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This was a rather strange book, and it lived up to its name, but not in a good way. When you read the blurb, the book is rather inviting, but as soon as you sit down to read it, it becomes a literal “study for obedience” to finish it. The prose was at stages poetic and beautiful, but the story itself was nothing but a strange fever dream that you could not escape.

The cover image is what first drew me into buying the book. The title, linked with the cover art, screamed “buy me”, and so I did. The sad thing about online shopping, where I bought this book, is that you cannot easily read the first sentence if the book does not have a preview online. So, in a moment of late-night online shopping and Christmas specials, I bought this book.

For about two years, this book sat on my shelve. And at the end of the year (2025), I started reading this book. Finishing it at the end of January (2026), the book spent some time in my mind, fermenting as always. And it did not turn into a pleasant product.

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I read the book and finished it purely based on the beautiful writing style, but the logistics of the story itself did not make sense. There were too many questions that remained unanswered. There were things that happened that did not make sense to the modern reader. And it felt almost like the promise of the blurb did not live up these promises.

Scanning the internet for other reviews, one is really struck by the dominant theme: the prose is beyond exceptional, but the story itself does not make sense. One is left wondering at the end what was this all? What just happened? It was a mixture between strange events that feel out of place, like it needed to happen some time in the 1800s, but it was situated in rather contemporary times. But the events made even less sense.

But that is part of the problem, the events are not discussed in enough detail, or rather, we as readers are not allowed to enter this world. We are frustratingly left dangling inches away from understanding what is happening. The premise of the book, or the background of this book, the main character (in whose head we are stuck) and her relationship with her brother, is what fascinates everyone. But we are not given any inclination of what is going on. Again, it is set in rather contemporary times, with cell phones, but the events feel like the 1800s. And this itself is frustrating to some degree. But then the strange events in the town also frustrates one, because it does not provide any insight into the main character’s situation.

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In the end, this was a rather frustrating read, not because it was bad, but because like so many other works in this genre it feels like the story was too big for the author. (As always, this coming from a reader and not a fellow author… take it with a grain of salt.) Finishing the book, you are left with so many questions, and not the good kinds. Not the questions that allow you to go back to the book, but rather questions that make you forget about the book.

And that is sad, because the writing is so well, but the story was just… It was forgettable because it was almost always impenetrable. In some cases, this frustration can help, but in this case, it did not help.

For now, enjoy what you are reading, and keep well!

All of the musings and writings are my own, albeit inspired by this book but also other online reviews. The photographs are my own, taken with my Nikon D300.

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