Leanne Olson

My Dearest Darkest by Kayla Cottingham

Releasing March 29, 2022 from Sourcebooks Fire

My Dearest Darkest has a fantastic premise that I was really excited about: girls at a boarding school discover a being in the tunnels beneath the school who will grant wishes in exchange for sacrifices.

Unfortunately, the book didn’t fully work for me.  While the idea behind it was wonderfully creative and creepy, the writing itself needed more polish.  I found it often disjointed, with unnatural dialogue.  

The horror often took a backseat to teen dating drama — I don’t mind romance in with my horror (and I love a good sapphic romance!) but the balance didn’t work for me this time.  I also struggled with getting a sense of place and the wider world of the book.  I was intrigued by the dark academia theme but the school didn’t play much of a role in the plot.

I do think this book will find its readers though.  I think the premise is wonderful, the mythology is interesting, and the monster is nice and creepy.  I would recommend My Dearest Darkest to fans of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina or Ninth House.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with a review copy of this book.