Consigned to Oblivion

by B.C. Hedlund

Cassandra James is consigned to oblivion.

Convinced that life is not worth living unless there’s a point, seventeen-year-old Cassandra is stuck in a constant search for something to keep her alive. It’s senior year. But while her friends are planning their futures, Cassandra’s left wondering if she’ll even have one. Back in therapy (against her will), pretending to be okay and holding up a broken family, she’s running out of reasons.
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Then Lily Peters, the fiery girl with blue eyes, upends the ideology Cassandra has used to survive, and instead shows her what it’s like to live. Things she ignored because they weren’t important enough to keep her alive become the very things she lives for.
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Her feelings for Lily Peters, for example.
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In an existential coming-of-age story, Cassandra James blurs the lines between fiction and reality, fighting to find meaning in a meaningless world, and to break her consignment to oblivion.

Genres: Queer, LGBT

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2020

Reviews

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been a long time since I read a book like this, that forces you to read and digest every sentence, that doesn't allow you to read quickly and skim. It was a welcome change. This is a beautifully written book, from a surprisingly young full length debut author. It's definitely a coming of age story, but it will appeal to people of all ages.

The book is about Cassandra, a haunted teenager undertaking her senior year at high school, however it focusses a lot on her relationships with others in similar situations to her, that all have a reason to be drifting and how they exist in the world together. The book covers a number of difficult topics, death, suicide, family losses, self harm and mental health, and how all of these impact others. Hedlund describes the main character as blurring the lines between fiction and reality and this is definitely true - Cassandra is battling herself and others both internally and externally.

The path the book takes meant I really enjoyed the secondary characters of Rachel and Lily and Owen is well written. If you're reading for the LBGTQ+ content - stick with it - it's there.

Hedlund shows a lot of potential with this title and I hope to see more like this in the future.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written, existential, with characters that jump off the page. Highly recommend reading it!

[Syd · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazingly well written book that I could not put down.

[al · Rating 4 out of 5]

In all honestly, I wasn't expecting this book to become one of my favorite summer reads. This is one of those reads where you have to be completely focused on the words, rather than just skimming the pages, in order to get a good sense of everything that's going on. It consists of a multitude of dynamic characters that you'll become attached to. Overall, it's the perfect thing to read if you're looking for a coming of age story that'll pull your heart strings and make you contemplate the meaning of life.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating novel with fleshed-out characters that create a vivid image of teenage life. The book is grounded in inarguably realistic emotion which elevates all aspects of the narrative.

[Nicole Palomar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a challenging read right off the gate because it was in stark contrast with my current mood (spring/summer vibes). This story formed its defining shapes in the dark and I only half anticipated it to have stayed in that pocket for the majority of the time. That is not the story’s fault (clearly mine) nor is it ultimately my story to tell in the first place. As for the writing, it is gorgeous. There’s a beautiful sad quality to it that reminded me best of a few sequences from the film At Eternity’s Gate depicting the tender and tormented latter days of Vincent van Gogh's life. Similar to the film, the totality of all its moments was both dizzying and ethereal. Perhaps that was the intended sensation the author was going for? Also, for all its beautiful depth and complexity, it was almost too lyrical that it distanced me from the main character more than I’m willing to admit. At a certain point too early in the book, the grief, sadness, and despair that I empathized with in the beginning just came in unrelenting lyrical flourishes, which only induced a sort of numbness that I wish I didn’t feel. This kind of deft, free, evocative writing style may have been better serviced by the saying that less is perhaps more. Like--hit me with those devastatingly beautiful lines in key poignant moments rather than drown me in them that I lose all feeling in my emotional nerve endings.

Nevertheless, I do not want to sound reductive or dismissive of the trauma and the emotional scars that are depicted and displayed at the heart and center of the story because it’s an important one to tell. It was one that really confronted and wrestled with the demons and the ghosts of trauma, anxiety, depression, and grief that so many of us broken humans are familiar with. Because of that, there was so much understanding, compassion, and empathy one may learn and glean from just by reading this story. All that to say, I do believe B. C. Hedlund shows so much promise and I can’t wait to read more of her works and see how she evolves as a writer.

3.5/5

[ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly recommend reading Consigned To Oblivion. I really enjoyed this book, and I give it 4.3 stars. It was a book that once I started, I couldn’t put down.
The main character, Cassandra, is someone who I, a teenager, could relate to on different levels. So many coming-of-age stories I’ve read have characterized teenage experiences as something completely unfamiliar to me, and while I couldn’t totally relate to Cassandra, she was one of the best portrayals of a realistic teenager I’ve read in a long time.
The LGBTQ+ characters in the book come very naturally and don’t feel like forced representation, which I very much enjoyed and have had an issue with in many of my past reads.
Another reason this book was so enjoyable was my knowledge of the author. Knowing that Hedlund is a high schooler and that this is her first novel makes it so much more gratifying to read. The writing style and depth of content is something I would expect from much more experienced writers, and Hedlund definitely doesn’t disappoint.
If you’re reading this, take this as your sign to read this book :)

[Ally Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

TW for the book: self harm, suicidality, loss

so, i have some mixed feelings about this book.
firstly, i think it is INCREDIBLY well written, especially for an author of this age. i couldn't even tell someone my age wrote this. i think it captures mental illness, self harm, suicidality and the pain of leaving for college so so so so so well. i have struggled with all of the above listed and i felt so heard reading this book.
the ending especially resonated so much with me, i had to reread it a few times to just feel it properly.

on the other hand, though, i did find certain parts of the book hard to follow, especially the switches between flashbacks and real time. there was a use of italics for flashbacks, but then also for some dialogue in the present? i found it confusing.
i also despise the trope of "girl 1 dates boy, ruins relationship with boy because girl 2 enters and girl 1 figures out she's gay". i think it contributes a lot to the stereotype that bi people are home/relationship wreckers, and i would've loved to see this book, with all of its lgbtq representation, forgo the straight relationship, and have Cass stay single until she falls in love with Lily.

overall, amazing read. i devoured it quickly and did not want to put it down. congratulations to B.C. on their debut book, and i cannot wait to see what they come out with next!

[Regan · Rating 4 out of 5]

quote from the book: “it’s funny how when we’re children, all we want to do is grow up, but once we grow up, all we want to do is be children.”

[Amelie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The sentences kept jumping between tenses and boy did it bother me