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The Book Eaters
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Fantasy (2022)Sunyi Dean's The Book Eaters is a contemporary fantasy debut. It's a story of motherhood, sacrifice, and hope; of queer identity and learning to accept who you are; of gilded lies and the danger of believing the narratives others create for you.
Out on the Yorkshire Moors lives a secret line of people for whom books are food, and who retain all of a book's content after eating it. To them, spy novels are a peppery snack; romance novels are sweet and delicious. Eating a map can help them remember destinations, and children, when they misbehave, are forced to eat dry, musty pages from dictionaries.
Devon is part of The Family, an old and reclusive clan of book eaters. Her brothers grow up feasting on stories of valor and adventure, and Devon—like all other book eater women—is raised on a carefully curated diet of fairytales and cautionary stories.
But real life doesn't always come with happy endings, as Devon learns when her son is born with a rare and darker kind of hunger—not for books, but for human minds.
Out on the Yorkshire Moors lives a secret line of people for whom books are food, and who retain all of a book's content after eating it. To them, spy novels are a peppery snack; romance novels are sweet and delicious. Eating a map can help them remember destinations, and children, when they misbehave, are forced to eat dry, musty pages from dictionaries.
Devon is part of The Family, an old and reclusive clan of book eaters. Her brothers grow up feasting on stories of valor and adventure, and Devon—like all other book eater women—is raised on a carefully curated diet of fairytales and cautionary stories.
But real life doesn't always come with happy endings, as Devon learns when her son is born with a rare and darker kind of hunger—not for books, but for human minds.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published August 2, 2022
2962 people are currently reading
168810 people want to read
About the author
Sunyi Dean
14 books1,761 followersFacebook || Instagram ||Threads || Bluesky ||
Sunyi Dean is a writer of speculative fiction. Originally born in Texas and raised in Hong Kong, she now resides in a Yorkshire cottage full of music and books.
Her most recent novel, THE GIRL WITH A THOUSAND FACES, was inspired by her upbringing: her old high school was once a mission house on the edge of the original Walled City, and her grandparents survived the Japanese occupation during WW2.
In her spare time, she likes buying whisky, collecting dumbbells, and dying in jiu-jitsu. She also founded the Hugo-nominated Publishing Rodeo Podcast with fellow Tor author, Scott Drakeford.
Sunyi Dean is a writer of speculative fiction. Originally born in Texas and raised in Hong Kong, she now resides in a Yorkshire cottage full of music and books.
Her most recent novel, THE GIRL WITH A THOUSAND FACES, was inspired by her upbringing: her old high school was once a mission house on the edge of the original Walled City, and her grandparents survived the Japanese occupation during WW2.
In her spare time, she likes buying whisky, collecting dumbbells, and dying in jiu-jitsu. She also founded the Hugo-nominated Publishing Rodeo Podcast with fellow Tor author, Scott Drakeford.
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August 17, 2022reading is not enough i need to eat the book
[and my real review]
unfortunately for me, i could not eat this book, though i certainly did read it.
the book eaters goes beyond science fiction and dives into an entirely new realm, exploring a world in which monsters are not the green people from outer space or the giant creatures, but the people who operate in the systems around us. what shapes a monster? what identifies a monster? and in the end, who holds the power to decide who is a monster and who is not?
it would be so easy to write devon off as a vicious, villainous, violent (alliteration!) woman, and perhaps she is. or perhaps she is just a woman, and perhaps the villains are the systems in place, archaic but adapting, that force devon to make certain choices. perhaps she is a morally reprehensible person. perhaps her entire worldview is wrong. but love is not "inherently good", as she notes, and that is her framework, for better or for worse.
i think if i were a book eater, this book would taste of smoke, perhaps with a little bit of sweetness. i happen to like things that taste of smoke, but a lot of people won't. along that vein this book certainly won't be palatable to everyone. i found it more a reflection on womanhood and motherhood and queerness, in all its forms, and less a science fiction romp through the world of eating books or a story with very intricately developed plot lines and relationships. it leaves you with a distinct feeling, though, whether good or bad or none of the above. i think it did what it set out to accomplish, though. it's an undeniably powerful book. i kind of want to eat it.
[and my real review]
unfortunately for me, i could not eat this book, though i certainly did read it.
the book eaters goes beyond science fiction and dives into an entirely new realm, exploring a world in which monsters are not the green people from outer space or the giant creatures, but the people who operate in the systems around us. what shapes a monster? what identifies a monster? and in the end, who holds the power to decide who is a monster and who is not?
it would be so easy to write devon off as a vicious, villainous, violent (alliteration!) woman, and perhaps she is. or perhaps she is just a woman, and perhaps the villains are the systems in place, archaic but adapting, that force devon to make certain choices. perhaps she is a morally reprehensible person. perhaps her entire worldview is wrong. but love is not "inherently good", as she notes, and that is her framework, for better or for worse.
i think if i were a book eater, this book would taste of smoke, perhaps with a little bit of sweetness. i happen to like things that taste of smoke, but a lot of people won't. along that vein this book certainly won't be palatable to everyone. i found it more a reflection on womanhood and motherhood and queerness, in all its forms, and less a science fiction romp through the world of eating books or a story with very intricately developed plot lines and relationships. it leaves you with a distinct feeling, though, whether good or bad or none of the above. i think it did what it set out to accomplish, though. it's an undeniably powerful book. i kind of want to eat it.
Currently reading
January 13, 2024Don't worry, I'm not going to star my own book. That would feel very strange! I'm just filling out this review form because YIKES, I have a novel on Goodreads!
This is not the first novel I've written, only the first I managed to get published, and I did not start out in short fiction — I only began writing shorts a couple of years ago. The "read" dates are roughly the amount of time it took to write, revise, and hand in my completed edits on it. I'm super slow, sorry! I wrote this book while crawling through a very difficult period of my life, and though it is far from perfect I am still really happy to have seen it across the finish line.
This is not a novel I ever thought I'd write, but then this isn't the life I ever thought I'd lead, so maybe those things go hand in hand? Hope you enjoy, Dear Reader. My apologies if you don't.
I know that this book will not be for everyone, and that is completely okay! I hope your next book pleases you better <3
If you would like to see photos of some of the locations which feature in The Book Eaters, please click here or copy/paste (this link DOES contain spoilers): https://photos.app.goo.gl/1fLH89Db6tu...
Edited to add: general content warnings for those who benefit from them:
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Body horror, gore, explicit violence, domestic abuse, violence against children
This is not the first novel I've written, only the first I managed to get published, and I did not start out in short fiction — I only began writing shorts a couple of years ago. The "read" dates are roughly the amount of time it took to write, revise, and hand in my completed edits on it. I'm super slow, sorry! I wrote this book while crawling through a very difficult period of my life, and though it is far from perfect I am still really happy to have seen it across the finish line.
This is not a novel I ever thought I'd write, but then this isn't the life I ever thought I'd lead, so maybe those things go hand in hand? Hope you enjoy, Dear Reader. My apologies if you don't.
I know that this book will not be for everyone, and that is completely okay! I hope your next book pleases you better <3
If you would like to see photos of some of the locations which feature in The Book Eaters, please click here or copy/paste (this link DOES contain spoilers): https://photos.app.goo.gl/1fLH89Db6tu...
Edited to add: general content warnings for those who benefit from them:
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
Body horror, gore, explicit violence, domestic abuse, violence against children
August 12, 2022
↠ 5 stars
On the outskirts of England lies a secret society, a line of supernatural beings known as book eaters that consume books as food, retaining all of their content and knowledge. Threatened by their ever dwindling numbers, book eater women are raised into a life of marriage contracts and childbearing. In spite of this, Devon Fairweather, the sole daughter of an old clan, has grown up curious, but with the birth and subsequent seizure of her firstborn daughter, Devon realizes the truth of her circumstance. When her second son is born a mind eater, a darker subset of book eaters with a hunger for human minds, Devon vows not to make the same mistake and flees with him. Freedom is not all it is cut out to be, and as Devon and her son Cai attempt to live among humans, she is forced to do horrifying things for them to survive. Against her will, Devon is drawn deeper into the inner workings of her kind, until remaining free becomes a matter of unspeakable sacrifice.
The Book Eaters is a decadent dark fantasy novel alight with imagination and a fierce kind of devotion. Debut author Sunyi Dean draws together a contemporary gothic horror narrative centered around the power of stories and breaking free from a restrictive upbringing. It’s an altogether fitting title for a book that I aptly devoured in just one evening. With a striking atmosphere that evolved with Devon’s recount of her past, I fell in love with the imagery presented and the progressing themes of loss, patriarchy, and control. I wholly admire the emotional journey this book guided me on, quietly leading me through Devon’s descent into disillusion and ferocious fight for her and her son's freedom. Narrative structure, in turn, is what really set this up for success. The flip between the past and the present was delicately done, slowly revealing Devon’s history and its influences on her current thoughts and actions. Dean's use of epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter worked in the same fashion, lending themselves to the larger issue of how the stories we are exposed to can shape our capacity for possibility. How love lends itself to sacrifice and restricting imagination becomes control. The topic of motherhood is subtly investigated on behalf of Dean, as Devon comes to accept that love doesn't have to be another form of control and she becomes more ruthless in the face of her son's survival. While it was a smaller subplot, Devon’s evolving relationship with Hester and her own sexuality really sealed the deal for me on this one. Book eaters may consume texts to survive, but at the center of this debut is a testament to the role of stories in shaping our minds. Devon's character arc illustrates beautifully the impact of new experiences on broadening our opportunities and view of ourselves. Beautifully constructed and deeply moving, The Book Eaters is a feast of a novel, interlocked with a quest for agency, transformation, and ultimately identity.
Thank you to Edelweiss for providing the arc
Trigger warnings: Body horror, gore, explicit violence, domestic abuse, violence against children
On the outskirts of England lies a secret society, a line of supernatural beings known as book eaters that consume books as food, retaining all of their content and knowledge. Threatened by their ever dwindling numbers, book eater women are raised into a life of marriage contracts and childbearing. In spite of this, Devon Fairweather, the sole daughter of an old clan, has grown up curious, but with the birth and subsequent seizure of her firstborn daughter, Devon realizes the truth of her circumstance. When her second son is born a mind eater, a darker subset of book eaters with a hunger for human minds, Devon vows not to make the same mistake and flees with him. Freedom is not all it is cut out to be, and as Devon and her son Cai attempt to live among humans, she is forced to do horrifying things for them to survive. Against her will, Devon is drawn deeper into the inner workings of her kind, until remaining free becomes a matter of unspeakable sacrifice.
The Book Eaters is a decadent dark fantasy novel alight with imagination and a fierce kind of devotion. Debut author Sunyi Dean draws together a contemporary gothic horror narrative centered around the power of stories and breaking free from a restrictive upbringing. It’s an altogether fitting title for a book that I aptly devoured in just one evening. With a striking atmosphere that evolved with Devon’s recount of her past, I fell in love with the imagery presented and the progressing themes of loss, patriarchy, and control. I wholly admire the emotional journey this book guided me on, quietly leading me through Devon’s descent into disillusion and ferocious fight for her and her son's freedom. Narrative structure, in turn, is what really set this up for success. The flip between the past and the present was delicately done, slowly revealing Devon’s history and its influences on her current thoughts and actions. Dean's use of epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter worked in the same fashion, lending themselves to the larger issue of how the stories we are exposed to can shape our capacity for possibility. How love lends itself to sacrifice and restricting imagination becomes control. The topic of motherhood is subtly investigated on behalf of Dean, as Devon comes to accept that love doesn't have to be another form of control and she becomes more ruthless in the face of her son's survival. While it was a smaller subplot, Devon’s evolving relationship with Hester and her own sexuality really sealed the deal for me on this one. Book eaters may consume texts to survive, but at the center of this debut is a testament to the role of stories in shaping our minds. Devon's character arc illustrates beautifully the impact of new experiences on broadening our opportunities and view of ourselves. Beautifully constructed and deeply moving, The Book Eaters is a feast of a novel, interlocked with a quest for agency, transformation, and ultimately identity.
Thank you to Edelweiss for providing the arc
Trigger warnings: Body horror, gore, explicit violence, domestic abuse, violence against children
August 11, 2022
the premise is really original but i cared neither about the plot nor the characters
June 29, 2022
Sunyi Dean writes a stunning dark urban fantasy, of disturbing fairytales, the ruthless oppression of women, with elements of horror, the nightmare that is your controlling patriarchal family living remote and separate from normal human society, that asks who are the real monsters, and details the impact of a terrible love. The tall Devon Fairweather is a book eater princess, growing up in the Yorkshire Fairweather Manor, close to no-one, not knowing any women, raised on a diet of fairytales and cautionary tales, not missing a mother she cannot remember, blissfully unaware of the invisible iron bars of the prison she is trapped in. However, the first tentacles of disillusion set in after her first arranged marriage to Luton Winterfield, when she becomes a mother, with her inklings of the bitter knowledge that she is completely powerless.
As Devon has to confront broken promises, it dawns on her that Bookeater families did not value families, daughters, who are rare, are purely commodities, valued only for their ability to have children, and sons are expendable. Devon gives birth to a 'mind eater' son, Cai, feared as a monster with his desperate and addictive dietary need to consume brains. Feeling a mother's love for her son, Devon is forced to escape to save him, and is currently living in a flat in Newcastle, seeking suitable humans to feed 5 year old Cai, drinking in her search for oblivion. She is trying to track down Redemption, a drug that will save her son by transforming him into a book eater, although the desire for minds remains, but the Ravenscar family that produces Redemption has imploded and supplies have dried up. In a narrative that shifts from past to present, Devon tries to outrun the powerful and dangerous controlling forces arraigned against her and Cai, her chosen family including Hester Ravenscar, but will they survive?
Dean engages in richly descriptive world building, a universe in which practically everyone is a 'monster', including the complicated central protagonist, Devon, becoming the wrong kind of princess, willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to save Cai. In the process, she becomes clearer about her sexual identity when she meets Hester, and struggling to trust anyone, Devon finds unlikely support from Jarret and his sister, Victoria. This unsettling story is interspersed with excerpts from a book by London journalist, Amarinder Patel, and the private journals of Killock Ravenscar. This is a stellar and thought provoking read that touches on the issues of motherhood, parental love, the status of women and girls, whilst raising the question in a society of monsters, who are the true monsters? Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
As Devon has to confront broken promises, it dawns on her that Bookeater families did not value families, daughters, who are rare, are purely commodities, valued only for their ability to have children, and sons are expendable. Devon gives birth to a 'mind eater' son, Cai, feared as a monster with his desperate and addictive dietary need to consume brains. Feeling a mother's love for her son, Devon is forced to escape to save him, and is currently living in a flat in Newcastle, seeking suitable humans to feed 5 year old Cai, drinking in her search for oblivion. She is trying to track down Redemption, a drug that will save her son by transforming him into a book eater, although the desire for minds remains, but the Ravenscar family that produces Redemption has imploded and supplies have dried up. In a narrative that shifts from past to present, Devon tries to outrun the powerful and dangerous controlling forces arraigned against her and Cai, her chosen family including Hester Ravenscar, but will they survive?
Dean engages in richly descriptive world building, a universe in which practically everyone is a 'monster', including the complicated central protagonist, Devon, becoming the wrong kind of princess, willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to save Cai. In the process, she becomes clearer about her sexual identity when she meets Hester, and struggling to trust anyone, Devon finds unlikely support from Jarret and his sister, Victoria. This unsettling story is interspersed with excerpts from a book by London journalist, Amarinder Patel, and the private journals of Killock Ravenscar. This is a stellar and thought provoking read that touches on the issues of motherhood, parental love, the status of women and girls, whilst raising the question in a society of monsters, who are the true monsters? Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
August 10, 2022
I am sorry to say this book has been a complete disappointment to me, even more so because it was one of my most anticipated releases of the year.
I have given it one star because there is nothing whatsoever wrong with the the writing style in my opinion. For a debut, the writing is pretty decent and the way the story is structured and various plot points are revealed is solid and logical. I would be inclined to read another book from the author if the topic was more to my reading taste.
However, I've had so many issues with this book I have to list them in order to make some kind of sense out of my own impressions:
1. This book is SEVERELY deceptive in its marketing. If I were to describe it, it would be a mix of Midsommar (a red flag right there, as far as I'm concerned) and The Handmaid's Tale with a bit of Sophie's Choice thrown in the mix. The book-eating element is completely irrelevant to the story, which is a shame because the premise itself is very interesting and, quite frankly, the main selling point (just read the summary). The overall impression I got is that Book Eaters is a very heavy-handed metaphor of literally any weird secluded oppressive cult you can find anywhere in the world, because the MO is usually the same as the one described in this story.
2. This is a personal preference but setting this kind of story in the modern times just didn't work for me at all. The way the families operated and the language they used felt very Victorian, and therefore any mention of motorcycles or video games (this was a particularly annoying one for me) did nothing but pulled me out of the story.
3. It was predictable. It's really not that surprising given the actual topic of the book, but even the plot itself, while solidly built, never veered of course you can predict right from the start. I don't insist on twists in every chapter but this story needed either more substance, or better editing. It got repetitive and frankly boring very quickly. By the end, it felt like I was just beaten over the head with the same three topics over and over again.
4. The LGBTQ+ rep. I am sorry but this was nominal at best. It felt very much like certain boxes needed to be ticked in order to reach the widest possible audience but there's very little actual queer rep in the book and it plays virtually no major role in the story or the character development. Either do it properly or steer clear, please. It is not a marketing pitch and it can be really hurtful if done sloppily.
5. The character of Kai had very little agency. In fact, in many scenes between Devon and Hesta, it is easy to forget he's even there. I understand the story is shown mostly from Devon's perspective but at times, it read like Kai was simply an idea she clung onto and the actual boy was simply a piece of luggage she dragged with her and put down in order to speak to other characters.
6. Plot holes! So many plot holes!!! Chief among them,
7. A minor gripe, pertaining solely to the audiobook. The narrator reads with Northern accent which makes sense because Devon is from the North of England, but she never switches it to anything else, even when reading the parts of other characters who are from different parts of the UK. This sometimes made the book really confusing as it wasn't immediately apparent who was speaking.
If I'm honest, I would have DNF'd Book Eaters about 30% in, had it not been selected as a book club pick.
If you are a fan of books about cults and their inner workings, you may very well enjoy Book Eaters. If, however, you are hoping to read an actual gothic fantasy horror, I'd recommend picking up a different book.
Also, mind the trigger warnings, if there are any listed (if not, they really should be). None of the triggers are especially heavy or graphic, but it's still something to be mindful of.
I have given it one star because there is nothing whatsoever wrong with the the writing style in my opinion. For a debut, the writing is pretty decent and the way the story is structured and various plot points are revealed is solid and logical. I would be inclined to read another book from the author if the topic was more to my reading taste.
However, I've had so many issues with this book I have to list them in order to make some kind of sense out of my own impressions:
1. This book is SEVERELY deceptive in its marketing. If I were to describe it, it would be a mix of Midsommar (a red flag right there, as far as I'm concerned) and The Handmaid's Tale with a bit of Sophie's Choice thrown in the mix. The book-eating element is completely irrelevant to the story, which is a shame because the premise itself is very interesting and, quite frankly, the main selling point (just read the summary). The overall impression I got is that Book Eaters is a very heavy-handed metaphor of literally any weird secluded oppressive cult you can find anywhere in the world, because the MO is usually the same as the one described in this story.
2. This is a personal preference but setting this kind of story in the modern times just didn't work for me at all. The way the families operated and the language they used felt very Victorian, and therefore any mention of motorcycles or video games (this was a particularly annoying one for me) did nothing but pulled me out of the story.
3. It was predictable. It's really not that surprising given the actual topic of the book, but even the plot itself, while solidly built, never veered of course you can predict right from the start. I don't insist on twists in every chapter but this story needed either more substance, or better editing. It got repetitive and frankly boring very quickly. By the end, it felt like I was just beaten over the head with the same three topics over and over again.
4. The LGBTQ+ rep. I am sorry but this was nominal at best. It felt very much like certain boxes needed to be ticked in order to reach the widest possible audience but there's very little actual queer rep in the book and it plays virtually no major role in the story or the character development. Either do it properly or steer clear, please. It is not a marketing pitch and it can be really hurtful if done sloppily.
5. The character of Kai had very little agency. In fact, in many scenes between Devon and Hesta, it is easy to forget he's even there. I understand the story is shown mostly from Devon's perspective but at times, it read like Kai was simply an idea she clung onto and the actual boy was simply a piece of luggage she dragged with her and put down in order to speak to other characters.
6. Plot holes! So many plot holes!!! Chief among them,
7. A minor gripe, pertaining solely to the audiobook. The narrator reads with Northern accent which makes sense because Devon is from the North of England, but she never switches it to anything else, even when reading the parts of other characters who are from different parts of the UK. This sometimes made the book really confusing as it wasn't immediately apparent who was speaking.
If I'm honest, I would have DNF'd Book Eaters about 30% in, had it not been selected as a book club pick.
If you are a fan of books about cults and their inner workings, you may very well enjoy Book Eaters. If, however, you are hoping to read an actual gothic fantasy horror, I'd recommend picking up a different book.
Also, mind the trigger warnings, if there are any listed (if not, they really should be). None of the triggers are especially heavy or graphic, but it's still something to be mindful of.
October 12, 2024
A neat idea, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired. Not a single interesting thing is happening. DNF @ 25%.
August 20, 2022
As soon as I read this I knew it was going to be my pick for the Fantastic Strangelings Book Club. Stunning and dark and an utterly unique reimagining of vampires, but with so much more about motherhood and protections and the complexities of who the monsters are.
May 21, 2025
“Truth is between the stories we’re fed and the stories we hunger for.”
Deep in the bogs of the Yorkshire Moors, a race of humanoid creatures has survived on consuming storybooks for generations, amassing knowledge to report back to their higher power once it returns to Earth to reclaim their people, leaving an uncertain future planned toward mankind. As with all species on Earth, evolution cannot be stopped, and after generations of thriving and knowledge hoarding, some of these beings eventually cultivate a grotesque taste for a forbidden delicacy… Human minds.
Devon is the protagonist on this shadowy journey of dark self-discovery and motherhood. As one of the very few female book eaters, tradition dictates her loss of freedom and total submission to abysmal treatments of her body, some of which would make Margaret Atwood squirm. Forced to reproduce with predetermined male specimens from one of the seven Families on a cyclic schedule, these horrific violations against her person are rationalized to be in the name of survival…but of course this misogynistic, antiquated system was established by other book eater men. Devon quickly starts to realize love isn’t always virtuous or in black and white terms like it is in all the fairytales she was forced to feed on. The truth is it can actually be an evil, sucking, consuming thing.
Torn between living the caged life she has always known or striking out for the terrifying unknown, Devon finds herself locked in an intrinsic battle over good and evil and right and wrong. She concludes that she must act in the best interest of her son above anything else. Haunting, heartbreaking, and monstrously unforgettable, The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean reads as a cautionary, gothic fairy-tale confronting the reader with unsettling and unflinching truths on motherhood, love, and goodness.
I very much recommend devouring this one! Happy reading!
Deep in the bogs of the Yorkshire Moors, a race of humanoid creatures has survived on consuming storybooks for generations, amassing knowledge to report back to their higher power once it returns to Earth to reclaim their people, leaving an uncertain future planned toward mankind. As with all species on Earth, evolution cannot be stopped, and after generations of thriving and knowledge hoarding, some of these beings eventually cultivate a grotesque taste for a forbidden delicacy… Human minds.
Devon is the protagonist on this shadowy journey of dark self-discovery and motherhood. As one of the very few female book eaters, tradition dictates her loss of freedom and total submission to abysmal treatments of her body, some of which would make Margaret Atwood squirm. Forced to reproduce with predetermined male specimens from one of the seven Families on a cyclic schedule, these horrific violations against her person are rationalized to be in the name of survival…but of course this misogynistic, antiquated system was established by other book eater men. Devon quickly starts to realize love isn’t always virtuous or in black and white terms like it is in all the fairytales she was forced to feed on. The truth is it can actually be an evil, sucking, consuming thing.
Torn between living the caged life she has always known or striking out for the terrifying unknown, Devon finds herself locked in an intrinsic battle over good and evil and right and wrong. She concludes that she must act in the best interest of her son above anything else. Haunting, heartbreaking, and monstrously unforgettable, The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean reads as a cautionary, gothic fairy-tale confronting the reader with unsettling and unflinching truths on motherhood, love, and goodness.
I very much recommend devouring this one! Happy reading!
August 6, 2022
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Please check the TWs before reading the book itself, and TW for a mention of domestic abuse in this review.
“We consume and store and collect all forms of paper flesh as the Creator created us to do, clothed as we are in the skin of humankind. But we do not read, and we cannot write.”
Book Eaters are a humanoid kind of vampiric alien race, with six ancient families holed up in stately homes across the UK, consuming books and paper for food, absorbing all information contained within them. There are arranged marriages, cold and efficient transactions, reproduction at speed so as not to miss out on very limited fertility windows. Children are rare and daughters rarest, their “protection” through childhood considered a worthwhile investment for the future of their race and the financial position of their family. Fed on fairytales and kept quiet and dutiful, these girls grow up expected only to serve their purpose. But there are dangerous anomalies in the families: children born not with a hunger for books but for minds and memories. And now there is a mother and child on the run, determined to escape the lives they’re fated to.
This was truly horrifying. And utterly brilliant.
I flew through most of The Book Eaters in one morning and struggled through the day until I could finish it that night. I was and very much remain (genuinely it’s all I can think about) thoroughly invested in the world of it. Though it’s a contemporary, the rules and structure of the Families are so archaic and appalling that you can so easily forget this fact. Then you’re snapped back to face that reality by someone playing on a PlayStation. And I loved this aspect of it. Unable to retreat into books in the same way we might, characters find their escapism in video games. This hit especially close to home for me as I really turned to them throughout the pandemic. When I couldn’t go anywhere or see anyone, they provided ways to “travel” and “meet up” with my friends. I could run and swim and go adventuring, have special powers and make decisions at a time when I felt I had no control over anything else in my life. They are one of so few constants for a child that has to endure so much change. They allow Devon to imagine ways out, to work until she can get things right.
This book focuses on love and motherhood and how there is no inherent goodness in either. They can be dangerous and all-consuming. You can become monstrous in the name of them. It at once asks how far you would go and questions why or if you should even bother. I had a teacher once tell me that she was “too strong” to ever be in an abusive relationship “like other women”, and I could never adequately express why hearing that statement upset me so much until I read this. Here is someone unearthly, notably tall and stronger than any human, with physical abilities beyond comprehension, capable of the most bloody and vicious things. And here are all the unspeakable things that happen to her with often minimal resistance. Your mistreatment is never something you deserve or something brought about as a result of some failing in you. It does not occur because you lacked strength, physical or otherwise. Do something enough, tell a child something as fact enough, and the traumatic can become the everyday. It is conditioning. And the patriarchy takes from us all. Ramsey is forcibly moulded by his environment. Devon is taught from childhood that she is lucky for the treatment she receives and to be grateful for the future that’s been laid out for her, quite literally fed stories to reinforce this over and over. She knows no different until she does, and even then things are held over her to force her into submission, anger quelled until it’s just numbness. And this book deconstructs those fairytale ideas she’s fed, and is testament to how it takes everything in you to untangle yourself from all that you’ve been made to believe about yourself, your worth, and the world around you. It is one thing to come to terms with the fact that you deserve better and another to actively go in search of it.
This book is about survival. About how just getting through the day can feel like luck. About a feral kind of laughter in the face of hopelessness. About all the terrible things you’re willing to do just to get by, and how they feel less terrible when you’ve done them enough. And Dean can describe these unthinkable actions so matter of factly, the true horror in the words creeping up on you and only sinking in once you consider what you’ve just been told. But Devon proves that your path and your own safety sometimes have to be carved out from the terrible. And while living cautiously within the jagged-edged confines of what little space you can now make for yourself in the world, you discover that this may be where you’ll find yourself. Or where you can finally be yourself. And like the haircut left from those shorn off plaits, your life is homemade and imperfect and more right than it’s ever been, however it looks. And it’s yours. And that space you're in can get wider with help.
The Book Eaters asks us to look at family not always as just who raised us, but who can truly see us for everything that we are and love us all the fiercer for it.
This is a dark read with twisted creatures, such an interesting plot, morally grey characters I loved and lesbian and ace rep. I couldn’t have devoured this faster or recommend it more!
4.5 ⭐️ (only because there are a couple things I’m still desperate to know)
Let me know what you think if you read it!
“We consume and store and collect all forms of paper flesh as the Creator created us to do, clothed as we are in the skin of humankind. But we do not read, and we cannot write.”
Book Eaters are a humanoid kind of vampiric alien race, with six ancient families holed up in stately homes across the UK, consuming books and paper for food, absorbing all information contained within them. There are arranged marriages, cold and efficient transactions, reproduction at speed so as not to miss out on very limited fertility windows. Children are rare and daughters rarest, their “protection” through childhood considered a worthwhile investment for the future of their race and the financial position of their family. Fed on fairytales and kept quiet and dutiful, these girls grow up expected only to serve their purpose. But there are dangerous anomalies in the families: children born not with a hunger for books but for minds and memories. And now there is a mother and child on the run, determined to escape the lives they’re fated to.
This was truly horrifying. And utterly brilliant.
I flew through most of The Book Eaters in one morning and struggled through the day until I could finish it that night. I was and very much remain (genuinely it’s all I can think about) thoroughly invested in the world of it. Though it’s a contemporary, the rules and structure of the Families are so archaic and appalling that you can so easily forget this fact. Then you’re snapped back to face that reality by someone playing on a PlayStation. And I loved this aspect of it. Unable to retreat into books in the same way we might, characters find their escapism in video games. This hit especially close to home for me as I really turned to them throughout the pandemic. When I couldn’t go anywhere or see anyone, they provided ways to “travel” and “meet up” with my friends. I could run and swim and go adventuring, have special powers and make decisions at a time when I felt I had no control over anything else in my life. They are one of so few constants for a child that has to endure so much change. They allow Devon to imagine ways out, to work until she can get things right.
This book focuses on love and motherhood and how there is no inherent goodness in either. They can be dangerous and all-consuming. You can become monstrous in the name of them. It at once asks how far you would go and questions why or if you should even bother. I had a teacher once tell me that she was “too strong” to ever be in an abusive relationship “like other women”, and I could never adequately express why hearing that statement upset me so much until I read this. Here is someone unearthly, notably tall and stronger than any human, with physical abilities beyond comprehension, capable of the most bloody and vicious things. And here are all the unspeakable things that happen to her with often minimal resistance. Your mistreatment is never something you deserve or something brought about as a result of some failing in you. It does not occur because you lacked strength, physical or otherwise. Do something enough, tell a child something as fact enough, and the traumatic can become the everyday. It is conditioning. And the patriarchy takes from us all. Ramsey is forcibly moulded by his environment. Devon is taught from childhood that she is lucky for the treatment she receives and to be grateful for the future that’s been laid out for her, quite literally fed stories to reinforce this over and over. She knows no different until she does, and even then things are held over her to force her into submission, anger quelled until it’s just numbness. And this book deconstructs those fairytale ideas she’s fed, and is testament to how it takes everything in you to untangle yourself from all that you’ve been made to believe about yourself, your worth, and the world around you. It is one thing to come to terms with the fact that you deserve better and another to actively go in search of it.
This book is about survival. About how just getting through the day can feel like luck. About a feral kind of laughter in the face of hopelessness. About all the terrible things you’re willing to do just to get by, and how they feel less terrible when you’ve done them enough. And Dean can describe these unthinkable actions so matter of factly, the true horror in the words creeping up on you and only sinking in once you consider what you’ve just been told. But Devon proves that your path and your own safety sometimes have to be carved out from the terrible. And while living cautiously within the jagged-edged confines of what little space you can now make for yourself in the world, you discover that this may be where you’ll find yourself. Or where you can finally be yourself. And like the haircut left from those shorn off plaits, your life is homemade and imperfect and more right than it’s ever been, however it looks. And it’s yours. And that space you're in can get wider with help.
The Book Eaters asks us to look at family not always as just who raised us, but who can truly see us for everything that we are and love us all the fiercer for it.
This is a dark read with twisted creatures, such an interesting plot, morally grey characters I loved and lesbian and ace rep. I couldn’t have devoured this faster or recommend it more!
4.5 ⭐️ (only because there are a couple things I’m still desperate to know)
Let me know what you think if you read it!
April 26, 2023
The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean is a Blend of Fantasy, Horror, and Speculative Fiction!
Living on the Yorkshire Moors is an ancient and secretive line of families known as Book Eaters. They sustain themselves by eating books and retaining the information contained within them. Each genre releases a unique flavor in each book that is consumed.
Devon Fairweather is a member of one of these families. She grew up on a seclude manor never knowing any women, raised on a diet primarily of fairytales and cautionary tales while her brothers devoured tales of bravery and adventures.
Book Eater marriages are arranged between the families for the sole purpose of reproduction. Daughters are rare and valued for their ability to reproduce. Sons are plentiful and often tossed aside. The reproduction process is vital to the dwindling Book Eater population.
Devon has been told that she will marry Luton Winterfield but has little knowledge beforehand of what the marriage process entails or, more pointedly, what awaits her after the birth of each of her children...
The Book Eaters is my first Dark Fantasy read and I didn't even realize it. I went in thinking this was Dystopian Fiction and boy was I way off. This is called Dark Fantasy for a reason. It's atmospheric and bleak, with equal parts disturbing and horrific. And, by the way, books aren't the only thing some of these characters eat.
The writing is striking, mesmerizing and carries you through the story with the pull of the author's creativity and originality. Despite the cringe worthy parts, the world building is imaginative, detailed, and fairy-tale like in many aspects.
The Book Eaters has a supernatural feel to it but instead of vampires, these monsters are Book Eaters who live in a gothic-like patriarchy. If you're looking for a well-balanced society, you won't find it here.
I read a print copy while listening to the audiobook and enjoyed both formats. However, audio is always my preference and it was true for this experience, as well. Katie Erich's narration was clear and concise, and her gender voicing top notch.
The one issue I experienced, and it's usually a deal-breaker for me, I didn't connect with any of the characters. Not even Devon. But I did love-to-hate every single one of them and that's what made the difference for me.
I highly recommend The Book Eaters to readers of Dark Fantasy and Horror!
4.25 ⭐
Thank you to Tor Books for a physical ARC of this book through Shelf Awareness. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review.
Living on the Yorkshire Moors is an ancient and secretive line of families known as Book Eaters. They sustain themselves by eating books and retaining the information contained within them. Each genre releases a unique flavor in each book that is consumed.
Devon Fairweather is a member of one of these families. She grew up on a seclude manor never knowing any women, raised on a diet primarily of fairytales and cautionary tales while her brothers devoured tales of bravery and adventures.
Book Eater marriages are arranged between the families for the sole purpose of reproduction. Daughters are rare and valued for their ability to reproduce. Sons are plentiful and often tossed aside. The reproduction process is vital to the dwindling Book Eater population.
Devon has been told that she will marry Luton Winterfield but has little knowledge beforehand of what the marriage process entails or, more pointedly, what awaits her after the birth of each of her children...
The Book Eaters is my first Dark Fantasy read and I didn't even realize it. I went in thinking this was Dystopian Fiction and boy was I way off. This is called Dark Fantasy for a reason. It's atmospheric and bleak, with equal parts disturbing and horrific. And, by the way, books aren't the only thing some of these characters eat.
The writing is striking, mesmerizing and carries you through the story with the pull of the author's creativity and originality. Despite the cringe worthy parts, the world building is imaginative, detailed, and fairy-tale like in many aspects.
The Book Eaters has a supernatural feel to it but instead of vampires, these monsters are Book Eaters who live in a gothic-like patriarchy. If you're looking for a well-balanced society, you won't find it here.
I read a print copy while listening to the audiobook and enjoyed both formats. However, audio is always my preference and it was true for this experience, as well. Katie Erich's narration was clear and concise, and her gender voicing top notch.
The one issue I experienced, and it's usually a deal-breaker for me, I didn't connect with any of the characters. Not even Devon. But I did love-to-hate every single one of them and that's what made the difference for me.
I highly recommend The Book Eaters to readers of Dark Fantasy and Horror!
4.25 ⭐
Thank you to Tor Books for a physical ARC of this book through Shelf Awareness. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review.
December 25, 2023
DNFed. The writing isn't for me. Couldn't hold my interest. I tried my best.
October 8, 2023
My first 5 star rating so far this year
I was hooked from the start and loved the idea of book eaters
I was hooked from the start and loved the idea of book eaters
July 23, 2022
There exists a group of people in Northern England whose sustenance is the written word; they live off eating books and retain the knowledge from the texts they consume. Devon is one of these people, born and raised in a society where women are few and are protected at all costs, even to their detriment. She’s raised on a diet of fairytales and happy endings, but as she grows older, she realizes that these books are far from reality. As she struggles with the realities of her life, she begins to wonder if it’s possible to break free from what she’s always known.
This was a unique and interesting modern take on vampirism, weaving in elements of gothic-horror to create an immersive atmospheric experience. I enjoyed the setting descriptions and worldbuilding, both of which were descriptive and well written. The author excelled at creating the book eater culture and their politics and infighting.
Devon was a realistic and relatable protagonist. I enjoyed the depth of her character and her personal conflicts and struggles. The author used chapters as flashbacks into Devon’s childhood, which made it easy to see how she ended up where she did, and what decisions and struggles led her there. I enjoyed that Devon was a morally grey character who did whatever she needed to for her true family. This led to some fascinating conflict and decisions that added real depth to the stories and the characters. The secondary characters were all well written and were mostly not morally “good,” making a great backdrop for Devon. I also loved the atypical mother/son relationship that was the focus of this work.
There are many intense and dark occurrences in this work – it is not a light read. These include emotional and physical abuse, murder, abusive relationships, and deep culturally ingrained misogyny. But the work also explores themes of motherhood, chosen family, and identity in a way that adds to the characters and story.
I listened to the audiobook version of this work, and the narrator did an excellent job at bringing the characters to life. Overall, I recommend this work to those who are interested in dark fantasy and the themes mentioned above. My thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to read and review this book, which will be published on August 2, 2022. All opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are my own.
This was a unique and interesting modern take on vampirism, weaving in elements of gothic-horror to create an immersive atmospheric experience. I enjoyed the setting descriptions and worldbuilding, both of which were descriptive and well written. The author excelled at creating the book eater culture and their politics and infighting.
Devon was a realistic and relatable protagonist. I enjoyed the depth of her character and her personal conflicts and struggles. The author used chapters as flashbacks into Devon’s childhood, which made it easy to see how she ended up where she did, and what decisions and struggles led her there. I enjoyed that Devon was a morally grey character who did whatever she needed to for her true family. This led to some fascinating conflict and decisions that added real depth to the stories and the characters. The secondary characters were all well written and were mostly not morally “good,” making a great backdrop for Devon. I also loved the atypical mother/son relationship that was the focus of this work.
There are many intense and dark occurrences in this work – it is not a light read. These include emotional and physical abuse, murder, abusive relationships, and deep culturally ingrained misogyny. But the work also explores themes of motherhood, chosen family, and identity in a way that adds to the characters and story.
I listened to the audiobook version of this work, and the narrator did an excellent job at bringing the characters to life. Overall, I recommend this work to those who are interested in dark fantasy and the themes mentioned above. My thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to read and review this book, which will be published on August 2, 2022. All opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are my own.
March 2, 2025
12 Challenge
Recommended by Han
I cannot remember the last time I was this engrossed in a standalone fantasy. While the me of yesteryear ate up fantasy (did you see what I did there), the me of now is frustrated that the same series seem to be recycled by the same white men. And while I have tried branching out to more diverse authors, I haven't seemed to enjoy any of their fantasy novels. A problem for another day.
I loved this. I loved the premise. I love the author's multiracial background. The only thing I didn't love was the ending, which felt rushed, but as the book otherwise mesmerized me, here we are.
Devon, like all book eaters, is named for a place. She is raised to be a princess, force fed a diet of "safe" stories, including fairy tales. Like all book eater women, she is subject to make two marriages. When the children from theses marriages stop nursing, she is sent back to her family to begin anew. It is horrible. It is sexist. I was engrossed.
Not all is happiness and love. Sometimes book eaters do not beget other book eaters. Sometimes the child is born a mind eater. They quite literally suck the mind of whomever they consume. I equated this to dementors. When Devon births a mind eater, instead of handing him over to the knights, chooses to go on the run with him. And so the rest of the story unfolds in pieces.
Usually when a story is told in two timelines, I'm often more engrossed in one. Not the case here. I loved Devon's entire story, from start to nearly the end.
Recommended by Han
I cannot remember the last time I was this engrossed in a standalone fantasy. While the me of yesteryear ate up fantasy (did you see what I did there), the me of now is frustrated that the same series seem to be recycled by the same white men. And while I have tried branching out to more diverse authors, I haven't seemed to enjoy any of their fantasy novels. A problem for another day.
I loved this. I loved the premise. I love the author's multiracial background. The only thing I didn't love was the ending, which felt rushed, but as the book otherwise mesmerized me, here we are.
Devon, like all book eaters, is named for a place. She is raised to be a princess, force fed a diet of "safe" stories, including fairy tales. Like all book eater women, she is subject to make two marriages. When the children from theses marriages stop nursing, she is sent back to her family to begin anew. It is horrible. It is sexist. I was engrossed.
Not all is happiness and love. Sometimes book eaters do not beget other book eaters. Sometimes the child is born a mind eater. They quite literally suck the mind of whomever they consume. I equated this to dementors. When Devon births a mind eater, instead of handing him over to the knights, chooses to go on the run with him. And so the rest of the story unfolds in pieces.
Usually when a story is told in two timelines, I'm often more engrossed in one. Not the case here. I loved Devon's entire story, from start to nearly the end.
June 8, 2023
Nearer to 3.5, than 4 stars, but Goodreads hasn't got that option, The Book Eaters is an interesting take on the euphemism of devouring books, because the creatures in this world really do that. There's lots of good stuff to enjoy in their world. Books taste different according to their subject matter; for example, fairy tales are frothy and sweet. I would have liked to have delved into their weird world more than the author does.The book eaters live on the outskirts of the human world and mostly have contempt for us.
Devon is a twenty-something year old book eater, who we meet first as a girl. She doesn't question the book eater's way of life until her daughter is taken away from her. She fights from that point until the end of the book to be given a modicum of decency and kindness and the right to raise her child.
Devon is a twenty-something year old book eater, who we meet first as a girl. She doesn't question the book eater's way of life until her daughter is taken away from her. She fights from that point until the end of the book to be given a modicum of decency and kindness and the right to raise her child.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 20, 2022
atmospheric, gripping tale of a mother who would go to any extent for her son and an intriguing concept of book and mind eaters. rtc!
July 20, 2023
Edit: with time away from this book, my problems with it bother me more, and I don't think my rating reflects my experience with it.
After finishing this, I think I respect it more than I liked it. It's a book I could see recommending to people, but it didn't really do the things I was hoping or expecting, and didn't make the thing it actually was compelling enough for me to overcome that. Also there were just little things that bothered me. Like, the book eaters only eat books. I couldn't get past this. I know it's the premise. But otherwise they are entirely human! I think it's because the book was so clinical about facts otherwise. There's a scene where a woman sticks it to an angry husband for having a daughter that "the sperm dictates the sex of the baby" and I'm like okay so biologically you are human then BUT HOW ARE YOU GETTING NUTRIENTS. It just kept taking me out of it. And there's a video game sub plot and I don't know for sure but I think Sunyi Dean doesn't play video games, or doesn't often, it just felt inauthentic. A line like "I guess I'll never know how Final Fantasy ends" which I can never imagine a gamer thinking. BUT the prose was great, the concept was great, the book felt very fresh and I felt the themes were expertly done, especially for a debut. There was a lot of really poignant or thought provoking stuff about love, family, motherhood, knowledge, culture, feminism...I'm not sad I read the book, but it also never really made me want to keep reading it, either.
Since finishing, I have thought about it a fair amount, but a lot of my thoughts revolve around missed opportunities. I don't feel like the book gave us enough of (or, perhaps, just not what I wanted to see) of the "Book Eater" culture. In general, you could basically take the book eater element out of the story and have the story not really change, which I didn't really like.
6/10 (previously was 7/10)
After finishing this, I think I respect it more than I liked it. It's a book I could see recommending to people, but it didn't really do the things I was hoping or expecting, and didn't make the thing it actually was compelling enough for me to overcome that. Also there were just little things that bothered me. Like, the book eaters only eat books. I couldn't get past this. I know it's the premise. But otherwise they are entirely human! I think it's because the book was so clinical about facts otherwise. There's a scene where a woman sticks it to an angry husband for having a daughter that "the sperm dictates the sex of the baby" and I'm like okay so biologically you are human then BUT HOW ARE YOU GETTING NUTRIENTS. It just kept taking me out of it. And there's a video game sub plot and I don't know for sure but I think Sunyi Dean doesn't play video games, or doesn't often, it just felt inauthentic. A line like "I guess I'll never know how Final Fantasy ends" which I can never imagine a gamer thinking. BUT the prose was great, the concept was great, the book felt very fresh and I felt the themes were expertly done, especially for a debut. There was a lot of really poignant or thought provoking stuff about love, family, motherhood, knowledge, culture, feminism...I'm not sad I read the book, but it also never really made me want to keep reading it, either.
Since finishing, I have thought about it a fair amount, but a lot of my thoughts revolve around missed opportunities. I don't feel like the book gave us enough of (or, perhaps, just not what I wanted to see) of the "Book Eater" culture. In general, you could basically take the book eater element out of the story and have the story not really change, which I didn't really like.
6/10 (previously was 7/10)
October 22, 2022
I get easily frustrated by urban fantasy. I love it, but what we're doing here, in general, is exploring the modern world with an "other" that feeds into our cultural understanding of monstrosity to juxtapose against humanity. I don't think this one touched any of that.
CONTENT WARNING:
Things that were fun:
-Take on vampirism. A little different!
-Mothers front and center. We don't see many moms in fantasy from the mom's perspective. This has one! She loves her kids!
Things that made no sense:
-Book eater rules. Going into real spoilers here.
-Hamfisted. Why is there sexism when women are prized this much and knowledge is their domain? Why is their society structured this way? We didn't examine it.
-Shoehorned in queerness. It was brought up a lot but I don't get why it was such a key point of the characters when we didn't see them engage with this fact about themselves at all. Not that all queer folk need to be seeking relationships, but normally, aside from knowing in yourself that you are some identity, it doesn't come up in conversation unless it's relevant. Her thinking sapphic thoughts would be fine, her talking about it all the time seemed to be another unexplored plot.
-Writing. I'm told the audio is the way to go. The characters kept picking up and putting down Yorkshire accents in the writing.
It was...fine. Probably more interesting than much of the oughties UF, but in the same vein, if you'll excuse the pun.
CONTENT WARNING:
Things that were fun:
-Take on vampirism. A little different!
-Mothers front and center. We don't see many moms in fantasy from the mom's perspective. This has one! She loves her kids!
Things that made no sense:
-Book eater rules. Going into real spoilers here.
-Hamfisted. Why is there sexism when women are prized this much and knowledge is their domain? Why is their society structured this way? We didn't examine it.
-Shoehorned in queerness. It was brought up a lot but I don't get why it was such a key point of the characters when we didn't see them engage with this fact about themselves at all. Not that all queer folk need to be seeking relationships, but normally, aside from knowing in yourself that you are some identity, it doesn't come up in conversation unless it's relevant. Her thinking sapphic thoughts would be fine, her talking about it all the time seemed to be another unexplored plot.
-Writing. I'm told the audio is the way to go. The characters kept picking up and putting down Yorkshire accents in the writing.
It was...fine. Probably more interesting than much of the oughties UF, but in the same vein, if you'll excuse the pun.
September 17, 2023
The Book Eaters is a dark fantasy with a great premise: a human-like species that consumes books and absorbs the information from the books they have eaten. But some of the book eaters are born as mind eaters, consuming human minds and obtaining the experiential knowledge of the minds consumed.
Unfortunately The Book Eaters fails to translate this interesting setup and worldbuilding into a compelling story. I kept on waiting for the plot to take off, but it never quite does. Still, I really enjoyed the thought-provoking ideas presenting in this novel, as well as the author's dry sense of humor.
Unfortunately The Book Eaters fails to translate this interesting setup and worldbuilding into a compelling story. I kept on waiting for the plot to take off, but it never quite does. Still, I really enjoyed the thought-provoking ideas presenting in this novel, as well as the author's dry sense of humor.
July 20, 2024
“There is no happy ending to this story.”
Book Eaters presents itself as a mishmash of literary genres, blending elements of horror, fantasy, dystopia, parallel worlds, and feminist and anti-patriarchal themes—in short, a concoction crafted to cater to popular trends. However, my experience with the book left me profoundly disenchanted, to the extent that sleep eluded me until I addressed my grievances through this review. The sheer amalgamation of these popular tropes failed to resonate with me, and the result left me feeling frustrated and dissatisfied. I can recall feeling a similar level of intense disappointment only once before, upon completing The Binding.
Problem number one: the idea
The fundamental flaw of The Book Eaters lies in its intriguing yet underdeveloped premise. Paradoxically, it is about the only book about devouring books I read, where books have no inherent added value but are - on some subversive level - a liability, instead.
The central concept of book-eating feels arbitrary and disconnected from the narrative, lacking any meaningful exploration or explanation within the story. This is particularly disappointing considering that the premise holds significant potential and is likely the primary draw for many readers. You need to be warned that the execution of this excellent idea falls flat.
I cannot explain how frustrating it is to encounter such a promising concept squandered by a lack of depth and coherence: The author introduces the idea of people consuming books without bothering to explain the origins, mechanisms, or implications of such behaviour. Instead of leveraging this fantastical element to explore themes of magic or science, societal consequences, or psychological intricacies, the main plotline involving book-eating often feels contrived and unconvincing, failing to establish a solid rationale for this phenomenon. At times, it even borders on the absurd; instead of understanding how people became bookeaters, the magic or science behind why they exist, how is it that they are faster and can see in the dark, why they seclude themselves from society in ghotic mansions and treat women in a suicidal way endangering the whole species’ survival, we learn that chalk paper tastes best with ketchup. Seriously?!
The missed opportunities to imbue the story with substance and coherence and the failure to capitalise on the innovative premise of The Book Eaters results in a narrative that feels shallow and unfulfilling.
Problem number two: character development
The lack of development in the central concept of The Book Eaters extends to its characters, resulting in a cast that feels shallow and unconvincing. Devon, the main protagonist, emerges as particularly problematic, characterised by naivety, denseness, and a startling one-dimensionality. Her identity seems restricted to her role as a mother, albeit a notably dysfunctional one. This singular personality trait her characterisation rests upon fails to lend her any depth or complexity, rendering her portrayal disappointingly flat.
The portrayal of Devon’s fugitive existence exacerbates the narrative’s shortcomings, veering into grotesqueness with its unnecessarily bleak and gruesome depiction. Many of the challenges she faces could have been easily circumvented with even a modicum of intelligence, yet the narrative fails to provide her with the necessary agency or resourcefulness. Basic strategies such as forging fake IDs or navigating international borders as a an undocumented refugee are beyond her grasp, highlighting a frustrating lack of logic and coherence in the storytelling.
The modern setting only exacerbates these issues, as the depiction of familial dynamics and language usage feels jarringly out of place, evoking a Victorian rather than a contemporary reality. The inclusion of props such as motorcycles, video games, vodka, and mobile phones only serves to highlight the narrative’s lack of cohesion and believability, further undermining its already tenuous foundation of the book underscoring the overall lack of attention to detail and internal consistency.
Beyond Devon, the supporting characters fare no better, existing as little more than cardboard cutouts devoid of substance or significance. Even Devon’s son, ostensibly a pivotal figure in her life, serves merely as a plot convenience rather than an individual. Moreover, the interactions between characters feel stilted and artificial, characterised by flat dialogue and monotonous exchanges that fail to capture any sense of authenticity or emotional resonance (in plain English this means bad writing). The absence of meaningful character development further undermines the story’s credibility, which left me without anyone to truly connect with or relate to.
Problem number three: the tale
Beyond the surface-level exploration of patriarchal oppression, the narrative fails to offer any meaningful depth or complexity. Its predictability is evident in its overall plot trajectory, which adheres to a formulaic and uninspired course. Despite its seemingly solid construction, the story quickly grows derivative and tiresome—chapter in, chapter out—as it relies heavily on repetitive slogans and fails to introduce any genuine intrigue or originality. Also, please note, a paragraph about how a woman finds another woman attractive is not enough to make a queer identity book. What defines the identity of the MC, what drives her and her actions, is the fact that she is a mother, the fact that she also happened to be a lesbian is of secondary if not tentiary importance for the whole story!). In fact, the narrative’s banal portrayal of Christianity as a convenient scapegoat serves as a fitting encapsulation of its overall lack of depth and nuance.
The story’s only redeeming quality would is the fact that is it told backward, slowly unraveling the secrets of its uninspired past. But alas, even that does not salvage its irredeemable mediocrity.
Stay away.
Book Eaters presents itself as a mishmash of literary genres, blending elements of horror, fantasy, dystopia, parallel worlds, and feminist and anti-patriarchal themes—in short, a concoction crafted to cater to popular trends. However, my experience with the book left me profoundly disenchanted, to the extent that sleep eluded me until I addressed my grievances through this review. The sheer amalgamation of these popular tropes failed to resonate with me, and the result left me feeling frustrated and dissatisfied. I can recall feeling a similar level of intense disappointment only once before, upon completing The Binding.
Problem number one: the idea
The fundamental flaw of The Book Eaters lies in its intriguing yet underdeveloped premise. Paradoxically, it is about the only book about devouring books I read, where books have no inherent added value but are - on some subversive level - a liability, instead.
The central concept of book-eating feels arbitrary and disconnected from the narrative, lacking any meaningful exploration or explanation within the story. This is particularly disappointing considering that the premise holds significant potential and is likely the primary draw for many readers. You need to be warned that the execution of this excellent idea falls flat.
I cannot explain how frustrating it is to encounter such a promising concept squandered by a lack of depth and coherence: The author introduces the idea of people consuming books without bothering to explain the origins, mechanisms, or implications of such behaviour. Instead of leveraging this fantastical element to explore themes of magic or science, societal consequences, or psychological intricacies, the main plotline involving book-eating often feels contrived and unconvincing, failing to establish a solid rationale for this phenomenon. At times, it even borders on the absurd; instead of understanding how people became bookeaters, the magic or science behind why they exist, how is it that they are faster and can see in the dark, why they seclude themselves from society in ghotic mansions and treat women in a suicidal way endangering the whole species’ survival, we learn that chalk paper tastes best with ketchup. Seriously?!
The missed opportunities to imbue the story with substance and coherence and the failure to capitalise on the innovative premise of The Book Eaters results in a narrative that feels shallow and unfulfilling.
Problem number two: character development
The lack of development in the central concept of The Book Eaters extends to its characters, resulting in a cast that feels shallow and unconvincing. Devon, the main protagonist, emerges as particularly problematic, characterised by naivety, denseness, and a startling one-dimensionality. Her identity seems restricted to her role as a mother, albeit a notably dysfunctional one. This singular personality trait her characterisation rests upon fails to lend her any depth or complexity, rendering her portrayal disappointingly flat.
The portrayal of Devon’s fugitive existence exacerbates the narrative’s shortcomings, veering into grotesqueness with its unnecessarily bleak and gruesome depiction. Many of the challenges she faces could have been easily circumvented with even a modicum of intelligence, yet the narrative fails to provide her with the necessary agency or resourcefulness. Basic strategies such as forging fake IDs or navigating international borders as a an undocumented refugee are beyond her grasp, highlighting a frustrating lack of logic and coherence in the storytelling.
The modern setting only exacerbates these issues, as the depiction of familial dynamics and language usage feels jarringly out of place, evoking a Victorian rather than a contemporary reality. The inclusion of props such as motorcycles, video games, vodka, and mobile phones only serves to highlight the narrative’s lack of cohesion and believability, further undermining its already tenuous foundation of the book underscoring the overall lack of attention to detail and internal consistency.
Beyond Devon, the supporting characters fare no better, existing as little more than cardboard cutouts devoid of substance or significance. Even Devon’s son, ostensibly a pivotal figure in her life, serves merely as a plot convenience rather than an individual. Moreover, the interactions between characters feel stilted and artificial, characterised by flat dialogue and monotonous exchanges that fail to capture any sense of authenticity or emotional resonance (in plain English this means bad writing). The absence of meaningful character development further undermines the story’s credibility, which left me without anyone to truly connect with or relate to.
Problem number three: the tale
Beyond the surface-level exploration of patriarchal oppression, the narrative fails to offer any meaningful depth or complexity. Its predictability is evident in its overall plot trajectory, which adheres to a formulaic and uninspired course. Despite its seemingly solid construction, the story quickly grows derivative and tiresome—chapter in, chapter out—as it relies heavily on repetitive slogans and fails to introduce any genuine intrigue or originality. Also, please note, a paragraph about how a woman finds another woman attractive is not enough to make a queer identity book. What defines the identity of the MC, what drives her and her actions, is the fact that she is a mother, the fact that she also happened to be a lesbian is of secondary if not tentiary importance for the whole story!). In fact, the narrative’s banal portrayal of Christianity as a convenient scapegoat serves as a fitting encapsulation of its overall lack of depth and nuance.
The story’s only redeeming quality would is the fact that is it told backward, slowly unraveling the secrets of its uninspired past. But alas, even that does not salvage its irredeemable mediocrity.
Stay away.
dnf
November 24, 2024I made it to about 65% and I just couldn’t do it anymore. I almost never DNF but I hated the plot and the characters and it had to be done. Their completely unexplained need to eat books was one thing, but her son needing to consume human brains was a step too far for me. Despite the bizarre premise, the plot was relatively dull and without likable characters or any realistic explanations, there was really nothing to keep me going.
I remember feeling so relieved when I returned this one to the Library unfinished. Not for me. 🙅🏼♀️
I remember feeling so relieved when I returned this one to the Library unfinished. Not for me. 🙅🏼♀️
January 29, 2024
3.5 stars. reading vlog: https://youtu.be/thjGtgXcNyY
October 1, 2022
Way out of my comfort zone, but I still enjoyed its many topics and feelings.
Welcome to the Moors, a place that always seemed to engender an idea of fog, mist, and frightening things. In this story living in the Moors is a group who survive by eating the pages of book, while assimilating their contents. Girls are a prized commodity and are fed books of fairy tales and princes riding in on white chargers. Devon is the young girl being fed these make believe stories, so that she could be prepared for her future life, which she learns much to her chagrin, is to mate every two years with a man selected for her (by money) to become pregnant with a girl child.Girls were used as bargaining chips, boys were often discarded.
Devon is a fighter with a bunch of brothers who were raised on books about knights and dragons. They are ferociously dedicated to the tenets of the group. There is a downside other than the obvious, some book eaters can be born desiring to consume the brains of humans. This is revolting, but there is a drug, Revolution, that can be fed to these unfortunates, although the drug is used for the pleasure of the group. Horror occurs when Devon gives birth to one of these creatures. Having had to give up her daughter years ago, whom she never saw, Devon was determined to keep her son, Cai, and escapes the compound and starts a journey of danger, escaping from the group members assigned to find her and Cai, and of course finding suitable food for Cai.
Although it might be off setting to many, the author did bring into the story many aspects of being a woman, often unprepared for real life, homosexuality, and being conditioned about how to think. Interesting and disturbing, I was totally involved in listening to this tale.
Welcome to the Moors, a place that always seemed to engender an idea of fog, mist, and frightening things. In this story living in the Moors is a group who survive by eating the pages of book, while assimilating their contents. Girls are a prized commodity and are fed books of fairy tales and princes riding in on white chargers. Devon is the young girl being fed these make believe stories, so that she could be prepared for her future life, which she learns much to her chagrin, is to mate every two years with a man selected for her (by money) to become pregnant with a girl child.Girls were used as bargaining chips, boys were often discarded.
Devon is a fighter with a bunch of brothers who were raised on books about knights and dragons. They are ferociously dedicated to the tenets of the group. There is a downside other than the obvious, some book eaters can be born desiring to consume the brains of humans. This is revolting, but there is a drug, Revolution, that can be fed to these unfortunates, although the drug is used for the pleasure of the group. Horror occurs when Devon gives birth to one of these creatures. Having had to give up her daughter years ago, whom she never saw, Devon was determined to keep her son, Cai, and escapes the compound and starts a journey of danger, escaping from the group members assigned to find her and Cai, and of course finding suitable food for Cai.
Although it might be off setting to many, the author did bring into the story many aspects of being a woman, often unprepared for real life, homosexuality, and being conditioned about how to think. Interesting and disturbing, I was totally involved in listening to this tale.
September 28, 2022
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Actual rating: 3.75 Stars
I think every single person who ever read a boo thought “Why can’t we just eat books and retain their contents?” and that is the premise of The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean. As soon as I saw the synopsis I knew it was a book that I was gonna read and I did that as soon as it was released.
In this world, there are humans like us but there are other type of creatures who look like us but have the ability to eat books and on the other extreme there are those who happen to be mind-eaters which is a self-explanatory term. Devon our protagonist is a book eater and her son is a mind eater and we follow her trying t protect her son at all costs.
Writing wise the book was good. I did not have any problems following it. I think there were a lot of genres mashed up together in this book: It is an adult fantasy book, the story is mostly a thriller one with elements of horror (I thought I was the only one who got those vibes but 162 users shelved it as horror on GR so I think it is true).
My main problem with the book were my own expectations based on the synopsis. I thought there will be more book eating content but it focuses more on mind eaters. I thought the world-building would be a bit more creative when it comes to this book eating thing but the synopsis explains the gist of this ability. I thought there would be more fantasy elements with sociology commentary but it was more of a run story with thriller elements.
I liked the writing style and that we got both flashback chapters and then chapters in the current story and they were woven in alternative way making the story shine more at some points. I also liked the quotes at the beginning of each chapter some of which are from our own world and some are from a historian in that world explaining how the world works. All of this made the characters more fleshed out and relatable. I think the ending was nice too given how it works both as an ending to the book but with a potential to write more books in the future -albeit it being a bit rushed at the end-
Summary: The Book Eaters was an enjoyable read with great ideas that were almost used to their full potential. The writing style is smart and the characters are well written. I think I just went into it expecting a few different things but it was still a nice read.
“None of us are truly good,” the vicar said, at last. He put a hand on her shoulder, so gently, so kindly, and she almost threw up on the spot. “All we can do is live by the light we are given.”
“Some of us don’t have any light,” Devon said. “How are we supposed to live, then?”
Actual rating: 3.75 Stars
I think every single person who ever read a boo thought “Why can’t we just eat books and retain their contents?” and that is the premise of The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean. As soon as I saw the synopsis I knew it was a book that I was gonna read and I did that as soon as it was released.
In this world, there are humans like us but there are other type of creatures who look like us but have the ability to eat books and on the other extreme there are those who happen to be mind-eaters which is a self-explanatory term. Devon our protagonist is a book eater and her son is a mind eater and we follow her trying t protect her son at all costs.
Writing wise the book was good. I did not have any problems following it. I think there were a lot of genres mashed up together in this book: It is an adult fantasy book, the story is mostly a thriller one with elements of horror (I thought I was the only one who got those vibes but 162 users shelved it as horror on GR so I think it is true).
My main problem with the book were my own expectations based on the synopsis. I thought there will be more book eating content but it focuses more on mind eaters. I thought the world-building would be a bit more creative when it comes to this book eating thing but the synopsis explains the gist of this ability. I thought there would be more fantasy elements with sociology commentary but it was more of a run story with thriller elements.
I liked the writing style and that we got both flashback chapters and then chapters in the current story and they were woven in alternative way making the story shine more at some points. I also liked the quotes at the beginning of each chapter some of which are from our own world and some are from a historian in that world explaining how the world works. All of this made the characters more fleshed out and relatable. I think the ending was nice too given how it works both as an ending to the book but with a potential to write more books in the future -albeit it being a bit rushed at the end-
Summary: The Book Eaters was an enjoyable read with great ideas that were almost used to their full potential. The writing style is smart and the characters are well written. I think I just went into it expecting a few different things but it was still a nice read.
April 18, 2022
The Book Eaters is a feast of a story, with an aperitif of supernatural mystery, an amuse-bouche of family politics, three courses of contemporary Gothic horror, a vintage bottle of vengeance and a well-earned finale where diners get their just desserts.
Devon is a book eater, part of a race of supernatural entities that consumes tomes while absorbing the knowledge they contain. Devon is raising her five-year-old son Cai, who is not a book eater, but a mind-eater: he must sustain himself by feeding on the brains of others. This process is more vampiric than zombie: the feedings imprint the victims’ personalities upon Cai, so this five-year-old must contend with multiple identities constantly fighting for control of his mind.
Female book eaters are rare, so Devon’s Family—and the other Families of book eaters across modern day United Kingdom—arrange temporary marriages between Houses for procreative purposes. Eater women are used as little more than birthing cows before being forcibly separated from their children and moved onto the next marriage. It’s a patriarchal society full of empty promises and it’s horrifying.
The narrative structure of the book divides its time between Devon’s past, alternating chapters with present day Devon and Cai on the run. Dean is a brilliant world-builder, farming out just enough bits of information along the way to help fill in the gaps of Devon’s early years while helping the reader understand her motivation and goals in the present timeline. Not all is as it seems.
Everyone is a monster in this book, and they are all terrifying. Flashes of Atwood’s The Handmaiden’s Tale rears its ugly head as Devon’s desperation becomes agonizing and palpable. One of my favorite themes of the story is how painful love can be, and this is a driver of so many of Devon’s major life choices, which sometimes lead to ruin. But throughout it all, there is a sliver of hope for a way out. All the years of terror and loneliness and desperation might lead to freedom and companionship with a side order of vengeance if her wild plans could somehow fall into place…
The Book Eaters is one of my top reads of the year. It is atmospheric, it is brutal, it is exciting and emotional, and I planned my evenings around it. It tackles themes of identity, parenthood, the dark side of love, the importance of hope and sacrifice, and what it means to grow up different. It resonated hard with me. Highly recommended.
5/5
Devon is a book eater, part of a race of supernatural entities that consumes tomes while absorbing the knowledge they contain. Devon is raising her five-year-old son Cai, who is not a book eater, but a mind-eater: he must sustain himself by feeding on the brains of others. This process is more vampiric than zombie: the feedings imprint the victims’ personalities upon Cai, so this five-year-old must contend with multiple identities constantly fighting for control of his mind.
Female book eaters are rare, so Devon’s Family—and the other Families of book eaters across modern day United Kingdom—arrange temporary marriages between Houses for procreative purposes. Eater women are used as little more than birthing cows before being forcibly separated from their children and moved onto the next marriage. It’s a patriarchal society full of empty promises and it’s horrifying.
The narrative structure of the book divides its time between Devon’s past, alternating chapters with present day Devon and Cai on the run. Dean is a brilliant world-builder, farming out just enough bits of information along the way to help fill in the gaps of Devon’s early years while helping the reader understand her motivation and goals in the present timeline. Not all is as it seems.
Everyone is a monster in this book, and they are all terrifying. Flashes of Atwood’s The Handmaiden’s Tale rears its ugly head as Devon’s desperation becomes agonizing and palpable. One of my favorite themes of the story is how painful love can be, and this is a driver of so many of Devon’s major life choices, which sometimes lead to ruin. But throughout it all, there is a sliver of hope for a way out. All the years of terror and loneliness and desperation might lead to freedom and companionship with a side order of vengeance if her wild plans could somehow fall into place…
The Book Eaters is one of my top reads of the year. It is atmospheric, it is brutal, it is exciting and emotional, and I planned my evenings around it. It tackles themes of identity, parenthood, the dark side of love, the importance of hope and sacrifice, and what it means to grow up different. It resonated hard with me. Highly recommended.
5/5
April 29, 2023
Los devoradores de libros viven entre nosotros: una comunidad secreta para quienes los libros son alimento. Al nutrirse de sus páginas, también consumen la información que éstos contienen. Y lo que se devora, no se puede olvidar.
En los páramos de Yorkshire, la joven Devon se crio con una dieta estricta a base de cuentos de hadas y advertencias oscuras sobre lo que les sucede a los que desobedecen a la Familia Fairweather, uno de los linajes más antiguos de los Devoradores de Libros.
Al pasar a la edad adulta, debe enfrentarse a la vida de opulencia, matrimonios concertados y una maternidad forzada para la que ha sido preparada.
Pero cuando descubre que su hijo es un Devorador de Mentes, una excepcional variante de los de su clase que debe alimentarse de mentes humanas en lugar de libros, para evitar que su familia lo convierta en un monstruo, Devon se convertirá en un monstruo aún más implacable para protegerlo. Y aniquilará a cualquiera que se interponga en su camino.
Una trama que incita a leerlo.
A las afueras de Inglaterra se encuentra una sociedad secreta, son unos seres sobrenaturales conocidos como los devoradores de libros que consumen libros como alimento, reteniendo todo su contenido y conocimiento.
Amenazadas por su número cada vez menor, las mujeres son criadas en una vida de contratos matrimoniales y maternidad.
A pesar de esto, Devon Fairweather, la única hija de un antiguo clan, ha crecido curiosa, pero con el nacimiento y posterior secuestro de su hija primogénita, Devon se da cuenta de la verdad de su circunstancia.
Cuando su segundo hijo nace como un devorador de mentes, que es un subgrupo más oscuro de devoradores de libros con hambre de mentes humanas, Devon jura no cometer el mismo error y huye con él.
En contra de su voluntad, Devon se sumerge más profundamente en el funcionamiento interno de su especie, el monstruo va ganando terreno.
¿Suena todo jodidamente genial verdad?
Pues abandonado al 75%.. 🪓😮💨
Lo bien que suena se queda por el camino. El problema de este libro es la propia ejecución de toda su trama.
Suenan genial las ideas que tiene pero es que se quedan ahí, en buenas ideas. Y engañoso.
La trama avanza, ágil, pero realmente no pasan cosas interesantes. Esas ideas están diluidas en tanta agua que el 70% del libro no me gustó. 5% es el principio.
No me enganchó, ni me interesó. Es más, me ha decepcionado viendo la sinopsis y la trama que podría haber sido.
Este libro es tristemente muy engañoso en su comercialización. El elemento sobrenatural y de devorar libros es irrelevante para la historia. Lo cual es una pena trágica y una mierda muy gorda, porque la premisa en sí que es muy interesante y, francamente, el principal punto de de interés por leérmelo.
Aspectos feministas que están bien y todo da forma a una cruel metáfora de la toxicidad que tiene cualquier culto opresivo aislado y extraño que puedas encontrar en cualquier parte del mundo.
Fue repetitivo, muy predecible. Realmente no es tan sorprendente ni con microscopio y se puede predecir desde el principio. Los giros necesitan kilogramos de substancia.
Lo encontré enormemente promedio a pesar del título intrigante.
La premisa es muy original, mucho, pero no me importó ni la trama, ni los personajes.
Se queda en suculenta premisa. No pasa nada interesante. Engañoso, una pena que lo que llama para leerlo sea tan insípido y sin darle la importancia que merece. Podría ser un 5⭐️.
Desafortunadamente para mí, no pude devorar este libro, aunque lo intenté..✍️
En los páramos de Yorkshire, la joven Devon se crio con una dieta estricta a base de cuentos de hadas y advertencias oscuras sobre lo que les sucede a los que desobedecen a la Familia Fairweather, uno de los linajes más antiguos de los Devoradores de Libros.
Al pasar a la edad adulta, debe enfrentarse a la vida de opulencia, matrimonios concertados y una maternidad forzada para la que ha sido preparada.
Pero cuando descubre que su hijo es un Devorador de Mentes, una excepcional variante de los de su clase que debe alimentarse de mentes humanas en lugar de libros, para evitar que su familia lo convierta en un monstruo, Devon se convertirá en un monstruo aún más implacable para protegerlo. Y aniquilará a cualquiera que se interponga en su camino.
Una trama que incita a leerlo.
A las afueras de Inglaterra se encuentra una sociedad secreta, son unos seres sobrenaturales conocidos como los devoradores de libros que consumen libros como alimento, reteniendo todo su contenido y conocimiento.
Amenazadas por su número cada vez menor, las mujeres son criadas en una vida de contratos matrimoniales y maternidad.
A pesar de esto, Devon Fairweather, la única hija de un antiguo clan, ha crecido curiosa, pero con el nacimiento y posterior secuestro de su hija primogénita, Devon se da cuenta de la verdad de su circunstancia.
Cuando su segundo hijo nace como un devorador de mentes, que es un subgrupo más oscuro de devoradores de libros con hambre de mentes humanas, Devon jura no cometer el mismo error y huye con él.
En contra de su voluntad, Devon se sumerge más profundamente en el funcionamiento interno de su especie, el monstruo va ganando terreno.
¿Suena todo jodidamente genial verdad?
Pues abandonado al 75%.. 🪓😮💨
Lo bien que suena se queda por el camino. El problema de este libro es la propia ejecución de toda su trama.
Suenan genial las ideas que tiene pero es que se quedan ahí, en buenas ideas. Y engañoso.
La trama avanza, ágil, pero realmente no pasan cosas interesantes. Esas ideas están diluidas en tanta agua que el 70% del libro no me gustó. 5% es el principio.
No me enganchó, ni me interesó. Es más, me ha decepcionado viendo la sinopsis y la trama que podría haber sido.
Este libro es tristemente muy engañoso en su comercialización. El elemento sobrenatural y de devorar libros es irrelevante para la historia. Lo cual es una pena trágica y una mierda muy gorda, porque la premisa en sí que es muy interesante y, francamente, el principal punto de de interés por leérmelo.
Aspectos feministas que están bien y todo da forma a una cruel metáfora de la toxicidad que tiene cualquier culto opresivo aislado y extraño que puedas encontrar en cualquier parte del mundo.
Fue repetitivo, muy predecible. Realmente no es tan sorprendente ni con microscopio y se puede predecir desde el principio. Los giros necesitan kilogramos de substancia.
Lo encontré enormemente promedio a pesar del título intrigante.
La premisa es muy original, mucho, pero no me importó ni la trama, ni los personajes.
Se queda en suculenta premisa. No pasa nada interesante. Engañoso, una pena que lo que llama para leerlo sea tan insípido y sin darle la importancia que merece. Podría ser un 5⭐️.
Desafortunadamente para mí, no pude devorar este libro, aunque lo intenté..✍️
July 14, 2022
I hate that I'm leaving a bad review on this book. I'd been excited for it since I heard it existed! The premise sounds absolutely fascinating, almost immediately mythical. It's the sort of plot that you can't believe hasn't been done a million times before. Book eaters gaining knowledge through eating books! It's a good hook, for sure.
Sadly that was where it lost me. The premise is as great as I hoped it would be, but the story it's stuck with is generic fantasy. There are different factions, they hate each other, it's all very archaic and medieval, etc etc etc. After the 10% mark the book might as well have been about vampires or ghouls or Insert Generic Monster Here. It's not bad, the writing shows promise, and I feel like the author has a lot of potential, but for this specific book the experience was disappointing.
Also I hope her next book has a different narrator. This one was just awful. She reads absolutely everything at the same clip, with the same inflection. Dialogue sounds the same as scene description which sounds like the quotes that open each chapter. She's always at a seven in terms of intensity, which is either way too much or not enough depending on what's happening. The end result is that it mixes the story into a dull hum of white noise. Also "coup" is not pronounced "coop." I actually looked it up because hey, maybe it's a British thing, but no. She says "coop," and she says it a LOT.
Thanks to Netgalley for saving me from wasting an Audible credit on this one.
Sadly that was where it lost me. The premise is as great as I hoped it would be, but the story it's stuck with is generic fantasy. There are different factions, they hate each other, it's all very archaic and medieval, etc etc etc. After the 10% mark the book might as well have been about vampires or ghouls or Insert Generic Monster Here. It's not bad, the writing shows promise, and I feel like the author has a lot of potential, but for this specific book the experience was disappointing.
Also I hope her next book has a different narrator. This one was just awful. She reads absolutely everything at the same clip, with the same inflection. Dialogue sounds the same as scene description which sounds like the quotes that open each chapter. She's always at a seven in terms of intensity, which is either way too much or not enough depending on what's happening. The end result is that it mixes the story into a dull hum of white noise. Also "coup" is not pronounced "coop." I actually looked it up because hey, maybe it's a British thing, but no. She says "coop," and she says it a LOT.
Thanks to Netgalley for saving me from wasting an Audible credit on this one.
October 27, 2022
A highly imaginative, competently written debut from an author I will be keeping an eye on in the future.
The Book Eaters combines science fiction with a healthy dose of horror, putting a fresh spin on the classic vampire archetype. Unfortunately, this book was marketed with some of the most baffling and misleading claims I have ever seen in the genre. The cover and synopsis promise a whimsical, cosy fantasy about magic people who eat books; what I got instead was The Handmaid's Tale with cannibal aliens.
Mind you, I'm not complaining: I'm always down for some good feminist fiction, especially when it explores controversial topics such as cannibalism and the dark side of motherhood. I just wish the blurb had painted a more accurate picture of the book's content, considering that it deals heavily with themes of misogyny, domestic abuse, forced marriage, rape, and gore.
In terms of execution, I found it to be a bit of a mixed bag. I thought the pacing was very tight: the slow release of information was perfectly timed to maximize tension throughout the story. A couple of plot twists made me gasp out loud, and I could never predict what was going to happen next. However, I soon grew tired with the repetitiveness of Devon's story, and especially with the relentless abuse she was made to suffer at the hands of her male relatives.
Which leads me to what is perhaps my biggest gripe: how the "feminist" message was handled. The book is very heavy-handed in its social commentary, and the narrative beats you over the head with how evil and cruel all the straight male characters are. The protagonist is subject to relentless abuse (verbal, physical, and sexual) from beginning to end, and most of it she takes with a resigned, passive attitude.
Now, is it realistic for someone who has been raised in a patriarchal cult to behave in such a way? Yes. But does it make for a compelling story and character? Not really, or at least not for me. Her lack of positive interactions with other characters made the book feel joyless and miserable for the most part; it also highlighted the lack of other female figures in the story. Apart from Devon and her love interest, all the other characters are men.
Another thing I personally found disappointing was that Devon's only motivation to do anything were her children. Everything she does in the book, she does it for them, and she has no sense of purpose outside of protecting her kids. Considering that the whole point of the novel is to criticize social structures that reduce women to their wombs, I found it ironic that the narrative also reduced Devon to her role as a self-sacrificing mother.
The Book Eaters combines science fiction with a healthy dose of horror, putting a fresh spin on the classic vampire archetype. Unfortunately, this book was marketed with some of the most baffling and misleading claims I have ever seen in the genre. The cover and synopsis promise a whimsical, cosy fantasy about magic people who eat books; what I got instead was The Handmaid's Tale with cannibal aliens.
Mind you, I'm not complaining: I'm always down for some good feminist fiction, especially when it explores controversial topics such as cannibalism and the dark side of motherhood. I just wish the blurb had painted a more accurate picture of the book's content, considering that it deals heavily with themes of misogyny, domestic abuse, forced marriage, rape, and gore.
In terms of execution, I found it to be a bit of a mixed bag. I thought the pacing was very tight: the slow release of information was perfectly timed to maximize tension throughout the story. A couple of plot twists made me gasp out loud, and I could never predict what was going to happen next. However, I soon grew tired with the repetitiveness of Devon's story, and especially with the relentless abuse she was made to suffer at the hands of her male relatives.
Which leads me to what is perhaps my biggest gripe: how the "feminist" message was handled. The book is very heavy-handed in its social commentary, and the narrative beats you over the head with how evil and cruel all the straight male characters are. The protagonist is subject to relentless abuse (verbal, physical, and sexual) from beginning to end, and most of it she takes with a resigned, passive attitude.
Now, is it realistic for someone who has been raised in a patriarchal cult to behave in such a way? Yes. But does it make for a compelling story and character? Not really, or at least not for me. Her lack of positive interactions with other characters made the book feel joyless and miserable for the most part; it also highlighted the lack of other female figures in the story. Apart from Devon and her love interest, all the other characters are men.
Another thing I personally found disappointing was that Devon's only motivation to do anything were her children. Everything she does in the book, she does it for them, and she has no sense of purpose outside of protecting her kids. Considering that the whole point of the novel is to criticize social structures that reduce women to their wombs, I found it ironic that the narrative also reduced Devon to her role as a self-sacrificing mother.
January 16, 2026
Good Fantasy. Original, atmospheric, surprising at times, even if a bit on the nose some other times.
This is the story of Devon, a Book Eater on the run, a murderer, even if she hasn’t directly killed anyone, and a mother.
No one knows the real origins of the Book Eaters, a race of beings that look human but definitely are not human. Most of these beings, who live unnoticed among Earth’s population, survive by eating books, and as they eat the books, each word in them becomes part of their mind, never to be forgotten. Yet, a minority among them can’t eat books at all. They, the Mind Eaters, instead eat minds, killing the actual owner of the brain in the process.
Importantly, the Book Eaters are a dying species. Book Eater women are becoming barren at younger and younger ages, and most pregnancies result in boys. Thus, women are a precious commodity. Treated accordingly, Book Eater women had zero decision power over their own lives, and that of their children. They can’t even choose what to read, often kept on a diet of fairy tales and romance novels. Married as soon as they turn eighteen, their marriages are arranged by the Knights, an elite group of Book Eaters who negotiate among the clans, making sure the brides fetch the highest possible price (of which they get a cut), and preventing inbreeding.
The knights also control the Dragons, as the few surviving Mind Eaters are called, using them as a weapon to terrorize and control the clans and, in particular, any wannabe runaway bride.
Ironically, Book Eaters can’t write, trying to even scribble a word results in headaches and losing consciousness.
But Devon, a member of the old and poor Fairweather clan, has displayed a stubbornness well beyond the normal. From being a child to the moment her first child is born, a perfectly lovely little girl, she more or less has obeyed what she’s being ordered, following on the path her father (who she has always called uncle) set for her.
But she doesn’t go quiet into the night (or the limo as it is the actual case), when the time comes to leave her daughter to be raised by the clan of her father. Instead, she fights and swears to one day come back for her.
Her second wedding results in a second pregnancy (rare among Book Eaters), which results in a baby boy. A Mind Eater baby boy.
From there on, motherhood and politics mixed, turning Devon and her son into runaways in search of Redemption, a drug that allows Mind Eaters to survive on books, as the rest of their species.
Up to here, I was mesmerized by the story. A fantastical thriller, gritty, strange and unpredictable that wouldn’t let go of my attention.
Yet, the last part did let go and in such an anticlimactic way that I nearly didn’t finish the book.
If you have reached this stage of my review, you may be wondering if I’m telling you that this book has a bad ending, and the answer is mostly no.
The ending does a good job at subverting expectations, turning villains into heroes and heroes into villains, even if just for a few pages, before returning them to their original roles. What it really bothered me—and this is a very ME kind of issue—is how all the little things that didn’t make sense to me from the start, suddenly grew into a giant snowball of this-no-longer-works-for-me, as in “I can no longer suspend my disbelief.” And here, I’m not talking about the big fantastical things sustaining the story, but the bits and pieces that are supposed to comfortably nest it in the real world.
For instance, the constant reference to Invitro fertilization as the ultimate solution for the Book Eaters fertility problems made no sense to me, considering that the actual issue was the women entering menopause at really young ages (with no ovulating women to extract eggs from, how is this thing going to work? I wondered). Many more achievable solutions jumped at me as I read, like getting women to get pregnant more often (not a gentle solution, but nothing in the way Book Eater women were treated seemed gentle or ethical, so I see no reason why the men would object to it).
Anyhow, it was the little details like that one, that ultimately weighed on my enjoyment of this book, turning it from thrilling masterpiece into, I’m just glad I read.
This is the story of Devon, a Book Eater on the run, a murderer, even if she hasn’t directly killed anyone, and a mother.
No one knows the real origins of the Book Eaters, a race of beings that look human but definitely are not human. Most of these beings, who live unnoticed among Earth’s population, survive by eating books, and as they eat the books, each word in them becomes part of their mind, never to be forgotten. Yet, a minority among them can’t eat books at all. They, the Mind Eaters, instead eat minds, killing the actual owner of the brain in the process.
Importantly, the Book Eaters are a dying species. Book Eater women are becoming barren at younger and younger ages, and most pregnancies result in boys. Thus, women are a precious commodity. Treated accordingly, Book Eater women had zero decision power over their own lives, and that of their children. They can’t even choose what to read, often kept on a diet of fairy tales and romance novels. Married as soon as they turn eighteen, their marriages are arranged by the Knights, an elite group of Book Eaters who negotiate among the clans, making sure the brides fetch the highest possible price (of which they get a cut), and preventing inbreeding.
The knights also control the Dragons, as the few surviving Mind Eaters are called, using them as a weapon to terrorize and control the clans and, in particular, any wannabe runaway bride.
Ironically, Book Eaters can’t write, trying to even scribble a word results in headaches and losing consciousness.
But Devon, a member of the old and poor Fairweather clan, has displayed a stubbornness well beyond the normal. From being a child to the moment her first child is born, a perfectly lovely little girl, she more or less has obeyed what she’s being ordered, following on the path her father (who she has always called uncle) set for her.
But she doesn’t go quiet into the night (or the limo as it is the actual case), when the time comes to leave her daughter to be raised by the clan of her father. Instead, she fights and swears to one day come back for her.
Her second wedding results in a second pregnancy (rare among Book Eaters), which results in a baby boy. A Mind Eater baby boy.
From there on, motherhood and politics mixed, turning Devon and her son into runaways in search of Redemption, a drug that allows Mind Eaters to survive on books, as the rest of their species.
Up to here, I was mesmerized by the story. A fantastical thriller, gritty, strange and unpredictable that wouldn’t let go of my attention.
Yet, the last part did let go and in such an anticlimactic way that I nearly didn’t finish the book.
If you have reached this stage of my review, you may be wondering if I’m telling you that this book has a bad ending, and the answer is mostly no.
The ending does a good job at subverting expectations, turning villains into heroes and heroes into villains, even if just for a few pages, before returning them to their original roles. What it really bothered me—and this is a very ME kind of issue—is how all the little things that didn’t make sense to me from the start, suddenly grew into a giant snowball of this-no-longer-works-for-me, as in “I can no longer suspend my disbelief.” And here, I’m not talking about the big fantastical things sustaining the story, but the bits and pieces that are supposed to comfortably nest it in the real world.
For instance, the constant reference to Invitro fertilization as the ultimate solution for the Book Eaters fertility problems made no sense to me, considering that the actual issue was the women entering menopause at really young ages (with no ovulating women to extract eggs from, how is this thing going to work? I wondered). Many more achievable solutions jumped at me as I read, like getting women to get pregnant more often (not a gentle solution, but nothing in the way Book Eater women were treated seemed gentle or ethical, so I see no reason why the men would object to it).
Anyhow, it was the little details like that one, that ultimately weighed on my enjoyment of this book, turning it from thrilling masterpiece into, I’m just glad I read.
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