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Thrillers🔎 Fantasy🐉 Sci-fi🪐 Lit fic🖋️
❌ NO AI books or reviews
📚 GR: 95/120
📖 For One Brief Moment All Eternity — Elif Shafak

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

I’m so tired of trying to figure out the algorithm or coming up with reels ideas. So I’m taking this account back to the start. Swipe to see why … ➡️

QOTD: Do you read written reviews on Booksta or do you prefer to watch reel reviews? by @_andtheplotthickens

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5 months ago

Happy Monday, book dragons! 📖🐉

I hope all my bookworm friends had a weekend full of reading before the first proper week of the year starts.

Despite my failure to complete my 25 in ‘25 challenge I’m going to try and 26 in ‘26 for my physical TBR. I managed about 15 of last year’s challenge so some of those books have been carried over. Hopefully I’ll do better this year. I think I need to refer back to it at the beginning of each month rather than trying to catch up towards the end of the year.

QOTD: Do we have any of the same books on our TBRs OR what book have you started January with?

#2026TBR #26in26 #tbrpile #tbrchallenge #bookstagramUK #tbrbooks

Bookstagram • Bookstgrammer • TBR • Bookworm • Reading Addict • Physical TBR • 26 in 26 by @_andtheplotthickens

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9 months ago

𝘔𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘢 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯. 𝘐 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳.

The notorious pirate Amina al-Sirafi has been retired for ten years, living a quiet life, though she’s languishing in poverty. Then, a wealth old woman makes her the offer of a lifetime: money that will leave her family wealthy for generations to come, if she can find the woman’s kidnapped granddaughter.

Amina suspects there may be more to the story, but if it makes her rich and lets her go rollocking on the Indian Ocean again, who’s she to look a gift horse in the mouth? It’s not long before things go wrong, though, and Amina discovers that finding the girl could cost her, and her crew, their ship and their souls.

Amina is a scintillating heroine, especially for readers tired of the same tiny teenagers who are fantasy’s prevailing female main characters. Amina describes herself as middle-aged: she has a bad knee, and her fighting skills are rusty. She’s also larger than most men, not afraid of dominating those around her and is full of secrets.

This is such a good romp of a tale. It’s tense and action-packed from the start, with a central adventure-mystery that keeps the suspense going. There are magical battles, supernatural creatures, demons, sorcerers, legendary pirates and mysterious scholars.

While this is a fantasy, I loved that it was based on actual research of piracy and Islamic trade on the Indian Ocean around what is today North Africa, the Middle East and India circa the 12th century. It makes for fascinating reading and creates a world that is so different from the myriad ones featuring the same tired dragons and faux enemies-to-lovers tropes.

Amina may be ‘old’, but this book is a breath of fresh air and I cannot wait for ‘The Tapestry of Fate’.

This is the gorgeous @fairyloot edition. Swipe to see the special features. ➡️

QOTD in the comments. by @_andtheplotthickens

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7 months ago

“𝘕𝘰𝘸 𝘐’𝘮 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨
𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩,
𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺,
𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘰𝘧 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦
𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦’𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘣𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵,
𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘺 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴.”

When Lexie, her little sister, Orly, and their bedridden mother move to a small New England town, she doesn’t expect the natural springs its famous for to change her life. Swimming in the hot water shortly after the move, she meets Chester: handsome, popular but hiding a painful past he won’t talk about. Lexie, too, keeps her own secrets to herself. The teens are in love, a golden couple. One day, Chester goes for his daily swim in the pools. Four other people are there. Something shocking and terrifying happens to them that will irrevocably change Lexie, and the town.

This is a love story, all written in beautiful, lyrical verse. I absolutely loved ‘We Were Liars’ by @elockhartbooks and really looked forward to reading her latest book. ‘The Pools’ could not be more different though. And that is by no means a bad thing. This story captured me, heart, mind, and soul. Initially, I struggled a little with the verse format, mostly because I read the eBook and it messed up the layout, but looking at the print copy, it’s clear the format works well, and contributes to the melodic feel of the writing.

Lexi and Chester are both half-broken in their own way, and find healing in each other. The tragic event that happens at the pools, threaten everything they’ve created for themselves. I loved them both.

‘The Pools’ is a fable, a contemporary fairytale that takes inspiration from multiple others. It’s a tale that will captivate and enchant readers, and pierce your heart just a little. It’s a quick read, but one that I’ll chew on for a long time.

Thanks to @bonnierbooks_uk for my review copy in exchange for an honest review.

QOTD in comments. by @_andtheplotthickens

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14 hours ago

𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘯𝘰𝘸. Nighteyes’ thought was gentle. 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘴 𝘶𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘶𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘴.

I’m not going to give a plot description in the caption because I don’t want to spoil this amazing trilogy for anyone. What I will say is that FitzChivalry is in more danger than ever, and more determined to avenge what’s been done to him.

‘Assassin’s Quest’ is absolute perfection. While the first two books in the ‘Farseer’ trilogy (part of the mammoth ‘Realm of the Elderlings’ series) are strong (I gave both five stars), this one was the 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘥𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. I was mesmerised. I gasped audibly multiple times. It had everything: an intriguing plot that picks up pace throughout the book; a conclusion that left me awestruck; twists I didn’t see coming; beautiful writing.

Robin Hobb is at the top of her craft in this trilogy. George R.R. Martin has called the ‘Farseer’ trilogy ‘diamonds in a sea of zircons’. He’s spot-on. As far as epic fantasy goes, you can’t get much better. These characters will live rent-free in my head forever – they’re unforgettable.

It’s a slower type of fantasy, yes. But that’s because Hobb chooses her words with care. Being epic fantasy, the books are long, but not overly so. She sacrifices neither plot nor character at the expense of the other. Her world-building is phenomenal, and she’s never guilty of info-dumping.

I feel bereft at saying a temporary goodbye to these characters – they only appear again much later in the series, but I’ve heard amazing things about ‘Liveship Traders’, the next trilogy. I cannot recommend these books highly enough.

QOTD: Which character/s from which book/s live rent-free in your head? Who can you simply not forget? by @_andtheplotthickens

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4 days ago

AARDVARK BOOK CLUB UK is here! And to celebrate their launch in the UK, they very kindly sent me their October box.

[AD/PR] If you don’t know who they are, @aardvarkbookclubuk is the new branch of Aardvark Book Club North America. Their first selections have now dropped for October. New members in the UK will be able to get their first book for only £8.99 with code LAUNCH!

Subsequent selections will drop on the first of the month [Nov 1, Dec 1, Jan 1, etc.]. They carry new release hardbacks across a range of genres [romantasy, horror, literary fiction, sci-fi, mystery, etc.]

I was lucky enough to receive Emily St John Mandell’s new book, ‘Exit Party’, which I have been dying to read as I’ve loved everything she’s written. The other book is Tananarive Due’s ‘Mazywood’, a supernatural horror and family saga. It sounds amazing! Reviews to follow.

QOTD: Who is an author of whom you’ve read and loved every book?
AOTD: Emily St John Mandell is one of mine. by @_andtheplotthickens

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6 days ago

BOOK MAIL MONDAY

[PR/AD] Somehow this gorgeous package survived three weeks behind a bin in the sun, rain and wind.

Thank you @bonnierbooks_uk for this lovely box with a copy of @elockhartbooks latest book — ‘The Pools’ and a cross-stitch kit. I LOVED ‘We Were Liars’ and I’m really excited to read this one.

QOTD: What was the last bookmail you received OR what is your current read and how are you rating it so far?

SWIPE FOR THE BLURB

Bookmail • book mail • book mail Monday • e lockhart • the pools • love story • romance • romance fiction by @_andtheplotthickens

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8 days ago

𝕊𝔼ℙ𝕋𝔼𝕄𝔹𝔼ℝ 𝕎ℝ𝔸ℙ-𝕌ℙ

It’s late. My September wrap-up is VERY late. I read a whole four books last month which has to be a record low for me since I might have learned to read.

However, I was on holiday. I visited family. It was busy. Very, very busy and I had little time to read. This also means I’m unlikely to hit my goal for the year and I think I’ll revise it down.

My favourite book of September was ‘I Who Have Never Known Men’, a short, sharp dystopian novel that packs a punch and that I highly recommend.

Here’s to hoping October will be a more fruitful month when it comes to books!

QOTD: What was your favourite book of September OR what book do you predict will be five stars for you this month? by @_andtheplotthickens

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11 days ago

𝘐𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦; 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦.

When war breaks out, Vianne Mauriac is left alone with her daughter, Sophie, in their small French village, with her husband called to the Front. No one believes the Nazis will invade France, but when they do, a German army captain requisitions Vianne’s house to live with them, putting her and Sophie in grave danger. At the same time, Vianne’s impulsive sister Isabelle joins the Resistance, disgusted at her sister’s decision to accept things as they are. Two paths diverge for two very different sisters. Can they find each other again?

I’ve read so many good reviews of this book and the author delivers a compelling read. I was drawn into both Vianne’s and Isabelle’s worlds, could sense the tension and danger, could feel the love they had for the people around them. Vianne’s initial passivity frustrated me, perhaps because Isabelle was so ready to fight back. Yet, Vianne does find inner strength later on in the novel to play her own part, redeeming her character. I loved Isabelle for all her flaws. Her courage is incredible.

The book asks the question: what did women do during WWII? It uses the two main characters to answer – plenty. Women were frontline nurses, ambulance drivers, code-breakers, Resistance members, spies and more. Just as the author highlighted in her book, ‘The Women’, these women didn’t receive medals afterwards; their contributions and own traumas were largely ignored in favour of soldiers’.

‘The Nightgale’ is a moving, heart-wrenching and gripping story that I devoured. While I think ‘The Great Alone’ will remain my favourite Kristin Hannah book, this one is a close second.

QOTD: Do you like historical fiction and have any great recs for me OR what book are you starting this week with?

Historical fiction • historical fiction books • historical fiction review • Kristin Hannah • World War Two stories • book recommendation • book reviewer by @_andtheplotthickens

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a month ago

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯’𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤, 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴, 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘐 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦. 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦. 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘵. 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘴, 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦, 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦.

A girl is among 40 women imprisoned in a cage, guards patrolling outside it day and night. They don’t know how they got there. They don’t know why they’re there. They’re not even sure how long they’ve been there, as the monotony of their days makes them lose track of time. But the girl is different – she’s the only child among them, and while the others remember their former lives, she does not. Then, one day, a disruption to their routine by @_andtheplotthickens

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a month ago

⁨“𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦. 𝘖𝘣𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦.”

After 81-year-old Wilbur Budd takes his last breath, he doesn’t go straight to the afterlife. Instead, he finds himself on The Midnight Train. It takes him to the most important events in his life, good and bad, so he can see what kind of person he was. He cannot change the past. But the moments with Maggie, the love of his life, hurt more than any. They were happy once, but ended up apart. If only Wilbur had appreciated her more. It’s too late now. Or is it?

This book is set in the same ‘world’ as Matt Haig’s mega-hit ‘The Midnight Library’, though the premise is different. Both novels explore many of the same themes: deep regret, love, loss, and grief. But what stands out in ‘The Midnight Train’ is its focus on how love, in all its forms, matters more than money, stability, ambition, and self-confidence. The question the author asks is whether, at the end of your life, you’ll regret not working more or creating wealth. The answer is likely no. It’s love, friendship, and kindness, or lack thereof, Haig argues, that will be what you remember when you look back. Even before his passing, Wilbur knows he had his priorities wrong, that he lost the thing, the person, that mattered most, and that he had only himself to blame.

Like ‘The Midnight Library,’ this book is deceptively simple. The writing is clear; there is not much flowery prose. But that’s part of its appeal for me. @mattzhaig digs into themes that are painful: literally some of the worst things that can happen to people, but he does so in a way that is hopeful and healing. This a balm for the soul. If this book doesn’t help change readers’ perspectives about what’s really important in life, nothing will.

QOTD in comments.⁩ by @_andtheplotthickens

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𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴 ... 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴: 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.

A curator who specialises in recreating scenes in historical buildings is asked to bring to life an old castle. From kitchens to dining halls and bedrooms, each element, from the food to the fabric, is chosen with care to ensure visitors get an accurate sense of what it was like to live there. During her task, she becomes obsessed with a king from hundreds of years ago, a king who refused to rule, to make war or to tax his subjects, resulting in treasonous thoughts spreading through his court.

It’s taken me a while to write this review because I’ve been trying to tease out my tangled thoughts about how I feel about this book. The author is an award-winning poet, and it shows: the writing is lush yet somehow also spare, in that no word is out of place. The scenes in each chapter are as vivid as the ones the unnamed curator creates.

The king (who remains similarly unnamed) makes for a fascinating character in his refusal to rule, with not a power-hungry bone in his body. His deep depression is captured in striking prose, and it’s easy to imagine the dark, dank court that is filled with rumours and gossip.

I was intrigued by the author’s refusal to name her characters, and I thought for a long time about why she would choose to do this: does she want them to be caricatures, stand-ins for certain readers? Or does she want her readers to focus on the language and the way it carries you through the setting and the examination of the characters’ motives? I’m still not sure, though it felt like it created a distance between me, and the curator and king.

[CONTINUED IN COMMENTS … ] by @_andtheplotthickens

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