A dark, thrilling, and twisted read.
Trigger warnings: abuse (sexual, physical, psychological), non-con/rape, religion/cults, mental break/manipulation
This book is my kind of messed up (what does that say about me…? LOL). Set in Australia, this contemporary YA read covers a variety of difficult topics that enthrals readers from the very start. The book only gets more and more spellbinding as you go on.
The characters are all relatable or understandable to some extent, even the ones that you find yourself hating. You will find yourself picking them apart one by one and going through their emotions right alongside them.
A great, dark thriller to get your hands on.

A copy of the book was provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.

This was just an OK read for me. Overall I enjoyed the story and some of the characters but there were too many plot holes. Ruby's family has fallen apart and she blames herself. While out walking one day she meets a boy called Fox handing out water. Fox takes her to meet his "family". Many of the choices the characters make do not make a lot of sense. The writing is good and parts of the story are exciting but other parts felt unfinished and rushed. I was disappointed in the ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and Capstone for the opportunity to read and review The Boundless Sublime by Lili Wilkinson. Ruby and her mother are barely surviving after the loss of Anton, Ruby’s brother. Their grief is overwhelming and Ruby blames herself for what happened to Anton. She meets a unique young man and meets his “family”. His name is Fox and he lives in a sort of commune. Ruby goes with Fox to the Outreach building and she decides that she wants to learn more, so she attends the secret Institute and gets more than she bargained for. Any disobedience and you’re thrown in a cell-type room with no food or water for days until you are “elutriated” according to the leader who claims he’s the Daddy of all. Boundless Sublime frightens with its suspense and feelings of entrapment. As the synopsis states, this book is an "immersive thriller", eye-opening as well as heartbreaking, with its tale of manipulation and a cult-like community led by a charlatan. 5 stars for a book I couldn’t put down!

Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

Earlier this year I received an electronic ARC for The Boundless Sublime because despite the fact that this Australian YA was released last year it is also now being released outside of Australia, yay! The US publisher Capstone and their teen imprint Switch Press are distributing the book throughout North America which I assume is always completely exciting and fulfilling for an Australian author when they see their work moving further out into the world. It's also interesting to note that Switch Press has also published one of my favourite books of 2016, Children of Icarus by Caighlan Smith, so check that out too after this book North Americans!

Simply put, The Boundless Sublime is about a deeply disturbing and cunning cult that brings in a young girl when she's at her most vulnerable. Ruby hasn't been at all happy or healing in the months after her family fell apart but it all started looking up when she saw that angelic looking boy handing out water bottles on the street and decided to take one. In that small action she found Fox and the Institute of The Boundless Sublime but obviously, this isn't her happy ending and the trouble was just about to begin.

One thing that I think is annoying about the book and blurb, in particular, is that she thinks her family demise is somehow her fault and I guess because she felt like it was her fault it was all that much easier to be sucked into a cult but I still think that's all a bit silly. Having read the book I can say that the family issues were definitely not the fault of a teenage girl and she didn't deserve anything bad to happen to her but then again I can definitely remember those really dramatic feelings and actions as a teenager. Although, I definitely never happened upon a cult and decided to go there on my own!

One thing I loved about this book most of all though was the sheer paranoia the institute put into Ruby's mind, the other people there and also myself a little. The writing was very descriptive so I felt like I was right in there with Ruby and I felt her shortness of breath, the anxiety of the situation and the obsession it filled her with. At first, it's all idyllic just like their type of system would be with the false promises and perfect outlook but soon enough it's weird demands and watch out for the people following you so they make this bulletproof bubble around the people in their community to keep them there.

This book was a midrange read for me because on one side the storyline was so exciting and I couldn't put it down but on the other, it was also a little too rushed and unrealistic for what any teenager would do. They may be naive at times and foolish but I can't imagine ever getting this deep into something like that. However, books are largely based on things we can't imagine ourselves doing so I totally loved putting myself in this crazy, insane situation. I can't think of any book quite like this with the shocking twists and unpredictable events. It's definitely a great read about an unbelievable situation!

(Thanks to Switch Press for an arc of The Boundless Sublime in exchange for an honest review!)