The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic follows the story of Neil Josten who becomes a member of Palmetto State University's (PSU Foxes) Exy team. His upbringing has been far from simple as he is the son of the murderous crime lord known as 'The Butcher'. After being on the run for the majority of his life, he's used to moving from place to place on short notice. However, joining PSU's Exy team takes him down an unsure path and one that lacks escape routes. Neil knew the risks of joining PSU Foxes but initially had no choice but to accept the offer. This Exy team is often a part of live broadcasts meaning hiding from the sports news channels was an impossibility. Unfortunately, this leaves Neil at a disadvantage as he could easily be tracked down by the his father and killed if he were to discover it was him. The lies he tells others can only withstand the strain of time and his other team members for so long, before his truths can be discovered he plans to move onto his next destination. One of the members of the Exy team happens to be an old friend and he can't leave him behind again. Neil has to come to the decision on whether or not this Exy Team is worth risking his life for. After 8 years he's finally found a place where he feels he belongs: should he stay or should he go?
That's the general synopsis of the book and even writing that got me excited. Honestly, this book is incredible and I completely understand why people rave about it. Every character in this book has a story to tell, and each one is as brutal and horrific as the last. The best thing about this book is that it leaves no story untold. You find out about each of the character's backstories and why they became a member of the Foxes exy team. The truth is that each character has come from a miserable background and the coach, David Wymack, picks each member based on their brokenness. Exy is basically a rougher version of Lacrosse and there's no saying what injuries could be made while out on the court. They all live and breathe the sport.
In saying all this I must explicitly warn you all of the books triggers. There is a lot of violence, drugs and mental health issues are frequently mentioned. At times, they can be graphically explained so I'd suggest avoiding this book if those topics are not something you'd want to read about. The book itself isn't completely realistic, either. Of course it's not, it's a fictional novel and there's a lot of times when you could be left thinking, "That really wouldn't happen". So if you're super-duper into realism then this book won't be for you. In fact, you'd be better off reading a non-fiction piece if that's what you're after.
Honestly, I adored this book. There wasn't a time when I lost interest in it as there's so many plot twists it's hard not to want to find out what happens next. It's easy to become invested in the character's well-beings as parts of their struggles can be related to. Exy is easily understandable as Sakavic has done an amazing job of describing exactly how it's played. It's a shame it's not a real sport. I guess health and safety would be against it ever being played, and we don't want to upset them! God forbid!
I'd recommend this book to anybody. It's so beautifully written, even with the minor grammatical mistakes here and there. This book can be bought on Amazon - Paperback edition is £7, but it's mainly an e-book and it's free! Seriously, a book this good deserves all the love a reader can give. Don't pass on the opportunity to read it, you won't regret it!
Until next time,
Luce xo
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