“This is where the story ends…” So begins the novel Crossings by Alex Landragin; well, how one version of the novel begins. As you can infer already, this book is no ordinary work of fiction. There are two ways in which you can go about reading the book, as explained in the preface; one, from first page to last, the standard way; or, there is a Baroness sequence, where the story has you alternating from specified pages all over the book. I hesitantly opted to read the book in this unique way, afraid that the skipping around would feel wrong and innately make the story feel disjointed in my head. But to my surprise, it quickly began to feel like a mystery that needed to be solved, an intricately crafted conundrum, making me eagerly search for clues in each sentence.

In short, just the manner in which I read the book became something exciting and intensely interesting. This book is an elaborate puzzle, where each chapter leaves you scrambling to put together the next piece. Stretching out over generations, the settings change, but the heart of the story remains intact through each passing year: a lover, enduring the hardships of multiple lives through a process of transmigration called crossing, a soul evading death, in search of their twin flame long lost in the body of another. Entangled also within this aching romance are a series of gruesome murders, a missing manuscript, the question of the soul, and the pressure to uphold a belief system ingrained since childhood. In the book, you also witness how the world evolved throughout history, and look the ugliest parts of the past straight in the eyes. This book is surely not just one thing, but a story that exceeds the limits of genre and conventionality, weaving together elements of romance, horror, mystery, historical fiction, and even components of an autobiography, into one unforgettable story.

— Jade, sales associate