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ejimenez 's review for:
Into This River I Drown
by TJ Klune
This is a very strange book, mixing genres and engaging in the kind of theological creativity that is not common in fiction, much less queer fiction. It's hard to review for that reason.
The good: I enjoyed this book. It was compelling and moving, and the characters were interesting and unique.
The bad: It needed a stronger edit. At times, it seems to meander, and there were sections I skimmed because they felt so repetitive. I know the repetition was deliberate, mirroring Benji's grief and showing the slow spiral towards death and back towards life. But it was too much, especially when a lot of the writing in those repetitive sections was a bit overwrought. There are some transphobic and misogynistic slurs that come from otherwise sympathetic characters.
The complicated: The theology is a lot here. A lot of it doesn't mix well with my own theological beliefs. I am particularly troubled by the idea that God deliberately comes up with terrible forced choices for humans that seem to befit a Batman villain more than a supposedly benevolent deity. But it's so clearly a working-out of grief, for the main character and (judging by the dedication) for the author, that I am reluctant to take its theological conclusions too literally.
This book is more interesting than good - it's the sort of book that could fuel a chapter in a dissertation, because it's dense with both prose and ideas. It's messy, hopeful, and awkward. It's a theological romantic thriller (warnings for some significant scenes of violence and injury toward the end of the book). It's a love story where the most important relationship is between a son and his dead father. Recommended with caveats.
The good: I enjoyed this book. It was compelling and moving, and the characters were interesting and unique.
The bad: It needed a stronger edit. At times, it seems to meander, and there were sections I skimmed because they felt so repetitive. I know the repetition was deliberate, mirroring Benji's grief and showing the slow spiral towards death and back towards life. But it was too much, especially when a lot of the writing in those repetitive sections was a bit overwrought. There are some transphobic and misogynistic slurs that come from otherwise sympathetic characters.
The complicated: The theology is a lot here. A lot of it doesn't mix well with my own theological beliefs. I am particularly troubled by the idea that God deliberately comes up with terrible forced choices for humans that seem to befit a Batman villain more than a supposedly benevolent deity. But it's so clearly a working-out of grief, for the main character and (judging by the dedication) for the author, that I am reluctant to take its theological conclusions too literally.
This book is more interesting than good - it's the sort of book that could fuel a chapter in a dissertation, because it's dense with both prose and ideas. It's messy, hopeful, and awkward. It's a theological romantic thriller (warnings for some significant scenes of violence and injury toward the end of the book). It's a love story where the most important relationship is between a son and his dead father. Recommended with caveats.