A striking, frightening debut that heralds the start of a promising career.
Brandt plumbs the depths of suspense, pathology, and ancient history in this debut novel, at once a fierce academic thriller and a powerful meditation on humanity.
The story begins slowly, weaving effortlessly through the intertwined lives of students at the fictitious Catoctin College as familiar fears parade in the background. But threats of a new flu pandemic and a rash of mass shootings seem far away to characters struggling with personal relationships and burgeoning academic and professional careers. Nevertheless, these background details—as well as the clever vignettes that begin each chapter, expanding on everything from the area’s geography to the foundations of democracy—clearly map out and foreshadow the events to come and the novel’s themes. When Dr. Ben Appelstein, chair of the school’s ancient studies program, gets a research grant for an archaeological dig in Iraq, four of his students jump at the chance to go with him. But while the possibility of rediscovering lost pieces of ancient civilizations has great appeal, none of them anticipate the dangers they’ll face, nor the irreparable changes they’ll unleash on the world—particularly a mysterious disease that amplifies strength at the expense of reason. The characters, who come from a variety of backgrounds, are remarkably well-wrought and engaging. The narrative jumps among different perspectives, and readers begin to see each character through the others’ eyes, with all their unique and compelling personalities, histories, fears, and traumas. But above all, what the narrative explores is desire—for each other and for personal accomplishment. Among such everyday desperations and sacrifices, the disease—which gives even as it takes—becomes truly compelling.
A striking, frightening debut that heralds the start of a promising career.Pub Date: June 27, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-9964984-0-1
Page Count: 558
Publisher: Casus Belli Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
In his quest for easy moolah, Owen learns that the road to financial solvency can be rocky and fraught with work. Greene (Owen Foote, Soccer Star, 1998, etc.) touches upon the often-thorny issue of chores and allowances: Owen’s mom wants him to help out because he’s part of the family and not just for the money—while Owen wants the money without having to do tedious household chores. This universal dilemma leaves Owen without funds and eagerly searching for ways to make a quick buck. His madcap schemes range from original—a “free” toilet demonstration that costs 50 cents—to disastrous, as during the trial run of his children’s fishing video, Owen ends up hooking his ear instead of a trout. Enlisting the aid of his stalwart, if long-suffering, friend Joseph, the two form a dog-walking club that becomes vastly restricted in clientele after Owen has a close encounter with an incontinent, octogenarian canine. Ultimately, Owen learns a valuable lesson about work and money when an unselfish action is generously rewarded. These sudden riches motivate Owen to consider wiser investments for his money than plastic vomit. Greene’s crisp writing style and wry humor is on-target for young readers. Brief chapters revolving around a significant event or action and fast pacing are an effective draw for tentative readers. Weston’s (Space Guys!, p. 392, etc.) black-and-white illustrations, ranging in size from quarter- to full-page, deftly portray Owen’s humorous escapades. A wise, witty addition to Greene’s successful series. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2000
ISBN: 0-618-02369-0
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2000
An unusual and mesmerizing novel, gracefully written and deeply disturbing.
In her first novel to be published in English, South Korean writer Han divides a story about strange obsessions and metamorphosis into three parts, each with a distinct voice.
Yeong-hye and her husband drift through calm, unexceptional lives devoid of passion or anything that might disrupt their domestic routine until the day that Yeong-hye takes every piece of meat from the refrigerator, throws it away, and announces that she's become a vegetarian. Her decision is sudden and rigid, inexplicable to her family and a society where unconventional choices elicit distaste and concern that borders on fear. Yeong-hye tries to explain that she had a dream, a horrifying nightmare of bloody, intimate violence, and that's why she won't eat meat, but her husband and family remain perplexed and disturbed. As Yeong-hye sinks further into both nightmares and the conviction that she must transform herself into a different kind of being, her condition alters the lives of three members of her family—her husband, brother-in-law, and sister—forcing them to confront unsettling desires and the alarming possibility that even with the closest familiarity, people remain strangers. Each of these relatives claims a section of the novel, and each section is strikingly written, equally absorbing whether lush or emotionally bleak. The book insists on a reader’s attention, with an almost hypnotically serene atmosphere interrupted by surreal images and frighteningly recognizable moments of ordinary despair. Han writes convincingly of the disruptive power of longing and the choice to either embrace or deny it, using details that are nearly fantastical in their strangeness to cut to the heart of the very human experience of discovering that one is no longer content with life as it is.
An unusual and mesmerizing novel, gracefully written and deeply disturbing.Pub Date: Feb. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-553-44818-4
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Hogarth
Review Posted Online: Oct. 19, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2015
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