The Binding: Not as Magical As I’d Hoped [Wyrd & Wonder Review]

Books are dangerous things in Collins’s alternate universe, a place vaguely reminiscent of 19th-century England. It’s a world in which people visit book binders to rid themselves of painful or treacherous memories. Once their stories have been told and are bound between the pages of a book, the slate is wiped clean and their memories lose the power to hurt or haunt them.

After having suffered some sort of mental collapse and no longer able to keep up with his farm chores, Emmett Farmer is sent to the workshop of one such binder to live and work as her apprentice. Leaving behind home and family, Emmett slowly regains his health while learning the binding trade. He is forbidden to enter the locked room where books are stored, so he spends many months marbling end pages, tooling leather book covers, and gilding edges. But his curiosity is piqued by the people who come and go from the inner sanctum, and the arrival of the lordly Lucian Darnay, with whom he senses a connection, changes everything.

Goodreads

⚠️ This review contains SPOILERS throughout. ⚠️

Review ✍🏻

Immediately after finishing The Binding, I rated it two stars on Goodreads. Up until the conclusion, I thought I was going to rate it three stars. The ending frustrated me so much I knocked one off. I returned the star the next day when my feelings towards the book leveled off.

The premise of this book caught my eye (and the gorgeous covers). I hoped I would find a story set in a fantasy world where the act of binding memories in books was front and center. Binding does play an important role in the story, but not in the way I’d hoped. It functions largely as a metaphor for social commentary, rather than an intriguing fantastical element on its own. Collins’ note after the story, explaining that her idea for the book stemmed in part from how we deal with negative emotions, made me consider the book in a fresh light. In that way, it’s well-written and thought provoking, but again, not the fantasy I had hoped for.

And I resented Darnay’s presence for other reasons too – the way he looked at me, the way I was conscious of the stink of pig muck or oil or sweat clinging to my shirt, the way he made my stomach church.

The Binding, 43%

The primary story line is one of romance, not fantasy. And I am not a romance fan. I admit that I found the slow burn cute. But after the flame finally caught, so to speak, things accelerated quickly without becoming more than a physical tryst. I lost interest in Emmett and Lucian’s relationship. I might have DNF’d this book at about 70% of the way through, if my access to library books wasn’t so limited these days.

The story adopts a unique three part structure. I found the first part – in which Emmett trains as a binder – most interesting, though Seredith’s entire role ultimately felt like a red herring once she died. The second part is essentially a massive flashback, as Emmett regains memories that were once bound. The third part switches from Emmett’s first person perspective to Lucian’s, which I initially thought was a neat thing to do.

However, I found that final section dull, because I knew we were just waiting for Lucian to get his memories back. That’s why I found the ending frustrating. I felt like little happened in the third part. I wanted more of a happy, engaged ending for Lucian and Emmett. The story is meet, fall in love, forced separation, meet again. It doesn’t go beyond that to give them a chance at a full relationship.

A few things I did really like the: the writing style! I particularly enjoyed the opening chapters that introduce the word through hints, discussion, etc. to fuel interest in and establish the setting. And I liked that Emmett is essentially a sweet wholesome boy.

The Bottom Line 💭

The Binding largely disappointed me but if you go in with different expectations (if you want a queer romance in a world where being queer isn’t okay), you will likely enjoy it more. I think it’s a generally good book, just not for me.

Further Reading 📰

🍂 Read an excerpt
🍂 Book website
🍂 Interview @ Better Reading
🍂 Reviews: The Guardian
🍂 Related: Middlegame is also more about relationships than about magic, though it struck a much better chord with me.

What books have you read, thinking or hoping the story would go one way but it went another?