Book #9: The Way We Fall, by Megan Crewe
Feb. 5th, 2012 12:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
grav_ityYesterday, I learned something important about myself: I do not freak out reading books about germs and viruses. I mean, I can't deny that the psychosomatic itch definitely made itself manifest while reading the book, but at no point was I all "OMG, THE VIRUSES WILL GET US ALL IN THE END!" Maybe I'm jaded. Maybe I'm stupid. Maybe I'm saving up all my fear for when "The Forest of Hands and Teeth" comes in at the library.
The important thing is that I really liked this book a lot.
SPOILERS BELOW!
Talking with other authors at the book launch, many of whom had already read the book, the most-repeated sentiment was "This book does not pull punches". I have to say that I agree. Obviously, the main character is not going to die, but when she fell ill, I experienced genuine fear. I wasn't worried because I had doubts about her survival. I was worried because I new there would be a terrible price for her walking away.
As always with this sort of book, getting sick and dying is the easy part. I mean, it's no picnic, but it's easier. Surviving, having to make hard decisions and then live with them is hard. And that was the strength of Megan's work.
(Well, one of them: the other strength was the dark humour in this being, of all possible times, the moment when Kae decides to be more friendly. Her journey through the book is amazing, and I don't think I've felt this much connection to a narrator since "if i stay".)
The other aspect of the book I really enjoyed was, naturally, that it was Canadian. It wasn't excessively Canadian, but there were very strong elements and I enjoyed finding them (even if all the u's were edited out of the text).
I do have to admit that even though viruses are not a source of fear for me, the idea of a virus that causes other people to hug me is downright terrifying. ;)
I am quite looking forward to the next two books in the series. The ending was superb, but also cliffhangery enough that I am excited to find out what comes next.
9/10 for an original take on a common fear, for a great heroine, for making me stay up until midnight, and for the bottle of hand sanitizer I got as a promotional item and am currently displaying by my pirate ship birdhouse.
The important thing is that I really liked this book a lot.
SPOILERS BELOW!
Talking with other authors at the book launch, many of whom had already read the book, the most-repeated sentiment was "This book does not pull punches". I have to say that I agree. Obviously, the main character is not going to die, but when she fell ill, I experienced genuine fear. I wasn't worried because I had doubts about her survival. I was worried because I new there would be a terrible price for her walking away.
As always with this sort of book, getting sick and dying is the easy part. I mean, it's no picnic, but it's easier. Surviving, having to make hard decisions and then live with them is hard. And that was the strength of Megan's work.
(Well, one of them: the other strength was the dark humour in this being, of all possible times, the moment when Kae decides to be more friendly. Her journey through the book is amazing, and I don't think I've felt this much connection to a narrator since "if i stay".)
The other aspect of the book I really enjoyed was, naturally, that it was Canadian. It wasn't excessively Canadian, but there were very strong elements and I enjoyed finding them (even if all the u's were edited out of the text).
I do have to admit that even though viruses are not a source of fear for me, the idea of a virus that causes other people to hug me is downright terrifying. ;)
I am quite looking forward to the next two books in the series. The ending was superb, but also cliffhangery enough that I am excited to find out what comes next.
9/10 for an original take on a common fear, for a great heroine, for making me stay up until midnight, and for the bottle of hand sanitizer I got as a promotional item and am currently displaying by my pirate ship birdhouse.
