Dead Collections
Ratings4
Average rating3.5
A whirlwind romance between an eccentric archivist and a grieving widow explores what it means to be at home in your own body in this clever, humorous, and heartfelt novel. When archivist Sol meets Elsie, the larger than life widow of a moderately famous television writer who's come to donate her wife's papers, there's an instant spark. But Sol has a secret: he suffers from an illness called vampirism, and hides from the sun by living in his basement office. On their way to falling in love, the two traverse grief, delve into the Internet fandom they once unknowingly shared, and navigate the realities of transphobia and the stigmas of carrying the "vampire disease." Then, when strange things start happening at the collection, Sol must embrace even more of the unknown to save himself and his job. DEAD COLLECTIONS is a wry novel full of heart and empathy, that celebrates the journey, the difficulties and joys, in finding love and comfort within our own bodies.
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Unfortunately, this one wasn't really my jam while the ending was kinda satisfying and the characters sort of sweet I feel like I mostly didn't get it and I really wasn't keen on the structure that seemed needlessly complicated and clunky.
For the sex-repulsed in the room: there's a bit of spice in that one, it's not super descriptive and you could easily skim without losing much of the story.
Reviewing all my books for 2022 book bingo! Read this for the Book Club square.
I really enjoyed this! I wish that the vampire-y/eidolism aspects of the plot had been fleshed out more, but that might just be personal preference as a reader (and much more a reader of fantasy than of romance). I thought the concept of vampirism as a chronic illness to be interesting - the idea that most people die within 5 years or so of contracting it due to the difficulty was a take I haven't seen before. It was nice to have main characters that are middle aged and still figuring out aspects of their identities (though Sol read as much younger to me than Else!)
It felt like the author hates lesbians, every single one was a “dyke” and either transphobic or a serial cheater. The romance felt forced and toxic. The most interesting character was the dead one. 2 stars for having an interesting premise, even though it wasn't executed well.
