Source: DRC via Netgalley (Tor Publishing Group, Tordotcom) in exchange for an honest review
Publication Date: July 11, 2023
Synopsis: Goodreads
Purchase Link: Amazon

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Why did I choose to read this book?

Read either the Netgalley or the Goodreads description of this book (linked above) and tell me you don’t want to know what the absolute fuck is going on in this book. It’s like it challenged me to understand what it might be about and honestly, challenge accepted.

What is this book about?

If I absolutely had to nail down what this book was about, I would say it’s about legacy. I wanted to say destiny, but I think that would be misleading. It starts off as a chosen one type story, but then Fetter leaves his path and starts his own life hidden away. His mother tries to put him back on his path, and his father looms as a larger-than-life religious figurehead that he’s “destined” to kill, but Fetter just wants to have a normal life. How Fetter is blown about and affected by both his mother’s and father’s legacies creates the plot and eventual ending of this book.

What is notable about this story?

I absolutely love a story that is able to conceal a twist until its reveal. I do not want to spoil this at all because it’s so masterfully done, but you will not be disappointed about how things come full circle. The ending is so satisfying.

The bright doors were so interesting. I would love to see some fan art renditions of what the doors look like. There’s one on the cover of the book, but I want more! The idea of “empty realms” or like, multiverses that die off, was an interesting take in the same world where Marvel’s multiverse exists, and the creepiness of the creatures that Fetter could see seeping out through the doors added extra urgency to the characters trying to study what the doors do.

There are so many weird things going on in this story that I didn’t know what to latch onto. if you’ve ever been to a zoo or a museum or even a conference where you had the “Look at that! OMG look over THERE! What’s THAT?!?!” feeling, that is the exact feeling that this book evokes. I read through to the end because I cared about what happened to Fetter, but also because if I just turned this particular corner something really fucking weird or strange could be there for me to enjoy. I never stopped being surprised and entertained in this book, like a golden retriever darting back and forth excited by yet another squirrel. SQUIRREL!

Was anything not so great?

Honestly I can’t find a lot to criticize with this book. It’s written with our current short attention spans in mind, the writing is lush and evocative, and it’s both story and character driven – something I would usually complain about but is done so well here I can’t complain.

What’s the verdict?

4 stars on Goodreads. If you are looking for a book that will hook you from the beginning and throw you on a roller coaster that takes you through a museum of beautiful paintings and terrible histories before ending in a completely different place than you thought you would get off, this book is for you. I highly recommend the experience.