Dark and Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore

Abstract

Reviewed by: Dark and Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore Kate Quealy-Gainer, Assistant Editor Errata McLemore, Anna-Marie Dark and Deepest Red. Feiwel, 2020 [320p] Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-250-16274-8 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-250-16273-1 $9.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 7-10 Every October, the "glimmer," a mysterious magic, comes to Briar Meadow and leaves a wonder in its wake, like rose-flavored icicles, shape-changing brambles, clouds of bats and hummingbirds, or, this year, red shoes that inspire a bold brazenness in their wearer. For Rosella, however, the shoes are a menace, sealing themselves to her feet and forcing her to dance uncontrollably. Elsewhere in Briar Meadow, Emil is having strange visions of his Romani family's past, specifically of a dancing and then screaming girl. A third narrative strand follows Lala, a Romani girl accused of witchcraft during the dancing fever that took Strasbourg, France in the sixteenth century, and Alifair, the trans boy whom she loves. Eventually, the time strands come together, and all three protagonists must reckon with their deepest fears if Lala and Alifair are to be saved from their accusers and Rosella to be freed from the shoes. McLemore's prose is effectively muted here, and though the world is still lush with surreal magic and enticing fantasy, the plot is realistically grounded in cultural commentary on gender, queerness, and the legacies of virulent racism and sexism and their current iterations. The inner turmoil of the characters is the focus, with each coming to terms with the how they have given up heritage and cultural identity for conformity and safety, and what they have lost in the process. Emil and Rosella's romance has both heat and dreamy-eyed sentiment, while Lala and Alifair's relationship is authentically complicated but nonetheless lovely, giving romance readers plenty to swoon over. Fans of McLemore will know just what they're getting here, and they'll appreciate her consistent ability to bring an intersectionality to romance and maintain the genre's sensuality. Copyright © 2019 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois