Book Stop Corner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


“Trust your heart if the seas catch fire, live by love though the stars walk backward.”




Joaquin Lowe, an American author, pens a thrilling and heroic western-themed tale in his debut YA book, Bullet Catcher that unfolds the journey of a young teenage girl who escapes her small town into the deadly desert on the footsteps of an unidentified bullet catcher, in memory of her childhood dreams as well as her dead elder brother's wish to become a bullet catcher. But this journey turns out to be challenging so will she make it?




Synopsis:

A coming-of-age tale re-imagined as a searing Western epic.

In the small town of Sand, populated by gunslingers and surrounded by endless desert, Imma washes dishes and grieves for a life she never had. She and her brother, Nikko, dreamed of escaping to become bullet catchers, a legendary band of outlaws who can deflect bullets with their hands. But they were wiped out years ago, Nikko with them. And leaving is impossible when walking into the desert means certain death.

When she sees a stranger catch a man's bullet and turn it back on him, Imma knows it can only mean one thing: the bullet catchers live on, and this is her way out.
Determined to follow him, Imma starts a journey that will take her to her physical extremes and force her to question just what family means and who she really is: bullet catcher or gunslinger; hero or monster.


Imma, an orphan, works as a cleaner in a bar in her small town with a population of 500 people called, Sand. She and her elder brother, "Nikko", who grew up in an orphanage, always had this dream to become a bullet catcher, a person who can catch bullet either with his hand or with his teeth and can bend it and reverse its direction to the person it is coming from. Hence Nikko escapes from their orphanage to follow his dreams and also promises his little sister to come back for her when he has earned a lot of money. Unfortunately, Nikko never returns and And Imma easily guesses that death has claimed her brother and hence she needs to escape her wretched life from Sand and into the killer desert. And one fine day, a bullet catcher walks into the bar where she works, whose bravery left her in awe and hence she immediately decides to follow him through the desert to be trained under him. But the journey is long where she needs to confront her own decisions and choices and that she need to carry a lot of scars in order to become a bullet catcher.

This story is unlike any other YA stories, neither cheesy nor predictable or not even slightest bit of typical. This story is extraordinary and beats all other YA stories, as it has no teenage romance or a damsel in distress kind of heroine or a way too independent heroine who despite of her bravery is still supported and surrounded by two guys, and lastly, the setting is immaculately painted thus giving the readers a clear vision of what the protagonist is experiencing with her own eyes.

The author's writing style is articulate and is laced with thrill and gripping adventure. The narrative is equally engaging as well as powerful to keep the readers stick to the core of the story till the very end. The story might be unrealistic as there is no such thing or there is logical explanation behind catching a bullet with bare hands, although the author has skillfully demonstrated the act step-by-step with as much as logic and details possible, thus making the readers comprehend with the explanation to some extent. The pacing is quite fast and as it moves with unexpected twists and turns.

The background is one of the best aspect of this book. The desert and the sandy backdrop give a western flair to this story, which will keep the readers interested peaked at every turn of the page, since the desert that the author painted is not only vivid and easy to visualize, but it is uncertain with each step and quite challenging as no food or water or animal or livelihood can be found through the golden stretches of sand. And yes with the author's in depth description, it will make the readers stand right in the middle of that desert.

The characters are well-developed, and it is also one of the best quality of the book that makes the story enchanting. The main protagonist, Imma, in short for Immaculada Amaya Moreno, is a fifteen years old teenager who has been adopted into a bar in order to provide for cheap labor cost. Yet Imma is determined to leave her hometown and take the risk to walk into the killer desert all on her own to become a bullet catcher and her long, hard, struggling journey though the sand into the unknown is highly relatable and striking. Imma is a brave girl who trust her family above all and with a back story, the readers can easily contemplate with her grief and determination. The supporting cast is also quite well-etched out.

The author, here, explores the relationship between a teacher and a student, who is also strikingly and genuinely developed through trust issues and discipline. Although the training might sound bit unrealistic, but the relationship and the bond between these two characters will keep the readers rooting for them till the very end. The author also explores a brother-sister relationship and how inevitable it is, but I would rather not talk about it, as there lay so many twists and turns and probably, spoiler.

In a nutshell, the story is captivating to read with a young, honest, strong and powerful heroine, and with a story that will keep the readers on their edges as there is so many raw violence and death that holds the power to frighten the minds of the readers.

Verdict: A promising and powerful YA contemporary story with guns and battles.

Courtesy: Thanks to the author, Joaquin Lowe, for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author Info:
Grew up in the Bay Area. Educated in Chicago. Rejected by New York. Wrote a book. Wrote somethings for other people on the internet. Please like me.
Please get in touch with the doohickies below.
Visit him here



Book Purchase Links:

• Amazon US
• Amazon India