incredibly illustrated and fabulous story. the colour palette was everything i wanted from this!! i will defo hand sell. another brilliant title from D&Q.

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)
This is one of the most original and stunning titles I have read this year; no doubt. Léa Murawiec creates a completely new world, with its unique style and set of rules, and immerses the reader in the very first pages.
In this world, presence is all that matters. The streets are full of names, our main characters job is to read names and think about them. Being forgotten means death. And Manel Naher, who shares the name with a famous pop star, wants out. She wants/needs to reach the great beyond. However, once she realizes her life may very literally be on the line, she lets the vortex devour her and starts playing by the rules.
I loved the story, the characters, and the fast pace in which it advances. It rarely stops, and when it does everything stays still… for less than a couple of pages.
The style is tremendously unique, hyper, caricatured to the extreme. The names in the background, always present, hide more than one easter egg. The ridiculousness of it all, the search for immortality, the herd like attitude of the masses, it’s all mesmerizing.
I would absolutely recommend the Great Beyond to anyone looking for a dystopian story, although, I must warn you, one finished it does not sound so farfetched at all. And that’s the scariest part.