BLOG TOUR: The Girl in the Road - Monica Byrne

Title: The Girl in the Road
Author: Monica Byrne
Series: Nona
Publisher: Little Brown, UK
Publication Date: 1st January, 2014

Stunningly original and wildly inventive, The Girl in the Road melds the influences of Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman, and Erin Morgenstern for a dazzling debut. Meena, a young woman living in a futuristic Mumbai, wakes up with five snake bites on her chest. She doesn't know how or why, but she must flee India and return to Ethiopia, the place of her birth. Having long heard about The Trail -- an energy-harvesting bridge that spans the Arabian Sea -- she embarks on foot on this forbidden bridge, with its own subculture and rules. What awaits her in Ethiopia is unclear; she's hoping the journey will illuminate it for her. Mariama, a girl from a different time, is on a quest of her own. After witnessing her mother's rape, she joins up with a caravan of strangers heading across Saharan Africa. She meets Yemaya, a beautiful and enigmatic woman who becomes her protector and confidante. Yemaya tells Mariama of Ethiopia, where revolution is brewing and life will be better. Mariama hopes against hope that it offers much more than Yemaya ever promised. As one heads east and the other west, Meena and Mariama's fates will entwine in ways that are profoundly moving and shocking to the core. Vividly imagined and artfully told, written with stunning clarity and deep emotion, The Girl in the Road is a true tour de force.

The Girl in the Road is a book that I’ve been eyeing up for the longest time, so when I was offered a space on the blog tour, I jumped at the chance. It’s safe to say that this book was nothing like I expected. I feel like I’ve been on a remarkable journey but at the same time I feel so very confused by what I’ve read. At the beginning I wasn’t sure that it was going to be a book for me; the first few chapters are quite slow, but things soon picked up and I found myself so intrigued by Meena and Mariama.

The thing I enjoyed most was that I was reading a book that wasn’t set in a Western setting for once. I loved losing myself in these new countries and lifestyles. With its elements of the progression of global warming as the backdrop, I found myself so fascinated by the world as well as the characters. Meena’s journey across The Trail kept me captivated. I loved slowly learning about both of these characters and I found myself wishing there was more to the ending. I wanted to keep reading.

It’s not often that I find a book that completely baffles me. I’m not sure if I feel like that’s a good thing or not just yet but it was definitely an intriguing read! I’m still sorting out my thoughts on this book and trying to process the information. The Girl in the Road is like nothing I’ve ever read before and I’d definitely recommend giving it a read!