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Ink Vine
Elizabeth Broadbent
Undertaker Books (April 12, 2024)
Reviewed by Nora B. Peevy
When I heard Elizabeth Broadbent do a reading from Ink Vine, I knew I had to get my paws on that book. Her authenticity and unique voice, plus her sense of humor, shine through in this tale about standing up against all odds to find love and acceptance and fighting poverty. Emma is the outcast of the family: tattoos and a stripping job aren’t acceptable, even though her sister had a baby at a young age and isn’t married. She desperately wants her family’s love and acceptance, but doesn’t get that. Instead, she gets berated for wanting more than a life in a trailer with unhappy people because she wants to get out of that small town and chooses to make money as a stripper.
This book is a lovely sapphic novella. Emma finds forbidden love in the forest. Broadbent is great at genre bending. Fantasy, fairytale, and contemporary lesbian romance with a modern discussion about poverty and a novella about self-discovery.
Her words sizzle on the page. I can feel the muggy heat of the swamp and Emma’s frustration. I can feel the igniting passion and the lust between her and her lover, the pining, the decision she must make between the “woods” and the “wild” or “staying safe” and staying on “the path.” What a wonderful reinterpretation of the fairytale where only bad experiences happen when the main character goes into the woods!
