading: Mia’s story is a sapphic coming of age story with her feelings for Jade, as she finally understands the feelings of attraction she’s had for other women in her past. Night’s Edge wouldn’t be the book it is without this storyline.

While Kerin’s vampires adhere to many historic vampire tropes (need living blood to survive and can’t go out into daylight), she sidesteps some others (not being able to cast a reflection, for instance, I’d never discussed), and her vampires have an aversion to coffee instead of garlic. This definitely grounds them more in the “real world” than the supernatural, making Saratov’s syndrome feel more like an actual medical condition, and in some ways makes it that much more unsettling.

A huge thank you to @netgalley and #tornightfire for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review. Liz Kerin’s NIGHT’S EDGE releases June 20, 2033, with the follow up, FIRST LIGHT, dropping in 2024.

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