Hello! Here is yet another review for an advanced copy I won through BookishFirst. **And as always, the work to support the Black community is not done, whether there is media coverage for it or not, so here is the link to click in order to support the Black Lives Matter movement in any way you can, and thank you to StarlahReads for compiling these resources. You can also visit the description of this video by booktuber Jess Owens, which has links to several additional resources about global events.**
Back in November and December of last year, I won a total of three books by writing first impressions and entering raffles on BookishFirst. Today I’ll be discussing one of those books – a YA dystopian novel The Electric Kingdom by David Arnold. I didn’t know if it was the best time to read said book, considering the premise centers around the collapse of human civilization after a Fly-Flu runs rampant around the world, but decided to give it a go. The reading experience was completely unlike anything I’ve read in a while, so I’m excited to get to talk about my feelings.
Since I don’t want to run the risk of giving away any spoilers, as I do believe it’s best going in with as little knowledge as possible, I am including the description that can be found on the book’s Goodreads page: “When a deadly Fly Flu sweeps the globe, it leaves a shell of the world that once was. Among the survivors are eighteen-year-old Nico and her dog, on a voyage devised by Nico’s father to find a mythical portal; a young artist named Kit, raised in an old abandoned cinema; and the enigmatic Deliverer, who lives Life after Life in an attempt to put the world back together. As swarms of infected Flies roam the earth, these few survivors navigate the woods of post-apocalyptic New England, meeting others along the way, each on their own quest to find life and light in a world gone dark.”
I was very confused throughout a large portion of this book, because the answers to questions are only given to you exactly when the author wants you to know them. He strategically places stories you’re led to believe don’t matter sprinkled throughout each of the three points of view, until one line is able to connect those stories to present day events so things make sense. It threw me for a loop so many times, but looking back I am very impressed with how Arnold was able to craft this story. I also noted how Kit and Nico’s perspectives are written in 3rd person point of view, but when we read chapters from the Deliverer, their sections are directed specifically at us as the reader (1st person point of view) – they act as an omnicient narrator who knows how this story is going to play out, and I suppose in a way that’s extremely accurate given to them reliving this life countless times in an attempt to make things right. I went back and forth on their identity multiple times, and appreciated how you are given clues as to who the Deliverer is, but it isn’t overly obvious. Of our three main perspectives, I think Kit had to be my favorite – he’s the youngest and is always being underestimated by everyone else in the group, but he is smart and capable and understands how his actions are going to have consequences. His knowledge learned from his Dakota and from reading the books in his library truly highlights how he doesn’t really know a life before the Flies hit, and his tidbits that he shares throughout the journey both make the reader laugh and acknowledge that all of these characters are outsiders to how society used to operate before devastation hit. But even at the end of the day, these characters find each other, and together they navigate through the bleakest of places, with only their hope as their guide.
Am I still confused about the ending and have more questions than I would like? Yes. Am I still reeling from the death of one particular character? Yep. Does this still heighten my fears while in the middle of a global pandemic? Of course. But will this prevent me from picking this book up again? Absolutely not, because I believe this is a novel that you will gain so much more from upon a reread, because you won’t be so busy trying to fit all the puzzle pieces together. The puzzle is complete, so now you can enjoy the journey that David Arnold takes you on to follow these interlocking characters throughout the darkest days of humanity. I, for one, will be taking notes of what I missed. The Electric Kingdom is set to be released on February 9th, 2021 (which is the day this post goes live if things work out), so please join me in wishing it a happy book birthday, and please consider picking up a copy for yourself if you’re interested (and can stomach a post-apocalytpic novel right now). I highly recommend. *Thank you to BookishFirst and the publisher, Viking Books, for the copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own.*
Where to find The Electric Kingdom:
Bookshop
Amazon
Goodreads
David Arnold’s site
Penguin Random House
Thoughts About Things 