Thoughts and Feels
Wow! I’m in awe! I’m feeling all kinds of feels! The overwhelming emotion this book has caused is intense! What a book to read as my first fiction book of 2019. Shout out to Melanie and Amy for creating the Dragons & Tea Book Club and choosing The Wicker King by K. Ancrum as the January pick. The Wicker King is not only my first fiction book, but it’s also my first FIVE STAR read of 2019. I’m taking this as a sign that I’m going to have an awesome reading year!
The Wicker King is a story of Jack and August, two high-school seniors that have grown up together but are from different social circles, one is the star Rugby player and the other a misfit with a draw to flames. Their survival is dependent on their friendship, but at what. Jack suffers from degenerative hallucinatory disorder and begins to see a fantasy world, that overlaps with their real one. August is determined to save Jack at any cost, he does this by believing Jack and helping him in any way possible as Jack leads him to complete a quest to save a fantasy kingdom from destruction.
Before I begin with my thoughts on the story, I want to sincerely thank author, K. Ancrum for the most beautiful and needed dedication and author’s note. The words you wrote ring loud and clear. They definitely spoke to my soul and I hope anyone who reads this book will take the time to read them because the words in them are important and need to be read and heard.
This book deals with quite a handful of sensitive issues, including but not limited to: anxiety, depression, co-dependency, and hallucinations. Many of these which can come under the umbrella of mental illness. As a person who suffers from anxiety and depression this book was very raw and real for me. Of coarse, the circumstances and experiences of Jack and August are quite different than mine and are pretty intense. That being said, different aspects of the characters and their actions really hit home with me on a personal level. I love books that I can really find a moment, a character, or even a quote, no matter how small, that resonates with a part of me as a human being and that speaks to me personally. It makes the book more real and the reading of the words mean so much more.
The book cover itself is absolutely stunning…I mean just look at the picture in this post! Every detail of this cover lends itself to the plot of the book and then as you open the book that detail just intensifies. The inside design of the book guides you through the story and creates a visual element to the story with its mixed media images and ombre pages that preceded to darken to more you dive into the story. I’m a big visual person, I love movies and live theatre and photography and having the added visual cues gave The Wicker King a deeper and more engaging reading experience and I was definitely living for it!
Overall, this book was just what I needed to start off my
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Thanks for sharing this review. I haven’t heard of this one before. Will definitely look for it at my library.
You’re so welcome! I hope that you enjoy The Wicker King as much as I did! Fingers crossed your library has it! If not, I would definitely ask them to get a copy.