Rating: 5 out of 5
A while back, I reviewed a fascinating literary novel titled
“Anomaly” that chronicled a few days in the life of a tortured gender-fluid
character named J. The book completely surprised me, and I fell in love with
it. (Unfortunately, that particular title is no longer in print, so the world
has lost out on reading it…for now.) So when I found out that the author of
that little gem, one Thea Atkinson, had pivoted her peculiar talents toward
Urban Fantasy, I just HAD to pick up a copy of “Grim” and see for myself how
someone with a unique voice such as hers would tackle the genre.
And let me tell you, she tackled it perfectly.
“Grim” is a gem of a book. It is the story of Ayla, a young
girl on the cusp of womanhood whose life has been anything but easy. As a child
of the foster care system, she has all the insecurities and hang-ups of someone
who’s shuffled from home to home. Her distrust lingers even now that she’s
found relative safety living with her grandfather in the town of Dyre
(great naming there). She’s a contradiction, as most real people are—flawed yet
idealistic, fragile yet brimming with inner strength.
Atkinson doesn’t waste time, as the story starts with a
bang, an encounter with a strange, tattooed killer in an old gothic church. It
is this initial confrontation, and all the horror that goes with it, that
begins a breakneck two days for our young, ornery heroine. There are secrets
revealed almost immediately, both supernatural and otherwise. The author sure
knows how to frame a fight scene, and the action is excellently paced. When
reading this book, there really is not time to stop and catch your breath,
which only adds to the urgency of the tale.
As with “Anomaly,” Atkinson shows off her biggest talent:
the depth of her characters. The story is told through Ayla’s eyes, so
obviously she is very well developed, but the rest of the cast, from her
grandfather, to Callum the young and seemingly conflicted firefighter, to
Ayla’s witchy friend Sarah, leap of the page in real-time. All three of them are
complex individuals disguised as genre tropes, which makes them at once
relatable and utterly mysterious.
And oh, the mysteries! One of the areas that I’ve seen most
authors struggle with when creating any fantasy world is makeup and definition
of the world itself. World-building, if you will. Here, Atkinson shows an
almost saintly amount of patience. Even though we learn almost immediately of
what Ayla’s big secret is, the functionality around that secret, the rules of
engagement, and the underlying mythology are doles out bits and pieces at a
time, sprinkled here and there throughout the narrative, slowly building the
universe like a puzzle.
Being the first book in a series, of course that puzzle
isn’t completed by the time the last chapter comes to a close. But what’s
revealed up until that point is more than enough to have the reader pining to
get to the next book. Which, really, is what the opening volume of a series is
all about.
So yes, “Grim” is a great little book, and way more than it
seems at first blush. The earnestness that drips like viscera just below the
genus of the common is more than enough to make me honestly say, “More, please,
and right freaking now.”
Purchase "Grim" at the following outlets:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
iTunes
Google Play
Purchase "Grim" at the following outlets:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
iTunes
Google Play
