Reviews with content warning for Sexism - Before We Disappear

Thanks to HarperCollins and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this to review! Shaun David Hutchinson is probably one of my favorite YA authors, and I was super excited to dive into this historical fantasy.

Let’s start with the characters. One thing Hutchinson is always great at is writing characters that maybe you don’t always love, but you really enjoy reading about them. In this book, we get narration from both Jack and Wilhelm. Immediately, you feel for Wilhelm, who’s been trapped in this incredibly abusive relationship from the beginning. Jack is a bit more of a morally ambiguous character, but you can definitely tell that he has a good heart. The two of them have a lot of great chemistry, and they are what make this book worth it.

However, I think the pacing overall for this book is mostly what threw me off. At first, time passes incredibly quickly, skipping over weeks at a time. It slows down a bit in the middle, but for me, this made for a kind of odd reading experience. I think the book could have been shorter and the story still would have been just as effective.

There were also some moments with the narration that I was just taken out of the story. At times, it seems like maybe the narrators are talking directly to the reader, and at other times, it doesn’t. For example, there’s a moment toward the beginning when something is said in French, and then the narrator says it will be translated from then on. It was little details like that that took away from the overall story.

While this is a promising historical fantasy, it just fell a little bit flat to me. You never know what you’re going to get with a Hutchinson book, and this was definitely the case here.
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I have mixed feelings about this one. The characters were great, but some of the plot and pacing felt off to me. More to come in a full review soon!

Content Warnings

tiredcath's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

"What if home isn't a place? What if it's a person?"

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the audio of Before We Disappear. It was my choice to read it and I'm leaving this review voluntarily.

Oh my god!

Despite the Siri, monotoned voice reading to me, I absolutely fell in love with this book. If you like "In Deeper Waters" by F. T. Lukens, you'll love this one.

Let me start by saying: this is not an enemies to lovers story. This is not a rivals to lovers. Before We Disappear is a story of hope. Yes it's about magicians and it's very whimsical, but it's mostly a story about hope and what a little bit of hope can inspire in people. It's about the family you create and learning to trust people again. Jack and Wilhelm meet under unusual circumstances and yet, somehow create one of the most heartfelt connections I've come across.

What I love:

- The characters! I absolutely loved the two leads and their friends. I absolutely hated the villains, so much so that I physically needed to roll my eyes every time a certain someone came up. The side characters were lovable and lively. I didn't feel as if anyone lacked personality or distinctive characteristics.

- A historical gay romance without blatant homophobia and the entire plot being "we can't be together because of the time"? Sign. Me. Up.

- The writing was stunning. Especially with Wilhelm. I truly felt I was with him in every situation, and although I didn't always agree with every decision he made, I understood why he had to make them. Shaun David Hutchinson knows how to write characters we root for. (And characters we hate.) Writing chemistry is difficult, and I think this is a good example of writing characters who make sense together. You don't need characters to be desperately in love to make their love feel real to the reader.

What I didn't love:

- The writing could get repetitive. As much as I did enjoy what I was listening to, some of the descriptive words got a little too much. So many as if's, and comparisons and poetic imagery- it dragged the novel just a bit.

- I did find it interesting that although there wasn't any homophobia, racism and sexism still existed in this somewhat real world. I definitely feel like there could have been other ways to give characters hardships or show how evil a character is without using that. I don't feel like you should be able to pick and choose what type of discrimination should be in your book when it's grounded in the real world.

Overall, I absolutely adored this book. I loved the characters, the plot was emotional and adventurous, and inspiring. I cannot wait for September to get my own physical copy. I think anyone who wants a light fantasy or it's their first time delving into anything other than contemporary will devour this. I don't know what it'll be about but if Hutchinson wants to write a sequel (Particular about a certain side couple) I will be there first in line.

Rating: 5/5

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