Synopsis

You can’t buy a ticket for the Elsewhere Express. Appearing only to those whose lives are adrift, it’s a magical train seeming to carry very rare and special cargo: a sense of purpose, peace, and belonging.

Raya is one of those lost souls. She had dreamed of being a songwriter, but when her brother died, she gave up on her dream and started living his instead.

One day on the subway, as her thoughts wander, she’s swept off to the Elsewhere Express. There she meets Q, an intriguing artist who, like her, has lost his place in the world.

Together they find a train full of wonders, from a boarding car that’s also a meadow to a dining car where passengers can picnic on lily pads to a bar where jellyfish and whales swim through pink clouds.

Over the course of their long, strange night on the train, they also discover that it harbors secrets—and danger: A mysterious stranger has stowed away and brought with him a dark, malignant magic that threatens to destroy the train.

But in investigating the stowaway’s identity, Raya also finds herself drawing closer to the ultimate question: What is her life’s true purpose—and is it a destination the Elsewhere Express can take her to? (via Amazon)

Review

*Trigger Warnings: mentions of suicide, death and trauma, blindness, sickness*

This book has been on my TBR for quite some time. I, along with many others, was first drawn to the whimsical nature of the beautiful cover, as well as the expectation this was going to be something akin to the works of Studio Ghibli. Needless to say, I went into this audiobook with excitement and high expectations. Now that I am finished, I do have some complicated feelings about the book as a whole.

To begin, I did listen to the audio book version off of Libby. This book was a bit further down my read list, but as soon as my hold was lifted I jumped on it since so many people are in line to read it. Amanda Centeno was the lovely narrator who graced my ears for the almost 11 hour read through. Her voice was so soothing to me that I honestly could not read this while in bed, lest I would fall asleep. She did a wonderful job voicing both the male and female characters, tweaking each voice enough for me to differentiate. That being said, I recommend this audiobook version for sure, just maybe not when you are relaxing.

Samantha’s overall writing was beautiful and imaginative. Honestly, I feel as though she could become quite successful in poetry if she were to ever branch out to that genre. Being a book under the magical realism umbrella, her whimsical writing style came in handy for sure. That being said, at times the writing was too obtuse and out there for me to follow seamlessly with what was happening. Basically, the magical aspects were overthrowing the realism by a mile and a half.

The train itself was more of an enigma than what the cover implies as well. I was expecting an actual physical multi-cart train, similar to that of Spirited Away. While there are some of the usual characteristics including an engine, and boarding and dining carts, the layout was extremely non-linear. There were doors inside pots, doors inside other miniature trains on board, doors inside picture frames, etc. Trying to keep up with the ever evolving rules and layout, made it difficult for me to connect to the characters and the main plot.

This was all complicated even further with the jumps in perspective. Raya and Q are only two of the main characters with Lily and Rasmus also having their own blips of perspective. Time on the train is extremely non-linear as well so in between POV changes, there would be glimpses into the past as well as the future. Once again, all of this began to muddy the waters a bit for my comprehension and attention. I felt like I needed one of those string maps investigators make in order to grasp all the facts and implications of this story.

The overall main theme of the dangers of holding onto emotional baggage such as grief, trauma and regret was one of the best qualities about this book. You had those characters who were aware of the weight they were carrying around but struggling to let it all go. On the flip side, there were others who used ignorance as bliss, trying to forget the traumas of their past. This theme felt the most realistic and physical to me, so that is what I clung to while reading.

I am choosing to stay vague concerning the characters since I do not want to delve into spoiler territory. Needless to say, the male characters were my favorite due to them seemingly having a clearer head on their shoulders. Raya and Lily were quite argumentative throughout, as though they had everything figured out enough to question in the first place.

All in all, my thoughts about this book are like a sandwich. You have the bread with all the different ingredients in between. With all the different aspects of this book, I feel as though all the meat, cheese, and veggies are spilling out, due to having a bit too much stuff crammed in. I hope that makes sense! I do plan on reading some of Samantha’s other books, as they have been held in high esteem as well.

Give The Elsewhere Express a try if you enjoy some fantastical magical realism (more surreal than anything else).