The Spear Cuts Through Water

+1 star for: the style of prose! the little sentences between the paragraphs hold so much weight i felt like i was on the edge of a gasp the whole time. i am like beyond speechless. i don't think ill ever read anything like this ever again!

+1 star for: THE BIRD REVEAL (specifically the riverside massacre???) and THE TORTOISE REVEAL!!! god i was mouth AGAPE in SHOCK at these parts. just so so so good.

+1 star for: jun and keema!! not only was the ensemble cast so full and well developed i felt like i was falling in love with this two boys as they fell for each other. absolutely masterful character development and the scene where their minds connect??? i was SCREAMING

+1 star for: the reveal of them entering the inverted theater??? i have never read anything with so much disbelief and shock. the way this story weaves in and out of its self whilst still remaining understandable is just so incredible.

+1 star for: “and so he lay down that night by the dying fire with little thought as to the inner workings of his body—the chemistry of bequeathment and inheritance that began as the acids of his stomach met the gnarled and potent flesh of a god” LIKE???? WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE???