READ: Bad Blood by Demitria Lunetta (ARC Review). PDF, EPUB online free reviews.

Bad Blood by Demitria Lunetta

Release Date: March 14, 2017

*eARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review! Thanks so much for sending me over a copy!*

I basically knew three things before going into this book: it had a super pretty cover, it was about witches, and it was set in Scotland. That was all I needed to be sold on this premise, and I was innnnnn. And truthfully, I was mostly in for the book, there was one major issue that I did have with that took it down a crown.

Once Upon a Time…

A girl discovers a family secret and a past full of magic that could both save her and put her in mortal danger in this suspenseful novel that’s perfect for fans of Katie Alender and Natasha Preston.

All sixteen-year-old Heather MacNair wants is to feel normal, to shed the intense paranoia she’s worn all year like a scratchy sweater. After her compulsion to self-harm came to light, Heather was kept under her doctor’s watchful eye. Her family thinks she’s better—and there’s nothing she wants more than for that to be true. She still can’t believe she’s allowed to spend her summer vacation as she always does: at her aunt’s home in Scotland, where she has lots of happy memories. Far away from all her problems save one: she can’t stop carving the Celtic knot that haunts her dreams into her skin.

Good friends and boys with Scottish accents can cure almost anything…except nightmares. Heather can’t stop dreaming about two sisters from centuries ago, twins Prudence and Primrose, who somehow seem tied to her own life. Their presence lurks just beneath the surface of her consciousness, sending ripples through what should be a peaceful summer. The twins might hold the key to putting Heather’s soul at rest…or they could slice her future deeper than any knife.

I’m just going to put out the issue I had with it first and foremost right at the top even though I usually place the issue at the bottom of the review, because I feel like this is where perhaps the book missed its mark: no warning. This book deals with a very triggering topic of self-harm. However, I had no clue what was coming into the main character did something in the third chapter in. I also didn’t really expect it to be as descriptive as it was. I’ve never really developed a strong stance on trigger warnings for books, and I know people have strong opinions about them. However, I do think a little warning was necessary than just two lines in the summary. I definitely glazed over that to basically get into SCOTLAND and WITCHES. How descriptive it was also bothered me as well, and truthfully, it was the reason I took down a crown because I lost the enjoyment of the book at that point. I just think people should know about the self-harm that does go on in the story to help them determine before they read further.

Okay, I just thought that needed to be said. Now, I’m moving on to the good.

This is such a fast read. I basically binge read it in two sittings. It really draws you into the world, and the author did such an wonderful job creating a spooky and beautiful atmosphere. Scotland is one of the top places that I want to visit, and Lunetta made me want to go visit it even more.

Heather, Prudence, and Primrose were all interesting narrators as well. It was so interesting to read the twins’ points of view as they become darker and darker. I loved these parts of the novels, and man, I wish we had gotten to see even more of their dark story. Heather was good as well. She was the typical teen, and I liked her well enough. Some of the things she did were really stupid, and I just kept going, really? But it did make the plot more interesting so that was nice.

SCOTLAND.

The romance was okay. I liked her and the love interest well enough, but it wasn’t a super big part of the book and the ship never got really real for me.

Where the true heart of the story was in the plot and atmosphere. I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen next. I love me a good witch book, and this was definitely one. Things kept getting more and more interesting, and I loved the boiling point where it all tipped over. The plot definitely won me over and kept me interested.

Overall, this was a quick, fast read that I pretty much enjoyed. I loved the plot, and the rest of the elements were good enough. However, I wasn’t prepared for some aspects of the novel, and the graphicness wasn’t really needed nor properly discussed prior. That was what really took down a crown for me. Otherwise, it was a decently good read! 3.5 – 4 crowns and Merida’s here because SCOTLAND!