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A review by hualianr
Sanctuary by Andi C. Buchanan
4.0
One thing about me is that I am an absolute sucker for the found family trope, and despite this being established from the beginning, it was still such a joy to read about the relationships the residents of Casswell Park shared.
Each character in this book was well fleshed out, and we got a vast amount of representation including; an entire cast of neurodivergent characters, transgender and nonbinary characters, disabled characters, lesbian characters, queer characters, Black characters, and a South Asian character. The shared experiences that these characters had made for a loving and understanding environment, with each character having a clear understanding of the boundaries and needs of the others. This isn't to say that the group was completely perfect - arguments were had as in any family, but they worked through those easily.
As for the plot, it was an interesting one. Casswell Park is not only home to our cast of humans, but to a cast of various ghosts too. These ghosts - unlike how they're usually portrayed - aren't tethered to where their death occurred but can move from location to location, choosing to tether themself to a building should they wish. When an old man arrives with a collection of glass bottles and the information that they contain ghosts within them, the residents of Casswell Park devise a plan to free them from their confinement - slowly so as not to overwhelm the current ghostly residents of their home. What ensues after this is a mixture of spooky happenings and some bad decision-making.
Overall, I really enjoyed this read. The strongest point of this book from me was definitely the characters - they're well written and feel incredibly real, and at times are very relatable. The plot was interesting and moved at a good pace, and I especially loved the chapters where we followed Isobel, as the insight they gave to the story was a nice touch, and they helped set the plot up pretty well. My only criticism would be that but other than that, everything was great!
[ARC provided by NetGalley.]
Each character in this book was well fleshed out, and we got a vast amount of representation including; an entire cast of neurodivergent characters, transgender and nonbinary characters, disabled characters, lesbian characters, queer characters, Black characters, and a South Asian character. The shared experiences that these characters had made for a loving and understanding environment, with each character having a clear understanding of the boundaries and needs of the others. This isn't to say that the group was completely perfect - arguments were had as in any family, but they worked through those easily.
As for the plot, it was an interesting one. Casswell Park is not only home to our cast of humans, but to a cast of various ghosts too. These ghosts - unlike how they're usually portrayed - aren't tethered to where their death occurred but can move from location to location, choosing to tether themself to a building should they wish. When an old man arrives with a collection of glass bottles and the information that they contain ghosts within them, the residents of Casswell Park devise a plan to free them from their confinement - slowly so as not to overwhelm the current ghostly residents of their home. What ensues after this is a mixture of spooky happenings and some bad decision-making.
Overall, I really enjoyed this read. The strongest point of this book from me was definitely the characters - they're well written and feel incredibly real, and at times are very relatable. The plot was interesting and moved at a good pace, and I especially loved the chapters where we followed Isobel, as the insight they gave to the story was a nice touch, and they helped set the plot up pretty well. My only criticism would be that
Spoiler
the fight at the end of the novel felt a little long and at times I struggled to visualise it[ARC provided by NetGalley.]