In this review, I’m going to talk about the book ‘Ink’ by Alice Broadway. This is the first book in a trilogy called the ‘Skin Books’. I love this book for a few different reasons; the fact that a friend gave me this book for my birthday, the beautiful cover, and of course the story itself.
When I read this book, I was under the impression that this was a standalone novel. I was very happy to find out it is actually part of a trilogy, because Alice Broadway has written this story and everything around it in such an interesting way that I did not want to stop reading about this universe.
‘Ink’ follows the story of Leora Flint. I would describe it myself, but I think the synopsis of this book is something that can’t by topped by any writing of my own. So instead of writing my own synopsis, I will give you the book’s synopsis, and then give you extra information. “Every action, every deed, every significant moment is tattooed on your skin forever. When Leora’s father dies, she is determined to see her father remembered forever. She knows he deserves to have all his tattoos removed and made into a Skin Book to stand as a record of his good life. But when she discovers that his ink has been edited and his book is incomplete, she wonders whether she ever knew him at all”.
In this book, there are two types of people; the marked, and the blanks. Leora is marked. This means that every major life event is tattooed on her skin, so no one can have secrets. The blanks are the people who refuse to do this, who live far outside of Saintstone, the village Leora lives in, and are seen as evil and untrustworthy. It is important to remember that these marked people are very religious and superstitious, or else the story doesn’t make much sense. As stated in the synopsis, Leora’s father dies, and his ink is made into a ‘skin book’. This skin book shows all your tattoos, so it basically shows your whole life. Throughout this book, she learns that her father has not always been the same man she thought she knew. But what secret did her father have? And how will this affect Leora’s life?