Bloom by Delilah S. Dawson
Overall Rating: ★★★★★
Well, well, well Ms. Dawson. What can I say about this book apart from: whoa.
I literally ate up Bloom and when I say ate up I mean I gobbled it up, forgive the pun, in two very closely spaced sittings in a single day. This was like two bites of a maple bacon cupcake, sweet, strange, moreish and with something just a little bit wrong underneath.
Bloom had me hunting for clues from the get-go. I knew from other reviews that the ending was supposed to be something special and thank goodness it did not let me down. This is a story of infatuation, greed, jealousy and obsession all wrapped up in a slow-burn story that takes us from the cosy charm of a farmers market to a heart-stopping climax.
Speaking as a gay male wolf, I am not usually the biggest reader of sapphic fiction, but apparently this year has decided to be my year of lesbian horror. And honestly, I am not hating it. The dynamic between two women is so much different than two men and watching Ro doubt her sexuality after a painful break up felt all too real. We’ve all been there, wondering if a certain flavour of gender, desire or attention is really for us, especially when loneliness and heartbreak are already sitting at the table.
It’s in Ro’s relationship with Ash that the book really begins to tighten its grip. The slow, creeping dread builds beautifully as red flags are not just missed but completely ignored. You, the reader, are mentally yelling at Ro in the classic horror way: don't go up the stairs when the front door is right there.
Bloom is a short book (just over 200 pages), but that’s a good thing. The slow burn lasts long enough for you to be dreading what's coming, without ever getting boring or melodramatic. Dawson knew just how long to let the discomfort marinate before cranking up the heat.
The characters are also much more developed than the page count would lead you to believe. Ro is neurotic and self-conscious and obsessed not only with Ash but her own image: being presentable, liked, polished and put together. There are times when you wonder if Ro is so desperate for company that she will enter any relationship, perhaps even stay in bad ones, just to avoid being alone.
Meanwhile, Ash is the kind of rebound you fall for hard, fast. Add in the temptation of forbidden desire, the thrill of being wanted, the intoxicating pull of someone who feels almost too perfect, and the whole thing becomes something to savour , like a warm, blindfolded bath with a lover. Intimate, comforting, but with the horrible suspicion that you may not be as safe as you think.
Bloom is sharply conceived, beautifully edited and written with excellent prose that feels modern, seductive and deeply unsettling. This was my first Delilah S. Dawson read, but it sure as hell won’t be my last. In fact she may have howled her way onto my auto-buy list.
Five star read. I don’t give those out lightly.
Overall Rating: ★★★★★
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