I'm a few weeks past having finished this book and STILL thinking about it. Only really special books tend to stay with me for a long period of time, and this is hands down one of them. This is a new favorite book, and that's coming from someone who almost exclusively reads adult genre MM romances with HEA/HFNs that aren't written in verse. This book has made me want to seek out more books written in verse because it was so hauntingly beautiful. I don't know how Woodfolk did this, but the subtle foreshadowing had me realizing from the start that certain things weren't what they seemed, and that the book would end a certain way. I laughed with these girls, cried with them, felt for them, felt WITH them. Ups and downs and twists and turns, I was along for the ride. ALSO, I read this over the course of 24 HOURS, starting from the moment it arrived in my April Rainbow Crate. It takes me MONTHS to read a book, no matter how good it is, no matter if it's from a favorite author of mine, no matter how long I waited for the release of it. I'm just a slow reader, but I could NOT put this book down. This review doesn't even come close to doing this book justice, and it deserves way more than 5 stars. I highly suggest giving it a try, even if verse isn't your favorite, because the story is so incredible and beautiful and just plain perfect. Thanks to Woodfolk for sharing her outstanding prose with the world. ( )

Written in verse, this book really hits with all the feels. It's a beautifully heartbreaking story about first love. There's a certain...power that really pushes through with each word, each phrase, each page.

Nothing Burns as Bright as You bounces back and forth between timelines adding in little truths and lies that connect the story of these two girls seamlessly. Little bits of the puzzle get told on each page and it really pulled me right along, I was genuinely unable to put the book down.

While I did feel that the strength of the words got blurred roughly midway through the book, overall this story just felt...right, like their first kiss.
"It just felt right.
Like sun on sea-wet hair.
Like paint thick and bright on canvas."

There is no way I'm able to do this book justice with any review I leave so I'll just say this...read it.
Truly, read it.

Thank you Clarion/Versify for the ARC to read and honestly review! ( )