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Whether Violent or Natural

By: Natasha Calder
Narrated by: Kit Griffiths
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Summary

Bloomsbury presents Whether Violent or Natural by Natasha Calder, read by Kit Griffiths.

'Darkly unsettling' Guardian
'Intoxicating – dark, heady, lyrical’ Daily Telegraph
'Terrifying and inventive' Observer

In a world devastated by antimicrobial resistance, two survivors are thrown into crisis when a woman washes ashore on the remote island where they live

__________________________

Years after complete antibiotic resistance has resulted in the loss of most human life on earth, Kit and Crevan eke out an existence on a remote island. Under a collapsing castle, they spend their days in an underground bunker packed with emergency stores, venturing out only at night. They are safe.

One evening a woman washes ashore, nearly drowned. Crevan wants to keep her alive, but Kit isn’t so sure.

The new arrival will implode Kit and Crevan’s world with dire and fatal consequences, churning up the waters of the past and unearthing secrets they have kept from each other and from themselves. Who is really in control – and what are they both capable of doing to protect their haven?

Gripping, treacherous and visceral, Whether Violent or Natural is an unforgettably dark and strikingly original work by a major new talent.

'Sly, sharp, and utterly captivating' Rory Power, New York Times-bestselling author of Wilder Girls

'Hits you like a shot of the very good stuff ... Dark-hearted, complex, and accomplished' C. A. Fletcher, author of A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World

©2023 Natasha Calder (P)2023 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
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Unnaturally violent…

…is how I felt towards this. Had it been a tangible, paged-based book, I would have hurled it against the wall.
The idea is interesting, and although I found Kit’s cod-shakespearean turn of phrase incongruous at first, I persevered to see how things would turn out.
But as the plot develops, Kit’s ramblings become so self-indulgently theatrical I’m amazed Calder’s editor didn’t tell her to get a grip. Especially as Calder makes Kit use three metaphors where one will do. This is the sort of writing a precocious sixth former feverishly turns out in the hope that their staggering genius will be held up to the light and revered in hushed tones.
Maybe mine is a lone voice as there seem to be plenty of praise for Calder, but in the end I couldn’t bring myself to finish the book. It just annoyed me so intensely that I couldn’t concentrate, as I was continuously wishing a violent demise for Kit - and resenting Calder for inventing such a truly awful protagonist.
PS: felt sorry for the narrator who did a heroic job ploughing through this turgid guff.

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