I Am Made of Death coming March 4th, 2025 from Scholastic Press; 368 pages
Content Warning: Foul language, kidnapping, body horror, violence, blood, death
About the Author: “Kelly Andrew lost her hearing when she was four years old and she’s been dreaming up stories in the silence ever since. Andrew lives in New England with her husband and their two daughters (and a very grouchy Boston Terrier). She has a BSW, but received her Masters in English & Creative Writing. When she’s not writing, she enjoys obsessing over a good book, scouring flea markets for treasure, and getting intentionally lost in the woods” (Bio from author’s website).
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Everyone has demons—but some are worse than others. Vivienne Farrow’s, for example, lives inside her with wickedly sharp teeth and a poisonous voice. After falling into Red Rock Canyon and being claimed by the dark as a child, Vivienne has become a selective-mute in a desperate bid to maintain some semblance of control over her voice and body. Still, the face in the mirror isn’t hers, and every night is a struggle. Willing to do anything to regain mastery of her life, Vivienne has planned an illicit surgical exorcism. Her parents throw a wrench in her designs, however, when they hire Thomas Walsh to ostensibly serve as her ASL interpreter and ‘watch after her.’ That is, keep her in line. Vivienne needs to eliminate him to achieve her goals, but Thomas, in dire need of the money the job offers, refuses to be shaken. Their wills clash as the powers that be threaten to crush them both beneath their heels.
Kelly Andrew’s spine-tingling narrative left me simultaneously giggling over Thomas and Vivienne’s relationship and adamantly avoiding my mirrors at night, and I couldn’t have asked for more. Coming into I Am Made of Death, I certainly expected the horror and suspense prevalent throughout the novel, but I did not expect to become as fond of Thomas and Vivienne as I did. Somehow, while slowly suffocating both characters and readers with mounting dread of the thing taking up residence in Vivienne’s blood and bones, Andrew crafts a believable, heart-warming relationship between the main characters with the help of alternating POVs. The appearances of certain side characters may be more significant or enjoyable to readers who have completed Andrew’s other books, but the central cast of I Am Made of Death is lovable all on its own. Adding to the endearing elements of the book were the many references sprinkled throughout the story, which never felt awkward or outdated as they so often do. As a Classics student, I particularly enjoyed Andrew’s use of Greek mythology and Homeric epigraphs. I also appreciated her nuanced storytelling, which paid attention to things such as the tone of Vivienne’s signing, how interpretation gets abused, and the various difficulties of managing chronic illness. I would have liked some of the world-building to be a little more fleshed-out (although Andrew’s other books may lay the groundwork for this one), but I adored this story nonetheless.
I Am Made of Death releases on March 4th, 2025.
Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and Scholastic Press for sending us an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change before final publication.
Melia Gemrose, Pine Reads Review Co-Assistant Director and Lead Editor