Review: The Binding, by Bridget Collins

The Binding, by Bridget Collins

HarperCollins - Available April 16, 2019
Fantasy
E-book

Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for this Digital Review Copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

My Rating (out of 5)

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Collins has created a beautiful tale in this book of Romance, books, and magic.   

In this book, bookbinders do not create the types of books we have come to know and love. 

Haven't we all at one point uttered the phrase "I wish I could forget..."? In The Binding each book is a person's memories. Anyone who wants to forget and see a bookbinder who can take their memories and bind them into a book. The more ethical bookbinders store them in a vault for safekeeping, but the less ethical ones may sell them for profit, or twist the whole process to suit their darker intentions. 

Emmet is the son of a farmer. After a long illness he struggles to perform his duties on the family farm.  It is clear that he cannot do the physical work demanded on a farm the way he did prior to his illness. When a letter arrives summoning him to take on the position of a book binder's apprentice, it seems clear that this is what Emmet needs to do. 

His teacher is a wise old woman named Seredith who teaches him bit by bit, step by step, how to create a quality book to bind the memories of others. It is clear that each book that Seredith creates is done so with great reverence. Emmet knows that this is what he is meant to do, but he doesn't know that there is already a book with his name on it. What is inside that book could challenge everything Emmet has come to believe about himself, who he was, and what he wants. Can a heart remember even if the mind forgets?

Collins writes beautifully.  Whether writing an uplifting scene, or an ominous one, her descriptions are wonderfully vivid and the scenes come alive in your mind. When combined with her original storyline concept, you end up with a pretty darn good book.

Despite the good writing and being a good book, I was a little bit disappointed in how the original synopsis stacked up against the book I read. Kind of an "I was expecting oranges and got apples" kind of thing. I thought this would be a rich fantasy with a bit of a romantic sub-plot (I mean really, I cannot remember the last time I read any book, especially fantasy, that didn't have at least a bit of romantic sub-plot!), what I read was more like a rich romance with a sprinkling of magic. I personally don't choose to read books where romance figures quite so prominently (before anyone gets offended, no I am not a hater, or a genre-snob, or whatever else you might think - read what makes you happy, but for myself, no thanks to romance). 

I am happy to say that at least some of the promotional material I have seen more lately does reference the importance of romance to the story. 

In conclusion, while I may not have chosen this book had I understood how much focus was on the romantic aspect, it is still a well written book and sure to please many a reader.

Happy Reading,

Christine