A review by sweetheartstitches
Private Rites by Julia Armfield

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“The first time you lose a parent, a part of you gets trapped there; trapped less in the moment of grief than in the knowledge of the end of childhood, the inevitable dwindling of the days.” 

Familial grief and trauma never fails to make me absolutely feral. Julia Armfield knocked this out of the park - struggling sibling relationships, trauma from their abusive & neglectful father, all set against an apocalyptic backdrop brought on by a climate crisis. Armfield’s prose is absolutely beautiful; poetic yet gut-wrenching all in one. 

The story follows three sisters, Isla, Irene, and Agnes after the death of their prolific, architect father. All the while, their world has been impacted by climate change; never ending rains and storms have caused massive floods, leading people to move further and further toward the sky. There’s a sinister undercurrent woven throughout the story; small hints adding up to a bigger picture that explodes the final chapter. 

Armfield is a powerhouse when it comes to my new favorite subgenre: waterlogged lesbians. Her ability to write these complicated, real relationships with the sisters was devasting in the best way possible. Even the sisters own relationships - we get to see how their love lives differ, how they each struggle to accept - and even want - love. 

While all this familial grief and turmoil is happening, the apocalypse is raging on. However, humanity’s reaction the crisis is, well, normal; people are still struggling to get to work despite power outages, flooding, protests, and buildings collapsing. The cycle of capitalism and abuse go hand-in-hand; humanity still trudges to work and the sisters still cannot escape the abuse of their father. 

The horror is subtle, atmospheric. A rising dread like the rise of the flood. With each chapter I felt uneasy, wondering when the shoe was about to drop. Like Armfield’s other novel, the horror is speculative as well, with no right or definitive answer; and I know that kind of story is not for everyone. I, however, love not only a book that makes me feel awful (lovingly), but one I can continue and continue to think about once I’ve finished the story. Armfield has easily become one of my auto-read authors. 
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