Borne (Borne, #1)

by Jeff VanderMeer

A FINANCIAL TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

The dark, dangerous, funny and uplifting new novel from the author of Annihilation, the inspiration for the major motion picture directed by Alex Garland.

'Neither of us had control of our monsters anymore'

In a ruined city of the future, Rachel scavenges a strange creature from the fur of a despotic bear.

She names him Borne.

He reminds her of her homeland lost to rising seas, but her lover Wick is intent on rendering him down as raw material for the special drugs he sells. Nothing is quite what it seems, and if Wick is hiding secrets, so too is Rachel - and Borne most of all.

• ISBN10: 0374537658
• ISBN13: 9780374537654
• Publish Date: 27 February 2018 (first published 25 April 2017)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: MCD
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[leahrosereads]

Quickie Thoughts:

Writing: It took me a serious bit to get into this. It's my first Jeff VanderMeer, and I'm not sure if this is typical VanderMeer writing, but it was jarring for me to read. It was a slow go for the first 25 pages or so, but once I got used to it, I got very invested.

Story/Characters: The character Borne made this book! Borne was so child-like and naive and wonderful and strange and beautiful. He/she/they were just so fascinating. And even when the story itself slowed and dulled a bit, I knew I could count on Borne to bring it all around. And he/she/they always did.

The story's told in Rachel's POV - a scavenger in this post-apocalyptic weird, weird world. She's a survivor through and through, but because of that attitude, she can be kinda boring at times. Her relationship to Borne felt out of character until you think about what type of world this must be. And then it makes sense, and it really added dimension to her.

Her relationship with the other human we're introduced to Wick, is a lot rough around the edges. They're a necessity, and I didn't really care for it for most of the book.

And then there's poor Mord. I'm not sure I was supposed to have any sympathy towards him, but I had so much. I just feel that Mord is so misunderstood.

Overall: This was a 3 star for me, but because I loved Borne so much, I had to give it an extra star. I'd recommend it if you like new weird, or strange fantastical science fiction.

This book was definitely a first for me.