Fragile Animals


Fragile Animals• Genevieve Jagger 🦢

In this unique novel written in a lush atmosphere , ex-catholic, Noelle finds herself intertwined with a vampire. But this isn’t your typical vampire novel. Through the events of Fragile Animals, Noelle explores her past and tries to piece together the trauma which has haunted her life. Her mother was very emotionally distant from her and ended up having an affair with their priest. Following the scandal, her mother left and never returned to them. Noelle is also trying to define her sexuality but the fear of God is ever present in her experiences. This novel was a blossoming of a woman kept prisoner by her past. Jagger has a beautiful way with words that kept me hooked the entire time.

Fragile Animals is out April 25, 2024!

Thank you to 404 ink for the ARC in exchange for my honest review !

Thanks to Net galley for the e-arc !

I was very impressed with this. The writing was beautiful, there were multiple parts where I was so surprised by the beautiful prose. I want to read other books the author releases, I think they have a real talent.
The pacing felt off in some spaces and I did find components a touch overwritten, but I was thoroughly invested the whole book. It felt like the kind of vulnerable look into religious trauma and self discovery in your early twenties in a very original way.

Except for the sex I was scared during that scene, but I do think you’re supposed to feel gross. It worked.

In general, I love religious trauma and feral women in my books.

This book was not for me. Could not get involved in the writing. I read at least half of the book and couldn't go further.

Very original voice, intriguing characters who all had incredible depth and loved how the author writes setting.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

I think this was a case of a book just not being for me. While I enjoy books about masochism and obsession, I actually don't really care for vampires. And while I wouldn't necessarily describe this as like a Vampire Novel, there is nonetheless a vampire. I also found much of the writing...overwrought. It had the same problem that, I think, a lot of contemporary novels by women do, particularly those with gothic overtones that deal with masochism and obsession - there's a lot of graphic descriptions of sex and bodies, and a lot of seemingly profound statements ("I am sick of looking in mirrors made of men.") but no real. Weight. Or meaning.

I think this possibly just wasn't the book for me. The authors writing style and I really do not mesh well and while the plot was intresting it wasn't enough to keep my attention

I was very much anticipating ‘Fragile Animals’ and was very grateful to receive an e-arc, especially after hearing fellow bookstagrammers rave about it!

‘Fragile Animals’ is equally witty and emotional, with incredibly atmospheric writing. We follow Noelle as she leaves everything she knows behind to go stay in a small B&B in rural Scotland, where she encounters an older male guest who claims to be a vampire.

The story explores themes of trauma related to family issues and religion, with a sprinkling of explorations of repressed sexuality. While these themes are usually a massive win for me, they didn’t quite make up for what I disliked about this book.

I'll firstly say that if you enjoy a more literary stream-of-consciousness type book with a focus on unlikeable characters, you will likely enjoy this. However, that's not what I personally expected going into this book, and I might not have picked it up if it had been pitched in this way.

I absolutely loved Genevieve’s writing and found myself wanting to annotate and underline on multiple occasions. I'll definitely be reading any future work from Genevieve, but sadly, this one wasn’t quite for me.

While I had fun with the premise and the explored themes, I really disliked and was a little disgusted by the male ‘vampire’ character, and also found that many of the plot points didn’t work for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and 404 Ink for the e-arc. All opinions are my own.

This story follows Noelle, a 22-year-old poet travelling to the Isle of Bute in Scotland in attempt to clear her mind write something of worth for her editor. Here she meets Moses, a vampire, and a journey of discovery begins.

Jagger’s writing style is immersive, her depiction of the Scottish coastline was so vivid. I loved how she explored themes of religious, sexual, and parental trauma in a sensitive yet enigmatic way. For the first time, I’ve been made to consider what it must have been like to grow up in a household as devout yet problematic as Noelle’s, which was an interesting journey.

Noelle as a character was an over-sharer and over-thinker, who made me laugh hysterically at times but who also made my heartache. Over the course of the book, Noelle reveals the full extent of her deep-rooted self-hatred through various flashbacks, which were artfully written. Her character was full of hidden depths, even towards the end of the book. However, her interactions with Moses fell flat for me. I understand his significance in the book but I wasn’t invested in their relationship.

Thank you to Netgalley and 404ink for the ARC!

Unique and beautiful. A young writer visits Bute to focus on re-writing her second book of poetry. Staying in a B&B she meets a man who claims to be a vampire, as their relationship intensifies, she is confronted with her catholic upbringing, which completely shaped her sense of shame. She is haunted by the complexity of her relationship with her mother and grappling’s with her own sexual identity now away from the church. The writing was beautiful and crude at times. I enjoyed the character examination, Noelle was dry and vulnerable, her observations of the people around her keen. This is a modern gothic novel, with melancholy love weaved in, but perhaps not in the way or for the person you first suspect.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher 404 Ink for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and 404 Ink for the eARC! In exchange, this is my honest review.

In Fragile Animals, author Genevieve Jagger takes her reader on a deep dive into the mind - and heart, and body - of Noelle, a young poet struggling with religious and personal trauma, a crisis of identity, and a serious case of writer’s block. As Noelle navigates her present staying at a bed and breakfast on the Isle of Bute, contending with her anxiety, her discomfort, and her complicated interest in fellow-guest Moses - who purports to be vampire - she also untangles the messy threads of her past, and the audience is brought along for every unquiet, unsettling, and often heart-breaking moment of it.

This novel was uncomfortable to read - but I think very much in the way that the author intended it to be. Nothing is sugar-coated or glossed over - from bodily functions, to mental spirals, to dissociation, Jagger pulls no punches. And, for me, at least, I felt nearly every one of them land.

With imagery that is evocative and haunting, Jagger’s prose and story-telling reached right into me and grabbed onto pieces of myself I thought I had long since buried. As another queer ex-Catholic who has spent years untangling religious trauma, anxiety, and mental illness, there were parts of this novel that, frankly, hit almost too-close to home, and for this reason I think it took me a lot longer to read this novel than I would have anticipated. I had to keep putting the book down to sort myself out emotionally, and then return to it. I mean this in a way that is entirely complimentary to Jagger, but also as a bit of a warning to others in a similar position: I think if I was less-removed in time from my own history with the Church, and with the spiraling emotions that came in the wake of leaving it and coming to terms with the baggage I took from growing up in it, this is a novel that could have set me back on my healing journey.

As it is, though, I found this novel cathartic in a way I can’t quite put my finger on. Like Noelle - like many ex or recovering Catholics I have known - for myself, pain and suffering are linked so closely with the ideas of purification, of forgiveness, and of divinity. In letting Jagger’s prose pierce into me and suck something vital and human from the wound, I am left battered, and empty, and yet, somehow, this is a relief as it means I am free to fill myself up again, and maybe to do it differently this time.

This novel is the Three of Swords, and the dark of the confessional, and the clots of menstrual blood, and the imprint of a broken-necked swan that might be an angel on a windowpane. It is also a prismatic feather floating out over the waves as I return home, and I’m not quite sure what to do with that just yet.

I didn’t realize how much religious trauma I had until I read this book. This was funny, unhinged, intense, but also made me sad? I think I need to sit with this one for a while longer to really figure out how I feel about it. I think I love it?

Fragile Animals by Genevieve Jagger

RIYL: Dealing with religious trauma, character study literary fiction, vampires

In Genevieve Jagger’s debut novel Fragile Animals, protagonist Noelle – a writer in her early 20s - escapes from her mysterious traumatic urban life to a remote Scottish island, ostensibly to rewrite her second book of poetry. She’s staying in a bed and breakfast run by a quirky old woman, but, as it turns out, there’s one other guest. Oh, and he’s a vampire. You might think you know where this is going.

This setup might lead potential readers to expect this is a horror-infused romance, or one of the many “romantasy” books dominating the literary landscape nowadays, but it’s not that at all. Fragile Animals is a piece of literary fiction about Noelle’s trauma, where the only real plot is the continual revelation of what happened in her past and how she might move forward. These non-chronological flashbacks are framed around her parents’ divorce (marked by the use of BC [Before Crisis] and AD [After Divorce]) and are occasionally interspersed with Noelle’s present interactions with her host, and more importantly, with her fellow guest, the vampire Moses. Moses is not a traditional romantic leading man; he’s described as at least looking twice her age and as not particularly attractive, but soon the two strike up a messy flirtatious dynamic using each other as confessional soundboards to their many tales of past lovers and sexual encounters. Moses quickly reveals that he’s a vampire, and though we learn enough to know that he believes this, it’s never quite definitely proven, and the question of whether he truly is one or not is not really dwelt on, and nor should it be. There’s certainly a propulsion to their relationship, such as it is, that kept me turning the pages, but really, the book lives and dies on its poetic prose and its deep dive into Noelle’s trauma – in particular, her religious trauma.

This is a deeply Catholic book, or perhaps, a deeply ex-Catholic book, where Noelle’s liaison with a vampire just one thematic example of her attempts to build a self-identity separate to her domineering mother and the stranglehold both she and their faith still hold on Noelle, even years since she’s spoken to her mother or attempted faith. Noelle is consumed by grief and self-hatred, throwing herself from ill-advised fling to messily short relationship with abandon. Is Moses someone who can jolt her out of her darkness, or is he merely the latest example of it?

As a work of literary fiction, Fragile Animals rests on Jagger’s appropriately-poetic prose (which at times verges into the overwrought but only just) and on her ability to conjure up insightful personal revelations about her protagonist. She succeeds pretty well on both these fronts, and by the end of my read I had a good sense of who Noelle is, and how she and many other people are indelibly formed by their flawed parents and broken to fit the shape of their overriding faiths. Ultimately though, I did find the entire experience a little slight, and wished for the book’s real dark turns and flourishes to be explored in greater detail. Like many other books that lightly dip their toes into genre or the supernatural, I think they’d be improved by sinking a little deeper into that well of inspiration. All that said, if the idea of this kind of in-depth character study is appealing to you, I think Fragile Animals is well worth the read.

Rating: *** 1/2

Fragile Animals is set to publish on April 25, 2024.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts expressed are my own.

Fragile Animals tells the story of Noelle, a 23-year-old woman recovering from a devoutly catholic upbringing in Scotland. Unable to confront her familial trauma and repressed sexuality, Noelle travels to the Isle of Bute, where she meets a man who claims to be a vampire. Their relationship mirrors confession, and she shares some of her darkest memories: her mother’s affair with the local priest, how Noelle sought revenge and broke up their family. Noelle is soon suffocated by her storytelling and must decide whether she’s ready to move on from the past and exist in her own skin.

Fragile Animals was tragic but also darkly funny. Noelle is easy to both love and hate. She’s so helpless, yet you can see how desperately she wants to be different. You have to be patient with her and remember what it felt like to be 23 amidst all the other tumultuous nonsense she endured. I appreciated how the story moved back and forth through time to show Noelle’s life. I would have read a book twice as long if it meant learning more about her childhood, family, and coming out.

First I’d like to thank you publisher for the advanced copy of Fragile Animals! I was super excited because I LOVE VAMPIRE BOOKS! For a debut Jagger, has composed a lovely framework that was unexpected from my initial expectations. I also believe if you like literary fiction you’d probably enjoy this novel.

Noelle, a twentysomething writer, retreats to the remote Isle of Bute off the coast of Scotland for some R&R, with the goal to finish her second book of poetry. At her B&B, she meets a fellow guest, Moses, who she soon learns is… a vampire! While she gets to know Moses, she also turns inward to reflect on her upbringing - religious trauma and mommy issues - and her own sexuality.

While reading this synopsis, you might be thinking “ok so the Pisces for vampires,” and I kept thinking the same while reading the book as well, but that cheapens how good the book is. Though it certainly shares a lot of similar ideas (depressed girl working on something meets fabled creature while on a retreat), the writing in Fragile Animals is so distinct and it introduces enough of its own that it didn’t feel like a borrowed idea.

I could see this not being for everyone. I could see the writing coming across as maybe cheesy and maybe pretentious at times, but I thought it was edgy and new, and I really enjoyed!

Fragile Animals is out April 25th. Thank you to NetGalley and 404 Ink for the ARC.

I was pleasantly surprised by the slow draw, slice-of-life injected into what I expected would be a more fantastical view of Catholic trauma. Jagger's writing is a reminder of the beauty in the slow, thoughtful moments in life while simultaneously packing a punch into the human condition.

I want to start of by thanking the publishers for sending me this title because this was genuinely one of my favorite recent reads. Fragile Animals is a raw, unsettling, yet poetic tale that hooked me from the first chapter. Jagger has a way with writing that is so beautiful despite how dark some of the themes addressed are. At times, I felt like I was looking at myself through the protagonist as her struggles were so real and relatable to me. I felt so many emotions throughout this book and it was such a wonderful experience overall. I am so excited for this to be published as I will for sure be buying myself a copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and 404 Ink for the ARC!

I took a chance on this book, as it is slightly different than my usual reads, but I am so glad I did!

The best way to describe my feelings would be: falling gently. I fell into the world of Fragile Animals and enjoyed my time there. Nothing but good things to say about this work of literature!

I can't wait to see what Genevieve Jagger does next!

5/5 stars

✨️Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC✨️
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This book was as beautiful in its prose as it was devastating in its content. The main character, Noelle, was complicated and nuanced, I felt myself at some points pitying her and others feeling angry at her self-destructive actions.

I found the ending all together satisfying and thought it tied the book together quite well. Themes of death and rebirth both in literal and metaphoric throughout.

I would say this leans into the magic realism genre for me, a light sprinkling of the fantastic. Noelle discovers the fellow boarder at the B&B she's run away to in the Scottish countryside is a vampire.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read and hope people give it a try.

It's taken me a week or so to work through my feelings on Fragile Animals.

I will start by saying the premise of this book had me gripped - gothic/supernatural, exploration of religious upbringing, a journey of self discovery, visceral imagery and a lot of quirk (enter a Vampire called Moses with a taxidermy hobby) all whilst juggling some rather brilliant questions on morality, sin, sexuality and the idea of self vs deity ... however it fell completely short of what it could have delivered.

The prose felt fractured which yes, at times added to the impending sense of horror (loved) but 90% of the time just made the story nearly impossible to get into and for you to form any attachment to Noelle the MC (didn't love).

For a debut it really set a tone, so I'm interested to see what is next in store for Jagger.

Thanks to 404 Ink and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.