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A review by franuary
Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes
3.0
Lauren Beukes (The Shining Girls) adds a supernatural twist to the police procedural/serial killer genre in this paranormal crime-noir set in Detroit. Told from varying perspectives, including the killer’s point of view, Beukes deftly weaves together a complex narrative toward a conclusion that merges all storylines. Detective Gabi Versado is a divorced mother dealing with increased pressure at work (she’s chasing an exceptionally twisted killer who attaches his human kills to animal remains) and at home (her teenage daughter Layla is trying to entrap criminals of her own online). TK is a former criminal turned helper to the homeless, but he begins to sense something unnatural on the streets where he lives. Jonno, a recent New York City transplant, is desperate for his 15 minutes of fame, and he finds it by chronicling the recent killings on the internet. And there’s the artist, a man whose grip on reality and humanity is tested as he becomes possessed by a compulsion to kill.
I thought that Broken Monsters was beautifully written. Beukes does a fantastic job of telling varied, seemingly unrelated stories and making each one as exciting as the next. In books with this many points of view, I often find that there are at least one or two characters that aren’t fully fleshed out or draw the short end of the narrative, but Beukes was incredibly consistent. I was genuinely invested in each character.
My one gripe with Broken Monsters: it wasn’t clear from the description I read that this was a paranormal mystery. The paranormal elements didn’t appear in full until the end of the book, which, not knowing that supernatural elements were present, was incredibly confusing. There were some hints at the paranormal throughout, but I thought that the author was taking license with certain elements or was relating how madness was experienced by a character. Bascially, I was Scullying the entire book, coming up with logical solutions to explain the crazy (Hallucinogens! Photoshop! Undiagnosed brain tumor!). I wish I’d known that this wasn’t a standard thriller going in; I think that I would have enjoyed it even more that I did.
In many ways, the events of this book take place both in the real world and in the digital world. Sections of the book are told through texts, through online messages, and through a Reddit Q&A. One character live streams events online and covers the killings on his YouTube channel. Internet memes are also referenced frequently. While I wouldn’t say that this book is solely for digital natives, there are certainly parallels drawn between the version of reality we experience online and the version we experience in person, and this part of the story may be lost on readers who can’t tell Tumblr from Twitter. Still, Beukes’ writing and the unique story will captivate all readers interested in paranormal crime, and should convert many who are accustomed to more vanilla thrillers.
I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Mulholland Books and to NetGalley for the advance copy!
I thought that Broken Monsters was beautifully written. Beukes does a fantastic job of telling varied, seemingly unrelated stories and making each one as exciting as the next. In books with this many points of view, I often find that there are at least one or two characters that aren’t fully fleshed out or draw the short end of the narrative, but Beukes was incredibly consistent. I was genuinely invested in each character.
My one gripe with Broken Monsters: it wasn’t clear from the description I read that this was a paranormal mystery. The paranormal elements didn’t appear in full until the end of the book, which, not knowing that supernatural elements were present, was incredibly confusing. There were some hints at the paranormal throughout, but I thought that the author was taking license with certain elements or was relating how madness was experienced by a character. Bascially, I was Scullying the entire book, coming up with logical solutions to explain the crazy (Hallucinogens! Photoshop! Undiagnosed brain tumor!). I wish I’d known that this wasn’t a standard thriller going in; I think that I would have enjoyed it even more that I did.
In many ways, the events of this book take place both in the real world and in the digital world. Sections of the book are told through texts, through online messages, and through a Reddit Q&A. One character live streams events online and covers the killings on his YouTube channel. Internet memes are also referenced frequently. While I wouldn’t say that this book is solely for digital natives, there are certainly parallels drawn between the version of reality we experience online and the version we experience in person, and this part of the story may be lost on readers who can’t tell Tumblr from Twitter. Still, Beukes’ writing and the unique story will captivate all readers interested in paranormal crime, and should convert many who are accustomed to more vanilla thrillers.
I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Mulholland Books and to NetGalley for the advance copy!