tfredenburg 's review for:

The Removed by Brandon Hobson

4.0

hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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The Removed is both an eerie and spiritually comforting meditation on grief, whether that's the kind of immediate grief of a child who is shot and killed by police or the massive, almost incomprehensible grief of the Trail of Tears. What I really like about Hobson's stories is his willingness to take chances with his audience:

yes, this foster child may really be channelling Ray-Ray's spirit; yes, there's a guy named Jackson Andrews who's programming a game asking players to commit violence against Native holograms in the Darkening Land.

In both The Removed and Where the Dead Sit Talking, Hobson is wonderfully skilled at capturing atmosphere and really sinking the reader into the scene with his characters.