Intriguing concept, indigestible writing, The Box's premise immediately hooked me: a nameless city undergoing a strange weather phenomena (endless snow), while we follow various perspectives as a mysterious object (the titular box) makes its way across different hands. At a high level, I appreciate the interconnected short stories setup (and the author uses different formats for each), it is a delight when elements from previous stories resurface in a new context. The literal and conceptual meaning of a box is also thoughtfully interpreted, covering topics from urban planning (city as a cluster of boxes), capitalism (modular system and reproduction), intellectual property, and our innate curiosity to discovery—the fact the book cover is a visual representation of the box itself is a stroke of genius.

Unfortunately the writing is where The Box lost me: long-winded and intensely verbose. I'll confess I don't pick up experimental literary fiction often, but this one in particular feels like there's a gap between its language and content—I don't think what it's saying is that profound (unless I completely miss the point), but the language used is what makes it impenetrable. Out of the 6 stories, Remainder is the most intelligible (not saying the story itself is anything ordinary—about a gardener working in a 'escape room' hotel), and possibly the only saving grace for this novel.

I don't mind being challenged when reading a literary work, but in the case of The Box the reward doesn't feel at all fulfilling; instead of using language to deliver out of the ordinary insight, it comes across as a pretentious spectacle. The audiobook narrators are well-performed objectively, but this might be the type of writing where listening alone will just bring on more frustration and confusion.

**This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated!**