AUGUST 2014 - AudioFile
Fifty-something Lizzie Prain snapped and killed her difficult husband, Jacob, with a garden shovel. Now she’s consumed with identifying the best way to dispose of his body. Narrator Gemma Whelan delivers this delectable dark comedy with a touch of irony as Lizzie tries to solve her problem by employing her skills as a chef. Whelan’s intonations and perfect pacing capture Lizzie’s pragmatic considerations on how to cook a body. She also conveys Lizzie’s anxious joy at her new freedom as well as her attraction to her new friend, Tom. Overall, Whelan’s performance is delightfully dark and delicious. M.F. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
08/04/2014
Young's deliciously dark follow-up to We All Ran Into the Sunlight is a a black comedy of murder and cannibalism in the English countryside. Fiftysomething Lizzie Prain has murdered Jacob, her husband of 30 years. A practical person, Lizzie knows how to carry on in disposing of the evidence: she must chop up the body and eat her husband limb by limb. The plan is to devour Jacob, tidy up the house, and move to Scotland where she resolves to live a life "structured around avoiding emotional experience at all costs." As she works, Lizzie writes notes to herself both culinary ("Resist the urge to put in a lot of garlic. Cook as normal") and practical, "(This isn't the time for oughts and shoulds"). When Lizzie encounters the much younger neighbor Tom at the local hardware store, her serene veneer starts to crack, threatening to expose her secret. Visions of Lizzie's marriage seep through her notes and give glimpses of a codependent, draining relationship, saddled with misunderstandings and regrets. If Lizzie's actions are the stuff of gruesome hyperbole, her reflections and feeling certainly aren't. The book presents an affecting account of what moving on from a failed relationship looks like, and the personal grappling it may require. (July)
From the Publisher
"Yes, it really is a novel about a woman who eats her husband, but only as much as, say, Rapunzel is a story about a woman who won't cut her hair. Season to Taste is a modern-day fable about the end of love and moving on. Natalie Young has given us a shockingly, thrillingly original new vantage on a timeless story of a marriage's demise." -Stefan Merrill Block, author of The Storm at the Door
"An enjoyable feast of anger - witty and poised." -Deborah Levy, author of Swimming Home
"A very smartly told tale... clever and twisted and a lot of fun."—Booklist
"Most books about murder focus on the act of homicide (which can be all too instant and easy), so it makes a toothsome change to read one about the disposal of the body... As she slices her husband's carcass into edible portions, one meal at a time, making a numbered series of notes to herself (or to anyone who might want to try this at home), Lizzie also dissects the sad truths of her marriage and her hitherto malnourished existence. Cannibalism is her final act of congress with Jacob, and it's fascinating to witness. Natalie Young's sparse prose captures Lizzie's daze and confusion as she eats, cooks, eats, and may take you to some dark places as you ponder the way your own current relationships sustain you."—Lit Reactor
AUGUST 2014 - AudioFile
Fifty-something Lizzie Prain snapped and killed her difficult husband, Jacob, with a garden shovel. Now she’s consumed with identifying the best way to dispose of his body. Narrator Gemma Whelan delivers this delectable dark comedy with a touch of irony as Lizzie tries to solve her problem by employing her skills as a chef. Whelan’s intonations and perfect pacing capture Lizzie’s pragmatic considerations on how to cook a body. She also conveys Lizzie’s anxious joy at her new freedom as well as her attraction to her new friend, Tom. Overall, Whelan’s performance is delightfully dark and delicious. M.F. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
