In This Way I Was Saved: A Novel by
Brian DeLeeuw
My rating:
2 of 5 stars
I felt like this novel had a lot of potential. It's got a great cover for one thing, and the first sentence is a serious hook. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the rest of the book.
DeLeeuw, a first-time novelist, does a lot of things well. He has a great voice, and the pacing is nice. But there are some issues early on. The story is narrated by Daniel, a character whose nature and origins are sketchy throughout the book. What we do know is that he can only be seen by Luke. As Daniel follows Luke through his childhood, the narration feels unbalanced. Though Daniel is seemingly ageless, Luke is solidly six years old at the beginning of the book, but he doesn't quite feel it--and I think the issue is more with the narration than with the "old soul" of the character.
There are some really touching and powerful scenes in this book (the moment when Daniel is forced to squeeze himself into a space in the trunk; Luke repeatedly confronted by his mentally unstable mother), but ultimately, I didn't feel like there was much heart to the book. Perhaps that's just the nature of narrating from a non-human perspective--it isn't really relatable. It was an interesting read, and, though Deleeuw does a lot of foreshadowing, it still kept my attention to the end, but I really wish the story had been stronger.
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