Review of The Waiter by Kwan Ann Tan

This choose your own adventure, labyrinthine novel is a mysterious and propulsive story where each decision you make takes you on a different journey through this dystopian world. With my pencil at the ready, I went into this book with intrigue and marked off each decision I made to track my path to each ending, wanting to explore all corners of this interactive novel. 

The Waiter begins with you on a train in London, you have a job to do, you have to transport your client’s luggage because you’re a waiter and take any job you can get. Maws have opened up across the city and they’re swallowing up the population. It’s not a safe place to be, but you’re curious about these openings in the ground, you’re starting to remember things you thought were buried in your unconscious. It’s a mystery how you got here and where you’re going.

With 12 possible endings, this twisty, sometimes disturbing and thrilling book takes you all around a city which is plagued by both environmental and societal distress. 

Reviewed by Victoria

Published on 13/11/25 by The Emma Press

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