Recently, I revived my NetGalley account in search of new and exciting books and authors. A short novel, Beyond Zero by Asawer K., has immediately captured my attention with its unusual book cover and intriguing premise.
The first few chapters felt to me as if I were watching a silent fantasy animation. Gradually, the story unwinds and makes us follow Lily — the protagonist and narrator — who is a drama student at a university, dealing with deep trauma and depression. While trying to resurface and capture a fleeting feeling of normalcy, she is faced with raw and intense inner turmoil.
We get to know Lily’s family, friends, and fellow students. Starting out at home in her childhood bedroom, Lily later moves out, and we get to see her take on pretending to be an adult while sharing her thoughts and concerns.
The book is quite short — only 150 pages — so it wasn’t enough to show as many events and character interactions as I’d have preferred. Mostly, we’re peeking over Lily’s shoulder while listening to a constant radio transmission of her innermost thoughts, however deep and dark they may be.
Asawer K. takes you on an emotional rollercoaster. In one moment, her emotive descriptions transfer you into a fairyland, just to hit you with harsh reality at the turn of a page.
The story is very quotable. I was a little bummed that NetGalley’s reading app doesn’t exactly cater to that particular reader’s need. I think this is the kind of book that you’d want to get a physical copy of and annotate.
My rating: Very good
Genre: Literary Fiction, Women’s Fiction
Page count: 151
Sensitive content warning (from author’s website):
- Emotional distress
- Trauma
- Mental health struggles
- Suicidal thoughts
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