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Reassembling Kate
When Kate meets herself for the first time, she realises she doesn't know herself at all.
Kate Monroe is a successful businesswoman, but when she finds herself having an out-of-body experience, she is horrified to discover her empty body is able to carry on without her - and is doing a better job of it. Broken and isolated, she waits for anyone to notice the change and come to her rescue.
Neither her friends nor her boyfriend realise the problem. Out of everybody in her life, her coworker David is the only one to notice her body is a shell. Working together, they uncover that the only way to make her whole is to travel inside herself and come face-to-face with her fractured psyche. But there's a chance that she's not alone.
Reassembling Kate is a lyrical and thought-provoking novel that explores the power of self-discovery and the resilience of the human spirit, while weaving in a captivating romance and an intriguing mystery.
Kate Monroe is a successful businesswoman, but when she finds herself having an out-of-body experience, she is horrified to discover her empty body is able to carry on without her - and is doing a better job of it. Broken and isolated, she waits for anyone to notice the change and come to her rescue.
Neither her friends nor her boyfriend realise the problem. Out of everybody in her life, her coworker David is the only one to notice her body is a shell. Working together, they uncover that the only way to make her whole is to travel inside herself and come face-to-face with her fractured psyche. But there's a chance that she's not alone.
Reassembling Kate is a lyrical and thought-provoking novel that explores the power of self-discovery and the resilience of the human spirit, while weaving in a captivating romance and an intriguing mystery.
338 pages, Paperback
Published September 24, 2023
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November 23, 2025
Reassembling Kate by Erica Manwaring - Good
I went to the Literary Escape Festival in Edinburgh with a group of Bookcrossing friends. Wasn't quite sure what to expect, but there were all sorts of stalls with authors selling books and various bookish things. There were also some author talks. Erica Manwaring was the first of the day and she read the opening section of this book. We were all really taken with it, all wanting to know 'what happened next', so I bought the book and intend to circulate it around those friends before opening up to a wider audience.
Kate is sitting on the sofa contemplating the day when there is a knock at the door. She gets up to answer it, but hears a noise behind her. Someone else is in the flat! As she looks round for a suitable weapon to confront the intruder she realises that her hands are missing...as is her reflection and then she walks past herself to open the door! Somehow she has become detached from her body and it is perfectly able to carry on without her. But there's 'something missing' some spark that made Kate, Kate. Folk notice that she seems a little calmer, more together but only one person thinks there is something wrong: her colleague David. Together they try to work out what is going on.
The book is split into three sections: the initial section where Kate learns more about 'herself' and her friends and colleagues by following them around. I really enjoyed this bit. Quite funny and appalling in equal measure.
The second section is where Kate discovers what is actually going on and has to confront various manifestations of her personality. For me, while it was interesting, it was reminiscent of something (can't remember what. Piranesi? Something by Matt Haig?) and it dragged on a bit. Still enjoyed it but felt it could have been snappier.
The last section is where Kate finally pieces it all together. Quite literally.
It's a difficult book to describe so I shall steal the blurb off the back:
"Reassembling Kate is a lyrical and thought-provoking novel that explores the power of self-discovery and the resilience of the human spirit, while weaving in a captivating romance and an intriguing mystery."
Really enjoyed it and shall search out other books by the author.
#review
I went to the Literary Escape Festival in Edinburgh with a group of Bookcrossing friends. Wasn't quite sure what to expect, but there were all sorts of stalls with authors selling books and various bookish things. There were also some author talks. Erica Manwaring was the first of the day and she read the opening section of this book. We were all really taken with it, all wanting to know 'what happened next', so I bought the book and intend to circulate it around those friends before opening up to a wider audience.
Kate is sitting on the sofa contemplating the day when there is a knock at the door. She gets up to answer it, but hears a noise behind her. Someone else is in the flat! As she looks round for a suitable weapon to confront the intruder she realises that her hands are missing...as is her reflection and then she walks past herself to open the door! Somehow she has become detached from her body and it is perfectly able to carry on without her. But there's 'something missing' some spark that made Kate, Kate. Folk notice that she seems a little calmer, more together but only one person thinks there is something wrong: her colleague David. Together they try to work out what is going on.
The book is split into three sections: the initial section where Kate learns more about 'herself' and her friends and colleagues by following them around. I really enjoyed this bit. Quite funny and appalling in equal measure.
The second section is where Kate discovers what is actually going on and has to confront various manifestations of her personality. For me, while it was interesting, it was reminiscent of something (can't remember what. Piranesi? Something by Matt Haig?) and it dragged on a bit. Still enjoyed it but felt it could have been snappier.
The last section is where Kate finally pieces it all together. Quite literally.
It's a difficult book to describe so I shall steal the blurb off the back:
"Reassembling Kate is a lyrical and thought-provoking novel that explores the power of self-discovery and the resilience of the human spirit, while weaving in a captivating romance and an intriguing mystery."
Really enjoyed it and shall search out other books by the author.
#review
Displaying 1 of 1 review