THE FURIES by Katie Lowe

 

The Furies by Katie Lowe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I've had this book on my TBR pile since I bought it over a year ago, so it was definitely time to check it out.

When Violet was a teenager, she attended Elm Hollow Academy, where a sixteen-year-old girl was posed on a swing and found dead on the school grounds. Years later, Violet recalls what happened when she joined an advanced study group and befriended the other girls...

Yikes. This is quite a book and it sure packs a punch. As soon as Violet's story begins, tragedy strikes. Yet, this girl continues on with her life. Actually excels in her self-taught schoolwork even though her mother has resigned from life and doesn't offer much support. Violet does so well she ends up in a girls academy. Where she finds herself to be an outsider but also an insider with a particularly 'weird' group of girls most stay away from.

Her alienation and desperate need to belong catches the attention of Robin. A self-confident troublemaker who ends up influencing Violet into some very dark territory. By slipping into a passive state, Violet becomes a passenger in her own life and watches all the bad things that happen to her and around her without taking charge. It's quite disturbing to watch, but not surprising.

I actually found it quite sad. Violet is so easily pressured into going along, without much of a push, because she's in a bad place. She's obviously got a lot of grief she hasn't dealt with properly, and this affects her on a deeper level than she herself realises. It becomes very frustrating at times, but totally fits the scene.

And this is all before we consider the toxic and harmful friendship she's so devoted to. This story definitely deals with a lot of disturbing facets of teenage girls. This is as bad as it gets, goes beyond peer pressure and cuts straight to downright cruel and criminal behaviour that can fester when girls are so often hurt and manipulated by guys/men.

Some of the content in this book is truly shocking. There are no heroes within these pages, but it sure is an engrossing read. That's for sure. I enjoyed the use of the female rage and injustice via various artworks, Greek mythology and Shakespeare, to name a few. It totally worked to deepen the severity of what happens and adds a surreal quality to the storytelling that makes so much of it feel so ambiguous.

Also, the writing style is thick with description that might have felt like a slog in any other book, but provided the perfect narrative in this one. And that ending! Didn't quite expect that. 👀

I really enjoyed this. It's a very powerful book, and it's not pretty. Everything about this story is raw, ugly and seen through the gritty lens of anger.

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