The Bloodsong Experiment by Mariam Al-Masri is a book that’s hard to categorize. It’s a paranormal romance, but with significant sci-fi elements. It also has touches of alien or monster romance energy. The description caught my attention online, and I was given an ARC from the author.
The Musician has no memories. All that she brought with her from her life on Earth is music and poetry. On this unfamiliar planet, she’s a “tribute girl”, sent to Talgazmear to find her fated mate.
The Incomplete is desperate to find his fated mate, his beloved. He’s running out of time, and he needs to complete the bond to save himself.
When the gods intervene, The Musician and The Incomplete find themselves in impossible positions, wrapped up in a story that goes far beyond the divine chemistry that draws them together.
I had a lot of issues with this book, but the most frustrating of these issues was the characters. They are never named, a creative choice I respect but found frustrating. Beyond that, the essence of the characters themselves was grating.
There are few, if any, redeeming qualities to these characters. The Musician is stiff, lacking in empathy, neutral in her own life, and always strangely composed. At one point, she throws a vase at a slave, leaving her bleeding, and laughs. She steadfastly refuses to apologize, despite the attack occuring for no apparent reason.
The Incomplete is heavily implied to have raped someone, and his whole deal is ethically awful medical experiments. He’s slightly more complex and interesting than his musical counterpart, but just slightly.
Even with the most morally reprehensible figures in romance, there’s generally some kernel of a quality that redeems them in the end, if only a little. An undying love based on more than random biology, a loyalty to a friend, or an inexplicable attachment to a kitten, something. But there is nothing. And to add insult to injury, they’re also kind of boring.
I do not like them. They are not sexy. Their chemistry is non-existent. Their entire attraction feels clinical, and it does not work.
On top of my issues with the characters, The Bloodsong Experiment also struggles with clarity. The story doesn’t feel concrete. It’s hard to grasp. The magical system is vague, with entirely unexplained limits and functions. This book is undeniably *artsy*, which I’m not sure works in a paranormal, sci-fi world.
Some of the science fiction elements were interesting, but the whole thing feels off. The dialogue is hard to read at times, due mostly to a misguided creative choice. What is read as broken English to the reader is meant to portray The Musician’s broken attempt at the alien language. I get it. She doesn’t speak the alien language well, but as a result, half of the dialogue is just broken English.
This is a debut novel for an indie author, so some grace is required here. With some developmental and line edits, this book had potential, but it just doesn’t come through. The concept is incredibly creative.
I badly wanted to like The Bloodsong Experiment. I was excited for it, but many of the choices here just did not land for me as a reader. I’ve been forced to read Faulkner, and that shit made more sense than this. In combination with characters who are both bland and unlikable, it made the book a miss for me.
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