I did not realize it would lean into supernatural elements, but the way the plot was woven together—past and present, memory and mind—was really well done.

we follow three women:
- Audrey and Mara, whose mothers are twins. Mara is now somehow inside Audrey's mind after her mysterious disappearance and murder
- Shirley, their grandmother, whose storyline is set in the past
- Zadie, Mara's ex-gf, who has her own role to play in this layered mystery.

Technically, the writing is strong and the author knows how to build suspense and create atmosphere. But despite all that, there was nothing particularly addictive about it, and I probably wouldn't have finished it if it weren't an ARC. Once I finished it, I appreciated what it was trying to do.

I felt the book was a bit too long for the kind of tension it was trying to maintain. By the halfway point, I was ready for answers, but the story kept dragging. I think horror-thrillers hit harder when they're shorter and more fast-paced.

A bloody history steeped in ghost stories and whispers of serial killers where three girls have caught the attention of something far more sinister. A haunting inheritance, visions tormenting women who won't be believed and a nightmare of vengeance desperate to be fulfilled. An atmospheric novel of ghost possession, psychic visions and a story of revenge.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐩𝐬, 𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐕𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐲 𝐋. 𝐋. 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐝

My Lips, Her Voice is a hypnotic, fever-dream of a book—lush, unsettling, and dripping with dread. L.L. Madrid doesn’t just tell a story; she casts a spell. I found myself completely consumed by the atmosphere, by the shifting identities, by the eerie intimacy that wraps itself around every page like smoke.

This is body horror with a pulse—alive, seductive, and deeply feminist. The kind of horror that gets under your skin not just because of what it shows, but because of what it suggests: that becoming someone else might be easier than facing who you really are. And in Madrid’s world, that transformation is both ecstatic and terrifying.

The writing is sharp, lyrical, and strange in all the right ways. I kept rereading lines—not just because they were beautifully written (though they are), but because they felt like they were telling me something I wasn’t quite ready to hear. There’s a queasy, magnetic pull to this book, like following a siren song into deep, dangerous water.

If you’re drawn to horror that explores identity, obsession, performance, and the grotesque beauty of becoming, My Lips, Her Voice is unforgettable. Unnerving, provocative, and entirely original—it got into my head and stayed there.

I loved the writing style and the characters. Honestly loved everything about it. The plot was also very interesting and I couldn’t put it down. Will definitely recommend to my friend and family.

You gotta love kids being creepy and the unsettling tones in this book had be riled up! I found this to be a quick read as I couldn’t put it down.

Another WLW horror novel, but in this one, one of the women is a ghost potentially trying to take over her cousin's body, to solve her own murder and get her girlfriend back. Mara may be joining my list of unlikable characters, but in making Audrey such a foil to her, they do them both a disservice. It would be nice to be able to see these characters as individuals, but that's not how this story goes. The more interesting part of the story is the role of gender dynamics in the killings and the Bloody Jasper storyline. I think the ending resolves all of the questions the reader might have and ends in a way I found appropriate for the novel overall. Overall recommend to anyone who likes psychic stories and people who may or may not be able to see the future, and ghosts.

3.5 stars

My Lips, Her Voice is a ghost story wrapped in a murder mystery, set in the most haunted town in North America. After Audrey’s cousin Mara is murdered, her ghost moves into Audrey’s head (as one does), and the two kind of team up with Mara’s girlfriend Zadie to find the killer. It’s eerie and filled with messy girlhood. Not full-on horror, but the vibes? Immaculately unsettling.

The pacing dragged a bit in the middle, and there was quite a bit of repetition (possibly more helpful for younger YA readers than for me). Some elements (like Mara’s possession of Audrey’s body) were disturbing but a bit underexplored, and I wished the ending had done a bit less of the 24 seasons series finale where every single plot thread gets tied up in a last minute scramble energy. Still, I enjoyed the atmosphere and the way it brought very different girls together through grief, rage, and ghostly chaos.

Maybe if I hadn't just read Bittersweet in the Hollow, I wouldn't have found this to be a less-polished version of a similar set-up (girls go missing in a haunted town, supernatural influences are at play). I liked the premise but thought the execution couldn't match the same energy: the connective tissue wasn't there to bring together relationships and revelations, so I was pretty apathetic regarding the entire story. Audrey's narrative was the most compelling since we see her go from a shrinking violet to eventually embracing her psychic gifts, as well as speaking up for herself when Mara and Zadie are abusing her and taking away her autonomy. But despite being the one possessed who we're first introduced to, Audrey often felt forced from the narrative in favor of Zadie, who 1) was not generally a sympathetic or likeable character, and 2) didn't have a believable romantic relationship with Mara or Rhea and never once tried to befriend Audrey. Mara was unbearable because she was mostly mean for the sake of being mean; I liked how Madrid explored her spirit being corrupted, but I also kind of felt like Mara didn't really change over the course of the book. The antagonist was easily spotted, and because Shirley got so little space in the narrative, in many ways so did the supernatural evil.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Creature Publishing for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’m at a loss for words as to how much I loved My Lips, Her Voice and how it hit the motherf*king spot. I was looking for something queer (Happy Pride, ya’ll!), creepy, and well written, and this YA/New Adult book went above and beyond those expectations, as it included:

⛏️horror/mystery/thriller elements
🪄sapphic rep
⛏️multiple POVs
🪄dual timelines
⛏️paranormal aspects, including possession, ghosts, and hypnotism
🪄family secrets
 
I went into this only reading the synopsis (and seeing the awesome cover), so I feel like the less I tell you, the better experience you’ll have reading this book. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and couldn’t book my kindle down. This is definitely going to be one of my favorite reads of 2025, so I highly recommend you check it out if it sounds up your alley!
 
Read My Lips, Her Voice if you liked: The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould or House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

My Lips, Her Voice is an eerie story about a haunted town and the people and ghosts who reside there. Audrey is a quiet girl, sensitive to paranormal activities, who has recently been possessed by the vengeful spirit of her cousin Mara. Zadie, Mara's former girlfriend, is a skeptic who works as a tour guide in Copper City's mines. At the start, all three girls stand in opposition against one another, providing tension within the narrative. I thought the setting of Copper City was wonderfully atmospheric, and provided an intersting opportunity to discuss the culture of true crime fanaticism and what it means to profit off of tragedy. As the novel progressed toward the climax, I found it hard to put it down, needing to know what would happen next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! Her lips, Her voice was an enjoyable spooky thriller with horror elements.

The mystery is interesting and engaging, with good pacing making it a very enjoyable read. Loved the sapphic elements and relationships explored. If you enjoy creepy tension building horror or thrillers then I’d highly recommend this!

Her lips, Her voice has a captivating spooky tone. The mystery and horror aspects was intriguing and a good read. I usually don't like when books go back in forth between the present and the past but Madrid did it extremely well and there was a reason for the back and forth. I would say this has a more thriller mystery tone and not as much horror. Overall this was a fun spooky read.

What a ride. Creepy, atmospheric, and utterly gripping—this is the kind of horror I live for.

From the first unsettling chapter to the final haunting twist, this book had its claws in me. It’s the perfect blend of ghostly tension and psychological dread, and LL Madrid balances it all with characters you love, hate, and side-eye the entire way through. (Seriously, some of them? Red flag city. )

I didn’t have a clue what was coming next, and I loved that. The last chapters Iwas glued. Cancel-your-plans-and-don’t-blink kind of reading. And the ending? So satisfying it felt like a reward for surviving the emotional damage.

My Lips Her Voice by LL Madrid is an evocative and captivating story that weaves together richly developed characters and a plot that steadily deepens. The narrative moves with a thoughtful pace, allowing emotional stakes to emerge organically while maintaining a sense of intrigue that pulls you deeper into the characters’ journeys.

The heroine’s voice is both compelling and nuanced—she is resilient yet vulnerable, pragmatic yet full of hope. As she navigates complex relationships and evolving circumstances, her growth feels genuine and rooted in authentic emotion. Madrid also introduces supporting characters who leave a strong impression, each bringing their own charm, conflict, and subtle motivations to the mix.

What stands out is the way small moments—quiet conversations, fleeting glances—carry surprising weight, shaping the characters’ arcs and lending the story a palpable resonance. With its blend of emotional depth, character-driven focus, and a plot that builds organically, My Lips Her Voice is a quietly impressive read that rewards close attention and lingers long after the last page.

Copper City seems to have darkness looming over it as the trauma over the years builds. This is a slow burn story that mostly comes to a satisfying end.

I enjoyed the multi-generational aspect of the power of family, the power of women and the environment they are attune with. At times I was hoping for a bit more from the lore of the town itself but that didn’t take away from the story.

The characters were well written and distinct but sometimes they meshed too well and I had to double check the chapter heading for the name.

Overall solid story, well written, and I could say it wasn’t as YA as expected.

The book is listed here as new adult but it felt very YA
I also found it less horror and more of a thriller - there was also a heavy emphasis on the romance which was a bit problematic consent wise for me
The alternating timelines also messed with pacing

This eerie, slow-burning thriller delivers a haunting blend of grief, possession, and the lingering trauma of generational secrets. Set against the grim backdrop of Copper City, a town with more skeletons than residenta. This story pulled me in with its atmospheric dread and morally tangled characters.

Audrey’s struggle to maintain control as her dead sister Mara claws her way back through possession is both terrifying and emotionally rich. Zadie, caught between heartbreak and horror, adds a compelling emotional center. The queer romance is raw, messy, and refreshingly honest, adding complexity without ever overshadowing the central mystery.

What really struck me was how the book plays with identity and bodily autonomy. It reminded me of "Compound Fracture" by Andrew Joseph White in its fearless exploration of fractured selves, trauma, and rage personified. The supernatural elements enhance, rather than distract from, the emotional stakes.

A star off only because the pacing dips in the middle, and the twist, while satisfying, feels a little telegraphed. But overall, this is a gripping, gutsy story that lingers long after the final page. A must-read for fans of psychological horror with heart.

4.25⭐️
Oooh, I should have read this closer to Halloween...

Alternating between multiple perspectives, we learn the deep, dark history of Copper City - one that is steeped in death, heartache, betrayal, and mystery.

This was so different from what I was expecting, in the best way possible! This definitely brought the spooky vibes, but still had a lot of drama and intriguing relationships that I don't think I've ever seen in any other stories. Also, I absolutely love that this story is basically female-dominate and doesn't really focus on any male characters.

I liked some characters more than others and the plot was fantastically intricate. The big seller for me was the inherent mystery at the heart of the book. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to have the big reveal, and it did NOT disappoint!

Overall, it was a great horror/mystery read, and one that I am so glad to have read.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Amanda Manns for this ARC!

Pub Date: October 14, 2025

2.25/5.

Overall, I was not as much of a fan of this book as I would have liked to be. The concepts of ghosts, multigenerational trauma, and haunted copper mines (plus lesbians!) sounded like something right up my alley, and even as I wasn't the largest fan of the book, I did enjoy the environment that Madrid set up and the attention to the very real ways folktales seem to be residents of the small towns they reside in just as much as the people. With Southern Gothic being not as much of a clear-cut genre in the literary sphere, I will always applaud authors for venturing into it and eagerly await more titles to gain their foothold. I do think that Madrid handled the multi-POV trend well for the most part, and I enjoyed piecing together the threads of the town's blood-soaked history to figure out how everything would all tie in at the end.

With that said, I considered this book to fall short of my expectation in multiple ways. Though Mara was distinctly different from her cousin Aubrey, which I appreciated, the Aubrey and Zadie points of view didn't seem separate enough to make me incredibly attached to them as characters. Where Zadie was painted as spunky and rebellious and Aubrey as tentative and quiet, there was not much to differentiate between their thoughts/actions beyond a singular hobby (music for Zadie and baking for Aubrey) despite the implications that suggested there should be far more of a contrast. Furthermore, some of the use of language and colloquialisms were far too casual at points to where it disrupted the flow of the literature—I think of the use of "alphabet mafia" from Zadie as an especially egregious example—and the final confrontation and conclusion veered so far into the "solving things with the power of friendship" YA pitfall that it made me feel as if I were entranced by one of Zadie's tourist-trap ghost stories. I believe that the topics explored (and the gore and death present) were what made the choice for this book to be marketed as new adult, but the ending of the story and the framing of the conflicts left a poor taste in my mouth, as it feels like this book attempted to straddle multiple levels of maturity and, as such, left me as a reader feeling unfulfilled in both. However, I do consider this struggle to be expected for a debut novel, and I think Madrid's work will easily shine in the future once she finds a more consistent literary voice. I absolutely believe that this book can be enjoyed by a certain audience, but it may struggle in its current state to find an appropriate niche.

Thank you to Creature Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC.

What an enjoyable book. It was delightfully creepy and left me on edge, it had all the elements of horror and ghost stories that I crave, and it had characters that were such a wide range of likability that it truly kept me engaged. I didn't quite know what was going to happen next right to the very end but that's all for the best. I was locked in for the last 45% of the book; unable to put it down and found the wrap up of the story incredibly satisfying. LL Madrid is truly a gift to the horror community..