A review by woffordleejones
Weeping Season by Seán O'Connor

5.0

The main thing I particularly loved about Weeping Season is that you were in the dark just as much as the main character, Richard (as well as the rest of the ‘contestants’). You have no idea what’s going on until the final pages of the story (which I may add totally flipped me on my head). I knew something wasn’t quite right about their situation (other than the obvious), but I just couldn’t quite figure this one out. Like his first book, The Mongrel, this story is also a ‘survival of the fittest’ type story. These characters have to suck it up and brave the harshest elements and living conditions, as well as, battle between themselves as to what is right and wrong in what I felt was a post-apocalyptic type world in which they had been thrown. It’s pretty much a battle of wills throughout this whole story. O’Connor’s writing is fast-paced. You have to just hold and enjoy this grisly ride. You will feel the bitter cold and the isolation and abandonment of each person (even though they have been forced together in this situation). You will also feel the fear the contestants have to go through when their ‘number’ is called to do a certain ‘objective’. And finally, you feel the the full-on anguish and disheartening moments when the final truth is revealed. For me, as I read this book, I couldn’t help but wonder what choices and actions would I make if I were to be dropped into the middle of such a scenario. Definitely a thought-provoking novel. Five tears for Weeping Season (same as 5 stars).