CROSSINGS (2020)

Crossings by Alex Landragin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Such an original and fascinating idea! Just by staring into someone's eyes, you can change bodies and lives with them. Crossings, a debut novel by Alex Landragin, uses formal language as though the book were written years ago.

Underpinning everything is a fantastical story of the arrival of the first Europeans to a remote island in Polynesia and how two lovers are affected and hasten the end of their people's world. Elements of romance, mystery, history, and speculative fiction weave together to complete this compelling tale of obsession.

FIRST LINE: "I didn't write this book. I stole it."

WHAT I THOUGHT: The three part novel, which can be read in two different directions, ultimately spans a hundred and fifty years and seven lifetimes.

Apparently the tales make the most sense when read from front to back, but the author offers an alternate reading called the "Baroness style" which jumps around through the novel.

I am always reluctant to set a book aside so after I finished a traditional reading, I decided to explore the book following the guiding links, but quickly tired of reading the same words even though sections were put together differently. I found it confusing (at least in ebook format). I suggest you read Crossings one way and stick to that. Personally, I would prefer to read this in book format.

BOTTOM LINE: This story demands active reading. Skimming will not be rewarding, but for those who are enchanted by the tale, this amazing story will set you off on different paths of exploration. Definitely RECOMMENDED.

Disclaimer: A copy of Crossings was provided to me by St. Martin's Press/Net Galley for an honest review.

Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (July 28, 2020)
ISBN-10: 1250259045
ISBN-13: 978-1250259042

ALEX LANDRAGIN is a French-Armenian-Australian writer. Currently based in Melbourne, Australia, he has also resided in Paris, Marseille, Los Angeles, New Orleans and Charlottesville. He has previously worked as a librarian, an indigenous community worker and an author of Lonely Planet travel guides in Australia, Europe and Africa. Alex holds an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Melbourne and occasionally performs early jazz piano under the moniker Tenderloin Stomp. Crossings is his debut novel.(from Amazon)