Queer Literary Loft

It's not often that I don't know where to begin with a review, but the story of The Book Eaters defies words. The title grabbed my attention, the synopsis sealed the deal and, the rest as they say, is history. Hook, line, and sinker, this is a book that will for sure – despite being only half way through the year – be in the top echelons of my most loved books of 2022.

Gorgeously written, the concept of The Book Eaters is so unique as to verge on the absurd, and yet, WOW, does its originality work.

Fittingly, England serves as the backdrop for the at times, pompous and old-fashioned nature of the six remaining book eater Families, who form the core of The Book Eaters narrative. Born into the North Yorkshire based, Fairweather Family, Devon is a book eater – a supernatural humanoid being, who consumes books as sustenance and in doing so takes on their contents and knowledge.

There is a natural flow to the plot, as chapters alternate from the present day to the past with readers simultaneously following Devon's journey in the present day, whilst also learning about her past and the history of the Families. A history that is as dark as the blackest night and one where all is certainly not as it seems. For the Families, secrets are a necessity of survival as not all of their kind are born book eaters, some such as Devon's son, Cai, are born mind eaters – whose sustenance is human minds. And whilst the destiny of most mind eaters is to become a Dragon under the command of the Knights, Devon knows of a drug, Redemption, that can save her son from his fate.

The only problem is, the Ravenscar Family are the only producers and the patriarchs kept the ingredients and process a tightly guarded secret. Unfortunately for Cai, the Ravenscar clan imploded upon the enactment of a family coup, and so Devon's options for her son are running out; either he consumes humans, starves to death or gets ‘put down' by the Families. But a mother's love conquers all, right?

As Sunyi Dean unravels the mysteries of the Families, readers have plenty to sink their book teeth into, from the exploration of a mother's love for her children, to gender stereotypes, forced marriage, sacrifice and the blurry lines of ones own morals. There are many twists and turns in this dark and at times thrilling story, plus there's the whole imagination aspect of eating books for knowledge, of being able to assign flavours, textures and smells to books in a completely new way – imagine how many books it would be possible to ‘read' if we actually ate them instead!

I know without doubt, that I would have ended up reading this book regardless of the identity of the main characters (it really is that fantastic!), but The Book Eaters is all the more sweeter for the presence of an array of queer characters, not least Devon's blossoming relationship with Hester, which whilst it's never explicitly stated, is implied to be Sapphic in nature. It is however worth noting that this aspect of the story is a subplot, it's there but it's not the main reason for the story and in all fairness, I don't think I would have wanted it to be.
The Book Eaters is a tale that should be read for what it is, a dark and thrilling urban fantasy, which will set your imagination on fire, anything beyond that is a bonus in my eyes.

By the end of the story, despite any loose ends having been nicely tidied up, there is an overwhelming feeling of there being more to come from Devon et al, wishful thinking or not(?), the ending of this book is such that there is scope for a sequel, and I truly hope that this is something the author pursues.

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

“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”.

Anyone who has ever had the pleasure of picking up an independently written novel by either Jackie D. or Erin Zak will one hundred percent appreciate the above idiom. Of course, they are  both outstanding authors in their own right, but put the two together and the storytelling catapults to a sublime level.

Set in a hard won future utopia, Glitch is a story based in Tekano (formerly the USA), a seemingly peaceful albeit uneventful place to be. At least that's what Isa Adams believes; a Tekano Elite soldier whose mother just so happens to be Tekano's military general. Despite years of hardcore training, Isa has only ever had cause to put her deadly skills to the test outside of Tekano.

A group of domestic terrorists who despise everything Tekano stands for soon puts paid to that, which sees Isa flung together with her ex Amara Pierce, the Secretary of History and daughter of Tekano's President.

Tasked with travelling back in time to save both their home and maybe even their future selves, an already arduous situation is compounded by Isa and Amara's complicated past; not to mention they haven't spoken to one another for a decade!

A specfic novel featuring the second chance romance trope, Glitch gets off to a fierce start and doesn't let up. From present day climate change issues and future solutions, to a time travellers view of present day racism, homophobia and gender inequalities - this story may be set in the future, but it casts an eye-opening net backwards into what would currently be a readers more recent history. What unfolds is a telling frame of reference for what our future could one day hopefully become.

I love that the authors started Isa and Amara's relationship back when they were teenagers, and that readers get to explore a decade old decision from two separate angles. When that decision ultimately culminates in heartbreak and lost time, the chances of Isa or Amara choosing to follow their hearts over their heads ever again seem remote. But sometimes the magnetic attraction between two souls means your heart has already written its own love story and you're just along for the ride.

Usually with a book that has multiple authors it isn't hard to spot who wrote which character, but with Glitch if you don't already know who has written each character, I'd doubt a reader would be able to guess. The authors have clearly worked hard to ensure the writing flows seamlessly between them, deftly mirroring each other on the page. This results in two main characters that resemble a well oiled machine;  as if Isa and Amara were born of a single mind rather than two. In some ways Isa and Amara are pretty much polar opposites, but Isa's brash and over confident attitude combines well with Amara's more gentle and intellectual demeanor; creating a story which is at times as thought provoking as it is fast paced and action packed.

Needless to say, I am super pleased to discover Glitch is the first in the Static series!

I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately despite having always enjoyed this series, the latest offering by the third author to take the reigns fails to pack a punch.

Despite featuring both Lisbeth and Mikael, I often found myself feeling like I didn't recognise them for the cornerstones of this series that they are. I appreciate that a new author is writing these characters but for me, a great writer should keep the flow of the characters going and I didn't honestly feel like that happened in this case.

I also felt the investigative aspect of the story was lacking, and due to the numerous points of view found it quite difficult to follow who was doing what, and where. The writing came across as stilted, often jumping from one viewpoint to another randomly.

Much of the storyline is focused on Lisbeth and Mikael's respective families, which didn't fit with the ‘cracking heads + righting the world' vibe the series has always held.

Overall a disappointing read, that has made me question whether I'd pick the next one up, were there to be one.

I received an arc of this book for review via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review

If you've watched any type of post-apocalyptic tv drama like “The Last of Us”, then The Last Bookstore on Earth is essentially a milder young adult versions- albeit in written format.

The front cover and the book's title initially grabbed my attention; promising the beginnings of something great. And overall I found The Last Bookstore on Earth to be a quick and easy read. It's worth noting that the story is clearly geared towards a younger audience as both the plot and the content lacked the usual angst and nitty gritty detail expected in this particular genre. For example, it's established that the Earth is now suffering from acid rain that melts people on the spot, but there isn't a great deal of backstory as to why, or how that has come to be. Whilst it doesn't take a genius to point towards some form of climate change, it is these aspects of the story which are very light touch.

The setting is mainly focused on the bookstore itself, which does get a little tedious after a while; part of the enjoyment of these types of stories is being able to explore what a barren and abandoned world would look like. I did also find one of the main characters Liz, to be fairly naïve of the dangers of just staying put in the bookstore, and ignorant of most things farther than the bookstore's stoop – I ultimately chalked that up to the age of the character. How worldly wise would any teenager really be in an end of the world scenario?

However, as a debut novel from the author, the book is a nice read with some interesting components. I liked that whilst Liz is holed up in the bookstore that she essentially sets up a local trade point, offering books (who'd have thought!), in exchange for goods. This obviously works as a mechanism for the wider plot in allowing other characters to enter, and providing a reason for unscrupulous folks to want what Liz has. It also provides the opportunity for Liz to collect stories from her customers, which increases the amount of supporting characters readers come into contact with, even though they don't directly feature on the page so to speak.

Definitely for a much younger audience than myself, but certainly worth picking up if you like the genre and fit the target audience in terms of age range.

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