Bizarre, beautiful, and brilliant. A strange book full of magic, love, and the occasional tiger turned loose. It's a weird one, but the right reader will get it ;)

I thought that this books premise was a very intriguing. While overall I enjoyed reading this book, I would be lying if I said that at times things didn't feel bogged down. Still, when I was into it the blend of fantasy, mystery, drama, emotion and whimsy did charm me, sadly, it just couldn't keep me under its spell though. So, for me this book was just ok.

4.5 stars, rounding up!

This book was wonderful. I felt this would be a good book, but it exceeded my expectations!

The character development of this story and how seamlessly she weaves them all together is beautiful.

The vibe is mysterious and captivating throughout.

The plot and the way the story unfolds and is fun. The book starts off with an intro of the missing friends and what happened, As you go through the book, more and more layers are uncovered, the story gets deeper, deeper, and even stranger. And things don’t always turn out the way they originally seemed.

Loved this so much.

Caveat: this is the first I've read of this author, having heard a lot about her.

The book is...fine. If "creepy magical realism wonderment" in a similar vein as Francesca Lia Block or Lemony Snicket is your bag, then you will probably love this (not imply this is YA?). It's really not my taste tho--I abandoned Gaiman's Ocean at the End of the Lane, which this also feels similar to.

Recommend, just not for myself.

This book is a wild ride--it's full of music and arcane gods and shapeshifting, doors and keys, tokens, carousels, mobile statues, snowball fights, ancient undead people and tiny premies. It begins with three high schoolers, Daniel, Mo, and Laura, who are surprised to find themselves in the high school band room, wearing dirty feet and scrounged musical costumes, startlingly raised from the dead by their high school band director. Even more startlingly, they are not guaranteed a place in life. Everything gets stranger and more delightful from there. It's a long novel, but worth the time--what we get in those extra pages is the sheer density of everyone's lives (the characters have parents and siblings and employers; they have jobs that they like or dislike; they spend a lot of time eating and doing laundry) even as their world gets increasingly strange. I read the last 150 pages in one delighted gulp.

Thanks to the publisher, the author, and Netgalley for my free earc. My opinions are all my own.

One night three friends, Laura, Daniel and Mo, suddenly wake up in the music room of their high school with their teacher, Mr. Anabin. They soon discover that they've been missing for almost a year, dead, and have been temporarily returned to life. In order to stay alive they agree to several magical tasks. While they attempt these tasks they can take their lives back up and no one will remember that they have been missing. But only two can win this contest and stay alive.

But life has moved on for the friends and family that were left behind, and the three friends struggle to settle back in amidst some pretty big changes, all the while trying to complete their tasks and solve the mystery of their deaths. They aren't the only ones interested in the outcome though - there's something, and someone, far more powerful that is watching and waiting. And the outcome will affect not just these teenagers and their families, but their entire community.

I'm giving this book 3 stars, which for me equates to "I liked it, it was fine." I think if it hadn't been a staggering 640 pages, I might have rated it higher. At times I felt like the story was dragging, and yet I'm not entirely sure what could have been cut. I don't usually like magical realism because it starts to feel too nebulous and, at times, pretentious, but that isn't an issue here. The writing is frankly beautiful and it is very atmospheric. The characters are well written, complex, and highly believable. The main characters are teenagers dealing with some unbelievable events, angsty, messy, sometimes unlikeable, but you find yourself rooting for them because really, who can blame them? At times I felt like this book was too slow, but we get to know the characters so well because of how much time we spend with them. They are exceptionally unique and memorable. And this book is truly about the characters and their relationships. (And I just have to say that my favorite character is a tie between Mo's grandmother and Daniel's sister Carousel. I love Carousel. If I ask you what is the first thing you would do if you got magic, and you don't say 'turn myself into a glittery flying unicorn' then why are you lying?)

I'm not entirely in love with the title. Although love is certainly a theme here, and the driving force behind many of the events, it doesn't really seem to capture what this book is.

In the end, this is an atmospheric, beautifully written, slow burn of a book. A group of teenagers struggling to figure out who they really are, which is a story we can all relate to. It is whimsical, fantastical, and vivid, and I think the only thing that really put me off was the slow pacing in combination with the sheer length. If that's something you look for, then I believe you will love this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I am so grateful to have been given an ARC of Kelly Link’s The Book of Love thanks to Netgalley and Random House.

Leigh Bardugo’s quote on the cover sums up this book SO perfectly - “a dizzying dream ride you will never forget.”

This is the story of a group of teens and their families who live in the shore town of Lovesend, Massachusetts. Set in the present day, these teens finds themselves in the music classroom of their high school with their old music teacher, in the middle of the night, only to discover that they have just recently escaped from another realm and come back from the dead.

What follows is their story, told in alternating perspectives with the chapters named The Book of Susannah, The Book of Daniel, The Book of Mo, and others, where we slowly piece together what happened to these teens and try to figure out where they, the supernatural characters they encounter, and even the rest of their town, will go from here.

This book is as captivating as it is confusing, and as Bardugo says, dizzying, to which I would add, dreamy — both because you feel like you are in a hypnagogic state and also because of the powerful writing. I was hooked from the description. I wanted to learn about these teens and see what happened to them. While I had an idea of the premise, what I didn’t expect was just HOW much of a magical story this would be.

The magic in this story is over the top, and you must know that going in or these 640 pages might not be a ride you want to embark on. But in between all the “what is happening?!” moments, there were so many real moments — of teens trying to figure out who they are, how to love, who to love, how to make the most of the gifts you’ve been given and how to deal with loss.

I will say, the story was very confusing at times. There are some things I reread and just did not understand how they pieced together. In any other writer's hands, this would have likely frustrated me much more than it did here. But the plot, the well-drawn out characters who I was invested in (regardless of whether I loved or hated them,) the writing and the theme of love propelled this story forward in a way that made me want to keep reading even when I wasn’t sure what was happening. There was something warm and nostalgic about the way this book was written, and it is a story I will not forget.

Couldn't get through this one. The premise is very interesting, but the book just didn't hold my attention.

The writing is spare and detached. There are a few lines that felt like they had some oomph to them, but overall it fell flat for me. There's something that made me feel distant from the characters and story. I kept waiting to feel a connection, to feel excited about this story...but it never happened. I kept picking it up and putting it back down again.

I should mention that I've read short story collections by Kelly Link and enjoyed them immensely. However, this novel took to long to pick up, at least for me. It felt like a chore to read it, so I moved on.

Note: I received a review copy of this book via NetGalley.

The Book of Love follows three high school students (and one stranger) that were brought back from the dead by their otherworldly music teacher and his partner, a fearsome being that guards the realm of the dead. If they wish to remain earth-side with their loved ones, they must complete a series of magical tasks while keeping the details of the bargain to themselves. Over the course of a few days, the students learn how to use their magic and begin to unravel the mystery surrounding their deaths. However, a malevolent goddess has been waiting for them and threatens to endanger their town along with everyone they love.

Link brilliantly uses supernatural elements to explore themes of music, artistic expression, love, life, and death. The richly detailed seaside town of Lovesend, MA, the solid cast of imperfect, endearing characters, and the quick, alternating chapters had me completely immersed in this 640 page novel from start to finish. Death plays a large role in the story so it can be bleak but is also hopeful as these strong-willed teens work to reclaim their lives and set their own rules. Link infuses the story with compassion, humor, and love in all its forms—from familial bonds to romance to friendship. I loved every minute of this enchanting, adventurous, heartwarming tale!

I'm not sure what I expected with this book. I was drawn to the cover and the blurb, and immediately requested an ARC. I've never read Kelly Link's work before, but her writing style is definitely interesting. The first chapter was odd and I had to push through what felt like complete gibberish, but I was hooked by the second chapter.

I've never read anything like this before. Kelly Link is a creative genius, both with her writing style and the concept of this story.

The only downsides, and reasons for rating it 4 stars, were the length and flow. I feel as though there were some POVs that could have been left out or shortened. There are points where it slows down and there's a lot of exposition, rather than action and dialogue.

I love horror, I love mystical and magical, and I love weird. This book absolutely has elements of all of those.

Laura, Daniel, and Mo suddenly come back from the dead and find themselves in the music classroom at their high school with their old music teacher. They’re given very little information about how they died and how they came back. Suddenly several people in their town begin exhibiting signs of magic and they all seem interconnected and interested in Laura, Daniel, Mo, and Laura’s sister Susannah. How did they all get here and how can they stay?

I may never have read a book with such beautiful and visceral writing. I do not have a great visual imagination and usually scenes in books don’t play out as images in my head but in this book, I could picture every detailed description perfectly. The authors prose and meandering, stream-of-consciousness narration was beautiful, authentic, and wholly unique. Especially when talking about music.

My only issue with this book was the length. There were some points where I was bored and I felt like the story needed to get a move on, especially at the beginning. Once I started getting into the book though, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC.

DNF at 5%

I tried several times to get into this book, because it sounded promising. The writing took me out of it, however, because It felt detached and didn’t endear or draw you to the characters. It didn’t come to life for me.

Thank you to the publishers for an arc of this book!

The premise was so interesting. Unfortunately, the interest did not last once I began the book.

Perhaps I'm just not the target audience? It was incredibly boring, pretentious, and there were too many characters for the plot to handle and so many that I just did not care about. If I could rate 0 stars I would. I'm sure there are those who will enjoy this but sadly I was not one of them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have so many mixed feelings about this one.
I loved the premise, anything magical realism related that involves deals with gods is an automatic must read for me. However, this book is a hefty one and marketed as adult fiction which I'm not sure I agree with.
There are multiple characters and the main ones are very young. In my opinion the numerous bedroom scenes seemed unnecesary and didn't drive the plot in any meaningful way. I would have been very happy to sacrifice a few of them to help speed the story along.
That said, I feel like this one definitely won't be for everyone. There are a lot of characters to keep track off with rapidly switching POVs. But there is a lot of humor in the book and if you do give it a chance it is quite entertaining.
Overall - this wasn't a book that blew me away by any means and I wouldn't call it a must read but if you're in the mood for a longer story that goes quickly, is a bit unusual and enjoy authors like Alexis Hall and V.E. Schwab, it's worth giving a try.
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This is a weird, complicated, fantastical door-stopper of a book, and although my enthusiasm waned at times, I ended up enjoying the ride.

Three (or four) teenagers died. But somehow they have escaped death and come back to the world of the living. The living world had to be somewhat altered, to fit them back in, but with the help of a few extraordinary "people", they are back. Now, it they want to continue to live they have to figure out what happened, why, and what to do about it.

For me, the best part of the book was the interplay between the teenage characters. Mo, Laura, Daniel and Susannah are angsty, stubborn, naive and worldly. They love each other and their families almost more than they can imagine. The mythical characters are godlike in their omnipotence and lack of concern for the petty human beings they have to use to achieve their goals.

The book is too long, yes. There are too many characters telling too many stories. But I respect Link's ambitious first novel attempt and look forward to more.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I realize that Kelly Link is award-winning and highly regarded, but I found this book an absolute slog, full of unlikable characters and a style that was like metal scraping over metal, only droning. I kept forcing myself forward, thinking it would get better; okay, cool, the characters are dead, interesting twist, but no, it just never got better, and I bailed at 60%

I typically shy away from fantasy; however, Kelly Link, the Pulitzer Prize finalist and McArthur Genuis grant recipient, urged me out of my comfort zone with her debut fiction effort. “The Book of Love” is a long novel, perhaps a bit too long if I were to level any criticism, but it is parsed into manageable chapters, such as “The Book of Daniel,” “The Book of Mo,” and “The Book of Laura,” which seem to reference some fanciful Bible. Three teenagers, Daniel, Mo, and Laura, return from the dead finding themselves in the glare of the fluorescent lights of a Lewis Latimer Public School classroom, almost a year after disappearing from the small seaside community of Lovesend, Massachusetts. With them is a fourth teen whom they do not know, Bowie, and their high school music teacher, Mr. Anabin, who seems to know something about their disappearance and what has brought them back again. Mr. Anabin charges them with performing a series of magical tasks; a competition, as it comes with the warning that “[t]wo stay and two return.”

The trio return to their respective homes where their bewitched families believe that they have been attending a music program in Ireland. They struggle with typical teen anxieties: Daniel must contend with his chaotic household and his many younger siblings; Mo must confront his grief when he learns that his guardian and grandmother, a Black author who wrote romance novels under the pseudonym, Caitlyn Hightower, and commissioned statutes of black artists, scientists, inventors which festooned the town of Lovesend, had died while he was gone; and Laura must reconcile with her “lamentably tall” sister, Susannah, who believed that she was “the baggage” that Laura had been hauling around and worry that she “hadn’t even made it out of school, to the good parts. For God’s sake, she hadn’t even had sex with a girl yet, which meant as far as she was concerned, she hadn’t really had sex at all.” Both Susannah and Laura must handle the return of their father who had abandoned the family years before.

In the meantime, the trio’s resurrection has attracted the notice of other supernatural figures, all with their own agendas. There are shape-shifters, tigers, missing persons, a ritual leading to immortality, centuries old scores that need to be settled, bargains made hundreds of years ago, and Malo Mogge, a woman so powerful and charming that when she and her servant squat in the beach house of a prosperous Boston couple, the couple beg them to stay, resign from their law practice, and send their young son to boarding school.

The “Book of Love” is populated by characters who are utterly real and undeniably appealing. Link takes the reader on a literary magical journey infused with the struggles of modern teens: wonderment, enchantment, vulnerability, loss, frustration, rage, warmth, intimacy, and, most importantly, love.

Kelly Link is one of those authors that seems to be regularly lauded as one of the greats in contemporary speculative fiction, but because she doesn’t regularly publish in the outlets I regularly read, I hadn’t tried much of her work. But what I had tried showed sufficient facility with prose and atmosphere that I was extremely intrigued when I saw she was releasing her debut novel, The Book of Love. 

The Book of Love primarily follows four teenagers returned from the dead under mysterious circumstances. As they return to their small coastal New England town, they’re tasked with learning magic and figuring out just how they died. But the more they learn, the more they’re pulled into a centuries-long power struggle among figures with tremendous power and uncertain motivations. 

If you’re not here for the words, The Book of Love will not be the book for you, as it spends the first third of the book not even hinting at a rush. Yes, the resurrection happens early, but in the aftermath, the main characters are mostly confused, going about their ordinary lives with little hints of the uncanny reminding them every now and again that there’s something bigger to figure out.

 A lot of reviews point to this slow start as a major flaw, but I didn’t see it that way. I found the descriptions of mundane life to be quietly beautiful, and there was enough promise of plot that I didn’t mind sitting with an extended setup. I understand that not everyone will respond the same way, but for readers who enjoy slower paced, literary-leaning sections, the first third of this book is a treat. 

In contrast to the other mixed reviews, it’s what came after that didn’t really grab me. The story opens up into a conflict between undying figures who range from mildly unsympathetic to absolutely horrible. And the main characters aren’t a whole lot better. One of the four very intentionally tries to focus on helping family and opting out of the entire magical conflict (with mixed success), but for the rest, there’s a lot of hookups, a dollop of family drama, and not a whole lot to generate a lot of reader investment in their fate. 

In a way, the focus on the mundane details that was such a strength early in the story turned into a weakness as it went on, because major events just blended into the mundane, and the fantasy plot with life-or-death stakes never really felt like it had life-or-death stakes, even when people were actively dying. And so overall, while there was a lot I liked here, the main story was a bit of a miss. The author is clearly immensely talented with prose and scene-building, but shaping a story at 600-page length is another skill entirely, and while there were flashes of brilliance, I didn’t think it was a story that improved with the extra length. 

Recommended if you like: literary-leaning descriptions of not-entirely-sympathetic characters in everyday life (but also big fantasy plots). 

Overall rating: 13 of Tar Vol's 20. Three stars on Goodreads.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for this eARC!

I discovered about Kelly Link not too long ago on Instagram and I found out that this would be Kelly's debut novel. Just after reading the synopsis, I was intrigued! And the book didn't let me down. I loved the supernatural elements that helped weave the various stories of the main characters as they find their way back to their place at home, among themselves, and in relation to their loved ones. This was my first experience reading anything by Kelly Link and I loved this book. I'll definitely be reading her previous works!

ARC | Dull, flat, overlong, trying too hard | It's difficult to be clear about how boring this book is, so I'll just start by mentioning that at around page 200, I put it down and scrubbed my kitchen counters. This was not an overdue chore, just seemed like a better use of my time. Around page 400, I thought "you know, I haven't dusted recently", got out the dustrag, and did that instead of reading for awhile. Because the book was so boring that I was desperately searching for things to do other than read it. The characters feel like they're being dragged through the book against their will, and given that every single thing they do or say is related in every minute detail, there is, to use Link's own words, a "tired reek" to the prose as the characters get pulled through it all. They're awful people, by the way. Whenever you say that in a review someone always snaps back that it's realistic, that the world is not made up of good people, but look, the world is also not exclusively made up of selfish bullying petty assholes (and one cardboard stage prop, Daniel, who has a couple supposed motivations slapped on in rough paint but was never fully developed as a person). People in the world have facets to their characters and reasons for the ways that they are disappointing. The characters in this book are just pricks, and all the Lovesend residents have fewer Adverse Childhood Experiences than the average pampered rich kid, so there's no reason for their personality disorders. There's a lot of 'how a white author thinks it feels to be Black' here, in ways that felt very patronizing. The writing is absolutely tortured, like Link is remembering all the awards she's won or been nominated for and so is trying super hard to prove what an amazing writer she is. And I've read some of her previous books, some of her writing has, in the past, been worthy of note. This is not. The construction, the scaffolding, the Work of it is so obvious all through. And then in some places it's just bad. I wouldn't expect sex scenes to be titillating in the context of this book, but please, Person A "pressed his cock into the well-lubricated asshole" of Person B? Person C, before performing oral sex, contemplates "the pad of fat above the pubic bone"? The language alternates throughout between trying with all its might to be florid and pretentious, and being absolutely flat and robotic. And then, the length. It seems like a cruelty to have named the editor in the acknowledgements. This is a 640 page book with about 135 pages of plot. This isn't just poorly edited, it has been force-fed, crammed with unnecessary lengthening until it's bloated up and choked on it, a beached whale full of bran. And the very tortured metaphor of the previous sentence is still not as bad as what I just spent a day and a half reading in The Book of Love.
Given a choice, I would simply have written a review that's a couple of sentences saying that this book needed better editing and that Link is out of her depth in long-form fiction. The length and detail of this review imply that I have actively antagonistic feelings toward it, when in truth it was so awful that I will never think about it again, but Advanced Review Copies of books require reviews, so here it is.


Free ARC provided by NetGalley which did not impact my review (obviously).