Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V E Schwab

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V E Schwab

After loving The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, I jumped at the chance to read V E Schwab's most recent release, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, which released in June of 2025. It was one of the most highly anticipated books of the year (and not just by me) and is already an Amazon pick for Best Books of the Year so Far in 2025 and has good reviews on both Amazon and Goodreads. It deals with body horror, bullying, child death and death of people who are not children including parents, domestic abuse, mental illness, panic attacks, toxic relationships, violence, blood, grief, stalking, a car accident, murder, lesbophobia, fire, injury, and classism.

Maria wants to escape - her family, their expectations, and then her husband. She thinks that she can outsmart them but soon realizes her life will never be her own but just a thing to be used by the men in her life. At least until she meets the widow, who offers her something Maria had lost hope of ever having. Lottie wants what she wants, but it is deemed unacceptable by the rest of society. Soon, she's sent to London to live with her aunt and learn how to be a real lady. All she wants is to be able to return to her blissful youth on her family's estate. Alice moved all the way to Boston, hopeful that in a new place she could forge a new path. But a chance run in and a one night stand, her life changes absolutely (and not in the way she wanted). She soon sets out to find answers and maybe some revenge.

Okay, first let me say that I did not know what this book was about when I started and (spoiler alert) it's vampires. So that was a shock. V E Schwab has some of the best prose out there right now. Her writing is expressive and really paints a picture, this novel is beautifully written. It is also slow. I trudged through it, which was really disappointing. I really enjoyed the historical element in Maria and Charlotte's stories, as well as the different points of view. Maria's story spans close to five hundred years! But I did not feel anything for the characters. The setting was gorgeous, the plot was interesting and I loved how accepting the vampires were of same sex and poly relationships, but the book fell flat for me.

I'm giving Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V E Schwab 3.5 stars out of 5. This rating might be an unpopular opinion, it seems like everyone loves this book, but it wasn't my favorite of her books. Which was incredibly disappointing - I wanted to love it.

For more from V E Schwab, check out her website at https://www.veschwab.com/

Pairs well with seadas and going to a goth bar.

Review of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V E Schwab