I went into this story blind. Simply based on the cover I was expecting a different story, something more wild teen free spirit. The story is well written and the narrator did a great job bringing the characters to life. there is some kind of magic/curse/ability that this family gets from drinking the water, I feel like that could have been explored more or explained more, like what does it actually do? and Mayhem seems to be reallt good at it from the begining? I dont know, I at least was missing something. The romance seemed to kind of just happen because they were there, I didn't feel it. The magic coming from water kind of made me think of Tuck Everlasting but more specifically the movie than the book.

Content warnings for this book: suicide (not depicted), drug use, domestic abuse, sexual assault, kidnapping, murder, child abuse

When Mayhem's stepfather goes too far one night, Mayhem Brayburn and her mother, Roxy, flee to the ancestral Brayburn home in Santa Maria where Roxy's twin sister, Elle, and foster children are living. Through Elle's children, Mayhem is introduced to a source of power which is her inheritance as a Brayburn woman. Suddenly not only is Mayhem angry but she is more powerful than she could ever imagine.

This was a very middle of the road book to me. The story was okay (there were some choices I didn't agree with) and the writing was beautiful but there was just way too much going on in the story. There were flashbacks, a kidnapper, the impending threat of Mayhem's stepfather, a romance, and a story involving Elle's children.

There are so infinitely quotable moments to this book, particularly this one:
"You're a plague and a pestilence, and the way you carry your manliness like it's a permission slip from God to act like"you rule everything and everyone in your path, like you can do whatever you want-- well, I think the guillotine is a good option. I'd love to watch your head roll across the grass."