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A review by luluwoohoo
The Binding by Bridget Collins
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Binding by Bridget Collins (audiobook narrated by Carl Prekopp)
☀️☀️☀️☀️⛅
A dark and mysterious tale which combines the very best aspects of magical realism to forge a powerful, impactful story.
The opening third of this novel was purposefully slow and vague, which could have worked against it, but it eventually built up pace and became a story I was desperate to read more of! The finer details regarding binding weren't explored which might have annoyed me if I wasn't already familiar with Collins's style, but I also believe it works just fine in a character driven story like this to disregard the technicalities in favour of focusing on the relationship at the story's heart.
Emmett and Lucian were both rich, interesting characters to live inside of. Their relationship provided an excellent way of exploring the class divide in this ambiguously set historical romance. I also loved Seraphin and Alta and would have enjoyed more time with them, though the focus stayed rightly where it should be.
Having already read another of Collins's books, I knew her to be a more than competent writer. She lives up to that memory and pushes beyond it with this novel. The prose is lovely (though I noticed sooo many similes) in the way it focuses so significantly on worldbuilding without sacrificing the impact these elements have on character, particularly coming from a first person perspective. I would have liked the two perspectives to read a little different (Prekopp did a fantastic job of distinguishing them), but overall it was a joy to listen to.
This book is a triumph of mood setting. From the very beginning I trusted that the journey would be worth it and I wasn't disappointed.
☀️☀️☀️☀️⛅
A dark and mysterious tale which combines the very best aspects of magical realism to forge a powerful, impactful story.
The opening third of this novel was purposefully slow and vague, which could have worked against it, but it eventually built up pace and became a story I was desperate to read more of! The finer details regarding binding weren't explored which might have annoyed me if I wasn't already familiar with Collins's style, but I also believe it works just fine in a character driven story like this to disregard the technicalities in favour of focusing on the relationship at the story's heart.
Emmett and Lucian were both rich, interesting characters to live inside of. Their relationship provided an excellent way of exploring the class divide in this ambiguously set historical romance. I also loved Seraphin and Alta and would have enjoyed more time with them, though the focus stayed rightly where it should be.
Having already read another of Collins's books, I knew her to be a more than competent writer. She lives up to that memory and pushes beyond it with this novel. The prose is lovely (though I noticed sooo many similes) in the way it focuses so significantly on worldbuilding without sacrificing the impact these elements have on character, particularly coming from a first person perspective. I would have liked the two perspectives to read a little different (Prekopp did a fantastic job of distinguishing them), but overall it was a joy to listen to.
This book is a triumph of mood setting. From the very beginning I trusted that the journey would be worth it and I wasn't disappointed.
"I felt strange. But not sick, exactly. And not afraid. It's as if something inside me was waking up and moving. The looping grain of the bench in front of me was like a map of somewhere I used to know."