Thank you Algonquin Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of Metropolis in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Published: May 17, 2022
Summary:
From bestselling author B. A. Shapiro, a gripping novel that follows six mysterious characters whose lives intersect when a tragedy occurs at the storage facility where they all rent units.
In Metropolis we meet six unforgettable characters who never would have met if not for their rental units at Metropolis Storage Warehouse. When a harrowing accident—or is it an accident?—occurs in the building, each character is forced to consider their life circumstances: Serge, a mentally unstable but brilliant street photographer who lives in his unit; Zach, the storage facility owner and an ex-drug dealer, who purchases Serge’s undeveloped photographs and discovers they contain clues to the mysterious accident. Marta, an undocumented immigrant hiding from ICE in her unit. Liddy, an abused wife and mother, who is responsible for the accident, unless she intended it; Jason, a lawyer who has left his big firm and now practices out of his unit; and Rose, the office manager who takes kickbacks to let people live in the facility and has her own disintegrating family to deal with.
The characters have different backgrounds: they are different races and religions; they’re young, and they’re not so young; they are rich, poor, and somewhere in the middle. As they dip in and out of each other’s stories and struggle to salvage their own lives—as well as discover the truth behind the accident—Metropolis traces how their interlocking narratives connect them and tear them apart. B.A. Shapiro has wrapped an ensemble cast around a mystery that thematically explores the myth of “pulling yourself up by the bootstraps” in current day America.
My thoughts:
When I saw that B.A. Shapiro had a new book coming out, I jumped at the opportunity to read it. I’ve really enjoyed her books in the past, though I have to say, this latest one is a bit of a departure from her typical historical fiction novels but still quite good.
Set almost entirely in a storage unit facility, this character-driven novel really takes you by surprise by just how much it tackles. I was not expecting the depth the book has and how much I came to care about this group of characters that at first seems to have no connection, yet end up intersecting in such interesting ways. Having the book told from multiple points of view really allows for the intimate connection and while it might be off-putting to some, I found that each character is so richly drawn that I had no issues keeping track of who was who.
I will say this is not a fast-paced book at all, so if you are looking for one that moves quickly, this is definitely not for you. It starts with the owner of the storage unit selling off the contents of the units – and all I could think of was that show Storage Wars, which this book is definitely not about! But as each unit is sold, we see how the units were used and start to learn about each of the owners.
The further I got into this book, the harder it became to put down because I really started to become quite invested in each of the characters’ lives, plus I was so curious as to how everything would come together. Why did all these characters have units at this storage place and how were they connected? There is an underlying mystery that also hooks you and the suspense slowly builds, with some pretty good twists along the way.
This book really ended up being so much more than I thought it would be and as I mentioned it does tackles some pretty big issues – immigration, domestic violence, poverty, inequality, politics and mental illness – and it does so in such a brilliant and imaginative way. I definitely recommend picking this one up…it really is quite an original story and I even think it would make a great book club pick.
