Book Description
On December 31st, 1999 history changed. Precisely at midnight. With the first tick of Saturday January 1st, 2000 the lives of Deb and Dave Becker were forever altered as three generations of time-travelling cause, effect and consequence began to manifest from the past.
The peculiar lives of their predecessors, the epigenetics of a war-torn, alcohol-soaked ancestry, and entangled events from a history of tragic, life-changing Saturdays somehow connect to an ominous, modern-day threat now looming over their young family. Rational explanations fail leading to “what-if” questions of random chance and “if-only” recriminations of fateful choice.
Fearing an inescapable destiny, Dave encounters his own personal Fate, a being he becomes convinced is real. She visits his dreams, predicting the probable outcomes of his life’s choices and sharing malign revelations about his family’s Damocletian dilema. “It’s all beyond your control.”... “Your family’s survival depends on your choices and the possible futures you cause.”... “You are nothing more than a self-aware bag of meat chained to the past.”... “Perhaps you’re hearing voices David?”
Witty, quirky, surreal and tender Evren riffs on the Greek myth of the Fates as an if only story of love, regret and redemption, sex and power, the old animus of science and religion, the endurance of suffering, and the resilience of family.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'A Body Of Fates' by Kenneth Evren.
Read and reviewed a physical copy for Kenneth Evren, FriesenPress and Literally PR.
Publication date 12th September 2023.
This is Kenneth's debut novel.
This novel consists of a preface, 15 chapters, a postscript and 10 poems/lyrics. The chapters are medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is not my usual choice of genre which is typically crime, comedy and romance but I'm an eclectic reader. I read the synopsis and thought it sounded intriguing so gave it a go. It is definitely a unique and thought provoking book and the fact that this is the authors debut novel does not show which is always a good sign. This story takes us on a journey through the protagonist David Becker's past and present in which the reader discovers the abuse that he suffered in childhood, his struggles when it comes to his own beliefs, his family history and more. There were several occasions where I actually thought I was reading a biography such is the depth Kenneth creates David's character and personality. David is a complex character as well as an intriguing one and I was rooting for him as he struggles with his haunting past and his challenging present. I was captivated by his story which at times did seem to go off on a tangent which did confuse me on several occasions but once I found my bearings again I became more invested. One of the things I did struggle with at times where I wasn't sure which timeline David was speaking of and if what he was telling us was a story if his past, his life as he knew it at present or of the number of times where he seemed to take a more supernatural take on what is going on.
Nevertheless this confusion wasn't enough to make the book unenjoyable but did make it a slower read than that of what I would have liked as I had to take more time to read it to take it completely in. However, I must admit that I did almost stop reading when I read of 'C#n#y the Cat' and the fact that David kicked him out to defend for itself as I am a huge animal lover and run a cat rescue myself so have actually dealt with cats being kicked out on the street and don't take kindly to it being spoken of so light heartedly regardless of the fact the book is fiction. This is the reason I cannot give this book more than a 3.5/5 which I have rounded up to 4/5. Kenneth's writing skills are definitely evocative as there were many times where I became lost in David's world seeing and feeling what he was. I loved the additional pages of poems and lyrics which I really enjoyed reading. In particular my favourite one was 'Chains and Chocolate' which I found to be particularly touching and haunting at the same time. This is a unique, complex and interesting book that will stay with the reader long after they finished the last page. I am looking forward to seeing what Kenneth comes up with for his next novel!!
Overall an intriguing, unique and thought provoking read.
252 pages.
This book is just £7.99 to purchase on kindle and £17.30 in paperback via Amazon (at time of review).
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Author Bio
A Body of Fates, Kenneth Evren’s first novel is inspired by a personal, real-life tragedy. Using bits and pieces of lived experience, he has fashioned a gorgeous, intriguing and inspiring metaphysical mosaic of one family’s multigenerational history. Ken lives in Vancouver, B.C. with his family. He enjoys the ineffable in story, music, science, and love.
Purchase Links
FriesenPress: https://books.friesenpress.com/store/title/119734000339653196/Kenneth-Evren-A-Body-of-Fates
Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/ft7nmXu
Amazon US: https://a.co/d/cWeoAZT
Barnes & Noble US: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-body-of-fates-kenneth-evren/1144101086
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