NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS’ CHOICE
Proclaimed as “truly spellbinding,” a “great fable” that “functions as transporting romance” by the Guardian, the runaway #1 international bestseller
“A rich, gothic entertainment that explores what books have trapped inside them and reminds us of the power of storytelling. Spellbinding.” — TRACY CHEVALIER
Imagine you could … reminds us of the power of storytelling. Spellbinding.” — TRACY CHEVALIER
Imagine you could erase grief.
Imagine you could remove pain.
Imagine you could hide the darkest, most horrifying secret.
Forever.
Young Emmett Farmer is working in the fields when a strange letter arrives summoning him away from his family. He is to begin an apprenticeship as a Bookbinder—a vocation that arouses fear, superstition, and prejudice amongst their small community, but one neither he nor his parents can afford to refuse.
For as long as he can recall, Emmett has been drawn to books, even though they are strictly forbidden. Bookbinding is a sacred calling, Seredith informs her new apprentice, and he is a binder born. Under the old woman’s watchful eye, Emmett learns to hand-craft the elegant leather-bound volumes. Within each one they will capture something unique and extraordinary: a memory. If there’s something you want to forget, a binder can help. If there’s something you need to erase, they can assist. Within the pages of the books they create, secrets are concealed and the past is locked away. In a vault under his mentor’s workshop rows upon rows of books are meticulously stored.
But while Seredith is an artisan, there are others of their kind, avaricious and amoral tradesman who use their talents for dark ends—and just as Emmett begins to settle into his new circumstances, he makes an astonishing discovery: one of the books has his name on it. Soon, everything he thought he understood about his life will be dramatically rewritten.
An unforgettable novel of enchantment, mystery, memory, and forbidden love, The Binding is a beautiful homage to the allure and life-changing power of books—and a reminder to us all that knowledge can be its own kind of magic.
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The Binding held me captive from the start and refused to set me free. It’s a beautifully crafted tale of dark magic and forbidden passion, where unspeakable cruelty is ultimately defeated by enduring love. Breathtaking!
The Binding is a dark chocolate slice of cake with a surprising, satisfying seam of raspberry running through it. It is a rich, gothic entertainment that explores what books have trapped inside them and reminds us of the power of storytelling. Spellbinding.
A moving, spellbinding book with a powerful love story at its heart and one of the best twists I’ve read in a long time. I fell into and inhabited and loved it. Such a deeply enjoyable and nourishing novel.
I definitely took my time with this one, the perk of not overscheduling my reading obligations at the moment, and I’m really glad I did because it was…unusual. I can’t say it was love at first page turn, but I was certainly intrigued. So many questions arose after each passage was read! Now don’t get me wrong, I had a feeling about some things as things progressed, but wow…the moment you think you just about have them figured out, they just turned all sorts of topsy turvy. The whole BINDING concept went from an act of kindness to a twisted self indulgence in a heartbeat. I mean how could something be so bad that you want it locked away for all time? What of the lessons learned from it? What of the new beginnings opened by it? Although perhaps some things are just too much for a heart to bare.
As for the writing, the author was able to draw you into the past and back to the present with such fluidity, were it not for the change in tone or character voicing the chapters, you’d never realize the journey you’ve actually taken. The characters she created were STRIKING and MEMORABLE, even when they were suppose to fade into nothingness. The power of the written word is definitely on full display here, as are the consequences that go along with hiding away our true selves, or even giving our truths over to someone else fully without baring the weight of any of the lessons learned from them.
All in all, I gotta say this was definitely an INTENSE, UNUSUAL, UNEXPECTED, and CURIOUS read. It’s a story that certainly makes you think twice about what you put down on paper, and reconsider the memories we choose to hold on to versus release and vice versa…as well as the WHY. My only real complaint with the book was that ONE SCENE…and I mean it was enough to make we second guess if I would have read the book knowing it was in it. What can I say, I’m an animal lover and it just didn’t sit right with me. (That scene was more of a reason for having a binding done than any other!) Otherwise, I was good…thoroughly surprised since it wasn’t anything like what I thought it would be, but still good. So, do I recommend it? Yes…just go in being warned about that one scene, so you can either bulldoze through it, or skip the page.
**ARC received for review; opinions are my own
I listened to the audio book and it was absolutely heartbreaking, gripping and beautiful. I loved the whole premise of this story, where our pasts can be bound in books as stories, removing our memories. I can see how that might be appealing, but also why it could be dangerous and exploitative. The romance in this book was so sweet and I loved the angst. Definitely recommend this book for fans of historical speculative fiction.
Very slow start and I wasn’t sure where this story was going, but it was intriguing enough and became all the more so as I read on. Very interesting concept, a sort of evil, magical NDA, but also a magical way to relieve memory pain. Thank goodness “binders” are
fictional! And also a beautiful love story. Very satisfying for a book I almost stopped reading.
Loved this book…..
This book had a very interesting premise and was very well written in the first part that I read. I personally do not like to read books that include homosexuality and in this book it is the main struggle/theme that seems to permeate the story. I did not continue reading the book once I realized that was going to be the case so I cannot speak for the rest of the book. I really wish I had been warned though or I never would have purchased the book.
This book. THIS BOOK. I loved it so much that I’m hunting for a special edition. The structure is unique, and there’s a moment about halfway in that made my heart explode. The story is mostly Emmett Farmer’s, but a portion belongs to Lucian Darnay, who I utterly adored. I found myself enthralled in their circumstance, flipping pages to find out where their story would end. The Binding is a delicious concoction of historical fantasy and romance, perfect for readers who love books about books, and it is stunningly, beautifully written. Ten stars and all of my heart.
Brilliant writing… an original concept with the binding of memories into books… a tender gay love story… what’s not to like about this? I was swept up by the story. Great stuff. Looking forward to more books by Bridget Collins.
I like to borrow books on Prime reading and let them sit for a little while so I can forget the plot. It makes it fun because I know I want to read it, but I don’t know what I’m reading.
You have this fantastic take on Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which is one of my most favorite movies based on one of my most favorite poems, by Alexander Pope. But instead of technology that can erase the things you want, it’s magic. You get to have books involved, which makes it perfect. The capacity for things to go so horribly awry with this is scary. You can get away with anything if you know you can make people forget you’ve done it. Collins has created a world in which books are scary because of what they can do. It’s not that much of a stretch when you historically look at what’s happened in the world.
So I was sitting there reading and thinking, ooh there’s an attraction building, please let these two boys get together. The tension kept building, and I needed these two to fall in love like I needed more air. “He took hold of my arm and pulled me round to face him. Then he kissed me.” Yay, success!
The Binding is everything beautiful and magical you want in a book. You also get to learn a bit of bookbinding, which adds another layer to an already wonderful plot. I loved every moment of reading this, and I cannot recommend it enough.
A wonderful read focusing on what people might like to forget in their lives – an unhappy relationship, heartbreak, pain. And what happens if that’s used for the wrong reasons.
Thought provoking and the relationship at the heart of it, is brilliantly written.
A gift from my daughter, really enjoyed the novel. It is an intriguing thought that all tragic memories could be erased until you realise it is the difficulties that we all go through that test and form our characters. Can’t recommend this enough!
This is an incredible novel, expertly written. I love this book so much I bought it as a hardback (after reading the eBook) and I feel very lucky to have a copy signed by the author 🙂
One of the best books I’ve ever read – her first adult novel so hopefully more to come.
That was a ride I wasn’t expecting.
The book was a gift, so I hadn’t read any reviews before I leapt in.
What a delicious story – paying people to take away bad memories, binding those memories up into a book, which for most would then be locked away, but for some, they become nothing more than entertainment. Imagine is all books were just the memories of others? How would you feel, knowing you were reading someone’s actual stories? An interesting thought.
The writing is beautiful. I wish I had her way with words.
I loved it.
So definitely not what I was expecting lol. Based on the summary of the book I assumed this was going to be an adventure and it was going to be exciting! The binder concept was so great I never would of thought of something like that, a person that can bind your memories into a book!
But The Binding was just a love story… I guess i’m kinda bummed out that that’s as far as it goes.. being a tragic love story of forbidden love (because its 2 boys) and everything was pretty predictable. There was some parts where I was like “oh damn… that’s messed up” but it never really climaxed.
The ending in my opinion sucked it was so cut and dry. It was kinda boring at times but it was enough to keep you reading. I had already committed to it so I decided to finish it. In the end it was an OK book. I think it’ll be enjoyable to others.
The Binding by Bridget Collins is an epic historical fantasy that will have you questioning as you read. There are elements of the Gothic horror tradition within the tale. I do not normally read this genre but The Binding intrigued me, held my attention and awakened my curiosity.
There is power in story-telling and Bridget Collins has certainly woven a splendid tale. We all have memories that we’d like to forget but what happens when we really need to remember the past, but cannot? This unique and well thought out tale explores that theme. There were other themes within the tale that I was not comfortable with but I recognise that Bridget Collins is a masterful story-teller.
Within the tale there are those who use and exploit others, as well as those who seek the truth.
The book is split into three sections with a different voice or period of time. The reader sees the events from two different points of view. One of the characters elicited sympathies from me, the other, not so much, although one could see he was a product of his upbringing.
The Binding was very unique and well executed.
Unknown by description, this has same gender romance. I would not have bought this book has I known. However I like the writers style
“Memories,” she said, at last. “Not people, Emmett. We take memories and bind them. Whatever people can’t bear to remember. Whatever they can’t live with. We take those memories and put them where they can’t do any harm. That’s all books are.”
Emmett Farmer is an apprentice bookbinder, a vocation that arouses fear, superstition and prejudice. In the world that Bridget Collins has created, bookbinders can capture memories in the pages of a book. Imagine if you could erase grief, pain or your darkest, most horrifying secrets forever. As Emmett learns his new trade and begins to settle in, he makes an astonishing discovery: a book with his name on it.
I devoured this book! The idea of being relieved of the burden of your worst memories was intriguing. The way the unscrupulous could twist bookbinding to their own ends was haunting. I tried to stay away from reviews until I could read this for myself but one of the things mentioned more than once was how the readers were surprised by the direction the book went, that it wasn’t what they expected. It almost reads like two books, I think, which worked for me. I loved it and would definitely read more by this author.