There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. But when Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother’s paintings and a drop of Jam’s blood, she must reconsider what she’s been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster, and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption’s house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also to uncover the truth, and the answer to the question–How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?

First and foremost, this book is not some light and happy story. It’s very heavy and impactful and like me, you will likely have to sit with it a bit after reading it. This is set in a futuristic world where all of the ‘monsters’ have been eliminated, and those who are now technically in power are known as the ‘angels.’

There was so much packed into this book. There was talk about what monsters looked like and how you may not be able to recognize them, talk about race, a ton of diversity and more. It’s really hard to put into words just all this book discusses because of how deep it is. We follow Jam as she meets Pet and the moral conflict that comes from their discussions.

The inclusion and diversity of the book was wonderful to read as such things should become more normalized. These weren’t things added in just to be there, they were integral facets and parts of different characters.

Some of my favorite parts of the book were the conversations Jam would have with Pet and the want they would work through those conversations. Those talks were full of metaphor and morality and really propelled the story towards the end.

Happy reading!