Kingdom of Scars by Eoin C. Macken
When I was finished reading this book, I tried to summarize
it into one sentence to describe it to someone. After racking my brain for a
spell, I thought of the two movies that flashed in my head as I read. The first
one was Stand By Me. After the 3rd chapter it was clearly a coming
of age story about Sam who clearly longed to be accepted, so much so that it
didn’t matter by whom. By the end of the book, the movie I thought of was
Fight Club. Not the unnerving, schizophrenic, human bludgeoning, mad man part,
but the primal male aggression part, as well as the deep seeded need to be
accepted and revered. So I say, Kingdom of Scars (KoS) is the lovechild of ‘Stand
By Me’ and ‘Fight Club’, it’s about a young man desperately seeking acceptance
and looking for it in all the wrong places.
I’ve always been a very slow reader. As a child I’d sit for
hours and listen to my dad read to me. It was easier to visualize the amazing
adventure unfold, as his deep, melodic inflection of the words danced in the
air. In school, there were very few books that I read that peaked my interest
enough to really pull me in and hold my interest, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lord
of the Flies and Poe’s the Raven were my favorites. They were all filled with
that spark of something special that pulled me in and made them sit with baited
breath for the next line, the next chapter.
Back then I never read for the fun of it. I read because I
had too. After all, it wasn’t the cool thing to do back then. It wasn’t until I
was in my early twenties that I found a book that peaked my interest again and
I began to read out of my own pleasure instead of having to read it. It took me
a while to get through it, but I did and I am very glad I did. It started me on
the long journey that has led me here, to where I am today. You all are
probably wondering what all this has to do with KoS, right? Well, it’s to show
that it takes a really good book to hold my interest and Kingdom of Scars did
that.
I finally received the book almost two months ago but never
had the time, with my crazy schedule and own writing that I needed to
accomplish, to pick it up. I read the prologue and chapter one and set it down,
interested but not overwhelmed to pick it back up. In my opinion it was a slow
start. The book sat again for a few weeks, I’d pass by it and glance thinking I
need to sit down and give it another chance because of Eoin. I’ve enjoyed so
many other things that he’s written and was blown away by ‘Dreaming For You’,
probably my favorite thing he’s done, it was so raw and honest… yet, now I
digress, back to KoS.
I grabbed the book Thanksgiving night and pushed forward,
reading the next few chapters and I’m glad I did. He did it, grabbed my
attention and made me want to read on. Exhausted from the day, I put the book
down after chapter 5 and fell asleep wondering how Sam would feel after his
ordeal on the bus. The following week, I’d walk by the book and reach for it,
but I didn’t have the time to sit and get pulled in. I had too much to do, but
I ached to pick it back up. This past weekend, I traveled to see my dad. It was
just me, not mom or wife, just me. I made sure I packed the book. I sat down
Saturday afternoon and began to read and I read faster than I have in a very
long time. Eoin had pulled me into his world (well, Sam’s world) of teenage
angst, aggression and sexual desires. It was interesting to see into the mind
of a teenage boy. The rainy day, that seemed to be made to sit and read in a
comfy chair forged on and so did I through the book. I read through 20 chapters
when I finally realized it was midnight. Having to be up early the next day to
travel home, I reluctantly put the book down and went to sleep.
My entire drive home, my head was filled with what would happen
in the last two chapters. Would there be another confrontation with Jayo and
the gang? Would he and Francesca become closer? I wanted SO badly to get home
and finish the story but I couldn’t. I had to unpack the car, be a mom, make
dinner and prepare for the coming week. I was saddened at first, then was
ecstatic when I realized that I’d be dropping my daughter off in the morning
and I would be alone. As soon as I got home, I made myself a cup of coffee,
grabbed the book and nestled into the corner of the sofa anxious to see how it
would end.
I wasn’t disappointed. Kingdom of Scars is a well-developed
story of what I think most of us have gone through at one point in our lives; love,
hate, self-deprecating angst, lust, ghosts, fear, fighting then self-awareness
and acceptance. The story is excellent and I enjoyed being pulled in, which is
something that rarely happens for me. As for the editing and congruency, there
are several grammatical and editing issues through the book, which at times
made the teacher/perfectionist/borderline type A personality, in me cringe.
There is also a point where Sam is to meet up with Antoinette. In one chapter
they make plans to meet after school at five and in the next, he’s meeting her
at six. I hope those can be fixed with a second book run.
All in all, I thought the book was good. Eoin Macken rarely
disappoints us with his writing, albeit poems, screenplays, short stories or
novels. I would definitely recommend Kingdom of Scars as a must read. I look
forward to reading more works of his.
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