This house was loud and bright and full, and Icarus shivered into it like it was the first time he was being allowed in out of the cold.
― K. Ancrum, Icarus
CBR 16 Bingo: Celestial
Icarus is a seventeen-year-old boy in his senior year of high school. As soon as he graduates, or even as soon as he turns eighteen, he plans to leave home.
His father, Angus, is an art thief. However, he and Icarus only steal from Mr. Black. Icarus does not know why they have to do this other than what his father has told him: Mr. Black caused the death of Icarus’s mother.
Icarus and Angus live in an apartment that is more workshop and storage space than living space. Icarus has been taking care of himself since he was twelve. His father does restoration work and spends the rest of his time creating replicas of the priceless artwork that he has Icarus swap out from Mr. Black’s mansion.
He doesn’t hate his father. Angus is not physically abusive, but he is cold and neglectful. Icarus resents the situation his father created as it prevents Icarus from getting close to anyone. He cannot have friends over. He must keep everyone at a distance.
Like many of us, Icarus does a poor job of hiding his secrets from those who care about him. He thinks of the classmates he hangs out with as acquaintances; relationships he maintains because they are easy. He’s never had friends so he doesn’t understand why they would worry about him or be concerned when he falls asleep in class and never accepts their offers to hang out after school.
During one burglary, Icarus is stopped by Helios, Mr. Black’s secret son. Helios hates his father and is being held prisoner in the house. In exchange for letting Icarus go, Helios requests that Icarus come back to talk to him as he has no contact with anyone other than his violent father.
Icarus begins visiting Helios in the middle of the night when no one will notice. Obligation quickly becomes fascination as the two boys fall in love. When Mr. Black’s abuse of Helios escalates, Icarus creates a scheme to rescue Helios and run away together.
This was a fast read. I’m not huge on world building and, after reading the monster that is Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch,” I’m perfectly content to read a story without knowing the detailed ins and outs of restoration work. The author provides just enough information to keep the story flowing and instead focuses on the details of the interactions Icarus has with his friends, his father, and with Helios.
If you are familiar with the myth, then you know that the story leading up to Icarus’s flight is stressful. I enjoyed the book, but reading it was nerve wracking. I was happy with the way it ended, but parts of the ending made no sense to me. I don’t need to understand every detail, but the ending seemed as if the author was done and was not interested in wrapping up any threads that were not directly related to the two main characters.
Content warnings for descriptions of child abuse and substance abuse.
For this year’s CBR16 Book Bingo Reading Challenge I’m choosing albums from the 1970s that helped raise me. When I think of Celestial, I think of star-crossed lovers. It helps when one of the pair is named Helios. I think of the song “Because the Night” written by Patti Smith and included on her 1978 album “Easter.” I grew up with the version performed by Natalie Merchant on the album MTV Unplugged 10,000 Maniacs (1993).
