Title : A Room Away From the Wolves
Author : Nova Ren Suma
Publisher : Algonquin Young Readers
Release Date : September 4th 2018
Synopsis :
Bina has never forgotten the time she and her mother ran
away from home. Her mother promised they would hitchhike to the city to escape
Bina’s cruel father and start over. But before they could even leave town, Bina
had a new stepfather and two new stepsisters, and a humming sense of betrayal
pulling apart the bond with her mother—a bond Bina thought was unbreakable.
Eight years later, after too many lies and with trouble on
her heels, Bina finds herself on the side of the road again, the city of her
dreams calling for her. She has an old suitcase, a fresh black eye, and a room
waiting for her at Catherine House, a young women’s residence in Greenwich
Village with a tragic history, a vow of confidentiality, and dark, magical
secrets. There, Bina is drawn to her enigmatic downstairs neighbor Monet, a
girl who is equal parts intriguing and dangerous. As Bina’s lease begins to run
out, and nightmare and memory get tangled, she will be forced to face the
terrible truth of why she’s come to Catherine House and what it will take for
her to leave...
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
I would like to point out trigger warnings for suicide ( at least the idea/concept of it )
Once in a while a book comes your way and makes you feel things that can never be expressed in coherent thoughts. A Room Away From Wolves was that book for me. I have never read Nova Ren Suma before - though I have her "The Walls Around Us" in my TBR - and I could totally see why some of my friends love her writing. From the first page, she and Bina takes the readers along a ride that is captivating, mysterious and utterly engrossing, and once you're done, you want to go back to square one and read it all over again.
A Room Away From Wolves is a tight knit mystery and little can be said about the plot without spoiling it. Bina has always been on the run. She and her mother fled from their cruel father years ago, only to end up with another cause to run from, in the form of her stepfather. Only this time, Bina's alone, betrayed and let down by her mother, and she sets off to Catherine House, a boarding house she has heard many tales about from her mother, and A Room Away From Wolves is the spooky and heartwarming tale of Bina and her journey from thereon.
My absolute favourite thing about the book was the writing. It was that beautiful blend of gorgeous lush words, and spooky, weird aura, and I loved it. The book is a page turner, and I was so engrossed in the story, and its pace enabled me to finish in one sitting. The story's part comtemporary, part mystery and part magical realism, and if that sounds confusing, well, the whole story is supposed to be confusing. But a good kind of confusing, trust me. This book is full of careful revelations and perfectly timed incidents, and that's part of the charm of the spookiness.
Bina is someone you'll come to care for whether you agree with her or not. She's betrayed, lost and let down, and a great narrator to follow. Monet is as mysterious, fascinating and alluring to us as she is to Bina, and it makes perfect sense why Bina is so drawn to her. But my favoruite dynamic was actually between Bina and her mother, it was a complicated and heartbreaking relationship, and was more or less the backbone of the story, at least for me.
I don't know what makes boarding houses a perfect material for gothic story ideas, but it works. The setting of the boarding house, New York City and the writing all paved way to a perfect thrilling urban gothic horror/mystery story, and if you are a fan of spooky reads that won't actually scare you, then definitely give this book a go.
About the Author
Nova Ren Suma is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling The Walls Around Us, a finalist for an Edgar Award. Her new novel A Room Away from the Wolves is forthcoming September 4, 2018, from Algonquin. She also wrote Imaginary Girls and 17 & Gone and is co-creator of FORESHADOW: A Serial YA Anthology. She has an MFA in fiction from Columbia University and teaches at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She grew up in the Hudson Valley, spent most of her adult life in New York City, and now lives in Philadelphia.
Giveaway
Giveaway is open to International. | Must be 13+ to Enter
- 1 Winner will receive a $25.00 Amazon/PayPal Gift Card.
No comments:
Post a Comment