Family Curse Field Notebooks by Tenacity Plys:
A Book Review
Genre: Science Fiction?
Plys writes an interesting take on disappearances near woods. While fiction, much of what Plys writes can only be described as journal entries of something that could possibly be true. With nothing said outright except for in the “field notebooks”/”research material” found in the story, Plys gives both an aura of disbelief/skepticism while at the same time creating a cloud of suspense. Throughout it all, the reader has no clue of what is happening or what will happen. The reader is completely reliant on the narrator and what they are including in the work. Are they reliant? Plys offers no clue to the main one, but does appear to support one of the other writers while undermining the other one.
Plys does do some interesting things that I do what to touch on.
- Plys brings up similarities between fairy lore kidnappings and alien encounters. While I am not a big follower of either, I was surprised to see the similarities between the two. Again, while Plys’s narrator may be unreliable and Plys does not implicitly say it, fairy kidnapping legends do have enough parallels with alien abductions that the two could be related. A quick Google search shows me that only a few seem to have a similar idea to this. Honestly, the two being the same make a lot of sense.
- All the people that disappear in Plys story are outside of society’s “norm” as they seem to all be connected to the LBGTQ+ community in some way shape or form. I thought that was an interesting connection whether subconsciously done or not. While I highly doubt all disappearances/abductions relating to the supernatural involve a person from the LBGTQ+ community, the connection Plys supplies in Family Curse offers a darker twist if continued.
I would recommend and read further works from Plys specifically surrounding Family Curse. I would love to see a “next chapter” in which one of Virgil’s friends comes to look for him – specifically if it was written in 3rd person narrative.
Who would most enjoy the work and who should stay clear (if necessary):
Do you believe in aliens and the supernatural? This is for you.
Do you like works that make you think with minimal information given? This is for you.
I will say (and I am sure I’m going to get grief for this) if you believe being neurodivergent is a mental illness as well as other parts of the LBGTQ+ , this book is not for you. Instead, I recommend picking up something educational about the community and learning more about it.
Other books like the one reviewed:
Fulvio Sestito’s 2018 Movie: Beyond the Sky
| Plot: | 9 / 10 |
| Characters: | 9 / 10 |
| Writing: | 10 / 10 |
| Editor: | 10 / 10 |
| Total | 38 / 40 |
Title: Family Curse Field Notebooks: 1880 to 2020
Author: Tenacity Plys
Edition: ARC
Published: 2022
Publisher: Bottlecap Press
ISBN: 9781946340627
If you want to get it: Amazon; Barnes&Noble
Rosey Reviews 