I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
As I Descended by Robin Talley
From the acclaimed author of Lies We Tell Ourselves, Robin Talley, comes a Shakespeare-inspired story of revenge and redemption, where fair is foul, and foul is fair.
Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten are their school’s ultimate power couple—but one thing stands between them and their perfect future: campus superstar Delilah Dufrey. Golden child Delilah is a legend at exclusive Acheron Academy, and the presumptive winner of the distinguished Cawdor Kingsley Prize. But Delilah doesn’t know that Lily and Maria are willing to do anything—absolutely anything—to unseat Delilah for the scholarship. After all, it would lock in Maria’s attendance at Stanford—and assure her and Lily four more years in a shared dorm room.
Together, Maria and Lily harness the dark power long rumored to be present on the former plantation that houses their school. But when feuds turn to fatalities, and madness begins to blur the distinction between what’s real and what’s imagined, the girls must attempt to put a stop to the chilling series of events they’ve accidentally set in motion.
Set in a southern boarding school, Archeron Academy, As I Descended is written as the re-imagining of Macbeth a very dark but interesting read.
When the main characters Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten one of two LBGT couples in this dark tale and a few others, play with an Ouija board it breaks opening a world of trouble for not only the players but the rest of their classmates.
The book is creepy and dark, but Robin Talley is an excellent story-teller because I wanted to hurry and finish this story to see what happens to all the students.
One student, in particular, is a problem for Maria and Lily because she is first in line for the Cawdor Kingsley Foundation Prize and there is only one given yearly and Marie wants it. Not only that but Lily has some issues with the school politics if you will that cause her to have some doubts about her place in the school dynamics. But one thing Lily has NO doubt about for sure is taking Maria with her when she moves on to Stanford. By any means necessary.
This story will appeal to a YA audience as it deals with complicated relationships, jealousy, and revenge.
I highly recommend this book if you like dark and creepy tales from beyond that deal with the occult and a cast of characters who are very interesting.
Reviewed by: Linda C
Robin Talley grew up in Roanoke, Virginia, writing terrible teen poetry and riding a desegregation bus to the school across town. Robin lives in Washington, D.C., with her fiancée, plus an antisocial cat and a goofy hound dog. When Robin’s not writing, she’s often planning communication strategies at organizations fighting for equal rights and social justice. You can find her on the web at www.robintalley.com or on Twitter at @robin_talley
