I opened this book wanting to get an idea of what it was about without necessarily wanting to read it next; there were other books I was eyeing from my tbr lists. Before I knew it, it was 1 am and I had to sleep and finish the rest the next day. I was completely unprepared for how it swept me up and enveloped me in the story. It was brutal and heartbreaking, yet tender and loving in equal measures. While I am not a trans man or transmasc, I understood Silas' struggles with navigating an unkind society as a neurodivergent person and the expectation of fulfilling a rigid gender role. I grew to care about him deeply and kept wishing for the happiness he deserves, even while the circumstances became increasingly dire. Andrew did an amazing job crafting realistic and lovable characters, but the injustice hurt even more when it inevitably happened. 

One thing I liked about this book was how it reminded me of an all-time favourite of mine - Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao. Through the characters' emotions, I thought I could also feel the authors' own feelings towards a society that is unjust and intolerant. The desperation, confusion, and rage - to quote Zetian from Iron Widow, they are all "utterly relatable."

I think it is safe to say that this book has made Andrew an auto buy author for me, and I will definitely get my own copy when it is released.

Thank you to netgalley for providing the e-arc!