Andrew was a chaotic mess of loss, grief, pain, repressed sexuality, and reckless disregard for his own life. Right away he feels a pull to Sam Halse, a larger than life character that he immediately dislikes for all his similarities to Eddie. Sam and his group, including Sam's cousin Riley who was Eddie's roommate (and by default now Andrew's roommate), are street racers. Andrew rolls his way into their numbers, having loved racing with Eddie. This is a book that exudes male youth and their inherent belief that they will live forever. All of them are loose with their lives, unwilling to slow down or stop. Andrew dives headlong into danger, into finding the truth about Eddie's death, almost welcoming the same fate. It is the carelessness of youth and a desire for destruction, for being able to control something in your life when everything else seems to be falling apart. But this novel also embraces the gothic backdrop of the south. The long dead ghosts of a history soaked in blood. Andrew experienced something in his youth, with Eddie, that has left him with haunts clawing at his heels. The worst of it is Eddie's ghoul, which has almost lovingly attached itself to Andrew and seems to be both trying to reveal the truth and eat him alive. Their bond was so problematic, with Eddie controlling every aspect of Andrew's life, even in death. This book also espouses the evil of old wealth. The actual rot that lives within these old bloodlines of the south. How Eddie was part of a long line and how he pushed Andrew into accepting something he knew nothing about. The book highlights the disparities between the rich and the poor, how easy it is for the wealthy to move within the world. It is a found family book, in which Andrew begrudgingly allows himself to be accepted into Riley and Sam's group. That he is seemingly happiest when surrounded by these fast drivers, while the rest of his life is so focused on his grief and his inability to move past Eddie and Eddie's realm of influence. His having met this group on his own, without Eddie, allows him to actually be himself, to make his own mark. It is also with Sam, a character very similar to Eddie, that Andrew starts to realize his relationship with Eddie was never as it really seemed and maybe he could find something new and real and actually loving with Sam. Throughout the novel Andrew is learning to finally be himself, to literally crawl out of the shadow of Eddie. He is working to accept who he is and the life he missed out on, and the life he can now enjoy and pursue. This book is very much an homage to The Raven Cycle series, by Maggie Stiefvater, but darker, with more cars and more sweltering heat. Highly, highly recommend! Thank you to Tordotcom for providing a copy of the eArc in exchange for an honest review.
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