I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson Published by Katherine Tegen Books on 9/6/22
Genres: Horror & Ghost Stories, Mystery & Detective, Retellings, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 411
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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When Springville residents—at least the ones still alive—are questioned about what happened on prom night, they all have the same explanation . . . Maddy did it.
An outcast at her small-town Georgia high school, Madison Washington has always been a teasing target for bullies. And she's dealt with it because she has more pressing problems to manage. Until the morning a surprise rainstorm reveals her most closely kept secret: Maddy is biracial. She has been passing for white her entire life at the behest of her fanatical white father, Thomas Washington.
After a viral bullying video pulls back the curtain on Springville High's racist roots, student leaders come up with a plan to change their image: host the school's first integrated prom as a show of unity. The popular white class president convinces her Black superstar quarterback boyfriend to ask Maddy to be his date, leaving Maddy wondering if it's possible to have a normal life.
But some of her classmates aren't done with her just yet. And what they don't know is that Maddy still has another secret . . . one that will cost them all their lives.
Short and Sweet Review
The town of Springville, Georgia is small and doesn’t have a lot of residents and the number of residents is about to get smaller after Maddy is through with them. After prom the only thing that people remember is that Maddy did it, but what led her to cause all of that destruction?
Madison Washington is biracial but she’s light enough that she can pass as white and that’s exactly what her father wants, and her years of hiding that she’s black are about to come to an end when a rainstorm shows the actually texture of her hair. Maddy hasn’t been treated well by her fellow classmates but things get worse after it comes out that she’s black. Madison is mainly tormented by Jules and her friends one of them being Wendy. Wendy has a black boyfriend named Kenny and I think he only fits into their friend group because he’s the star of the football team. Anyhoo Wendy starts to feel a little bad but she still has her own motives to make herself look good so she decides to suggest that for this years prom instead of their usual segregated prom they throw an all together prom and that Kenny should take Maddy. Maddy obviously think she’s being punk’d these kids have been awful to her and all of a sudden they want her to go to prom. Maddy has also been working on learning how to use her telekinesis which usually comes into play when she’s in fight or flight mode. Maddy has had a difficult life, her mother is gone, her dad is super religious and abusive, and she’s been hiding who she really is. So its easy to see why Maddy is the way she is. As the story progresses we see Kenny start to fall for Maddy which I didn’t like because first of all, he already had a girlfriend and second, it just seemed like he was infatuated with Maddy and it got a little weird. Well at prom we see that some kids have one last prank in store for Maddy, but little do they know its going to be the straw that broke the camels back.
This was such a good book! I loved the podcast aspect and the interviews and how Michael the host of the podcast was trying to piece everything together to see what took place on prom night. Maddy is a good character you just want to root for her and see her win because she did not deserve the way the kids at school were treating her. This is a carrie retelling and we all know what happened there and I was just waiting for Maddy to get her comeuppance. The book has a few different POVs but it doesn’t take away from the book it just adds to the story telling. This book had so many layers and the build up had me on the edge of my seat. The Weight of Blood does not disappoint, run to your nearest book store and get this book in your hands immediately!
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