What an odd novelette (novella?). Very lyrical and empathetic, which I usually like – and liked here! “Silk merchant in 19th century France travelling to Japan” should be right down my alley. I liked the descriptions, and most of the plot, except for the … romance? not romance, love interest? well, not that either, you see. It weirded me out – I nearly wrote “grossed me out”, even though there was nothing really weird or gross there. Vibes, man, it’s all vibes.
This book is part of the 2022 Backlog Incident.
