By Rio Youers

ChiZine Press

Meet Westlake Soul – former surfer and now superhero extraordinaire…

I first encountered Rio Youers’ writing through various short stories that always left a distinct impression; those were followed by his two novels published by Titan (Halcyon and The Forgotten Girl), and I determined that I would seek out his earlier work. Seeing that in the review, Youers himself kindly sent me a copy of Westlake Soul. To put it mildly, it wasn’t what I was expecting.

In a good way.

This is an extraordinary novel, one that deals with profound disability and superhero tropes on the same page, sometimes within the same paragraph. It’s a wild fantasy ride through the mind of someone who is unable to express their thoughts verbally (Westlake had a surfing accident, leaving him locked inside a completely paralysed body). It reminds me of early Dean Koontz novels where expected relationships between humans and other creatures are not what they appear on the surface but told in a voice that’s unique. It’ll make you question so much about what we take for granted, but which can be torn away in an instant and make you remember that every conversation is potentially your final one with someone.

But it’s also fundamentally a positive book, a story about battling apparently insurmountable odds, about the different ways in which love can be expressed. It’s a tale that you won’t be the same after reading.

Verdict: Track down a copy of this – it’s a startlingly original piece of fantasy writing. 9/10

Paul Simpson