May 31

May 31 Notes From a Regicide

About the book

Author: Isaac Fellman
Publisher: Tor Books

More info:
The StoryGraph | Goodreads
Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the review.

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My Review

All my friends who read both literary fiction and fantasy — this is the one. It is SO for you. And if you are one who goes out of your way to read queer and trans stories? Please veer immediately. I loved this character study of a trans man and his adoptive trans parents, who also happen to be former revolutionaries, living in an evolution of our society a thousand years in the future.

I think the marketing of this book (and possibly even Tor being the publisher) did this book a bit of a disservice, because genre SFF readers are unlikely to jive with it. It’s structured as a book written by Griffon, half a translation of his father’s journal while imprisoned for regicide, half a memoir of his time with his parents. There are very few actual speculative elements, revolutionary action scenes, or explorations of the broader world or even politics; they are a backdrop for the introspection.

But if that sounds like your cup of tea, please give this a shot. Because it is heartbreaking and raw; a look at the ways we heal and hurt ourselves and those we love. It embraces heavy themes like suicide, alcoholism, and more. The prose is beautiful, the kind that stops you in your tracks every once in a while. And in today’s political climate, it’s the perfect read for Pride month and the perfect reminder that queer and trans people have always existed and always will.