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A review by booksandlemonsquash
Strange Creatures by Phoebe North
4.0
This is an odd one, but I ended up being drawn in by its oddness. On chatting with the author recently, they said that they were trying to explode readers expectations and I would definitely say that they succeeded. I spent a decent portion of the book more than a little confused haha.
Starting with the epilogue, and covering three main points of view, this tells the story of what happens to a family when a) close siblings drift apart and b) one sibling disappears suddenly. The first isn’t as important, but contained some of my favourite parts of the story. The relationship between Annie and Jamie was really interesting and felt very realistic.
I also really enjoyed the queer aspects of the book - leaning in to how Annie (in particular) felt like she didn’t fit. It’s in some ways a small thing, but it definitely had a major effect on who she is and how she reacts to things. It’s hard to read but wonderful.
This reminds me a little of the wicker king. A lot less dark but still messed up and a bit of a mindfuck with some messed up relationships. Definitely worth looking out if you don’t mind working a little bit with your book.
4 stars.
Starting with the epilogue, and covering three main points of view, this tells the story of what happens to a family when a) close siblings drift apart and b) one sibling disappears suddenly. The first isn’t as important, but contained some of my favourite parts of the story. The relationship between Annie and Jamie was really interesting and felt very realistic.
I also really enjoyed the queer aspects of the book - leaning in to how Annie (in particular) felt like she didn’t fit. It’s in some ways a small thing, but it definitely had a major effect on who she is and how she reacts to things. It’s hard to read but wonderful.
This reminds me a little of the wicker king. A lot less dark but still messed up and a bit of a mindfuck with some messed up relationships. Definitely worth looking out if you don’t mind working a little bit with your book.
4 stars.