Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

All the White Spaces by Ally Wilkes

1 review

samferree's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Cold Horror (winter, arctic, Antarctic, etc.) is one of my favorite subgenres, and this is one of the best I have ever read. It's a meditative, melancholic, gripping, terrifying story set in a slightly alternate timeline in which Antarctica had not been more fully explored by 1920 when the protagonist and his party set out to try to reach the South Pole. Jonathan Morgan is a young trans man who lost both his brothers in the final days of WWI and is determined to fulfill their ambition of becoming Antarctic explorers. What I really love about this book is how Wilkes juxtaposes the horror and unfathomable slaughter of WWI with the desolation of Antarctica, and plays on themes of self-perception, social identity (and rejection), (suicidal) masculinity, guilt, and personal loss. They are all masterfully woven into the narrative and lead to a satisfying conclusion.

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