Published by Farr, Straus, and Giroux/MCD Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Gothic, Horror, Science Fiction
Format: ARC, eBook
Well, that was an intense and meaty read. Whew!
This book took me quite some time to get through, I would read some and put this book down and turn to other books. There is a lot going on in this book. A lot of food for thought. A lot of issues being addressed. Plus, it was bizarre at times and there were instances where I just was not sure what I just read and had to go back and re-read some sections.
The book begins as a 7-month pregnant, Vern, flees Cainland, the religious compound where she was raised. She goes into the woods and gives birth to her twin sons, Howling and Feral. Hunted by the Fiend, she must survive and do the best she can to raise her sons.
While in the woods, Vern begins to change. Her sons notice it. There is something going on with her back. But what? Was she poisoned? Was it the drugs she was given at night in Cainland? Plus, are the “hauntings” she experiences hallucinations? Is this the result of the drugs she was given? Are the “Hauntings” telling her something? Are they even real? Vern eventually leaves the woods and meets a woman named Gonzo who with a woman named Bridget, help Vern, and take care of her children. There is a lot more there, but I will leave it at that.
So, the plot seems straightforward, right? Wrong! At least it was not for me. This book is a mixture of several genres and as I mentioned before parts were bizarre to me. There are a lot of issues being addressed in this book – survival, motherhood, abuse, violence, history, sexuality, friendship, race, identity, cults, religion, etc. For me, all the issues in addition to the numerous genres became overwhelming and bogged down the book a little for me.
This was an extremely ambitious novel. Many are enjoying this more than I did. I struggled in the beginning and I struggled at the end. The only part, I didn’t struggle was in middle.
Beautifully written, Ambitious, genre bending, haunting and bizarre.
Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.