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booksandladders's review against another edition
2.0
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Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and chose to review it. This in no way impacts my opinion.
I wanted to like this more than I actually did. I found it to be a really weird and confusing storyline and timeline - one that was populated with urban myths that I didn't quite understand because they were never given the attention they deserved. The characters didn't feel real because we never saw them for enough time and there were too many of them to fully develop.
I am not sure this would be one I would recommend!
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Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and chose to review it. This in no way impacts my opinion.
I wanted to like this more than I actually did. I found it to be a really weird and confusing storyline and timeline - one that was populated with urban myths that I didn't quite understand because they were never given the attention they deserved. The characters didn't feel real because we never saw them for enough time and there were too many of them to fully develop.
I am not sure this would be one I would recommend!
Like my reviews? Buy me a Ko-Fi!
kem1883's review
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
inquisitrix's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Reading Night Roll is like coasting through the unknowable streets of someone else’s dream. Strange, mysterious, lovely; laced with ribbons of slowly-unspooling anxiety and spiked with passing slivers of danger, this gently wild novella is a ride I do not think I will soon forget.
Night Roll combines something I know and love well—scrappy, defiant, anti-capitalist, community-oriented, DIY bicycle culture—with two things rather more alien to me, i.e., motherhood and the city of Detroit. I have minimal tolerance for stories about motherhood, particularly when told by male-identifying writers; it is a testament to DeLuca’s skilful prose and compelling vision that at no point did I feel put off by his depiction of a struggling single mother and her complex feelings toward her baby, her postpartum body, and the unfamiliar, alone, unsettled new version of herself she must learn to inhabit. Having never been to Detroit, I can have no opinion regarding the authenticity of its presence in this novella—but it feels as real and true as any portrayal of a city I have read. The people and places of Night Roll come alive in ways I would not have expected in such a brief narrative, and I found them wonderfully easy to care for from the very first page.
While this novella’s great strength lies in its vivid characterizations and tangible descriptions of setting and place, another captivating feature is its journey through some of Detroit’s local mythology. Having never read much about the city, I was not aware of the Nain Rouge legends; looking it up after finishing the book made for a delightful and—due to the colonial history surrounding the legend’s origins—poignant coda to my reading experience.
Like all of the books I have read from Stelliform Press, Night Roll is a treasure. I look forward to recommending it to my cycling friends, and everyone else I know who appreciates all things surreal, fantastical, and—most of all—hopeful.
luftschlosseule's review against another edition
4.0
trigger warning
drug abuse
It starts when her neighbor asks her if he could borrow her bike to join the Night Roll and never comes back.
We have a young mother, a single mother, who just moved to Detroit and doesn't really know anybody, apart from Virgil, her neighbor who comes to share gossip and keep company - until he doesn't. He never returns from the bike tour, and Aileen tries to gather information which finally makes her go out and make some friends.
I liked this one. We only have a few pages, but there still is a plot, worldbuilding, character developement. I have no idea about the urban myths of Detroit, if there is the story of the Elf, but I might look into it one day. Today, I have too much left to read to venture there.
If you want a short bit of magic in an urban setting, look no further.
I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.
It starts when her neighbor asks her if he could borrow her bike to join the Night Roll and never comes back.
We have a young mother, a single mother, who just moved to Detroit and doesn't really know anybody, apart from Virgil, her neighbor who comes to share gossip and keep company - until he doesn't. He never returns from the bike tour, and Aileen tries to gather information which finally makes her go out and make some friends.
I liked this one. We only have a few pages, but there still is a plot, worldbuilding, character developement. I have no idea about the urban myths of Detroit, if there is the story of the Elf, but I might look into it one day. Today, I have too much left to read to venture there.
If you want a short bit of magic in an urban setting, look no further.
I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.
christinogle's review
5.0
Quite an engrossing story of a new single mother trying to form a life in future Detroit. A magical story with appealing characters, Night Roll also brings in references to Detriot's history, which were unfamiliar to me, but it made me want to learn more about the city. Thank you to Stelliform Press for providing the ARC.
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