MENAGERIE by Rachel Vincent is book number one in her new
series Menagerie. This book is very different from
her wonderful Shifter series and also from her
Soul Screamers series. But Menagerie is truly dark,
gritty, and profoundly disturbing. The first half of the
book is difficult for me to read, and many times I wanted to
put the book down and simply walk away. I appreciate the
underlying book message that every living thing should be
treated with respect and kindness (even things you don't
think deserve it). The first half of this book is so
graphic in the mistreatment of creatures that it makes me
feel squicky. I don't know if Vincent intends to make her
message so perturbing that one cannot ignore it. If so, she
has done an excellent job with that.
Vincent demonstrates amazing worldbuilding skills, showing
us the world where Cryptids live penned up by humans.
Cryptids are fae, mythological creatures, shapeshifters, and
other paranormal near-humans. They coexisted peacefully
with humans until The Reaping twenty five years ago. Then
in just one day, one million children were inexplicably
killed by their own parents, who creepily have no memory of
the murders they committed. Without an explanation for the
murders, the massacre of the children is blamed on
mental manipulation by the Cryptids (it's always easy to pin
the blame of 'foreigners,' right?). All Cryptids,
human-appearing or not, were stripped of all their rights
and treated worse than animals. They were taken to be used
as lab rats or game preserves to be hunted. And they were
captured to be displayed in circuses, treated even worse
than the atrocities that are committed upon the elephants,
tigers, and orcas that we keep in captivity today in our own
world.
On Delilah's 25th birthday, her boyfriend takes her to see
Metzger's Menagerie, "The Largest Traveling Zoo in the
Northern Hemisphere." There, Delilah witnesses the
mistreatment of a shapeshifter child which triggers her
righteous rage and causes her to display the Cryptid
characteristics Delilah is unaware she possesses.
Bewildered, Delilah is immediately captured and stripped of
all her rights, even her name! She is sold to Metzger's
Menagerie, where she is degraded and tortured. The abuse
heaped upon her and the other captured Cryptids is
horrifically laid out in detail by Vincent. It is clear to
the reader that the real beasts are the humans who are on
the outside of the cage bars. The second half of the
book is not as dark, and sets up things beautifully for the
continuation of the series. By the last 25-percent, I really enjoy
what the story develops into. The last few chapters are
very hopeful, but the journey to get to that hope is fairly
painful to me.
I'm torn as to whether I can recommend this book.
Personally, if I had known ahead of time what this book is
like, I don't think I would have read it. While I donate
generously to animal rights causes, I can't tolerate seeing
the images of abused animals that some sites like PETA or
ASPCA show. I know the abuse is out there happening every
day, but I don't want to experience it in all its
graphicness. However, Vincent's MENAGERIE is utterly
thought-provoking, and if you like your horror/fantasy books
to make you really think about ethical and moral issues,
then this is the book for you.
From New York Times bestselling author Rachel
Vincent comes a richly imagined, provocative new series
set
in the dark mythology of the Menagerie…
When
Delilah Marlow visits a famous traveling carnival,
Metzger's
Menagerie, she is an ordinary woman in a not-quite-
ordinary
world. But under the macabre circus black-top, she
discovers
a fierce, sharp-clawed creature lurking just beneath her
human veneer. Captured and put on exhibition, Delilah in
her
black swan burlesque costume is stripped of her worldly
possessions, including her own name, as she's forced to
"perform" in town after town.
But there is
breathtaking beauty behind the seamy and grotesque
reality
of the carnival. Gallagher, her handler, is as kind as he
is
cryptic and strong. The other "attractions"—mermaids,
minotaurs, gryphons and kelpies—are strange, yes, but
they
share a bond forged by the brutal realities of captivity.
And as Delilah struggles for her freedom, and for her
fellow
menagerie, she'll discover a strength and a purpose she
never knew existed.
Renowned author Rachel
Vincent weaves an intoxicating blend of carnival magic
and
startling humanity in this intricately woven and powerful
tale.
"Blood Bound offers a little something
for
everyone: a convincing magical system for urban fantasy
fans; for romance readers, a love that time and distance
can't break; and a twist-and-turn plot for mystery buffs.
Readers looking for a light and fluffy ride should go
elsewhere."
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