Emily Reviews

Station Eleven is a book that meanders back and forth through time, providing clues to how each character is linked to the others in the post-apocalyptic world after the rapid and devastating spread of the Georgia Flu. The connections are hinted at and foreshadowed long before many of them are explicitly detailed, and it was good fun piecing the little snippets, all seemingly casual and inconspicuous, together.

This was a beautifully written book, definitely driven more by character than by the plot. St. John Mandel has a nice style; although the use of colons did become noticeable it didn’t quite manage to be intrusive.The writing was engaging with, for me, just the right amount of drifting tangents to concrete story. Having said that, I’m still conflicted on how I feel about the book overall. I enjoy character-driven books, apart from one thing. They have a tendency to just stop with no obvious conclusion as a more plot driven book would. The ending sentences of Station Eleven left me feeling quite disappointed and somewhat like I’d walked face first into a brick wall. There was still potential, as if the book I’d just read was some sort of extended prologue all intended to build up to the possibilities hinted at in the final moments.

Despite this, I’d still recommend the book and search out more of Emily St. John Mandel’s writing.