Gifted & Talented by Olivie Blake: A Review
It’s rare for a book to pull me in so deeply that I find myself grappling with its complexity for days—yet, here I am, after four laborious days of reflection, still struggling to encapsulate the brilliance of Gifted & Talented by Olivie Blake. This book is not just a read; it’s an experience that challenges the boundaries of storytelling, forcing you to engage with its characters and themes on a deeply personal level.
At its core, Gifted & Talented revolves around the Wren siblings—Meredith, Arthur, and Eilidh—each ensnared in their own crises of identity, privilege, and ambition. Meredith, the ruthless CEO of a biomantic company called Chirp, poses profound ethical questions about the nature of happiness. She’s the kind of character you can’t help but both admire and despise; I could easily imagine a powerhouse actress like Cate Blanchett bringing her to life on the screen.
Arthur, the tragic golden boy and aspiring politician, grapples with a sense of powerlessness that feels painfully relevant today. His struggles illustrate the tension between idealism and reality, echoing the sentiment that even the most powerful can feel like they’re drowning. Meanwhile, Eilidh, now a marketing worker trapped in her past as a ballerina, confronts her own harrowing supernatural abilities that blur the lines between reality and a dark, cosmic fate. Each character is a force of nature, and their stories draw you in like gravity—both mesmerizing and disconcerting.
The writing style? Oh, where do I even begin? Blake crafts sentences that are dense and winding, filled with flowing internal monologues and razor-sharp humor. It feels almost like a screenplay penned by a lovechild of Aaron Sorkin and Sally Rooney—quick, compelling, and intellectually demanding. I found myself flipping back pages, absorbing the layers of subtlety in the dialogue, a process that often left me exhausted yet exhilarated.
One standout aspect of the book is its pacing, which is slow and deliberately structured. It allows for a gradual build-up of tension and intricacies within the characters’ lives. This isn’t a book you breeze through; instead, it invites you to wrestle with its themes, to dissect its dialogue, and to engage with its philosophical undercurrents. I could easily see it as a gripping screen adaptation—if only a director could capture all the nuances and the emotional core present in the prose.
However, it’s important to note that while I found the complexity rewarding, I recognize it may not resonate with everyone. Some readers might find the intellectual density overwhelming, perhaps too wrapped up in its own sophistication. Yet, for those willing to invest their time and mental energy, the payoff is immense—a rich tapestry of family dysfunction, ambition, and haunting consequences played out against a backdrop of dark fantasy and speculative fiction.
Would I recommend Gifted & Talented? Absolutely, but with a caveat: prepare for a challenging read that will demand your full attention. Expect to find yourself entrenched in a world where every word seems to matter, and every character will make you feel a spectrum of emotions—ranging from admiration to deep loathing.
In conclusion, if you’re in the mood for something that gets under your skin, that provokes thought and discussion long after the last page is turned, then dive into Gifted & Talented. Whether you end up loving or hating the characters, I promise it will be an unforgettable ride into the complexities of power, privilege, and the weight of ambition. Thank you, Tor Publishing Group and MacMillan Audio, for the advance copies that allowed me to experience this riveting narrative.