I am Anda, and the lake is my mother. I am the November storms that terrify sailors and sink ships. With their deaths, I keep my little island on Lake Superior alive.

Hector has come here to hide from his family until he turns eighteen. Isle Royale is shut down for the winter, and there’s no one here but me. And now him.

Hector is running from the violence in his life, but violence runs through my veins. I should send him away, to keep him safe. But I’m half human, too, and Hector makes me want to listen to my foolish, half-human heart. And if I do, I can’t protect him from the storms coming for us. (via Goodreads)

I received an eARC through Netgalley, courtesy of Entangled Publishing, in exchange for an honest review.

This book needs a lot of trigger warnings. Seriously. If you have any kind of abuse trigger, this book basically has it. Things I specifically noted are: self harm (cigarette burns, cutting), racist slurs, child neglect, child abuse, sexual abuse, abusive foster parent (bio uncle), absent parents, child rape and character death.

The November Girl is a dark, haunting story that will keep you slightly uncomfortable and on the edge of your seat simultaneously.

Despite being in dual point of view and first person, the word I would use to best describe this book is distant – like watching a hurricane from just far enough away to be safe.

(Honestly I’m really proud of that description because of its relevance to the book content. Which I will now get on with reviewing. Ahem.)

The prose in this story is beautiful – not quite flowery enough to be described as ‘purple’, but not simple enough to be simple. Kang’s style is honestly pretty, with just enough description to keep you interested without overwhelming you with just how sad this book is. And holy shit is it sad, even for a ghost story.

I don’t really know how to explain this story without spoiling you, but it’s absolutely lovely if you can get past or accept the sadness. If you want to read for yourself, you can pick up a copy at Amazon or Indiebound.

Disclaimer: All links to Indiebound and Amazon are affiliate links, which means that if you buy through those links, I will make a small amount of money off of it.