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Eat My Shadow #2
Button Up Buttercup: Book Two
Buttons is found in a squalid house and rescued in a wheelbarrow. She's an odd thing. No one knows how old she is, or her story, but it must have been bad for her to do the things she does; sewing buttons over her clothes like armour, placing them over her eyes and peering through. But people are wary, there's something not quite right about Buttercup.
Buttons is someone new. And something is coming, she can smell it in her dreams. When she finds a map to a series of macabre art works hidden in secret pockets of the abandoned city, she forms a relationship with the deceased artist. And she does something that will rock the Hobart mob, something inexplicable, something magic.
And there's Sarah, banished from her people and still grieving for her children who disappeared 12 years ago. When she hears of a rescued child, too young to be her daughter, she risks the dangers of walking to the city to find out for herself.
Father and Akiva the tattooed girl accompany her, not realising they're walking into a time when everything changes.
Eat My Shadow is a post collapse series that renews belief in humanity. It's a wildly beautiful story about when things fall apart and people come together. It's a new kind of book, Indigi-fi, returning to our indigeneity. A book about love, loss and finally becoming who we were always meant to be. Finding our hope.
Buttons is someone new. And something is coming, she can smell it in her dreams. When she finds a map to a series of macabre art works hidden in secret pockets of the abandoned city, she forms a relationship with the deceased artist. And she does something that will rock the Hobart mob, something inexplicable, something magic.
And there's Sarah, banished from her people and still grieving for her children who disappeared 12 years ago. When she hears of a rescued child, too young to be her daughter, she risks the dangers of walking to the city to find out for herself.
Father and Akiva the tattooed girl accompany her, not realising they're walking into a time when everything changes.
Eat My Shadow is a post collapse series that renews belief in humanity. It's a wildly beautiful story about when things fall apart and people come together. It's a new kind of book, Indigi-fi, returning to our indigeneity. A book about love, loss and finally becoming who we were always meant to be. Finding our hope.
376 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 23, 2025
2 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 7, 2025
I was excited to learn of the release of “button up buttercup” by Linda Cockburn, book II of the “Eat My Shadow” series, the first book of which I became completely immersed in 3 years ago. I still today get odd and interesting flashbacks from that intricate world that Cockburn created, which is built upon in this new book.
While this book continues the tale of Finn and Father, it also greatly expands on voices from characters that were peripheral in the last book. Buttons, an odd child-like damaged waif, rescued from squalor and horror in Eat My Shadow, is a major voice in this book, as is Sarah a lone mother grieving the loss of her two children twelve years ago. The novels are set in a post-societal-collapse dystopian future, but they are much more than this – the intricate world and characters, and a gripping fast-moving storyline draw you in and keep the pages turning – I was unable to put the book down from two thirds of the way through.
The world is richly described in the voices of its characters, the perspectives of those who lived through collapse and those who came after, those who fled to the countryside or stayed in the city, those who were protected by tight family units, or who survived unimaginable horror alone. It’s fascinating to imagine being an “old” person savouring a coffee having not tasted it for 20 years, or how a “new” person may react to artifacts from strange and wasteful pre-collapse ways. The book depicts how human culture and language may grow and morph out of adversity. While aspects are undoubtedly grim, humour, camaraderie, love and hope are also ever-present. This book takes us on an enthralling journey that crescendos to a dramatic final act, with a sting in the tail that leaves us nervously awaiting the impending release of book III "Swallow My Echo”.
While this book continues the tale of Finn and Father, it also greatly expands on voices from characters that were peripheral in the last book. Buttons, an odd child-like damaged waif, rescued from squalor and horror in Eat My Shadow, is a major voice in this book, as is Sarah a lone mother grieving the loss of her two children twelve years ago. The novels are set in a post-societal-collapse dystopian future, but they are much more than this – the intricate world and characters, and a gripping fast-moving storyline draw you in and keep the pages turning – I was unable to put the book down from two thirds of the way through.
The world is richly described in the voices of its characters, the perspectives of those who lived through collapse and those who came after, those who fled to the countryside or stayed in the city, those who were protected by tight family units, or who survived unimaginable horror alone. It’s fascinating to imagine being an “old” person savouring a coffee having not tasted it for 20 years, or how a “new” person may react to artifacts from strange and wasteful pre-collapse ways. The book depicts how human culture and language may grow and morph out of adversity. While aspects are undoubtedly grim, humour, camaraderie, love and hope are also ever-present. This book takes us on an enthralling journey that crescendos to a dramatic final act, with a sting in the tail that leaves us nervously awaiting the impending release of book III "Swallow My Echo”.
September 5, 2025
I was so happy when I saw Linda was writing this sequel to Eat My Shadow, and it didn't disappoint. From the moment I picked it up, I was completely hooked. While the first book was a powerful story that stayed with me long after I finished it, this one gripped me from the very first page.
Set in a post-apocalyptic Southern Tasmania, a place I know and love as a fellow local, the story really struck a chord. The setting is a harsh, "Mad Max" type world, but Linda's ability to paint such a vivid picture is incredible. The book made me reflect on what it means to be human and how we can all do better.
The captivating characters and their brutal realities provide a stark yet necessary look at what the collapse of capitalism and the effects of climate change could actually look like. This is a topic many of us are afraid to face, but Cockburn handles it with a masterful touch and a engaging, exciting story, making it impossible to put the book down.
In fact, my partner—who hasn't read a book in ages—picked it up and couldn't stop reading. He told me it was the best book he'd read in years. That says everything you need to know about the powerful and compelling nature of this novel. If you enjoyed the first book or are looking for a thought-provoking, unputdownable read, I can't recommend Button Up enough.
Set in a post-apocalyptic Southern Tasmania, a place I know and love as a fellow local, the story really struck a chord. The setting is a harsh, "Mad Max" type world, but Linda's ability to paint such a vivid picture is incredible. The book made me reflect on what it means to be human and how we can all do better.
The captivating characters and their brutal realities provide a stark yet necessary look at what the collapse of capitalism and the effects of climate change could actually look like. This is a topic many of us are afraid to face, but Cockburn handles it with a masterful touch and a engaging, exciting story, making it impossible to put the book down.
In fact, my partner—who hasn't read a book in ages—picked it up and couldn't stop reading. He told me it was the best book he'd read in years. That says everything you need to know about the powerful and compelling nature of this novel. If you enjoyed the first book or are looking for a thought-provoking, unputdownable read, I can't recommend Button Up enough.
July 28, 2025
I'm exhausted. I don't think I breathed for the last few chapters. This book has kept me up late - too late. The characters are multi-layered and complex. Linda writes with the insights and wisdom of one who has seen the many sides of humans, our strengths and our frailties. It's vulnerable, bald, blantant and subtle. The book is well paced, but the last half has surprises you that keep the pages turning with speed. And I didn't see the end coming. Can't wait for the next in the trilogy!!!! But first some sleep.....
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews