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A review by thekyleross
It's Not a Cult by Joey Batey
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Its Not A Cult by Joey Batey is a marvel of a debut novel. The author has a very good grasp on pacing and story structure which was a happy surprise. No chapter felt too fast, no plot moment too slow. The characters are phenomenally well built, are unique, and have flaws and wants that drive the plot around them. Mel, Al, and Cal feel like real people. Each character has and absolutely owns their voice with unique word choices, tonality and meter in their dialogue. Craft-wise, the book has little flaws as a novel, and really surprised me to hear that this is Batey's first ever novel.
Batey's writing style is delightful to me. Lengthy and purpley at times but never overdone, and often broken with great descriptions of a character's emotions through poetic metaphors of a memory, sensation, or their worldview... or a nice bit of humor or dramatic, hysterical antics. The themes of the novel are vast, touching heavily on the obsessive nature of parasocial relationships and the toxicity in anonymity that protects people online. But at its core, sits a tale woven about forgotten gods and a small band. (Of music, and of misfits.)
Its Not A Cult is a love letter to strange bands and Northern England. (As an American married to a guy from Surrey, I can be honest and say I know I missed a few references but despite not fully knowing, I could still feel the heart in every word.) The lyricism written into the dialogue and moments where the band plays never feels forced it, and the melody comes naturally to my mind despite being just black and white text. The dialogue too, Batey shows a real expertise in, utilizing ellipses and onomatopoeias (not in a cringey way) to breathe the characters' speech to life. There's a dark humor weaved throughout, breaking up the tension when needed but never feels unnatural or missplaced.
Al as our narrator is remarkable. They only ever speak, in quotes, to another character so we as readers only ever hear them in these raw, emotional moments. We mainly see them by said character that also truly sees them. You root for them, follow them and their cinematography choices. We see what Al wants us to see, through their lensfinder, but uncut, unedited. As Mel and Cal and the plot deserves.
While I don't think this book will be for everyone, whether they find the violence too dark or too real or the style of writing wherein time slips between the future and the current within the same chapter a bit unnatural for them, I do believe it's worth the read. There's a song cycle musical called Ghost Quartet, written and composed by Dave Malloy; if you know it and like it, you'll love Its Not A Cult.
While I may be left with questions about why or truly how, the story would be weakened by those clarifications. We don't know, we don't have to know, the only thing to ask yourself: do you believe?
Thank you to NetGalley and Raven Books for the ARC in return for a voluntary review.
Batey's writing style is delightful to me. Lengthy and purpley at times but never overdone, and often broken with great descriptions of a character's emotions through poetic metaphors of a memory, sensation, or their worldview... or a nice bit of humor or dramatic, hysterical antics. The themes of the novel are vast, touching heavily on the obsessive nature of parasocial relationships and the toxicity in anonymity that protects people online. But at its core, sits a tale woven about forgotten gods and a small band. (Of music, and of misfits.)
Its Not A Cult is a love letter to strange bands and Northern England. (As an American married to a guy from Surrey, I can be honest and say I know I missed a few references but despite not fully knowing, I could still feel the heart in every word.) The lyricism written into the dialogue and moments where the band plays never feels forced it, and the melody comes naturally to my mind despite being just black and white text. The dialogue too, Batey shows a real expertise in, utilizing ellipses and onomatopoeias (not in a cringey way) to breathe the characters' speech to life. There's a dark humor weaved throughout, breaking up the tension when needed but never feels unnatural or missplaced.
Al as our narrator is remarkable. They only ever speak, in quotes, to another character so we as readers only ever hear them in these raw, emotional moments. We mainly see them by said character that also truly sees them. You root for them, follow them and their cinematography choices. We see what Al wants us to see, through their lensfinder, but uncut, unedited. As Mel and Cal and the plot deserves.
While I don't think this book will be for everyone, whether they find the violence too dark or too real or the style of writing wherein time slips between the future and the current within the same chapter a bit unnatural for them, I do believe it's worth the read. There's a song cycle musical called Ghost Quartet, written and composed by Dave Malloy; if you know it and like it, you'll love Its Not A Cult.
While I may be left with questions about why or truly how, the story would be weakened by those clarifications. We don't know, we don't have to know, the only thing to ask yourself: do you believe?
Thank you to NetGalley and Raven Books for the ARC in return for a voluntary review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Dementia
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicide