By Lauren Bell
Content warning: gore
Suture by Nic Brewer tells the fragmented story of three artists and how the necessary sacrifices they make for their work baffles those around them.
Eva is a filmmaker who uses her eyes as batteries for her camera. The first time she tried it was as a child, and her eyes haven’t worked the same since; her vision is only perfect when she looks through the camera lens. By the time she is 37, she’s lost colour vision in her camera too, and without it she only sees shadows. It is through the help of her devoted wife, Dev (whom Eva must learn to love), that she is able to find a careful balance.
Finn is a visual artist that uses her heart and lungs for her art. She is first introduced as a child observing the art class her father attends—a class adorned with scalpels and organs instead of the traditional supplies. By the time Finn is 30, she is a successful artist, but she gives up her passion soon after. It isn’t until her child begins following in her footsteps as a drummer that Finn is forced to reconcile her feelings about her family, art, and future.
Grace is an author who uses her blood to power her word processor. She is introduced as a bookish tween who rewrites her life through anecdotes from the books she reads, creating a fictitious self to make up for her lack of self-respect. Typically, when she writes, she pushes herself too far and frequently ends up admitted to the hospital, much to her partner’s and her network’s chagrin. Despite Grace’s successful debut, her second book is a flop, so she uses black market blood to produce the rest of her novels, a charade she can carry on easily after learning how to lie so well in her childhood.
Suture is built out of biting prose and vivid imagery. It is not a novel for those averse to gore, yet still should be considered a must-read. Creatives will feel seen with Brewer’s description of the artistic process, and achieving suspension of disbelief is easy. Others will enjoy Suture because of its incredibly human characters, each imperfect and multifaceted. With themes of empathy and love, Brewer also conveys the frustration of those supporting the main characters through their mental health difficulties. Those who have been in that position in their lives will see themselves in this novel.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Suture by Nic Brewer, and I devoured it in one night. I would highly recommend it to anyone, especially creatives and those who dwell in introspection, and I cannot wait to see what Brewer does next.
Thank you Book*hug Press for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.