It's not often you find a story that has its own distinct soul, be it a particular small thing that makes it different from the rest, or a secret ingredient that you've never tasted before that you quickly realize is key to an unprecedented recipe of wonder.
This is the case of Boneca, written by karinberry with a relatively simple premise: dual POV of two polar opposites, embarrassing accident happens, their worlds come clashing. But as soon as you start reading, it occurs to you this story is far from simple.
Karin's knowledge of foreign languages is paramount to the execution of this plot, as the main characters venture into the Amazon jungle, unwary of the fact that their lives will never be the same again, and it gives the story an international flavor that's so carefully implemented within the characters of Luuk and Jona.
Two characters that come to life right from their first lines; the story is very much driven off of them, and it makes you wonder if these characters don't exist in the real world, if maybe there aren't some autobiographical elements to them. Their well-rounded characterization gave me the impression, after my first reading, that I'd really met Luuk and Jona, and that I'd become so close with them I knew all their little quirks and flaws.
If you decide to embark on this reading journey, however, you should know that everything you expect to find in this story will most likely not happen or will happen in a different way. The way the plot is developed is always so surprising and unexpected, something I had a great deal of appreciation for.
This is a story with layers of depth, and the characters will shift and grow as you move forward into the depths of the Amazon jungle with them. It is a read that will make you think, that you will inevitably compare to other aspects of real life, and it's far from an escapist, consumable work. A read that, I'm sure, will stay with you long after you're done reading.
You can find out more about the author, Karin, in my interview with her here.
