Fellside in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Feb 24, 2016 Nadine in NY Jones rated it it was amazing

Shelves: maybe, fantasy-and-sci-fi, paranormal, broken, r2016-in-2016

Where am I? How did I get here? Who's thinking these thoughts? What was before this?

This. Was. So. Good.

And this book really defies categorization, so far as genre is concerned. It's enough "science fiction" to put my mother (a confirmed sci-fi hater) off, but not enough to really feel to me like it belongs smack dab in the center of the sci-fi genre. There is a whodunit mystery, but this is not a mystery. There are "suspense/thriller" elements, and it is a page-turner, but it is not fast-p

Where am I? How did I get here? Who's thinking these thoughts? What was before this?

This. Was. So. Good.

And this book really defies categorization, so far as genre is concerned. It's enough "science fiction" to put my mother (a confirmed sci-fi hater) off, but not enough to really feel to me like it belongs smack dab in the center of the sci-fi genre. There is a whodunit mystery, but this is not a mystery. There are "suspense/thriller" elements, and it is a page-turner, but it is not fast-paced, and there's no espionage. There are ghosts, and a woman who can walk in the dream world, so it's paranormal, which makes it sci-fi/fantasy-ish. But mostly this book is about people making their ways in the world, their reaction to stress, their different ways of processing guilt, and their varied attempts to seek atonement. And, since this is set in a women's prison, this book is mostly about women, but there are men in the good guy camp and men in the bad guy camp, so it's not ONLY women.

I think the marketing for this book is doing it a disservice. Frankly, I felt like the marketing group had NO IDEA how to market this, and probably never bothered to read it. First of all, get that Girl with All the Gifts inset off the cover and let the gorgeous cover speak for itself. This book can stand on its own merits, and trying to pull in zombie fans is just going to lead to disappointment. Second of all, the blurb makes it sound like this takes place in some moldering old heap in the middle of nowhere that is haunted by centuries-old ghosts. That's not it at all. Fellside is a modern prison, painted in cheery colors, and run by a for-profit organization. Everyone else in Fellside is just a normal person, it's only Jess who can sort of pierce that membrane of here and elsewhere.

The plot is a slow boil, sprawling across dozens of characters, punctuated regularly by extreme violence, and slowly building up to a surprisingly poignant ending. We open after the first bang has already happened: Jess, a former heroin junkie, has already been tried and convicted of murder by intentionally setting a fire that killed a young boy. Jess has some shit to deal with. I think she deals with it admirably, and a lot better than I - a non-drug addict - could ever manage. Jess is damaged and broken, but she is also brave, selfless and good. She is an outcast in the prison (no one likes a child murderer) but she ultimately becomes an inspiration for all of the inmates.

Plus, the writing is just awesome, it is real, and surprising, and philosophical, and mystical, and funny, including gems such as:

She woke shivering in the warm hospital room, chilled by her own slick sweat. A breath was caught halfway up her throat like a solid thing, and she had to spit it out piecemeal, in quick, shallow gasps.

and

Surely you couldn't become a murderer without knowing it. Maybe you could forget the act because of trauma or madness, but you couldn't forget the intent. If it had ever been there, it would still be inside you, in your head or your heart, and a thorough search of the premises would find it.

and

Nothing goes on forever. If it did, there wouldn't be anything else, would there?

and

"Holy fuck," Corcoran said, leaning back against the wall. "I am going home and drinking a whole bottle of Bacardi. Someone can pour the Coke into me after I pass out."

****

ETA: I just browsed through other reviews on GR, and I see A LOT of people saying how disappointed they were in this book after their lovefest with TGWATG, and I'm left thinking (a) all the more reason to get TGWATG off the cover of this book, it will only draw in the wrong readers, and (b) I had the exact opposite reaction. I was SUPER excited to read TGWATG, because hey! zombies + Mike Carey = Nadine's catnip! And I ended up feeling a little let down by that book. With this book, I went in with moderate expectations, and I was blown away by how much I LOVED it! ...more

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Nov 25, 2017 Christine H rated it it was ok

Shelves: abandoned

I still love you, Mike Carey, but I just can't with this. I felt like I'd been reading forever, only to discover there were still 337 pages to go!

I kept waiting for the setup to end and the real plot to get going, only to realize that this was mostly going to be a drama about corruption and brutality in a prison, not a ghost story. The actual ghost story has an intriguing hook at the start, and then goes pretty much nowhere. Flipping to the end of the book shows me that the big reveal for that s ...more

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Mar 29, 2016 Teri G rated it did not like it

Shelves: abandoned

I enjoyed Girl With All the Gifts, (or at least the first half, enough so that I read through to the end, which was awesome and unexpected) so I was looking forward to Fellside, but I just couldn't get into it. It started out with a good premise but it moved too slowly for me and I just wasn't invested in any of the characters. After 160 pages, I didn't feel like even skimming through to the end. I'll go look for some spoilers - it'll be quicker! ...more

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