Sacrificial Animals left me a bit torn.
 It's the struggle between appreciation of a writing style, and not meshing at all with plot elements.
 Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my gifted copy for feature!
 Adult brothers Nick and Joshua have been called to return home, by their father Carlyle. Their childhoods were by no means idyllic, punctuated by abuse. Now Carlyle is dying and wants his sons with him in Nebraska, along with Joshua's wife Emilia. Carlyle's hatred toward her because of her race appears to fade for Joshua, as he and his father reconcile.
 The story alternates "then" and "now" chapters, with the dark complexities of family relationships.
 There are many interesting themes and plot points in Sacrificial Animals, but as the title suggests, animals play a fair part the story. From the opening pages, animal death is in the undercurrent, and unfortunately it turned me off of connecting with the story.
 Debut author Kailee Pedersen is undoubtedly a talented writer, and Sacrificial Animals would be worth checking out once aware of the animal elements.
 Released on Sept. 7.