Debby's Reviews > Spinning Starlight

1 star

Geez. That was just... so disappointing. I loved this author's debut novel, so obviously my expectations were up there. I love fairy tales, I love sci-fi, the first was awesome - what could go wrong?

So, so much.

This story is forced. It's like the author woke up and was just absolutely fixated on using this particular fairy tale, and she was going to use any illogical concept, ploy, or plot device to make it happen. And science fiction relies so heavily on SCIENCE that it was too hard to swallow.

I mean, I think I was immediately thrown off when it became apparent that this sci-fi futuristic world had no system of writing. Excuse me? Like, how? How could that ever be a logical thing? Like, that they have tablets and mostly only need to use voice controls for daily tasks and operations, sure. But here you have technologists and scientists at the top of their field. They're going to write, to do their experiments, to take notes, to go through research. I can't even begin to explain how much this frustrates me.

It was obviously NECESSARY because then when Liddi had her voice implant it would make it harder for her to expose the truth and keep her on her treasure hunt, basically. The story would be over in two seconds if it was possible to write. But that's so frustrating. I hate it when non-communication is slowing down the plot. Even when Tiav devises the tablet communication software for her she complains and refuses to use it to explain everything to him because "it would take too long to go through all the symbols". Are you fucking serious? All the time she spent complaining about that... if she'd used that to tell her story, this book could have been 100 pages and everyone would be better off.

Let's not even talk about how at the end of the book, she writes - literally WRITES - the script she wants Dom to air on the newsfeeds. Suddenly she had no problem with that? Or, she had the time for it then, even though the worlds were getting more and more unstable? FOR FUCK'S SAKE.

"Another nod, and I get to work writing the exact words I need for the news-vid. No shortcuts, no skipping anything. Word-for-word."



And why didn't she record that Minali was fired then? Seriously, then she wouldn't have had to sneak around the conduits! Forced suspense is forced and COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY.

Fine, so these couple of story elements immediately put this book on my bad side. And there were no real redeeming qualities to help it recover. Liddi was bland if not annoying. Tiav was a forced love interest. I literally felt absolutely nothing during their kissing / romantic scenes. Cardboard is cardboard and flat. Twice I picked up the book, intending to make significant progress, but I promptly fell asleep within 5 pages.

The "science" at the end was more magic than anything. So that didn't help. I honestly speed read through the climax just to get it over with, because dwelling on certain passages to try to make them make sense in my head was pointless.

In one word: Sad.