Dead Collections by Isaac Fellman

Archivist and trans vampire, Sol, falls in love with Elsie, a grieving widow who brings her deceased wife's belongings to be archived and who ends up pushing Sol out of his stagnant life and into the (metaphorical) light of day.

In a quest to read more fiction written by trans authors or focusing on trans characters, I stumbled upon Isaac Fellman's Dead Collections, and I am so glad I did! In a world where vampirism exists as more of a long-term illness, a younger Sol is "saved" when his case of tetanus does him in. He is anxious about navigating life outside where the sun may kill him, frustrated with his co-worker who seems to be out to get him, and a bit out of his element when the widower of the writer of his favorite television show begins a relationship with him. Questions about gender, identity, stigma, assumptions, and everything in-between ensue. What follows is a wonderful little magical mystery, an imperfect love story, and a tale of what it means to be comfortable and confident in one's own body when so many facets of the world are telling you that you fit in the category of "other."

I really, really enjoyed this book! It was gorgeously written, with trans and genre metaphors out the wazoo. I loved that Fellman dropped us into the world without much explanation at all, but BEAUTIFULLY described feelings of otherness/belonging, wrongness/rightness, fear/boldness, etc. in depth and with the kind of language that sticks in the brain. It was silly in the right places and moving in other places. It was a fabulous book through and through. Definitely NSFW. I give it a 5/5.

Fellman's other books are quite a bit darker, but if you enjoy the writing style of this book, you will still enjoy his others. His first work, a dark fantasy called The Breath of the Sun, focuses on a mountain climber and a priest on a journey to scale a sacred mountain. It is full of misdirection, paradoxes, and the quest for fame. His novella, a dark academia fantasy called The Two Doctors Górski, feels like Frankenstein or maybe Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but even darker. It focuses on emotions that are dark but complex- sad, psychotic, judgmental, annoying, desperate, numb. Notice the word DARK in my descriptions- these books have SUCH good writing, but make sure you are in the mood to read something with these vibes. His next book, Notes from a Regicide, comes out April 2025, and I can't wait to read it!