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Challenges Complete:
- A-Z Challenge (R in Ruby Todd)
- Spell Your Full Name (R in Ruby Todd)
- The Genre Challenge (Literary Fiction)
- Three Protagonist Names of People I Know (Sylvia, a co-worker)
How in the world (or OUT of the world) do I describe Bright Objects?
Well, I suppose I’d say the book is a literary science fiction mystery romance. It is beautifully written, soaring, and heartbreaking.
The story itself centers on Sylvia, a young widow who works in a funeral home. Her small town is deeply impacted by a comet, because it is both a perfect place to view it at its brightest and because the comet’s discoverer is working in the local observatory.
The science fiction comes with the comet itself, along with the impacts it presents upon the populace. The mystery revolves around the hit and run that killed Sylvia’s husband. She has her suspicions about the culprit. And the romance… I think it’s just best to unpack that piece for yourself.
Along with all the other ways I’ve described Bright Objects, it’s also a book about grief and grieving, and that there is no simple way to contend with it. There is survivor’s guilt, anger, sadness, discombobulation, and unreason.
Sylvia is a relatable, eloquent narrator, surrounded by a fabulous supporting cast. Astronomer Theo St. John, the comet’s discoverer, is a flawed and fascinating individual (who I kept picturing as wrestler Jeff Jarrett for some reason). Her mother-in-law is lovely and supportive, while local blue mystic Joseph is… unhinged.
You may find that the mystery or the sci-fi or some element doesn’t work for you, but for me, the journey is the best part of Bright Objects. Just walking through life with Sylvia is a splendid adventure.
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