Children of the Sun - Beth Lewis - ★★★.½

AUTHOR: Beth Lewis

NARRATORS: David Wayman and Kate Handford

GENRE: Cult Fiction with Sci-fi elements.

RATING: 3.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: A test of your patience, this title based on a fictitious sun-worshipping cult with sci-fi elements! Fab plot, but YA-style writing. I was fascinated and still rolling my eyes almost throughout. The end nudged my rating higher.

Story Synopsis:

1982. Atlas is the home for a secret community hidden in the Adirondack mountains. Founded by an enigmatic leader named Sol, the three-hundred odd people are broken souls looking for redemption by preparing for the opening of the Golden Door, an event supposed to happen during the solar eclipse.

James, an ambitious reported in NYC, wants an exposé on Atlas and Sol. Under the pretext of writing an article promoting Atlas, James reaches the camp with his own hidden agenda. He soon finds that there are darker secrets and shady occurences in Atlas, with some part of the location staying off limits. As James learns more about the camp and the people, he begins to question if they might be right after all in their quest for salvation.

The story comes to us in the first person perspective of three characters: James, Root – a child member of Atlas who, as one of the ‘sunbeams’ is treated differently from the rest of the children, and Eve – a woman desperate to reach Atlas and find Sol.

Bookish Yays:

✔ The plot begins as a typical insider-reveal into a cult, and then introduces novelties. I simply didn’t not expect sci-fi elements in a cult story, so when those ideas started popping up, my attention was piqued. Also, I assumed that the cult would be a pseudo-Christian one as whatever cult fiction I’ve read seem to highlight biblical fanatics. But this book had a hippie kind of cult, borrowing thoughts from various religions and regions. I am not sure if I liked this, but it certainly was unusual.

✔ The characters are complicated. James’ past involves grief, so it is interesting to see him struggle between his personal feelings for Sol’s promises and his professional approach towards his article. Eve seems determined to reach Atlas, though we don’t know why. Her track is the weakest of the book until the end, when it suddenly offers an unexpected surprise. Root’s character is mostly well-defined, offering us a glimpse into the extent of brainwashing at Atlas.

✔ The author sure has imagination! The plot as a whole should have felt farfetched and impossible, but she makes it sound absolutely plausible.

✔ There are some amazing lines through the book, mostly connected to the handling of grief and the importance of moving on.

✔ The ending, while requiring suspension of disbelief, is still almost perfect. I foresaw a part of the twist, but there was still enough to keep me hooked. The climax doesn’t tie up all elements or offer complete closure, but it gives you enough resolution to be happy with and enough possibilities to ponder upon.

Bookish Nays:

❌ Somehow, a cult book makes me expect many tense scenes, creepy insights, and nail-biting events. This one felt quite tame in comparison. Except for one bizarre scene connected to a physical punishment, the rest of the cultish details were just a little beyond ordinary.

❌ James’ and Eve’s tracks get quite repetitive in between. Eve’s arc also contain plenty of info-dumping to help us bridge the gaps in the facts about Atlas and Sol. These elements slow down the flow of her story.

❌ I didn’t get the need to write Root’s track in such a babyish kind of English when everyone around the character spoke English perfectly well. The language used in this arc was simultaneously brilliant and irritating.

❌ The one feature about the writing that irked me the most was the constant and recurring references to anatomical parts. These are usually found in YA novels, so I certainly did not expect them in a story with a clearly adult topic. My heart ached, my eyes rolled, my ears cried, my throat throbbed, my stomach grew queasy, my brain questioned my sanity, and “my insides” almost gave up the ghost on seeing at least one body part mentioned after every few sentences.

(PS: If anyone has access to the digital copy, could you do me a favour and let me know how many times the book mentioned “stomach” and “my insides”? I need to know if my guesses were right. Feel free to report on any other body parts you want to: throat, chest, eyes, ears,… You have an assortment of anatomy to choose from!)

The Audiobook Experience:

The audiobook, clocking at almost 15 hours, is narrated by David Wayman and Kate Handford. Kate Hansford, voicing Eve, is very good. David Wayman, voicing James and Root, is excellent. Narrating Root’s complicated language and emotionally exuberant dialogues wouldn’t have been an easy task, but Wayman handles it competently. If you are an audiobook lover, this would be a good title to try through audio.

All in all, despite my reservations about the YA-style writing, I still liked the plot and was curious to know more. Recommended if you want to try an atypical cult story and wont be bothered by the anatomical bombardment.

My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for the ALC of “Children of the Sun”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.