Trevor reviews Fall

U.S. cover

The Shadow Giller jury is now in full swing, with Trevor Berrett’s review of Colin McAdam’s Fall. Here is a teaser from Shadow juror Trevor’s review:

Most of the book is told either in the first person by Noel, who is looking back, or in a stream of consciousness by Julius, who is very much in the moment. Julius is well liked at school. Noel is bookish and insular and, we’ll find out soon enough, downright creepy. To make things worse for Noel, he has a twitch in one of his eyes, earning him the nickname Wink. The only reason Noel and Julius are roommates is because everyone thought Julius would already have a roommate, so they got someone else. Noel was who was left over when it turned out Julius didn’t have a roommate. For almost a year Julius has been dating the beautiful Fall, and they seem to be developing a genuine loving relationship for a couple as young as they are. In the meantime, Julius and Noel have come to confide in one another. A friendship might even be budding. Noel is thrilled when he and Julius together pull a prank on another student. Only Julius is caught, and he doesn’t implicate Noel. In the ensuing punishment, Julius asks Noel if he’ll relay notes to Fall for him.

Canadian cover

You can find the full review at the Mookse and the Gripes here. And you can check out KfC’s earlier review of the book here. I must say the Americans got a better-looking cover than we Canadians did, but those of us who know the Ottawa River (which is quite relevant to the plot of the book) know that it looks nothing at all like the U.S. cover and certainly has no railway tracks running along it.