The Binding

A Novel

By: Bridget Collins

Narrated by: Carl Prekopp

Length: 15 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Proclaimed as “truly spellbinding", a “great fable” that “functions as transporting romance” by The Guardian, the runaway number one international best seller arrives in America.

"A rich, gothic entertainment that explores what books have trapped inside them and reminds us of the power of storytelling. Spellbinding.” (Tracy Chevalier)

Imagine you could erase grief. Imagine you could remove pain. Imagine you could hide the darkest, most horrifying secret. Forever.

Young Emmett Farmer is working in the fields when a strange letter arrives summoning him away from his family. He is to begin an apprenticeship as a bookbinder - a vocation that arouses fear, superstition, and prejudice among their small community, but one neither he nor his parents can afford to refuse.

For as long as he can recall, Emmett has been drawn to books, even though they are strictly forbidden. Bookbinding is a sacred calling, Seredith informs her new apprentice, and he is a binder born. Under the old woman’s watchful eye, Emmett learns to handcraft the elegant leather-bound volumes. Within each one, they will capture something unique and extraordinary: a memory. If there’s something you want to forget, a binder can help. If there’s something you need to erase, they can assist. Within the pages of the books they create, secrets are concealed and the past is locked away. In a vault under his mentor’s workshop, rows upon rows of books are meticulously stored.

But while Seredith is an artisan, there are others of their kind, avaricious and amoral tradesman who use their talents for dark ends - and just as Emmett begins to settle into his new circumstances, he makes an astonishing discovery: One of the books has his name on it. Soon, everything he thought he understood about his life will be dramatically rewritten.

An unforgettable novel of enchantment, mystery, memory, and forbidden love, The Binding is a beautiful homage to the allure and life-changing power of books - and a reminder to us all that knowledge can be its own kind of magic.

©2019 Bridget Collins (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

Disappointed

I do not enjoy romance novels so I was very disappointed. The premise sounded interesting but it turned out to be nothing but an overblown, unsatisfying LGBT romance that dragged on in places. I did like the narration by Carl Prekopp.

Woah! This was not what I had expected.

Ultimately this is an incredibly rich world of subtle magic and a love story, hidden for most of the book in complicated relationships and societal norms– strange semi-magical societal norms for sure.

The magic aspect is quite restrained, as it only seems to exist in one way- binding memory to books, which i found super interesting and even a meta commentary on writing and reading at some points.

The world-building is on a par with the best I've ever read. I found that out of everything this book has to offer, and its a lot, the world building, descriptions of the characters and environments, clothes, nature, etc. were so magnificent that I felt an actual shift in my reality when I moved from the book back to my life. This so rarely happens but when you find a book that does this for you, it can mean everything for a short time. It's simply immersive.

Something that I really appreciated was that none of the characters are truly black-and-white and everyone exists on a level of gray (morally, personality, "good vs bad") so there was a naturalness mixed into this world of strange restrained magic and richness to each of the main characters that we so rarely see in "fantasy."

I'm sure you'll read reviews that say this book is a bit of a "slow burn". Which it is, but I believe because the world building is so rich tactile, and spectacular there is never a moment of "too slow" as you constantly are aware of where you are, who you are with, how they feel, and you can feel it, touch it, taste it, at every moment. So while it takes a while for some things to happen in some sections I was thrilled to be in the realistic moment as I knew everything was purposeful.

There were a few moments where I expected specific, maybe cliché, outcomes but every turn I was surprised, excited and loved where I landed.

As you can see I liked it, lol. One review I read often in the comments before reading was that there are 3-4 parts, and the world shifts considerably in each part. I was prepared and anxious about this. In the end I found the fact that these incredible shifts in perspective we actually part of what I loved about reading this, as I was always surprised at where we end up. I would feel a bit sad to lose some of what a previous part had to offer but within minutes I was excited to be propelled to the next story arc.

Some parts are more focused on the "love story" and veer a bit away from the magic or tension but I found these equally satisfying and exciting.

AUDIOBOOK: I highly highly highly recommend the audiobook here. The narrator is nonpareil. The voice acting is some of the best that I've ever heard. The character of Emmett is done so perfectly that you can see him, his teeth, his mouth, etc. from the voice acting. This is a case of the perfect narrator cast for the perfect book. Really!

Wow!

Just started listening...only on chapter 2.
Wow... I'm blown away.
It's only a book... and yet, it is a magical weaving of words. The story revealed slowly, unfolding itself as you watch, mesmerized by the cadence of voice. It lulls me toward sleep while I desperately want to hear more....
and now that I'm done... it was simple and complicated and just lovely. wonderful.

Starts a little slow, but worth the patience

interesting twist. great story. Be patient as it stays out a little slow. the plot twist is great!

One of the best stories I've ever heard

The narration mirrors the depth of this incredible story so well. Everyone must read it!

Richness and Detail

The Binding was so rich with emotion you could actually feel what the characters were experiencing, is very well written and the performance is excellent.

But I gave it 4 stars overall because it dragged on a little too long. Otherwise, I found it intriguing.

So Good... Wow!

This book was sitting on my TBR list for about a year. Upon looking for a new book to listen to while I work, I read a one word review: "WOW". So I thought, okay... let me check this out. This is a very interesting story. I was intrigued from page one. The narration is perfection. I have to say.... WOW!

Bright Points

The Binding had the potential to be a riveting story, but the story became predictable and the ending underwhelming. The reader’s slow pace and failure to match his energy with the crescendos of the story did a disservice to the plot.

Gorgeous, vivid, and spellbinding.

I enjoyed this immensely. The characters are very compelling, the magic mysterious and beautiful. The story keeps you on your toes and tugs at your heart.

Loved it

You’ll have to read it yourself, it was captivating with raw emotions, that felt honest and true. it captivated you and it felt like it could have been you, even when I didn’t think I could relate.