📆 Publication Date: 12th February 2026
⭐️2.5/5 stars
📖 Length: 304 pages
📱 Format: ePUB
⏳ Read Time: 8 days
Synopsis
Yana, a vampire hunter, rides into Koprivci promising salvation. The village’s curse has endured for many years and rumour has it that Anka – whose parents died on the night of her birth – is to blame. But enduring the villagers’ suspicion is the least of Anka’s worries; now she has reached womanhood, she can no longer avoid the odious marriage that seems to be her only option.
When animal corpses start to appear in the village square and eggs filled with blood are found in the chicken coops, panic rises. The villagers look to Yana for hope. She knows all about the monsters that stalk the night, monsters that only she can vanquish. But Yana is a liar. And monsters come in all different forms.
Yana and Anka become unlikely allies in hatching a plot to save both Koprivci and Anka from their fates. But then their plan takes on a horrifying life of its own…
What I thought
This isn’t usually the kind of book I’d pick up, but it was an ARC on NetGalley that really caught my eye, mostly because of the cover. I went into it expecting a story about a village tormented by vampires and a hunter sent to save them… but that’s not quite what I got.
While the concept was interesting, I struggled with the way the story was told. There were a lot of flashbacks, and they happened so often that the plot started to feel clunky and hard to follow. Quite a few times I didn’t even realise we’d left a flashback and were back in the present, which made it difficult to stay fully immersed in the story.
I also didn’t really connect with the characters. I found it hard to feel invested in them, which made it even more difficult to stay engaged with the story. On top of that, the pacing felt very slow for me, and the plot seemed to drag on in places where I was hoping for more tension or momentum.
That said, the atmosphere was definitely one of the book’s strengths. The dark, gothic setting and folklore elements had real potential, and I can see how this could appeal to readers who enjoy moody, character-driven stories and unconventional vampire tales.
Overall, She Made Herself a Monster had an intriguing premise and a strong atmosphere, but it just wasn’t quite for me.
You can pre-order your copy of She Made Herself A Monster from trusted retailers:
On Amazon – here
Bookshop.Org – here
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House UK, Harvill and the author for this ARC in return for an honest review.
Until next time… 🖤
Leave a Reply