I really loved most of this book. I found myself deeply invested in both Dev's story and the world he lived in, and wanted to know all the things. Because that is who I am as a person. Dev is working as a Collector, which means he goes around grabbing people's memories to keep banked before they are reset. Why are they being reset, you ask? Well, they are sad. They have lost someone, and because they are human, are experiencing grief. As one does. But in this world, sadness and grief are simply not allowed. People try to fake happiness, so they can keep their memories, but any report of sadness has the resetting team on their doorstep before a tear can even be shed. Dev starts the story out as Collector of the Year, but as the story goes along, maybe he is not totally happy? And even when he is just tired and wants to rest, he has to pretend to be engaged otherwise he could be accused of being sad.

It's a very interesting world, and certainly thought provoking. Can you even imagine living in a world where, if you look like you're having a bad day, you're suddenly wiped, mind-erased, gone? They'd be resetting my ass daily, we'd never get anywhere! As Dev digs deeper, the things he finds out will paint him a new picture, and I loved taking the ride with him.

And here's the thing: if I'd been asked to rate this at the 90% mark, I'd be giving it five stars. The end, however, left me wanting more. The world building and character development in the book were so very well done, but when the book ended, I felt that none of it was realized. This is one of those situations where if there is a sequel, I'd absolutely change my rating, but as it stands now I enjoyed most of it so much that the ending was just extra disappointing. Because I have questions, so many questions!

Bottom Line: Amazing story, wish I'd had more questions answered, but overall incredibly thought provoking and entertaining! (Read: Give me a sequel and/or an epilogue.)

An eerie dystopian novel where grief is forbidden. This was an interesting read, I felt the exploration of mental health and suicide was well done. There are some gore elements to add a horror vibe and some creepy settings. There were 1984 and Never Let Me Go vibes as well as Shutter Island. There are some twists and turns as we follow Dev in this fictional world. Dev as a main character was likeable and I felt for him having to live this nightmare reality.
Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for an E-ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

Laura Kat Young’s 2022 debut The Butcher was one of the most striking novels of the year and it remained in my thoughts long after completion. In this captivating story the main character is known as ‘The Butcher’ and is responsible for amputating limbs (fingers usually) for those being punished for any types of crimes or minor indiscretions. At a certain point the main character has a crisis of conscience and the story fans out with Lady Mae’s inner turmoil as she falls in love but sees no hope of anything beyond the drudgery of her job as the Butcher.

Although The Collector was a fascinating read its major weakness is the simple fact that although the plot is different from The Butcher in some ways it is incredibly similar, too similar probably. Both books are dystopian settings which give zero background information about where they are set, providing no bigger picture snapshots of what else is going on in the world, The Butcher was set in Settlement Five and The Collector a town we see nothing beyond. Both novels are strongly centred around characters who have personal inner struggles with their jobs in societies where this is just not possible with the plots being principally around these conflicts.

As with The Butcher, Laura Kat Young’s second novel recalls many other dystopian novels and the second part (without going into detail) was just too reminiscent of George Orwell’s 1984. Instead of Big Brother’s all controlling ‘Thought Police’ we have ‘The Bureau’ an organisation which monitors the emotional behaviour of the society where the book is set. The Collector lacked the raw edge and bloody visceral elements which made its predecessor so powerful and it was also very predictable, I knew exactly what was going to happen in part two and three long before the plot got there.

In The Collector the population are closely monitored for showing elements of grief or depression and if they do so are given a couple of warnings and if nothing changes have their brains erased. The entire plot is built around the mechanism which makes this happen, as in 1984 there are many government departments in The Bureau, with main character Lieutenant Dev Singh working as a Collector. Although many dystopian novels use the same types of tropes, the most similar point of reference is Suzanne Young’s The Program YA series (2013-18) where there is an epidemic in teen suicide and true feelings are forbidden with those showing signs of affliction being sent to ‘the program’ where they return as a blank slate. Their depression is gone, but so are their memories and The Collector does not stary very far from The Program.

The action starts slowly with the reader following along and experiencing a typical workday for main character Dev as he goes about ‘Collecting’, firstly from an old woman. We realise that he is just one cog in a very big wheel of an organisation which monitors for depression, sorrow, or grief and gently extracts a treasured (or whatever they want to give) memory from the person he has been sent to meet. In the background titbits are dropped here and there about what ails society (possibly mass suicides) and the important role Dev has as a Collector in helping the wheel go round.

However, not all is well with Dev and like with Lady Mae in The Butcher the novel is built around these conflicts. Time is spent laying out how the various departments work, Dev’s past in the orphanage (of sorts), his old friend Shay who also works for the Bureau and how everybody is always telling him how wonderful he is at extracting memories. This world was a pretty scary place as it was clearly very difficult to be who you were and some of the most powerful scene involved Dev and Shay and the veiled warnings she gives him about making sure he stays involved and is a productive member of the Bureau. Although to technology is used beyond old eighties cassette recording devices, something of this ‘stay involved’ philosophy reminded of Dave Egger’s fantastic The Circle, where to succeed in the organisation, which bordered on a cult, participation in absolutely everything was expected otherwise your career would stagnate. But in comparison there was much more going on in The Circle than The Collector which was a much more contained style of story.

The idea of storing a memory for eternity was a good one and it had me thinking of what I might choose, there was also a very powerful scene involving a woman and a gaggle of children who knew what was around the corner. Otherwise I had mixed feelings about The Collector, it lacked the punch of The Butcher and Dev’s world was just not fleshed out enough to really grab me and not enough questions were answered.

I requested this book because I loved the author's previous work The Butcher. Although this one explored some really thought-provoking themes, it didn't quite capture the same raw emotion and depth of storytelling as the previous book. I wanted more from it. Still, it was an interesting read.

I requested a digital copy in order to sample the prose on my phone (since I don't have a eReader) before requesting a physical copy for review. My review will be based on the physical ARC I read (if I qualify)

(this review will be posted on Goodreads, Amazon & Instagram in the month of publication).

"The Collector" is a slow but very interesting and eerie book about Dev, a so called Collector working for the Bureau. His job is important as he's one of the people making sure that the society as a collective is happy and that everyone is playing their part in it. And even though he's performing extremely well at work and is respected by many, something doesn't feel quite right...!

I really enjoyed this book! The story is moving quite slowly and really takes it's time but I was totally captivated nevertheless! What I loved was how the author incorporated the show don't tell principle perfectly!!

Right at the beginning we don't know anything and just follow along and experience a typical workday for Dev. What he does is quite unique to say the least and I loved to read about it as it was just sooo interesting! Without giving too much away, the small revelations throughout were quite disturbing and there was one scene that gave me goosebumps like crazy!

Because we as the readers don't know how this society works, I was quite confused at first but exactly because of this I loved this story so much! The book felt like a puzzle and it was so satisfying when all pieces came together at the end.

Not sure if I'd classify this as Horror. I'd rather say it's a psychological thriller.

This is 4 stars because I didn't have this *it's an absolute favorite* kind of feeling but I also don't have any criticism. Would definitely recommend it, especially to people who loved the Wayward Pines Series!

3.5 stars


Strange and unsettling, as I like my dystopian fiction to be.
A scary look into a not too unbelievable future.
Dev was a believable main character, having been brought up in those strange times, and now struggling a bit.
This is the second book I've read by this author, and I think I'll be reading anything else she puts out too.

A lukewarm dystopian horror that finds its premise overdone but with its predecessors able to deliver a scarier punchline.

Thumbs up: I was really looking forward to this novel as I found the subject matter of demonizing emotions quite relevant for today's climate. I'm a big fan of 1984 and dystopian future novels so I signed up right away.

Thumbs down: Unfortunately, this novel finds itself in the middle of an identity crisis with a flat ending. I wish the storyline had either focused more on Dev's world, personal history, the sanitarium, or even his running from the state. Nothing was explored, fleshed out, or described well enough to keep me hooked to Dev's reality-turned-nightmare. The lackluster horror content and conclusion didn't give me that visceral punch of dread and I hope that we are given a clearer image in Young's future works.

Was it a nail biter? Unfortunately not.