The Lyme Brook Mist

The Lyme Brook Misy is a unique YA fantasy. While it took me a while to get into the book, several chapters to be honest, it did take off and was pretty good. I think if you stick with it, you will enjoy the story. It has a lot of references to other books which is really cool.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Lyme Brook Mist in exchange for an honest review.

This book is weird and it knows it. Inspired heavily by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Lyme Brook Mist transports you into a nonsensical alternate version of Newcastle full of whimsy, confusing legal systems, and a ton of references to classic literature and their authors.

This book is so incredibly meta that it fully tells you that its a Lewis Carol inspired story full of literary references in its own narrative. It's constantly going "look? See? Get in?" but in a way that makes a lot of sense once you let your brain switch to the nonsensical logic of the world. It's definitely a stylistic narrative so there'll likely be things some people like and others dislike (I personally was a bit bothered by how many dialogue tags this book had) but its definitely worth it for this unique adventure.

The Lyme Brook Mist by Anton Corvus was a short read. A fun, curious tale, featuring a ridiculous political system. I lost myself in reading it, a joy I haven’t felt in fiction for a while.

Leo, a teenage boy from Newcastle, finds himself on an unintentional adventure. He meets some strange characters and goes on a Wonderland-esque journey. The alternate reality Leo ends up in is very different, but at the same time, very similar to the world he left.

The resulting situations are hilarious, mysterious and entertaining. The characters were endearing, sometimes surprising, and very British. I adored the references to some of my favourite writers, Edgar Allan Poe and Edward Lear. If you love Lewis Caroll’s work, you’ll probably enjoy this! It’s nonsensical in the best way. Once you understand what ‘beakery’ is, you won’t be able to get it out of your mind.

I would have loved The Lyme Brook Mist as a child, but I enjoyed it as an adult too! Anton Corvus is a wonderful storyteller. I appreciated the intentional ridiculousness of the plot, language play, and mystical elements.

I did, however, find myself a bit surprised by Leo’s vocabulary and knowledge. He was certainly very well-read for a 12-year-old boy! At times I forgot that the novel is set in 2018, as he referenced many Classical music pieces and literature works. I’m not sure if that’s particularly representative of a 12-year-old British boy in 2018, but perhaps I’m over-analysing.

One scene did ‘drag’ a little for me, involving a courtroom scenario. Otherwise, I enjoyed the plot, the mood, and especially the language and references. I love a bit of nonsense, and the Lyme Brook Mist ticked that box!

Review on my blog: https://emilyunderworld.co.uk/the-lyme-brook-mist/

This was great fun! For lovers of smart wordplay, this is reminiscent of a more subtle Phantom Tollbooth. While some readers may be frustrated by the ending...which is not an ending...I was happy to be assured of another installment.