The Binding

It took me over two months to listen to this book only because I loved it so much that I didn't want to finish it.

‘'I laid my hand over the bruises on my arm, fitting my fingers into the marks. The wind murmured in the thatch and drove another gust of rain against the window-pane, but the house was thick-walled, solid, as old as rock. Binder's fever, not madness or weakness.''

Emmett is suffering from a strange affliction. His parents are of little help, engrossed in how to find a wealthy husband for his sister, absorbed by their wish for money without even trying. When a strange call arrives, Emmett has to answer. And so it happens and his path is crossed with a fascinating woman, a binder who specializes in unique books. Emmett has to fight. He has to understand his vocation, he has to learn how to stand up to the ones who want to use him as a tool, against a world that doesn't understand.

What if we could erase every negative memory from our minds? What if we could capture all those incidents that made our lives a struggle into a book, bind them and store them away, out of sight and out of mind? What if this gift fell into the wrong hands? What if vile men forced their victims to have their memories erased so that they could come clean and unpunished?

Bridget Collins has written one of the most interesting novels you'll ever read and has presented the readers with a number of complex moral questions. Everyone's mind is full of moments that we wish had never happened. They have hurt us, they still hurt and will go on hurting us. We all have wished for them to disappear and leave us be. However, aren't these exact moments a part of who we are? They have shaped our course, our principles, our future choices. That embarrassing moment has taught us to be wiser, that pain, seemingly unbearable, has made us stronger, that failure has made us more cautious and determined. And how do we erase the memory of someone who entered our lives and vanished, along with all the moments we spent together?

Don't you just love it when a book provokes endless discussions with yourself and with others? Collins depicts the dilemmas within an alternative 19th century England, through the eyes of a young man who tries to untangle the knots in his difficult life. Despised and scorned because of his low social status, recognized by a wise old woman for his gift and courage, burdened with an emotional load that has dire consequences. Collins creates a very approachable character in the face of Emmett. His insecurities and doubts, the naive choices he may make are a token of a human disposition, a youth standing on a crossroads. Even though he likes to think he is unimportant, he is courageous and honest. The evil lies with the people who surround him, the ones who oppress and terrify him. They are the problem.

I had high hopes for this beautiful book and I wasn't disappointed. The only issues I faced had to do with the romance plotline which was tiresome and not to my personal taste but this is my approach to every romance included within a story so it was to be expected. The dialogue was lacking in quality when compared to the prose and all the hullabaloo concerning Alta and everyone's love troubles left me cold.

Collins created a world where moral dilemmas clash with social norms, where gifted people are used to the benefit of the aristocracy, where books can be a salvation or a tyranny. A perfect novel for dark autumn nights...

''An owl called, distant and then closer; something scuttled in the corner of the yard. I imagined the owl circling, silent now, waiting for the glint of tiny eyes, the twitch of a tail. A death like that you wouldn't hear it coming.''

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This review is just to help me remember key points about the book. If you find it helpful or relatable that's cool too.Pride Month Edition

The sigh of relief I let out after the ending — LITERALLY let out a breath I didn't know I was holding

Nope nope nope. Horrible depressing things happening throughout but nope. Crossed a line. The dog dies.

I wasn't expecting any of this. I liked the idea of the book, a book about the power of stories. But there was much more to unfold and every turn was a new discovery. The writing was funny at times, I felt like there were some metaphors and allegories that were a bit over the top, and some descriptions that felt unnecessary or, better said, random. But after a while I got used to it (even though it was never really bothering). In any case, I couldn't put it down, it was absorbing and the world, the characters, were so interesting to me, I wish it would have lasted a bit more. This doesn't happen often.

Having been a bookbinder apprentice a long time ago I would have liked to think that I might have had an affinity of some kind with this fantasy, it was nice to read of a few tools and terms from my past, it had a fairly good plot and the idea that us binders could assist in letting others not have to remember their troubles by just binding them away seemed a great idea.

The reality is that this is not that well written for this reviewer and far too long to the point of being laborious to read. There was one binding after about 200 pages, and that was hardly riveting. There are two major characters in what is basically a gay romance turned into a fantasy novel. Split into three parts, the first part told in the first person by protagonist one, the second a third person narrative and the final as a first person by protagonist two, I was very disappointed that the writing never gave me the feeling that the three parts were anything other than the same person. As to sentence structure, it was very weak. “I'm too cold to care. I huddle in the corner while he leads the horses to the stalls. He cracks the ice in the bucket. My brain has frozen. I can't even think.” and on and on it seemed. It felt that I was reading a high school student with a great idea, but without the experience to put the sentences into anything other than a few short words. I was not expecting this to be literary genius by any stretch and expected nothing more than entertainment, but it just felt all too YA for my tastes.

Sadly, it hardly touches the wonder that was Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell if the author was aiming for a Dickens style fantasy. Not for me, I suppose.

A Victorian retelling of Philip K Dick's Total Recall (sort of)

I think overall I enjoyed more of this book than not. The idea itself is terrifying. Imagine someone abusing you over and over and the abuser then takes those memories away from you so they can abuse you again, over and over again and you never remember. Horrific!!

I do wonder if putting part 2 first would have helped the story flow a little better. In part 1 Emmet goes off to be an apprentice “binder” because he has the gift, there is no mention of this at all in part 2 (set before part 1) which seems a little odd, very odd. Also a book devoid of any likeable characters. pretty much everyone is horrible.

rtc

“I didn't know happiness was that simple.” Enchanting, captivating, could not put it down. Every page I read, I could picture like a Ghibli movie. Heart-wrenching and satisfying. Thank you, [a:Bridget Collins 14717647 Bridget Collins https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1548771665p2/14717647.jpg].

Wow... the marketing/PR team for this book all need raises and promotions because they TRICKED THE SHIT out of so many people (myself included, of course) with what this story was going to be... The person who wrote the book description is a master of deception. I would take off a glove and give that person a slap with it to signal my desire for a duel, but I also want to hire the person for being good enough to deceive the crap out of those of us who wanted a historical-fantasy-magical-realism kind of story but instead got this fucking drivel.

Emmett is a hard-working son of a farmer. He has been ill and while on the mend receives a letter requesting he be taken as an apprentice for the bookbinder Seredith. Unsure of how or why he has been chosen, Emmett finds himself on her doorstep.

He soon learns that bookbinders take memories of those willing to give and willing to forget said memories. Memories become books and books are locked away...except by those who wish to use those books for profit.

Emmett has been told he's a binder born. What does that mean for him? Why is there a book with his name? What secret is he harboring dark enough to forget?

I went into this one blind and initially really enjoyed it. About halfway through the entire premise changed and it was no longer about binding but about romance and how this romance was a dark secret. I was immensely disappointed as the idea of binding memories and the process (vaguely touched upon) fascinated me.

Not really my cup of tea, but I liked it well enough to finish it. The concept was what drew me in and the writing was strong. It's just not really my bag if I'm honest.

As I was reading it, I would have given it 4 stars, but I felt that it ended too abruptly, it felt unfinished.

Captivating story. Excellent debut storytelling that definitely makes me want to keep and eye out for further Bridget Collins works!

I found it interesting the way the story was split distinctly into 3 parts from 3 different perspectives though at first I was dismayed when it got to the end of the first part and the perspective changed - I was like “nooo I need to know what happens next, not what already happened!” But actually I did find the differing perspectives kept the overall story engaging. As I neared the last few chapters I had a sense of loss that the story was almost over and it didn't feel like there would be resolution. There was certainly a conclusion, one built on hope and some mystery remaining (perfect for a sequel?) but I did feel that the ending did seem rushed in comparison to the slower descriptive prose that dominated the rest of the book.

actual rating: 3.5 stars
this book was so great and magical: it made me smile, almost cry, frustrated, and would also make me angry. the thing is, part I of the book was sooo boringly slow. it took me a crazy amount of time to get through part I, and it bored me so much that i would even avoid picking it up. otherwise, parts II and III were amazing: well-paced and very engaging! in the last two-thirds of the book i couldn't put it down. also i ship lucian and emmett sosososososo hard i love them together and this has been my favourite forbidden love story i've read so far ugh

Sorry but I'm not gonna be into your queer male characters if they're just gonna treat women like shit #AltaDeservedBetter #EveryOtherWomanInThisBookDeservedBetter

I absolutely loved the premise, plot, and prose in this book. I just never really connected with the characters, or the romance, which made it difficult to care very much about everything else.

The idea and world building of this book was great, but I feel like barely anything happens? Like a third of the book is Emmett remembering his binding... and then like, hardly anything happens? There is no punishment for the truly vile man that Lucian's father is, and zero character development? Idk, I feel like this could have been a duology or a trilogy where emmet learns to use his binding for good and abolish the disgusting use of it by the upper class while taking down Lucian's awful father. 3 stars for a super cool concept and decent writing but the plot is honestly more like 2

edit: jk I dropped it down to a two bc in retrospect it was just a complete mess

TW: violent death of a dog, murder, suicide, rape

Difficult book to rate. Interesting premise but not really explained or explored thoroughly. Features an M/M love story of two very flawed characters who hurt a lot of people (especially women). Well-written dark gothic with an intriguing twist but ends abruptly with several major questions unanswered. Hard to get into at first, but then hard to put down.

I guess it averages out to a 3 star rating, but not in the same way that you'd give a book that you consider to be “just okay.” At different times in the novel I could have gone with 1 star or 5 stars. Not sure if I would read another book by this author unless I was in the mood for something truly dark.

And I don't think I'll ever look at books quite the same way again.

I am utterly disappointed. I had such high hopes for this book. The premise sounded amazing, the concept interesting and that cover is so beautiful 😍. I imagined a romp through a story of intrigue, mystery and a little bit of magic. Instead what I got was a romance. And not even a particularly unique or well written romance. Bleh. Biggest disappointment of the year so far ☹️

“It's a sacred calling Emmett. To have another person's memory entrusted to you...To take the deepest, darkest part away from them and keep it safe forever. To honour it, to make it beautiful, even though nobody else will see it.”

Firstly, let's get the doubts out of the way. I read a lot of reviews where people had DNF'ed this book in the first part, and a lot of people were praising it for the good story later on. So yes, part one is extremely slow. It builds up enough mysteries and momentum in part one, then throws you into slow chaos in part two, and fully blown-out chaos in part three. And at the end you come out saying, “Wow! What a roller-coaster!”

I not only enjoyed, but also adored this book. I enjoyed part one with all the book binding terminology and the pace at which the author described Emmett's mundane activities slowly, but also peacefully. In the beginning, Emmett feels lost and alone. He feels like he's missing something because he has no memory of the year from when he was sick. To make matters worse, his family feels distant from him and they send him off to become a binder, a trade people think to be witchcraft. And to make matters even worse, nobody seems to be explaining anything to him. Neither his parents nor his master from whom he's learning the trade of binding.

Another thing I appreciated was how Seredith revered books as they were people's memories and essentially a part of them. But there were other binders who sold them as stories. This comparison was described in very rich tones.

So keeping this as spoiler-free as possible - part two is also from Emmett's POV but part three is not him. Having a different POV for part three was, in my opinion, a very good move. Not only does Emmett end up taking a back-seat, we get to see how the story intertwines for our characters. I was rooting so hard for these guys by the end and the ending did not disappoint :D

Pros:
- Different type of setting
- Books
- People cherishing books (well, one of them at least)
- Emmett and Lucian were so much fun to read
- Strong-willed characters

Cons:
- Worst father in literature
- Bad families all around
- Homophobiaaa!! (See above 2 points) The earth should swallow you guys wholeee!

Beware:
- Books with your names on them
- Families who don't care about your happiness.
P.S. The hardcover is mesmerizing!

I picked up this book knowing only a very little about it and with having read none of the author's previous work so I really had no real expectations from this book. I know other reviewers have commented on the hype this book seems to have been getting but in my small area of Scotland I have to say I've not been aware of this and so I truly didn't have any preformed opinions.

I loved the premise of this book whereby people who have done or experienced traumatic or difficult things can go to a ‘binder' who will take those memories from them and put them into a book, therefore, allowing the person to return to their life with no knowledge of their difficult past and that the book will forever be the only remaining evidence of their memories. This makes for a wonderful opportunity within a fantasy setting to really push the boundaries of our characters as they struggle to remember clearly their past and the ability to discover through books the past of other's and how people could manipulate this to stop others from remembering things they have done to them.

Collins kicks off this book with plenty of mystery as we follow Emmett Farmer, a young boy who receives a letter telling him he is to be apprenticed to a ‘binder' where he will learn the trade of being a ‘bookbinder'. Bookbinders are viewed with suspicion by people in the countryside, seen as trading in the occult and leaving those whose memories they take as only shell's of the people they once were. Books are objects of evil and rarely touched. For Emmett this life is one he's unprepared for and when he finds himself living in the middle of the marshes with an elderly woman ‘binder' after having only just recovered from a mysterious illness which he is sure is linked to his new trade it offers us as the reader plenty of unanswered questions and mystery to keep us glued.

Yes, this book is packed with potential, from the mystery of what's happened to Emmett and why he is sick through the mysteries of ‘binding' and how it works to the mysterious Lucian Darnay who comes to be bound and then seems to fall into Emmett's life. There is a darkness to this book, the evil reasons why certain characters have been bound and the hidden secrets they've been made to forget offer us huge potential. And this for me was the problem. This book ultimately failed to take advantage of the darkness that it could have offered and instead became almost a love story alone.

As we move through Part Two and Three of the book we become less involved in the whole ‘binding' process and instead focus on the background of Emmett's life and his family and his first love. It's a controversial relationship for it's time to be sure but essentially this part of the book is fully dedicated to it and whilst I loved the two characters together I just felt that we lost certain magic in this section of the book as it became a romance. This meant that in Part Three of the book we are really just resolving the situation created in Part Two of the book to allow our romantic leads to resolve everything.

So whilst I enjoyed this book I was left somewhat disappointed, there are lots of characters we meet along the journey whose stories are never quite fleshed out, characters whose darkness and manipulation of binding would have made for fascinating and dark storytelling which is what I was hoping for from the beginning of this book. Instead, we have essentially a star-crossed lovers scenario that seems tame in comparison to where the book could have gone. And the ending, all just a bit too sudden for me. We resolved the outstanding reason the lovers couldn't be together and bang it was done. No further discussions at all. Literally one page it's resolved and next page ‘The End'. This left me feeling unfulfilled and disappointed.

If I reflect on this book it's with a sense of missed opportunities from the author. The concept for the story is excellent, it has lots of potential but it was squandered a little to tell a story of forbidden love. The characters who really grabbed my attention and made me want to see them brought to justice were never addressed or their stories explored more. I had to give this one a 3 out of 5 stars because all the groundwork was there, the foundations were solid but just not built upon into an exciting storyline.

Honestly, I could hardly put it down. Wanted to gobble it down in a day but managed to stretch it to two. It is lovely and wonderful with bits of heartwarming, gleeful moments. It made me remember what a romantic I can be. Overall, truly delightful.