Early Review – What We Harvest by Ann Fraistat (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Horror/Dark Fantasy
Length: 336 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: March 15, 2022
ISBN-13: 978-0593382165
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 4/5 stars
“Wren owes everything she has to her hometown, Hollow’s End, a centuries-old, picture-perfect slice of America. Tourists travel miles to marvel at its miracle crops, including the shimmering, iridescent wheat of Wren’s family’s farm. At least, they did. Until five months ago.
That’s when the Quicksilver blight first surfaced, poisoning the farms of Hollow’s End one by one. It began by consuming the crops, thick silver sludge bleeding from the earth. Next were the animals. Infected livestock and wild creatures staggered off into the woods by day—only to return at night, their eyes fogged white, leering from the trees.
Then the blight came for the neighbors.
Wren is among the last locals standing, and the blight has finally come for her, too. Now the only one she can turn to is her ex, Derek, the last person she wants to call. They haven’t spoken in months, but Wren and Derek still have one thing in common: Hollow’s End means everything to them. Only, there’s much they don’t know about their hometown and its celebrated miracle crops. And they’re about to discover that miracles aren’t free.
Their ancestors have an awful lot to pay for, and Wren and Derek are the only ones left to settle old debts.”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got a copy of this book through NetGalley to review.
Thoughts: This was a bit of an odd book but I enjoyed it. It’s about a small town known for its farming that is caught under some weird sort of plague caused by a quicksilver-like material. It ends up being a strange blend of zombie horror, alchemy, and a mysterious almost cult-like history.
I enjoyed the characters and the story well enough. It was engaging and easy to read. It was pretty different from anything I had read before, so I really appreciated the premise and creativity here. It gets a bit spooky at points but is never outright scary.
There is a bit of a love story between a couple of the main characters, but that’s not really the focus of the story. The story focuses more on Wren trying to find her parents and figure out what is causing the plague.
My Summary (4/5): Overall I enjoyed this. It was a creepy little read that initially looks like a zombie story but ends up being something completely different. If you are looking for a quirky, spooky read about a farming community getting into things they shouldn’t, this may be the book for you. I will definitely be checking out future books by Fraistat.
