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A review by jamiee_f
Beholder by Ryan La Sala
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Okay I loved The Honeys, and this was good but didn't give me quite as much of what I loved in that book. A spooky gay read though, that I definitely recommend!
Main character Athan attends a party, but is mysteriously shoved into a bathroom by a stranger and listens to a horrible massacre happen on the other side of the wall. When he emerges in the morning, everyone is dead. And he flees, knowing he has no way to explain this to the police. The party was supposed to be a break from the daily grind of working and caring for his seemingly unwell grandmother, who speaks of curses and monsters hidden in mirrors. When he returns home, his grandmother is missing. He ends up at the apartment of his pseudo adoptive father Uhler, who claims to have his grandmother, but he can't find her there. Suddenly. The boy who saved him at the party appears and says they have to escape. Athan decides to trust him and barely escapes the apartment. While riding the elevator down, Athan looks into the mirror and sees... something. Something that's coming for him, and this world as we know it. The boy (Dom) ends up reaching Athan in time and breaking the mirror connection, and explains that there is much more at play here than Athan ever knew. Dom and Athan delve deep into the shady world of NYC art and power brokers. The supernatural is real, Athan can see the past in mirrored surfaces, and Athan's grandmother was right--there is evil behind the mirror.
As they unwind the mystery of Athan's family, what happened to yiayia, and how wallpaper is driving select powerful artists to suicide, Athan learns to wield his powers with skill, and Dom learns to trust. Eventually they figure out that father figure Uhler killed Nathan's parents, and has been driving powerful people in a secret society mad through enchanted, supernatural wallpaper (that's actually been designed by Dom!) and he wants to use Athan and his yiayia to open up 'The Eye' so he can ascend to the most powerful position. Phew.
Athan ends up at the gala where Uhler reveals his plan, and he does end up opening The Eye when Uhler threatens his yiayia. A horrible spider creature made of eyes and light merges with Uhler while all the other society members go mad. Uhler tries to force Athan to kill his grandma, who is the sole defender against this being behind the mirror, when Dom interrupts. Dom says he knows the creature (The Beauty) really wants him. And he volunteers to be the host. Uhler's body boils into a knot of glittering eyes and then congeals into obsidian. Dom is able to merge with The Beauty, but then simultaneously trap it within The Eye, locking it away by sacrificing himself.
With The Eye closed and The Beauty contained, Athan and yiayia are safe again, with life returning to some level of normalcy. The book ends with Athan figuring out how to see not just the past but also the future in mirrors, and he reunites with Dom, but only through the mirror, ephemerally.
Good drama, compelling characters, and a good blend of supernatural mystery with horror elements. La Sala doesn't explain every detail of the world building here, but I think it works. You get enough details for the characters' choices to make sense and for the plot to be coherent, but the mechanics of the magic and supernatural are a little hand wavey. I'm okay with that, I think it worked, but not everyone will be a fan.
As they unwind the mystery of Athan's family, what happened to yiayia, and how wallpaper is driving select powerful artists to suicide, Athan learns to wield his powers with skill, and Dom learns to trust. Eventually they figure out that father figure Uhler killed Nathan's parents, and has been driving powerful people in a secret society mad through enchanted, supernatural wallpaper (that's actually been designed by Dom!) and he wants to use Athan and his yiayia to open up 'The Eye' so he can ascend to the most powerful position. Phew.
Athan ends up at the gala where Uhler reveals his plan, and he does end up opening The Eye when Uhler threatens his yiayia. A horrible spider creature made of eyes and light merges with Uhler while all the other society members go mad. Uhler tries to force Athan to kill his grandma, who is the sole defender against this being behind the mirror, when Dom interrupts. Dom says he knows the creature (The Beauty) really wants him. And he volunteers to be the host. Uhler's body boils into a knot of glittering eyes and then congeals into obsidian. Dom is able to merge with The Beauty, but then simultaneously trap it within The Eye, locking it away by sacrificing himself.
With The Eye closed and The Beauty contained, Athan and yiayia are safe again, with life returning to some level of normalcy. The book ends with Athan figuring out how to see not just the past but also the future in mirrors, and he reunites with Dom, but only through the mirror, ephemerally.
Good drama, compelling characters, and a good blend of supernatural mystery with horror elements. La Sala doesn't explain every detail of the world building here, but I think it works. You get enough details for the characters' choices to make sense and for the plot to be coherent, but the mechanics of the magic and supernatural are a little hand wavey. I'm okay with that, I think it worked, but not everyone will be a fan.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror