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A review by shilohskye
The Dry Spell by Ryan Loup-Glissant
5.0
The Dry Spell is, as of writing this review, one of the best pieces of furry fiction out there at the moment. Beautifully written, researched, and organized, this is a must-read for lovers of furry fiction. I say that as someone who reads and reviews quite a lot of furry literature. It's an absolute ride; one I hope anyone reading this review gives a chance.
This is a book you'll want to read even if you're not a fan of prohibition or mob stories. I myself started this book feeling skeptical, as I'm not a fan of those genres. Turns out I didn't have to worry. I thought I was walking into a prohibition story with perhaps a light fantastical element. Instead I got a super intelligent paranormal excursion through Chicago with all manner of monsters, mortal and otherwise. So if you're still holding out on this book because of genre concerns like I was, I highly recommend you give it a shot anyway.
The highlight of this experience for me was the worldbuilding. The book seamlessly integrates anthropomorphism into the prohibition era in some extremely interesting and mysterious ways. For instance, Noah's Ark now seems to be the focus of Christianity rather than the Christ, which makes quite a lot of sense for a world of animal people. On top of the Christian reworking, there's additional mythology lingering in the background of this world that we only ever get glimpses of, and it works beautifully to give depth and intrigue to the world beyond the events of the story itself. It makes the world feel real.
To make the world feel even more realistic, it's extremely evident that a whole lot of research was put into this book. The historical events, the way prohibition operated, and even the way characters talk are meticulously tuned to the right pitch. But the "historical" never gets in the way of the "fiction". The book doesn't get caught up in educating the reader, which is a distracting part of many a historical novel. It instead strikes the perfect balance between history and fantasy. I loved that.
The characters are all unique, well crafted, and interesting, some with wild backstories told via some of the best flashback scenes I've ever had the pleasure of reading. Dialogue is distinct between them to the point that one could probably shirk the dialogue tags and still keep track of the conversations. The cast is so memorable, and I think most readers will find new favorites among them.
Altogether, a really fantastic gem of a read that will stick in my mind for a long while. I highly anticipate the eventual sequel, which I'm sure will similarly knock my socks off.
This is a book you'll want to read even if you're not a fan of prohibition or mob stories. I myself started this book feeling skeptical, as I'm not a fan of those genres. Turns out I didn't have to worry. I thought I was walking into a prohibition story with perhaps a light fantastical element. Instead I got a super intelligent paranormal excursion through Chicago with all manner of monsters, mortal and otherwise. So if you're still holding out on this book because of genre concerns like I was, I highly recommend you give it a shot anyway.
The highlight of this experience for me was the worldbuilding. The book seamlessly integrates anthropomorphism into the prohibition era in some extremely interesting and mysterious ways. For instance, Noah's Ark now seems to be the focus of Christianity rather than the Christ, which makes quite a lot of sense for a world of animal people. On top of the Christian reworking, there's additional mythology lingering in the background of this world that we only ever get glimpses of, and it works beautifully to give depth and intrigue to the world beyond the events of the story itself. It makes the world feel real.
To make the world feel even more realistic, it's extremely evident that a whole lot of research was put into this book. The historical events, the way prohibition operated, and even the way characters talk are meticulously tuned to the right pitch. But the "historical" never gets in the way of the "fiction". The book doesn't get caught up in educating the reader, which is a distracting part of many a historical novel. It instead strikes the perfect balance between history and fantasy. I loved that.
The characters are all unique, well crafted, and interesting, some with wild backstories told via some of the best flashback scenes I've ever had the pleasure of reading. Dialogue is distinct between them to the point that one could probably shirk the dialogue tags and still keep track of the conversations. The cast is so memorable, and I think most readers will find new favorites among them.
Altogether, a really fantastic gem of a read that will stick in my mind for a long while. I highly anticipate the eventual sequel, which I'm sure will similarly knock my socks off.