The reviews continue! Although this may be the last one for a while; I recently added about thirty new books to my TBR thanks to a library rec list, so I'll have to dig through some of those. However, I will say that so far, this has been my favorite of my ace/aro book list.

Previous review: The Bruising of Qilwa

The description of this book is:

Children have always disappeared under the right conditions; slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere... else.

But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children.

Nancy tumbled once, but now she’s back. The things she’s experienced... they change a person. The children under Miss West’s care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.

But Nancy’s arrival marks a change at the Home. There’s a darkness just around each corner, and when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Nancy and her new-found schoolmates to get to the heart of the matter.

No matter the cost.

The character: Nancy Whitman, asexual
Verdict: Thumbs up!

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The cover bills it as a "vampire revenge story." The premise of The Lost Girls by Sonia Hartl is thus:

16-year-old Holly Liddell, in 1987, allowed the undead Elton to turn her into a vampire because he promised her an eternity together. Thirty years later he dumped her at a Quick Stop in Tulsa, Oklahoma and peeled out. Because Holly was turned at 16, she'll always be 16. While she's busy wallowing in this post-Elton, she's approached by two other girls with a similar story: Elton seduced them with promises of forever love, turned them into vampires, then dumped them when he got bored. And worse: he has his sights on a fourth girl. Reluctantly, Holly agrees to help Rose and Ida kill Elton--but developing feelings for Elton's new target wasn't part of the plan.

Honestly, I did not expect this book to be good, and it wasn't. It was entertaining enough. It will keep you busy if you have nothing else going on. Prose is mediocre, hamfisted where it tries to be poetic, and overexplains things to the reader. The plot moves so fast you rarely have time to take in where the characters are at before they're off to the next thing, and the characters themselves are very flat. Rose and Ida are basically interchangeable and I kept getting them mixed up because they really have no personality outside "the nice one" and "the bitchy one." Elton is comically awful with no redeeming or "human" side to him whatsoever, as are most of the protagonist's victims.

The novel feels very grounded in its publication year, down to a jarring and somewhat incorrect use of the term "gaslighting" by a teenager from 1987. I also cringed at the scene where the three main characters all explain their sexualities to each other. It felt very much like the author desperately grabbing for more representation points by saying "Look! Rose is bi too! Ida is asexual!" even though these things literally never matter within the story except for this one awkward scene.

There are some enjoyable things about it. I still like the idea of the plot even if it was poorly executed. The relationships formed within it and the focus on letting go of your past mistakes and forgiving yourself so you can move forward are nice. I did enjoy the subplot about Holly learning to let go of her anger at her neglectful mother, and the one where she confronts Mr. Stockard--who in her day, was an enthusiastic young high school teacher, but has become a burned out middle-aged man by the present time who's given up on his students.

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Crossposted from my main