As with his previous books, I have little understanding of Weir's use of planetary science, astronomy, chemistry, etc. but I appreciate and4ish stars.
As with his previous books, I have little understanding of Weir's use of planetary science, astronomy, chemistry, etc. but I appreciate and respect that it's there, and I trust that he knows what he's talking about if only because it sounds legit, and thus cool.
As for Dr. Grace, I found him much more entertaining and sympathetic than Jazz from Artemis (which overall I thought was kind of trash). Maybe because I'm also a teacher! On a related note, I also appreciate the lack of vulgarity in this one because I'm a prude when it comes to language, (sex and gore are great!) and because when the swears do come out, the impact is that much more effective. Dr. Grace is funny (in a cheesy, dad joke way) and relatable, and he becomes more nuanced as the book goes on. The friendship he makes along the way is seriously special.
I found Weir's use of switching between timelines effective because it breaks up the relative monotony of being alone in space, and it creates even more depth in the narrative. The flashbacks also include some colorful characters such as the enigmatic and relentless Dr. Stratt.
Overall, my favorite Weir so far, and one that I feel confident recommending to others, even friends who are not sci-fi nerds.
Such a satisfying conclusion. I love the amount of snark that Scalzi has included in the series and the final line of this final installm4.5ish stars.
Such a satisfying conclusion. I love the amount of snark that Scalzi has included in the series and the final line of this final installment makes the journey completely worth it.
I think Scalzi writes characters very well. The heroic trio of Cardenia, Marce, and Kiva are entertaining and sympathetic in very different ways. Cardenia, especially, fully comes into her own in this book and I completely catch her vision and trust her capability. In the previous installments, I had a hard time "finding" her as a character. Either because she seemed distant, or inscrutable, or simply vanilla. I think it speaks to Scalzi's talent that he's allowed us to watch her gradually find herself and become a nuanced woman in addition to the leader of an empire.
Then of course there's Nadashe who is such an enjoyably despicable villain. She's so awful, but she's so good at it. She has no redeeming qualities, but she almost does, which makes it almost possible to relate to her, or to trust that she has the Interdependency's best interests at heart. She's so loathsome that, despite how frustrating it is whenever she continues her plotting, it's always gratifying to fantasize about her hypothetical demise.
Overall I think the ending was handled very well, I loved the trilogy, and Scalzi has further cemented himself as one of my favorite authors.
An interesting note: There are some layers that have become even more relevant since the onset of COVID-19 and the way different governments have responded to it. In an interview with NPR, Scalzi responded to the unintentional timeliness:
"...as we have gone along, so many things in the books just sort of match up in parallel with what's going on in the world. And some of that was completely unintentional, it was just the pace of the story. But some of it was. I live in the world. Science fiction is written about the future, but it takes place — you know, the people who write it live now. So it is almost axiomatic that what's happening in the world now is going to affect how the stories get told."
Mary Robinette Kowal writes some great female characters. And they're not stock "strong female" characters either, they seemreal. In this3.5ish stars.
Mary Robinette Kowal writes some great female characters. And they're not stock "strong female" characters either, they seemreal. In this case Elma is brilliant and capable, but doesn't go on a tirade overthrowing the '50s sexist patriarchy because Kowal wisely wanted to represent things as they actually happened, even in this alt-history where she really could have done whatever she wanted.
It's impressively well-researched and feels just as real as the actual space race. The alternate history elements are so subtle, one might not realize this isn't straight historical fiction, even with the whole extinction event thing, because it's more of a social issue novel than a "dying earth" or "post-apocalyptic" sci-fi novel. Kowal addresses many topics related to discrimination and privilege that are sadly still relevant (race, gender, culture, mental health) without feeling excessively heavy-handed. The commitment to historical accuracy is honestly overwhelming. Half of the book is just dealing with bigotry and it's emotionally draining and I'm weak and couldn't enjoy the book as much as I might have wanted to because of it.
I think Kowal is a fine author, but I didn't love her writing style in this book. I never felt any suspense or tension when it came to the plot, and therefore not much compulsion to keep listening. Add to that the fact that I find her audio narration a little over the top. She undoubtedly knows the characters and their voices inside and out, but I would have liked to hear another narrator interpreting the characters, and actually think it would have added more depth, but whatever. If I read the next in the series it will be in print.
I've been reading a lot of good books recently. Makes me want to read a gutter book just so I can skewer it in a review. This is a soli4.25ish stars.
I've been reading a lot of good books recently. Makes me want to read a gutter book just so I can skewer it in a review. This is a solid follow-up to Red Sister and is a worthy addition to the series even if it can't match the feeling of surprise that came from experiencing the refreshing novelty and creativity introduced in the first book for the first time.
I was unsure about the first half-ish of the book. All of the petty middle school drama - mean, rich girl bully cliques; wretched, crotchety teachers; angsty romance; basically all of the young adult-ness - that Red Sister (thank the Ancestor) managed to circumvent, seemed to rear its ugly head. Thankfully it's balanced by the introduction of a new POV character, Abbess Glass, whose maturity and cunning elevate the story above female-Kvothe school shenanigans.
Nona is still Nona, a ruthless, demonic version of Bubbles from Powerpuff Girls. As always, she's surrounded by a strong supporting cast of female characters, including the Abbess, Sister Kettle, Arabella, Darla and Zole, whose increased involvement provide a depth and fullness RS never quite reached. I actually found the Abbess's chapters more engaging as she manipulated her way to the meat of the story while Nona was cavorting about (being hunted, tortured, blah blah, etc.).
It ends on a cliffhanger and I'm already ready for the final installment which is why I feel obligated to thank Mark Lawrence for 1) finishing the series before publishing and 2) including a recap section at the beginning of the book. What a gentleman! Finally, I can't emphasize enough how great the audiobook narrated by Heather O'Neill is. I can't imagine experiencing this world without her Irish lilt to guide me.
Kameron Hurley is full of ideas. Some of them obviously come from a dark, twisted, disturbing place. Some nasty stuff going on here. I mea2ish stars.
Kameron Hurley is full of ideas. Some of them obviously come from a dark, twisted, disturbing place. Some nasty stuff going on here. I mean cool, creative, crazy stuff... but also oozy, squishy, bloody, nasty blech, blech. The world-building is definitely the top selling point for this book. Organic planets/weapons/vehicles, all-female cast, mutant-babies, asexual conception, very interesting.
I feel like it should have been incredible, and I hoped it would be, but other elements weren't as strong as the worldbuilding. I liked the mystery at the heart of the story; I thought the unreliable narrators were put to good use; I thought everything coalesced in a decently satisfying way at the end. In this case, however, the whole never quite equaled the sum of its parts.
Some things I didn't love include the stilted prose; for the most part, the characters never truly distinguished themselves from one another; there were some questionable/confusing plot decisions; I found the pace inconsistent- it never quite became a page-turner but some parts moved more steadily than others.
As creative as this book is, and as much as I want to read something else by the author for that reason, I'm hesitant to try again at this point.
A fun and funny but unspectacular space opera elevated by a clever narrating voice(s) and unique set-up.
It could just be that I'm burned2.5ish stars.
A fun and funny but unspectacular space opera elevated by a clever narrating voice(s) and unique set-up.
It could just be that I'm burned out on space opera right now but I just didn't enjoy this as much as I was hoping to. I expected it to be hysterically comical, but even with the geeky pop culture allusions and the endless wit of the great and powerful bobs, I never made it past a good chortle. Alright, except for anytime GUPPI said anything. Love that guy. "By your command!"
It was good and well-written but didn't have a singular story line to get invested in or excited about throughout the novel. I thought it was pretty standard fare with some cool ideas thrown in. Without the bobs it would have been a little dull and even with them it wasn't remarkable.
Ray Porter does a pretty awesome job on audio. I love the subtleties between each of the bobs, he does a great job with all of the accents. And again. GUPPI. Fantastic. If you're interested in the book, definitely look into the audiobook.
4/5/18 re-read in preparation for Grey Sister. I feel like I need to bump up my rating to 4.5ish stars. There is a lot of nuance I didn’t catch (or di4/5/18 re-read in preparation for Grey Sister. I feel like I need to bump up my rating to 4.5ish stars. There is a lot of nuance I didn’t catch (or didn’t remember at least) from my first read. I especially like the science fictional elements of the world building with the corridor and the ship hearts and the focus moon, etc. Really sets it apart from other high fantasy. Very much looking forward to book 2, again with Heather O’Neil as the (fantastic) audiobook narrator.
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4ish stars.
This is an adult book with what are, in my opinion, actually some pretty good characterizations of kids and teenagers. It's got my favorite "school of magic" since Brakebills. It's got a fairly complex "magic system" with a lot of potential. And it's about killer nuns, isn't that cool? Basically it's everything I was hoping The Name of the Wind would be but wasn't. This isn't frivolous, jovial high fantasy, but there is occasional humor presented in a mostly natural, unforced way. It's fairly grim and dark but, again, with some pretty decent representations of young people forming friendships, getting themselves into shenanigans, and growing up to be killer nuns.
There may or may not be a "chosen one," who's to say? (view spoiler)[Honestly, I was kind of hoping Hessa would turn out the be the chosen one. Is it too much to hold out hope for that in lieu of her apparent death? (hide spoiler)] That title is passed around to a few different characters based on a prophecy (that may or may not have actually been given?) and different characters' interpretations of it. There are a few other classic elements of magic schools and high fantasy in general but they're mostly done in a way that isn't cliche or stock.
Mark Lawrence writes very well. He doesn't mince words or try too hard to be clever. He does a good job balancing the dark story with some genuinely likable, almost warm, elements. I was surprised and impressed with the quality of writing. This is probably the most excited I've been about high fantasy in a while. Lots of potential.
The audiobook narrator, Heather O'Neil (variously listed as Heather O'Neill) does a really great job and I'll probably continue to listen to the rest of the trilogy. Recommended.
This is an incredible series and a huge accomplishment for its author, N.K. Jemisin. It has every element of high quality fiction and, par5ish stars.
This is an incredible series and a huge accomplishment for its author, N.K. Jemisin. It has every element of high quality fiction and, particularly, everything great about SFF. It's decidedly new age, but in a way that I don't doubt will stand the test of time. It's innovative in the way that Ursula K. Le Guin's work was innovative in the '60s and '70s (and continues to be influential today) and, maybe I'm foolish for saying this too soon, but I think it has the same potential to reach classic status.
Admittedly, the first book in the series, The Fifth Season, is my favorite and I actually only rated that 4.5, but the series as a whole is greater than the sum of its individual parts. In this book specifically I found the first half to be slow, but once each of the separate storylines coalesced and the big picture came into view, the payoff was worth the journey. The ending wasn't mind-blowingly pulse-pounding but it was fitting and real and it felt right. It made me feel good.
I respect Jemisin's talent immensely. Her prose is fantastic. She's not afraid to make her characters prickly, even unlikable at times and I love them all the more for it. Even the side characters who only make brief appearances are ones who I liked and would love to learn more about. The real greatness of this series is the world Jemisin has created- not only the "magic system," the blend of fantasy and sci-fi, or the diverse factions of characters, but how the nature of the world is primed to provide such deep commentary on so many grand, topical ideas. The way Jemisin addresses those ideas- duty, exploitation, love, humanity, morality, acceptance, xenophobia, motherhood, justice, mercy- is powerful and soulful and she doesn't take any easy ways out. She allows things to play out how they really do play out in human existence, not necessarily the ways we want them or expect them to in the literature we read.
Congratulations to Jemisin for this achievement and congrats to me for getting to experience it!
An unqualified masterpiece. This is some of the smartest, most exciting, and most imaginative fiction I've read in a long time. It's grand5ish stars.
An unqualified masterpiece. This is some of the smartest, most exciting, and most imaginative fiction I've read in a long time. It's grand, expansive, and both character-driven and plot-driven.
Uplifted spiders. So cool and creative. The evolution of the Portias and their clusters is endlessly compelling. The journey that the humans take over the millennia, if not as thrilling, is dramatic in its buildup to the inevitable convergence of the two groups.
It chronicles the rise and fall of the human population and explores its recurring, natural gravitation towards malignant ambition and self-destruction. While that aspect is disheartening, there’s also hope, because the spiders, being non-human, might be able to circumvent those tragedies... It’s about nature, pride, communication, fear, change, and determination at all costs. Highly recommended.
3.5ish stars. Really 3 stars but I'll add .5 for pure chutzpah.
Wow. That was definitely an experience. I have to hand it to Neal Stephenson; the amoun3.5ish stars. Really 3 stars but I'll add .5 for pure chutzpah.
Wow. That was definitely an experience. I have to hand it to Neal Stephenson; the amount of research time that went into this must have been insane. I mean, I have no idea how accurate any of the science actually is but, I mean, it sounded good. After the first few info-dumps, however, I just kept thinking to myself, "Yes, I get it! You're smart! I'm convinced!" I'm sure there are people who are into the nitty-gritty details about astrophysics, robotics, orbital mechanics, genetics, etc. etc. etc., but I'm just not one of those people. Thus, I was occasionally (sometimes more than occasionally) bored out of my mind. Some of it was legitimately interesting, most of it was not.
The story at the heart of the first part of the novel was fascinating and worth telling. The story at the heart of the second part was sporadically entertaining and maybe worth telling.
The scope and ambition is just incredible. The premise is gripping. The vision and innovation is breathtaking. And that's what got me so invested. Whenever the characters were involved, doing whatever they were doing, I was sucked in. It seemed that those moments were so few and far between. Whenever I saw quotation marks while reading or heard the (honestly kind of awful) narrator change voice to portray a character, I would immediately stop zoning out and pay attention again. I get that this isn't necessarily a character driven story but I liked it best when they were involved because, to me, they were the literal embodiments of civilization's reaction to the disastrous implications the story is based on. Also, I have a huge crush on Ivy.
Having said that, I found it hard after starting over upon the commencement of part 2 to really care about the new characters and feel connected to them. It was interesting in the sense that they were descendants of the characters (blue good! red bad!) I knew and loved, but not gripping in an emotional sense to have much investment into what happened to them as long as red was utterly destroyed and humiliated into obliteration and I hope they all die horrible deaths and I hate Julia. I guess that goes for the second story in general. It was wonderful and necessary to experience the outcomes of what culminated at the end of part one. And I can't really say what would have been a better way to give us that experience. But I don't know if the story we were given was the best way.
Hidden beneath all of the science, Stephenson had a lot to say about humankind as a whole. Put under extreme pressure how would we react? Would we be able to come together as a united body for the sake of preserving everything we are? Humankind having been reduced to eight women (arguably the greatest, or luckiest, humans in existence) how would humanity transform based on their decisions and natures? 5000 years in the future, what would be different and what would be the same? It allows us to ponder on how civilization today is different from 5000 years ago.
Back to the audiobook narrator for the first part. Woof. Doob sounds like Kermit. And he's probably the best-voiced male. It was rough.
Also, was it hard for anyone else to buy that (view spoiler)[ the only two groups of earthers to survive just happen to be connected to two of the eight surviving spacers? (hide spoiler)]...more
The world-building and "magic" system are cool and different and unconventional. Jemisin's writing st4.25ish stars.
This is such a cool series, right!?
The world-building and "magic" system are cool and different and unconventional. Jemisin's writing style is cool and unusual and edgy. Her characters are cool and genuine and unabashedly imperfect. Just so cool.
Obviously this is a middle book and some of the novelty isn't as novel this time around. The aforementioned edgy writing style that Jemisin employs works for her and I like it most of the time but after a while but... (but) it sometimes ends up seeming oh no oh no oh no HOKEY.
One of the things I loved about the first book was the unique "magic" system that Jemisin invented. As I mentioned in my review for that book, it almost seems inaccurate to call it a magic system because it's so unlike what we traditionally perceive as magic. It's orogeny, it's just its own thing. Of course, in The Obelisk Gate, magic was literally introduced which, at first, was kind of a letdown. I liked that orogeny didn't conform to the typical tropes of magic (the ability to do whatever one wants to resolve all conflict in deus ex machina style). Then magic shows up using the title "magic" (although it was kind of an entertaining reveal when Alabaster presented the name). I at least appreciate the justification for magic's existence through its incorporation into the existing world and the adequate explanation of where it actually comes from.
Ranting aside, I love this book. Lots of satisfying reveals, explanations, bad-assery galore, and even more tension and action than the first book. The expansion of characters and their relationships was fascinating. Especially delightful was the introduction of Nassun and the revelation of the true relationship between her and her mother (at least from Nassun's POV). What I love most of all is the incredible character work. No one is a hero here. These people are impulsive, manipulative, selfish, stubborn, frustrating, irritating, and immediately recognizable as being genuinely human (even especially the orogenes). I love them all even when I hate them. The ability to create that feeling, I think, is the mark of a great author....more
The premise is really cool. The dark tone is atmospheric and engaging. The sparse prose is pretty and had me entranced for a little while1.5ish stars.
The premise is really cool. The dark tone is atmospheric and engaging. The sparse prose is pretty and had me entranced for a little while. Having said that, my experience reading this was much the same as it was while reading The Road (with which I've found this book has several similarities in style and content) but without any of the payoff. I eventually became disillusioned with the sparse, pretty prose and, within three or four chapters, found it to be frustratingly detached and inadequate. It works better in The Road because of that novel's simple allegorical message, purposefully stark characters and because McCarthy is honestly just a better writer.
In The Vagrant, I feel like we're supposed to find out who these characters are. We're supposed to figure out what's going on and why as details slowly unfold. I was never able to invest myself enough to care. It became such a chore to continue reading. Not to mention that the Vagrant himself is never as cool as I hoped he'd be. He's pretty cool. Fairly cool. Coolish. Coolish is not cool enough to carry what I ultimately found to be a boring novel. ...more
Wow. This book was unlike anything I've read in a long time. I know that distinction gets thrown out a lot but not by me. I love the fant4.5ish stars.
Wow. This book was unlike anything I've read in a long time. I know that distinction gets thrown out a lot but not by me. I love the fantasy genre but not because every book I read within it is innovative and unique. There's really a lot of the same thing, which I'm fine with because I like most of the tried-and-true tropes and reliable modus operandi. But this. I don't even know how to classify it. It's not so much fantasy as it is... whatever it is. But I like it.
I took a few pages for me to be okay with Jemisin's writing style because I'm not used to book-language sounding so much like speaking-language. I eventually came to find that it made the world and the characters that much more relatable. On top of that, I don't think I've ever read a book written (at least partially) in second person present. It very likely could have NOT worked, but it DID work. And the convergence at the end was very satisfying. Each of the POVs was equally as enjoyable to read. We've all read books with multiple POVs and we groan whenever it's time again for THAT PERSON's perspective. This was not like that. Each of the characters (view spoiler)[(experiences of the same character) (hide spoiler)] were fascinating and enjoyable to spend time with.
It also took (more than) a few pages for me to get a real sense of this world. On the surface (haha) there seemed to be a lot more in common with the-world-as-I-know-it than with many fantasy worlds but it took a while to figure out how much in common there really was. I guess just in terms of technology, culture, flora/fauna, etc. I wanted to find some sort of frame of reference. I'm still not entirely certain I found that frame of reference but there was enough explanation to satisfy me and I guess (view spoiler)[since the world is over, it doesn't really matter anymore, right? :). (hide spoiler)]
As far as the magic system, can it even really be classified as such? The way Jemisin developed and executed it, orogeny and all the rest of it was simple truth. Despite being so out there, it was actually really easy to just accept it. It's not so much fantasy and magic as much as it could be just another part of our Earth that I haven't had the chance to understand and experience yet.
I'm surprised, considering this is the first in a trilogy and ends on a can't-wait-to-read-the-next-one cliffhanger how full and complete it feels. If this doesn't overtake my previous #1 vote for the Hugo, it will be a close second.
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