Monoceros by Suzette Mayr

Monoceros by Suzette Mayr

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I wasn't sure what to make when I started this book, and now that I'm finished I'm still not entirely sure.
The plot seems set for a teenage audience but the language and sophistication of the writing means it's for adults.
There were elements of the story I really liked, the black 50's guidance counselor, the gilted bixsexual (gay?) boy left behind, Santana from Glee up to her wicked tricks, the fact that the author named Ru Paul's biography as inspiration for the book.

Some other things I thought worked less well. The unicorn theme is all over the book, in the title, on the cover, etc, but I don't know that it really went anywhere and didn't intrigue me for one. The characters I felt could have been more drawn out. The reasons the boy killed himself we'll never now, they were barely touched on, the story of the drag queen and of the guidance counselor, both could have gone further. I think equal weight was trying to be given to all points of view, but some should have been left out. The principal who got in the car accident, I never connected with him for even one second, as an example.

I'm glad I read this book, I enjoyed parts of it, but overall the story wasn't fleshed out fully enough for me to totally recommend it.



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