Blog tour: The Poppy Fields by Nikki Erlick

This post is part of a blog tour organised by Random Things Blog Tours. I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

‘What if there were a cure for the broken-hearted?

‘Welcome to the Poppy Fields, where there’s hope for even the most battered hearts to heal.

‘Here, in a remote stretch of the California desert, lies an experimental and controversial treatment centre that allows those suffering from the heartache of loss to sleep through their pain… and keep on sleeping. After patients awaken from this prolonged state of slumber, they will finally be healed. But only if they’re willing to accept the potential shadowy side effects.

‘On a journey to this mystical destination are four very different strangers and one little dog: Ava, a book illustrator; Ray, a fireman; Sasha, an occupational therapist; Sky, a free spirit; and a friendly pup named PJ.

‘As they attempt to make their way from the Midwest all the way west to the Poppy Fields – where they hope to find Ellis, its brilliant, enigmatic founder – each of their past secrets and mysterious motivations threaten to derail their voyage.’

In The Poppy Fields, by Nikki Erlick, a tornado hits Kansas, prompting four strangers and a little dog to abandon their plans to travel to California by plane, and instead take a multi-day road trip to reach the destination that three of them happen to share: the titular Poppy Fields, a facility where – if you’re debilitated by grief and your application is approved – you can spend several weeks sleeping off your heartache and kickstart your recovery.

The treatment is currently free, thanks to generous philanthropic funding, but there’s still a catch: 25% of sleepers wake up with the side effect that they no longer feel anything at all towards the person they’ve lost. Not necessarily a huge problem if you’re mourning a broken relationship, but potentially disturbing if a well-loved relative or friend died.

While occupational therapist Sasha is headed for the Poppy Fields hoping to be treated for the tragic loss of her fiancé – having had her paper application rejected – children’s book illustrator Ava (accompanied by her handbag dog, PJ) and fireman Ray have other reasons for wanting to visit the facility, which emerge over the course of the trip. Eighteen-year-old Sky, meanwhile, just wants to see more of the world, and her lack of emotional baggage proves to be both refreshing and affirming for her fellow travellers.

I must admit, The Poppy Fields wasn’t quite what I expected! When I read the blurb, my mind latched on to the speculative element, and I was anticipating the treatment to have a shadowy backstory and harmful applications (think Opposite World, by Elizabeth Anne Martins) and/or unintended, society-level effects (as in Eve Smith’s novels, such as The Cure).

But the Poppy Fields’ founder, Ellis, genuinely wants to make a positive difference in the world; the aforementioned side effect is the only one, it’s well-documented, and sleepers are well aware (no pun intended) it’s a risk when they sign the dotted line; and while there are people and groups who oppose the treatment, most of the time they don’t give the executive team too much to worry about.

Instead, it’s a road trip story where a group of people get to know one another, share their secrets and wisdom as unplanned stopovers and detours strengthen their new bonds, and start to see the hint of a light at the end of the dark, lonely tunnels they’ve found themselves in. And it happened to be the book I needed at the time I read it, as I’m currently raw from a loss that’s upset me more than any other I’ve had to date. (Full disclosure: I wouldn’t be accepted for the Poppy Fields because a) I’m still able to function and find joy despite my grief, and b) I’m mourning a cat, rather than a human.)

The key messages of The Poppy Fields, therefore, felt especially pertinent to me at this time. These include: even though grief is a very personal experience, staying in community, rather than shutting yourself away, helps you heal (a message I also gleaned from Helen MacDonald’s H is for Hawk, which I read last week); you don’t stop missing someone, but you do usually adjust to your new reality and find reasons to keep moving forward eventually; and you wouldn’t want to lose all feeling for a loved one who’s died, because chances are their influence and support were integral to the person you’ve become, and it cuts you off from other people who are also grieving for them.

That said, I didn’t find myself opposed to the treatment the Poppy Fields offers. Its detractors argue that grieving is a normal part of life that you just have to put up with, and that the sleepers are being selfish by leaving their families and responsibilities for a couple of months to sleep.

To me, these opponents sound like the people who don’t believe in antidepressants because ‘everyone gets sad sometimes’, and don’t seem to understand how depression can stop you functioning and strip away your quality of life. If you can manage on your own, that’s great! But everyone should have access to whatever will make them feel better (provided it’s ethical, obviously), and you wouldn’t tell someone who’s in a coma recovering from a physical injury that they should be awake and fulfilling their duties.

Plus, those few weeks a sleeper’s away feel like a small price to pay for their family to get back more or less the “old them” for the foreseeable future, and hundreds of thousands (I did find that number a tad unrealistic, considering the facility has only been up and running for three years and Ellis reviews every application) of people have wanted to give the treatment a shot, with three quarters of those seeing a reduction in distress. Someone should absolutely work on reducing that side effect, though!

While I didn’t dislike any of the main characters, I could especially identify with Ava. She prefers a small life, where she’s firmly rooted in one place she knows really well and experiences the wider world through books, finds safety in invisibility, doesn’t crave fame or power, and is content with a steady, creative job she enjoys. There is a sadness at her core, but her lifestyle itself isn’t the cause of it, even if people do look down on her for not dreaming bigger or being able to drive. Unlike Ava, though, I don’t think I’d have given in to Sky imploring me to give driving a go! Way too scary for me.

The Poppy Fields may not have been the read I expected, but it was definitely one I needed.