The social structure of "eater families," "knight" enforcers, and "dragons"—those bred to consume thoughts rather than ink and paper—is complex and interesting. And while the story's main themes are patriarchal tyranny, family conflict, and fantasy, there are times when it borders on horror, particularly when it comes to specifics like Devon feeding "good" humans to her kid in an effort to keep him young.
This is a novel that builds slowly and then, when you least expect it, hits you full force with stakes, sentiments, and an inability to put it down. Although I have to admit that I was anticipating a gothic, the notion of book-eating families and their sporadic brain-eating kids was intriguing from the beginning. This is such a heartbreaking tale of the lengths a mother will go to save her offspring and loved ones. Although Devon has an incredibly strong moral compass, her actions to protect her son are quite questionable.

I don't really read a lot of dark fantasy but from the moment I read the synopsis of The Book Eaters, I was intrigued. I enjoyed the way in which Sunyi Dean wrote her characters as well as the world. Her world building was unique to this type of book and I can't wait to read more from Dean.

This is such an unique book plot with a great gothic theme perfect for halloween readers
the only issues i had was the speed of the book didnt flow, i felt there was section with i read in second but then others dragged so much that i nearly put it down.
please understand i did really like this book and would love to see more in this world but i feel the pace needs to be sorted in other book if there was to be more

With thanks to Sunyi Dean and HarperCollins UK for an advanced readers copy of this book.

4*

A great surprise!

Sunyi will be an insta buy going forward, they have a wonderful worldbuilding style that I definitely got swept up in.
The book eaters is multiple point-of-view book, with the focus being on Devon - the other POVs are very brief intermissions that sometimes feel a little unnecessary however they certainly help with the intricacy of the plot.
I'm a huge fan of quotes, and every chapter of this starts with a poinient quote from another other, that really helps to set the move.

The book is far darker than even I though it would be, and would really recommend for anyone who is a fan of darker fantasy.

It’s not a genre which I usually read so jumped in the book without any expectations, surprisingly it didn’t disappoint and I kept on reading. The writing style is lucid and it’s a gripping tale.

This book is difficult to describe. I enjoyed it while I was reading, but once I finished and could sit with the story for a bit longer everything fell apart. I disliked the way many characters were portrayed (especially the adultification of children felt lazy) and the offensive analogies the author decided to use.

I unfortunately could not get into this book. But this might be for another type of reader, and wish the best for the writers.

The immersive world-building and expansive character development was gripping! Thoroughly enjoyed the plot, pace and writing in this debut.

I adored this and could easily read more in this story.
Thoughts while reading:
Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger meaning I was hooked. I also loved that the chapters told you whether you were reading in the past or present and switched regularly.
The concept itself of book eaters and mind eaters was fascinating and I was hooked in learning more, especially in relation to the knights and dragons, along with redemption.
The families traditions of arranged marriages and leaving your child when they turn three sounds awful, but I’m also glad that we follow the story/characters we are following.
The IVF discussions - I’d love to get a second book surrounding this and D’s daughter!
There was also a brief scene discussing asexuality and being gay in this world - loved that it wasn’t a big thing but that these characters existed.

One complaint:
Cai doesn’t come across as a 5 year old at all - I genuinely kept forgetting he wasn’t a grown man. I understand why he appears older than he actually is but I feel like there should have been more childlike characteristics with him.

Imagine being kept separate from the world, growing up in a rigid world of tradition and arranged marriages in order to keep bloodlines strong. Imagine a world where, instead of food, you can eat stories. Now imagine you can consume *minds*, leaving behind the husk of a person. This is the life of Devon's second child Cai and she will do anything to protect him from those who wish to end him.

This is a dark, compelling story of oppression, betrayal and a mother’s love.

The worldbuilding is rich and fascinating with a social system of ‘eater families, ‘knight’ enforcers and ‘dragons’ – those born to eat minds instead of ink and paper. And while the heart of the story revolves around patriarchal oppression, familial drama and fantasy, it definitely verges on the side of horror at times, especially when it came to details like Devon feeding ‘good’ humans to her son to try to preserve his childhood.

In fact, this becomes a central question within the narrative: what compromises would you be willing to make in your values in order to protect or save those you love?

While the ending here resolves some of the conflict within Devon’s world, there were also threads left trailing with a tantalising potential for a sequel. After all, Devon has more than one child to save and many, many more wrongs to right… or avenge.

This was not the book I expected it to be when I read it and I loved it so much more for this. I loved the dual timeline and narrative style of the book and the storyline was gripping from start to finish.

The premise drew me in with this one and I didn't want it to end. I would highly recommend this book.

Difficult to explain, easy to recommend, an impact worth experiencing. This modern take on vampirism tackles sexism through a morally grey protagonist while building a culture filled with politics and dark tactics.

Loved the uniqueness of the story and fantasy world. A woman's life in the time of suppression and oppression without any empowerment is captured well. In a morally grey world with survival and saving her son being the goals, the main character goes to every extreme without remorse. But, she failed to make any sort of relationship throughout the book. Even with her son she hardly has any conversation. And then there is a one line of romance at the last chapter which could've been handled far better. Except that, this is one of the best books.

I love a story about a mother and child kind of dynamics especially if the story has an interesting premise. People who eat books is a hook that will get any book lover to pick up this book.
The Book Eaters is a stunning debut by Sunyi Dean. The story follows Devon, a very grey character that borders on likeable and unlikeable for me. She is the last remaining members of a family of book eaters. The book is dual timelines where one is the present day, and we see Devon with her son who are living in hiding trying to stay away from her family. They are on the run following the events of her husband's death and the suspicious circumstances of this. One of the key themes is the sacrifices a mother will make for her children. It also tackles the trauma of forced marriage and at times feels very much like the Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood especially as the mothers are forced to abandon their children on their third birthday.

I would say this is a good book that needs to be recognized more. Such a fun horror fantasy story with impressionable characters.

I loved the premise of this book - people who eat books, what could be more relatable to a reader?

The MC is great, she's feisty, independent, and one of the most morally grey characters I've ever read. I really felt for her as a mother and for all of the things that she has to deal with in such a patriarchal, misogynistic world.

The dark and gothic aesthetic sets a great tone for the book and the medium pace keeps things moving. I love that the author chose to make this book a contemporary fantasy, as the backdrop of modern society really helps to juxtapose what the book eaters do and how strange and unusual they are.

I love that this book features a sapphic relationship, I just wish that it was a bit more developed as the connection felt a bit strained. Truthfully, a lot of the relationships felt strained and I really struggled to have any empathy or connection for the characters, which means that I lost interest in the story at times and had a hard time getting into it.

The pacing was a bit slower than what I typically enjoy but it was enough to keep me engaged and reading until the end.

Overall, I think the book fell a little flat for me as I would have liked more from the characters and from the book eaters themselves, and felt like I was ultimately left with more questions than answers at the end.

This is a slow-burn of a book, one that starts slow and then hits you full on with stakes and feelings and can't-put-down-ness when you're least expecting it. The premise of book-eating families and their occasional brain-eating offspring was intriguing from the outset, though I have to say I was expecting a gothic, Victorian-era style setting rather than modern day and that threw me for a little while.

The main character, Devon, is not a likeable person. She does horrible things, and knows it, but feels she has been backed into a corner where she has no other choice if she and her son are going to survive. The book is in dual timelines so we see Devon in the present - morally grey, ruthless, in survival mode and on the run from her people's enforcers - and also Devon growing from an isolated, restricted childhood into a young adult and all the choices (few of which were truly her own) that led to where she is now. The timelines are interwoven so cleverly that you build sympathy and understanding for Devon in tandem with her mysteries and secrets being gradually revealed. There's double and triple crosses, divided loyalties, not knowing if anyone - including Devon herself -can be trusted, all the things I love, set against the unknown and dangerous world of the book eaters. It made for a gripping read, but not a light one. There's a very strong theme running through it of what oppression and desperation can do to a person, what it can twist them into, and how hard it can be to step away from that when it's all they've known.

CW for horrific levels of misogyny, some pretty gory violence, queermisia in various forms, and sexual assault and rape, though not graphically on page.

Okay, so this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022! However, it was very different from what I initially expected.

We follow Devon who's a member of one of the last remaining families of Book Eaters, they quite literally read books. The book is dual timelines where one is the present day, and we see Devon with her son who are living in hiding trying to stay away from her family. They are on the run following the events of her husband's death and the suspicious circumstances of this. Also, her son is special, he eats the minds of people. She tries to carefully select his victims for those who don't have ties to anyone, as once her son has eaten, there isn't a lot of that person left. The other timeline is her at home growing up as one of the few young girls in her community and what happens to her while growing up

This is such a heartrenching story of how far a mother is willing to go to protect her children and family. Devon is such an unbelievably strong character, but very morally grey in what she does to keep her son safe.

The Book Eaters was a pleasant and refreshing read from start to finish. There’s very little fantasy books set in the North of England, with the most popular sticking to the London roots instead, so it was nice to have an author take an interest for their book to be set in Newcastle for the majority of the story. The level of queerness throughout the book was also very refreshing, and being on the asexual spectrum myself, I really appreciated the asexual representation. The characters were also a pleasant read, nothing too perfect, and I really appreciated the themes of fairy tales featured throughout the novel. Will definitely be reading more by Sunyi Dean.

The Book Eaters at a glance:
✨ dark fairytale vibes
❤️ queer characters
🌙 commentary on gender expectations
🦕 a very unique concept
🌈 a fight for freedom

This. Was. Everything

I knew I’d enjoy The Book Eaters from the very first page. The writing was unapologetically dark and gothic, with a modern flare. The concept itself was so unique and I really enjoyed being in this world.

The Book Eaters are a group of six families in England, who survive on eating stories. The families are very much controlled, with each one having a Male head of the household.

As a Yorkshire girly myself, I loved that Devon was from Yorkshire too! Listening to the audiobook as well only enhanced my enjoyment.

The Book Eaters also had a lot to say on gender roles, and the expectations placed on gender in society (particularly women and the expectation of child bearing). We follow Devon throughout as she tries to break free from the patriarchal world of the Eaters and forge a new life for her and her son Cai. We flip between past and present as Devon realises she is in fact a princess, just like the ones from the stories she was fed as a child. But like in fairytales, the princess of often a trapped and tortured individual.

I would love to read more stories in this world, and especially from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the E-arc in exchange for an honest review.