The Degenerates by Raeden Richardson | Review

THE DEGENERATES was a fever dream of a read and I've been thinking about it for months.

If you're a lit fic reader but you feel like you've been in a bit of a slump, this is the book to grab. It's very Big Brain™️ Lit Fic and classically character-driven, but it's also weirdly mesmerising and has a really steady pulse that gives it a sense of urgency you don't often find in the genre's typically 'quieter' reads. It is very much not Skins (UK) but in a lot of ways the reading experience felt a lot like the first two seasons (in a very good way, I am a Skins apologist).

To plagiarise myself — pulsing and hallucinatory, THE DEGENERATES is a visceral and stylish novel that reveals a story of human connection and loneliness. It follows three characters and the ways that their messy lives intersect and weave around each other, and their lives are kind of all over the place. It examines grief, abuse, generational trauma, mental illness, and poverty, but it also delivers some solid (dark) giggles.

The writing style is also super interesting with huuuuge chunks that do so much for the Reading Experience ™ to manipulate the physical way that we read in line with the emotional and psychological experience of reading.

I've genuinely never read a book like this before and I cannot WAIT to discuss it with people.

The Asian Australian debut game is strong this year and we love to see it.