u/slow_time_traveler

This was such a beautiful book. It’s part poetry, part stream of consciousness, and somehow manages to feel really accessible rather than pretentious. The prose and the flow were probably my favourite parts of the whole thing.

The story follows Travis, who is essentially Death living among humans and spending his time comforting people in their final moments. He knows when everyone’s time is coming and has always kept himself pretty detached, until he meets Dalia, a midwife, and her daughter Layla. Getting pulled into their lives starts to change the way he sees people, connection, love, and what it actually means to be alive.

It’s definitely a heavier read, dealing with death, grief, loss, and some difficult subject matter, so I’d recommend checking the trigger warnings. But despite how heavy it is, I thought it handled those themes really beautifully and made me feel quite a lot.

The concept was great, the execution was even better, and I just really loved the way this book was written. I had it at a 4.75, but honestly, it deserves the five stars.

I got laid off back in May and have spent the better part of that time job hunting and audiobooking 😂

Immersive reading has honestly changed the game for me. I’m getting SO much more reading done because I can listen while hiking, working out, doing chores, crafting, doing puzzles, etc. I also find that when I’m actively reading/listening, I’m way less likely to mindlessly scroll social media. (For the most part. I am still human.)

I usually save TV for when I’m eating as my little “break” from books, which has somehow turned into me realizing I have way too many books on my TBR and absolutely no intention of slowing down.

The TBR continues to grow, but I couldn’t be happier with how much I’m reading right now. I’m also genuinely going to be a little sad when I eventually get a job again 😂 Bitter sweet, obviously, because bills and capitalism and all that... but still.

Honestly, I wish I could make a livable wage just reading books.

Anyone else have a reading routine that completely took over their life? Or fellow audiobook/immersive reading people - what do you listen to while doing everything else?

This is a weird book. Truly weird. It is also probably the most interesting speculative fiction I have read in a long time.

I picked this up because of the cover and the concept, and both absolutely delivered. The story follows an alien trying to understand and imitate humans while navigating hunger, desire, gender, loneliness, and what it even means to be human. It is gruesome, disgusting, uncomfortable, and pushes a lot of boundaries.

This is absolutely not for everyone. Honestly, I don’t think I know many people personally who would enjoy this book, which somehow makes me love it even more. 😂

It is short, quick, disturbing, and completely unlike anything else I have read. The audiobook was also weird in the best possible way and the production really added to the experience.

I cannot give this anything less than five stars simply because it gave me something genuinely different. Cover, phenomenal. Audiobook, amazing. Story, disturbing.

Please read the trigger warnings, go in with an open mind, and understand that this book is going to be a lot.

Hands down one of the most interesting books I have read this year.

So far I've made loads of chicken, steak was by far the best. Great investment if you're sticking to a carnivorous diet.