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A review by anishaaa
The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I had a hard time getting into this one. The writing is overly flowery, and I'm not sure it adds much in this case. There seems to be an awful amount of telling, rather than showing, going on.
I would have wanted a deeper dive into the book eaters (and mind eaters) themselves. From the title of the book and the blurb, I thought this would be more about what eating books is like, and that this mechanism would be used for more than it was. This book could have been placed in many different societies (Personally, I see huge parallels with "women talking", and certain evangelical Christian groups), and nothing in the story would have to change. The fantasy/horror elements in this book detracted from the main storyline, which itself was nothing more than a formulaic pop feminist revenge story. Amarinder Patel's little quotes at the begginings of chapters held much more intrigue for me - I want to know more about this collector, and history of this society! Why make a whole society of novel (haha) aliens, and then make the entire story one that needed no elements of fantasy at all? With the state of feminism, allegories like this leave a bad taste in my mouth when there's so much of this happening in the real world that's already well-understood by most people. I wanted sapphic yearning over snacking on romance books, and instead I got a reflection of our society with proboscis' and weird teeth thrown in for kicks.
In addition, Devon's insistence at referring to Hester as her "friend" is annoying. Good asexual representation though. It was interesting, but that's about as much as I can give it. I wouldn't have finished it if it hadn't been for book club, and something I read with my partner.
I would have wanted a deeper dive into the book eaters (and mind eaters) themselves. From the title of the book and the blurb, I thought this would be more about what eating books is like, and that this mechanism would be used for more than it was. This book could have been placed in many different societies (Personally, I see huge parallels with "women talking", and certain evangelical Christian groups), and nothing in the story would have to change. The fantasy/horror elements in this book detracted from the main storyline, which itself was nothing more than a formulaic pop feminist revenge story. Amarinder Patel's little quotes at the begginings of chapters held much more intrigue for me - I want to know more about this collector, and history of this society! Why make a whole society of novel (haha) aliens, and then make the entire story one that needed no elements of fantasy at all? With the state of feminism, allegories like this leave a bad taste in my mouth when there's so much of this happening in the real world that's already well-understood by most people. I wanted sapphic yearning over snacking on romance books, and instead I got a reflection of our society with proboscis' and weird teeth thrown in for kicks.
In addition, Devon's insistence at referring to
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse