The Lightkeepers by Abby Geni. It's one of the first books to make me feel compelled to write a detailed review. It was my goal to finish it in January—an ambitious one for me. I hardly ever finish a book in a month. It did take me a few extra days... but still. I finished it.
Before I get too far into this review, let me just say, a huge part about why I enjoyed this book so much, I think, was the element of surprise. So don't go much farther if you're seriously considering reading it yourself.
Okay, so, I picked this book up on the way home from a trip to Lake Tahoe at Barnes and Noble. I liked the cover—that's how I often choose my books—and I was intrigued by the fact that there was no synopsis on the cover—just good reviews. Something just told me to get it.
I read the first few pages in the car, and I was instantly hooked. I'm the type of person that needs to be hooked quickly or I won't go far—this one did it for me. First of all, it's set on the Farallon Islands, not too far from San Francisco. This piqued my interest because I live in Oakland, right beside SF. Secondly, Miranda, the main character, is a photographer, as am I.
The story captured me right away and not only because of similar interests but also because of Abby Geni's writing. It's so descriptive without being unnatural. I could see everything so well with my mind's eye and relate to many of the passages. Here are a couple of my favorites:
“There were no words. The words were unready, unripe. I could never find them on my tongue or the top of my pencils. They were somewhere else, floating, slippery, half-formed.”
“My work is the enemy of memory. People often imagine that taking pictures will help them recall exactly what happened. In fact, the opposite is true. I have to leave my camera in the drawer at important events, since snapshots have a way of superseding my recollections. I can either have the impression in my brain or the image in my hand—not both. To remember is to rewrite. To photograph is to replace. The only reliable memories, I suppose, are the ones that have been forgotten. They are the dark rooms of the mind. Unopened, untouched, and uncorrupted.”
The biggest surprise for me, though, was that The Lightkeepers is a thriller—and that I enjoyed it. At the beginning, it hardly felt like a thriller at all, but as the story unfolded, I got hints of bad news to come.
My idea of thrillers used to be limited—I thought of the paperbacks my mom used to read when I was a kid: cheesy and entertaining at best. I never believed they could be so complex, so full of themes about loss and what it means to truly know someone or yourself.
If you're up for a surprise—and for learning a little bit about yourself alon the way—I truly recommend this book. This is what my 5 out of 5 stars looks like.
