Review: All These Bodies by Kendare Blake

Title: All These Bodies

Author: Kendare Blake

Genre: YA, mystery

Publication date: September 2021

Published by: Quill Tree Books

Source: eARC for review from publishers via Netgalley

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Synopsis: Sixteen bloodless bodies. Two teenagers. One impossible explanation.

Summer 1958—a string of murders plagues the Midwest. The victims are found in their cars and in their homes—even in their beds—their bodies drained, but with no blood anywhere.

September 19- the Carlson family is slaughtered in their Minnesota farmhouse, and the case gets its first lead: 15-year-old Marie Catherine Hale is found at the scene. She is covered in blood from head to toe, and at first she’s mistaken for a survivor. But not a drop of the blood is hers.

Michael Jensen, son of the local sheriff, yearns to become a journalist and escape his small-town. He never imagined that the biggest story in the country would fall into his lap, or that he would be pulled into the investigation, when Marie decides that he is the only one she will confess to.

As Marie recounts her version of the story, it falls to Michael to find the truth: What really happened the night that the Carlsons were killed? And how did one girl wind up in the middle of all these bodies?

My rating: ★★★☆☆

I was SO excited about this book! Anna Dressed in Blood is one of my favorite horror books, so I was very happy when I found out that Kendare Blake was diving back into the more spooky side of things with her books! However, the book left much to be desired 😞

Don’t get me wrong, the mystery was VERY intriguing. There have been a string of bloodless murders, guys. Like, what the heck! The bodies were drained of all the blood and the blood was nowhere to be found. The authorities didn’t catch a break until 15-year-old Marie was apprehended at the latest scene of the crime where they found a baby, still alive, and she was covered in blood. How did the blood get on her?! Was she a victim? A killer? WHAT IS HAPPENING?! And then things get more interesting when Marie specifically asks for 17-year-old Michael to handle her interview. Oh and he’s also the son of the sheriff, so there’s that. Lol. My point here is that this is all the making of a great story! It was all very intriguing, but that ending was a huge letdown. And not to mention how little I cared for Marie.

I understand why Micheal cared about the girl, having spent as much time with her as he did, but I just didn’t. She almost never gave him straight answers, and when she did, they made no sense. It was frustrating. So yeah, his empathy for the girl was exasperating and I just didn’t get it.

And then that ending? Ugh! SO I went into this telling myself it was going to be more true crime than supernatural because that was the impression all the marketing for the book gave me. But... It was just so confusing. I don’t know whether it was or wasn’t, and the ending didn’t clarify. There was absolutely NO resolution to the story in this aspect and the mystery in general. I get that in real life there are cases that go unsolved, but this is fiction! At least give me a little something! It was left WAY too open! I was expecting more from this, but I was just left feeling underwhelmed by the end. The book had potential, but the ending was not satisfying at all 😞

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a link to your review or comment below! 😊