Helpful Score: 1
"This was the great shame of Bethel: complacency and complicity that were responsible for the deaths of generations of girls. It was the sickness that placed the pride of men before the innocents they were sworn to protect. It was a structure that exploited the weakest among them for the benefit of those born to power."
This capable debut novel, which is likely to spawn an anticipated series, is a less-than-covert feminist novel, drawing inspiration from a cornucopia of precedents, real and imagined. It tells the timeless, Handmaid-esque tale of Immanuelle, a perpetual outsider on account of both her physical appearance and ancestry, raised by her grandparents upon the death of her mother in childbirth. Immanuelle is born into a rigid, patriarchal society, led by The Prophet, a priest-king who rules his rather diminutive kingdom with an iron fist in the name of God, the Father and Progenitor of Light, where women are incised, branded, when they are married, sealed in their foreheads to their husband-owners, especially the polygamous Prophet, whose indiscretions lead to tragedy.
Immanuelle's mother, accused of witchcraft, turned to the Dark Woods upon the death of her lover by fire, to which she was a witness. In an act of supernatural revenge, she imbues her infant daughter with powers beyond imagining, which can either save or destroy the only world either has ever known.
As above, the novel is definitively and thoroughly a powerful statement regarding the misogyny inherent in patriarchal structures, particularly legalistic religious systems, which afford opportunistic and often narcissistic leaders god-like power and the ability to punish on a whim. As such, the book is also a capable critique of the toxic aspects of organized religion, ala The Handmaid's Tale, from which it clearly draws direct inspiration. As demonstrated by this engaging story, dogmatic religious systems frequently allow for the exploitation of adherents, voluntary and coerced members alike, to maintain power and control. As we have seen from examples throughout history, this control is often based on misogyny, as here, as seen in the form of the Mother, mysterious and uncontrollable, incomprehensible to the Holy Father, as his opposite, antithesis, nemesis.
Institutionalization is inherently patriarchal, as revealed here, and in countless other examples of established theology and complex civilization. The nature-based aspects of the female are twisted and perverted by those who fear them, because they cannot understand or control them. In this, the author's condemnation is fairly blatant, if accurate: "The Church, which not only excused and forgave the sins of its leaders but enabled them with the Protocol and the market stocks, with muzzles and lashings and twisted Scriptures. It was the whole of them, the heart of Bethel, itself, that made certain every woman who lived behind the gate had only two choices: resignation, or ruin."
The women herein are far from powerless, however; they wield a power all their own, but covertly, hidden from the doctrines of men which seek to destroy it to maintain their own illusory sense of power and control. The result is often tragic, as the author notes: "It was not the Prophet who bore Bethel, bound to his back like a millstone. It was all of the innocent girls and women... who suffered and died at the hands of men who exploited them. They were Bethel's sacrifice. They were the bones upon which the Church was built." Ever has it been so.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read, featuring an unexpected heroine, whose journey to find her true self is inspiring. I agree with several of the other reviewers who have noted that its main weakness is the lack of character development, particularly in the Four Witches of the Dark Woods, whose stories would have made the narrative all the more compelling and terrifying. The Prophet, likewise, could have been portrayed as a far more complex character, as it seems that he has some dark secrets of his own, but much is left undeveloped. Notwithstanding these minor flaws, however, the novel is entertaining, but it is still powerful, in that it reminds us of how our world is still shaped by these haunting and perennial themes: love, loss, betrayal, loyalty, and sacrifice for the good of the community.
This capable debut novel, which is likely to spawn an anticipated series, is a less-than-covert feminist novel, drawing inspiration from a cornucopia of precedents, real and imagined. It tells the timeless, Handmaid-esque tale of Immanuelle, a perpetual outsider on account of both her physical appearance and ancestry, raised by her grandparents upon the death of her mother in childbirth. Immanuelle is born into a rigid, patriarchal society, led by The Prophet, a priest-king who rules his rather diminutive kingdom with an iron fist in the name of God, the Father and Progenitor of Light, where women are incised, branded, when they are married, sealed in their foreheads to their husband-owners, especially the polygamous Prophet, whose indiscretions lead to tragedy.
Immanuelle's mother, accused of witchcraft, turned to the Dark Woods upon the death of her lover by fire, to which she was a witness. In an act of supernatural revenge, she imbues her infant daughter with powers beyond imagining, which can either save or destroy the only world either has ever known.
As above, the novel is definitively and thoroughly a powerful statement regarding the misogyny inherent in patriarchal structures, particularly legalistic religious systems, which afford opportunistic and often narcissistic leaders god-like power and the ability to punish on a whim. As such, the book is also a capable critique of the toxic aspects of organized religion, ala The Handmaid's Tale, from which it clearly draws direct inspiration. As demonstrated by this engaging story, dogmatic religious systems frequently allow for the exploitation of adherents, voluntary and coerced members alike, to maintain power and control. As we have seen from examples throughout history, this control is often based on misogyny, as here, as seen in the form of the Mother, mysterious and uncontrollable, incomprehensible to the Holy Father, as his opposite, antithesis, nemesis.
Institutionalization is inherently patriarchal, as revealed here, and in countless other examples of established theology and complex civilization. The nature-based aspects of the female are twisted and perverted by those who fear them, because they cannot understand or control them. In this, the author's condemnation is fairly blatant, if accurate: "The Church, which not only excused and forgave the sins of its leaders but enabled them with the Protocol and the market stocks, with muzzles and lashings and twisted Scriptures. It was the whole of them, the heart of Bethel, itself, that made certain every woman who lived behind the gate had only two choices: resignation, or ruin."
The women herein are far from powerless, however; they wield a power all their own, but covertly, hidden from the doctrines of men which seek to destroy it to maintain their own illusory sense of power and control. The result is often tragic, as the author notes: "It was not the Prophet who bore Bethel, bound to his back like a millstone. It was all of the innocent girls and women... who suffered and died at the hands of men who exploited them. They were Bethel's sacrifice. They were the bones upon which the Church was built." Ever has it been so.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read, featuring an unexpected heroine, whose journey to find her true self is inspiring. I agree with several of the other reviewers who have noted that its main weakness is the lack of character development, particularly in the Four Witches of the Dark Woods, whose stories would have made the narrative all the more compelling and terrifying. The Prophet, likewise, could have been portrayed as a far more complex character, as it seems that he has some dark secrets of his own, but much is left undeveloped. Notwithstanding these minor flaws, however, the novel is entertaining, but it is still powerful, in that it reminds us of how our world is still shaped by these haunting and perennial themes: love, loss, betrayal, loyalty, and sacrifice for the good of the community.
Melissa B. (dragoneyes) -
Helpful Score: 1
A great story that revolves around a girl, Immanuelle and her family cast out of privilege from something her mother had done. Set around a cult whose overseers have long abused the powers that they were given. In the background are witches that are looking for revenge.
When Immanuelle enters the dark wood, bad things start happen to her town. She sets out on a journey to set things right and finds more than she expected.
I really enjoyed the story and the setting. The only thing that took away from the book was sometimes the dialogue seemed a bit young adult. Doesn't really take away much from the story though.
When Immanuelle enters the dark wood, bad things start happen to her town. She sets out on a journey to set things right and finds more than she expected.
I really enjoyed the story and the setting. The only thing that took away from the book was sometimes the dialogue seemed a bit young adult. Doesn't really take away much from the story though.
