Thank you to Tordotcom for sending me a copy of The Parliament in exchange for an honest review.
When tens of thousands of owls descend on Madigan Purdy’s hometown library, she’s stuck inside with a group of students she didn’t even want to teach. To keep the kids safe and distracted, Mad reads them her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen. But as food and water run out, those trapped inside must find a way to escape before the birds tear them apart.
RELATED: New Release Radar: New Books Coming Out on January 30
Publisher Tordotcom described The Parliament as “The Birds meets The Princess Bride,” and it’s a pretty fair comparison. Aimee Pokwatka’s combination of fantasy and horror makes for a truly unique read. This fantasy/thriller bounces between adults and children sheltering in place and the book that keeps them calm during the crisis: a children’s book called The Silent Queen. The result is a story that’s more than just The Birds with owls.
It’s true that there are plenty of gruesome owl attacks throughout the story. Anyone foolish enough to leave the library is almost instantly dismembered. But the real tension is psychological. The people trapped inside are completely cut off from the world and reliant on each other to survive. They’re also quickly disillusioned by the rescue attempts, which focus on destroying the owls even at the cost of the survivors’ lives.
Our protagonist, Mad, survived another terrible event as a child. This experience impacted every aspect of her life. She knows thousands of survival skills and useless tricks, but hasn’t allowed herself to connect with anyone else. Her background makes her uniquely suited to help the kids in the library, but she isn’t able to fully connect with them because she hasn’t dealt with her own trauma.
RELATED: Book Review: Dark Water Daughter
Instead, she relies on her favorite book from childhood, The Silent Queen, to keep everyone calm. Between attempts to communicate with the town, we read chapters of the fairy tale alongside the children. It’s an engrossing, unique story that easily keeps readers in and out of the book. Reading the story allows the kids – and adults – in the library an opportunity to take their minds off of everything going on outside. While The Parliament is definitely a work of psychological horror, it’s also a love letter to the power of literature.
The Parliament is an engrossing story of grief, courage and hope. Pokwatka’s new novel is well-written and original: I don’t think you’ll find another book like it.
The Parliament is out now and available for purchase from your local independent bookstore or Bookshop.org.
TW: animal death, blood, child death, confinement death, drug use, fire, gore, grief, gun violence, injury/injury detail, medical content, murder, panic attacks/disorders, pregnancy, school shootings, vomit
https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/most-anticipated-fantasy-books-2024/
- New Release Radar: New Books Coming Out on January 21 - January 20, 2025
- Book Review: DEATH OF THE AUTHOR - January 16, 2025
- The Official DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN Trailer Is Here, and It’s Epic - January 15, 2025
