Ben Saufley
This book purports to be about first contact, but mostly deals with a hyper-capitalist future and how humankind might react to the _possibility_ of first contact. It may be a minor spoiler, but "contact" barely occurs in this book. I did think it was interesting, and for a while I thought the cynical angle of such a hyper-capitalist future added something interesting to the story, but at the end it became clear that that _was_ the story and I was left unsatisfied. If Dixon intends to write a sequel, it would make sense, but I don't see any indication of that at this point. Which leaves a big chunk of the _focus_ of the book more-or-less unresolved.
This book purports to be about first contact, but mostly deals with a hyper-capitalist future and how humankind might react to the _possibility_ of first contact. It may be a minor spoiler, but "contact" barely occurs in this book. I did think it was interesting, and for a while I thought the cynical angle of such a hyper-capitalist future added something interesting to the story, but at the end it became clear that that _was_ the story and I was left unsatisfied. If Dixon intends to write a sequel, it would make sense, but I don't see any indication of that at this point. Which leaves a big chunk of the _focus_ of the book more-or-less unresolved.
This book just won the Hugo, so I had to know what the buzz was about. The premise definitely seemed interesting, but as the book got going I wasn't convinced of its hype-worthiness. In the end, though, yes, absolutely loved this book. It builds on a whole bunch of comfortable formulas and tropes to create something new, entertaining, and really satisfying in the end. I'm not always looking for a message in the books I read, although it can be hard not to notice the harmful ones (think: copaganda, or the myriad thrillers that hinge on a woman lying about abuse or assault) – but this book has some really interesting things to say about government and power, without hammering you over the head with it (ok, there's a _small_ amount of hammering at the end). You don't have to get those themes to enjoy the book, but I definitely felt a deeper appreciation for the book as those themes (and themes of neurodivergence) revealed themselves. Highly recommend this novel and I've already picked up the next in the series.
This book just won the Hugo, so I had to know what the buzz was about. The premise definitely seemed interesting, but as the book got going I wasn't convinced of its hype-worthiness. In the end, though, yes, absolutely loved this book. It builds on a whole bunch of comfortable formulas and tropes to create something new, entertaining, and really satisfying in the end. I'm not always looking for a message in the books I read, although it can be hard not to notice the harmful ones (think: copaganda, or the myriad thrillers that hinge on a woman lying about abuse or assault) – but this book has some really interesting things to say about government and power, without hammering you over the head with it (ok, there's a _small_ amount of hammering at the end). You don't have to get those themes to enjoy the book, but I definitely felt a deeper appreciation for the book as those themes (and themes of neurodivergence) revealed themselves. Highly recommend this novel and I've already picked up the next in the series.
Honestly a lot of fun. Lots of twists. Does well to play with the tropes of the genre and then subvert expectations. Also once or twice when I expected a twist and it went straight, in a pleasantly surprising way.
Honestly a lot of fun. Lots of twists. Does well to play with the tropes of the genre and then subvert expectations. Also once or twice when I expected a twist and it went straight, in a pleasantly surprising way.
Added to listOwnedwith 72 books.
I highly, highly recommend this book. Something about the title, presentation, subject matter made me expect it to be a bit less accessible than it was – and I think for some, its "accessibility" will be a knock. It reads like genre fiction, IMO, not literary fiction, but I think that's a point in its favor – stuff like this doesn't have to be dense or intimidating. It's really really smart and comes at the subject matter from what was, in my eyes, a unique way that is both hopeful and not, and I think its main characters represent the kind of "two wolves" inside many of us in the modern world: the impulse to fight tooth and nail and the impulse to try to make a life and carve out some joy are both valid. Loved this book.
I highly, highly recommend this book. Something about the title, presentation, subject matter made me expect it to be a bit less accessible than it was – and I think for some, its "accessibility" will be a knock. It reads like genre fiction, IMO, not literary fiction, but I think that's a point in its favor – stuff like this doesn't have to be dense or intimidating. It's really really smart and comes at the subject matter from what was, in my eyes, a unique way that is both hopeful and not, and I think its main characters represent the kind of "two wolves" inside many of us in the modern world: the impulse to fight tooth and nail and the impulse to try to make a life and carve out some joy are both valid. Loved this book.
Carpathians
Added to listOwnedwith 71 books.
Honestly a lot of fun. Lots of twists. Does well to play with the tropes of the genre and then subvert expectations. Also once or twice when I expected a twist and it went straight, in a pleasantly surprising way.
Honestly a lot of fun. Lots of twists. Does well to play with the tropes of the genre and then subvert expectations. Also once or twice when I expected a twist and it went straight, in a pleasantly surprising way.
Added to listOwnedwith 70 books.
I enjoyed most of this book but the resolution was pretty deeply unsatisfying and left a lot of loose ends—any thriller/mystery that's any good will employ red herrings, but most of the red herrings at play here seem very forced in retrospect. Beyond that, the over-explanation at the end was at a certain point kind of silly. I'm all for making it clear what happened but it was made clear a few times over and then the characters internal-monologued their justifications on top of that.
I'm trying not to just give everything a 3 simply because I still mostly enjoyed it. So, this gets 2.5.
I enjoyed most of this book but the resolution was pretty deeply unsatisfying and left a lot of loose ends—any thriller/mystery that's any good will employ red herrings, but most of the red herrings at play here seem very forced in retrospect. Beyond that, the over-explanation at the end was at a certain point kind of silly. I'm all for making it clear what happened but it was made clear a few times over and then the characters internal-monologued their justifications on top of that.
I'm trying not to just give everything a 3 simply because I still mostly enjoyed it. So, this gets 2.5.
I enjoyed most of this book but the resolution was pretty deeply unsatisfying and left a lot of loose ends—any thriller/mystery that's any good will employ red herrings, but most of the red herrings at play here seem very forced in retrospect. Beyond that, the over-explanation at the end was at a certain point kind of silly. I'm all for making it clear what happened but it was made clear a few times over and then the characters internal-monologued their justifications on top of that.
I'm trying not to just give everything a 3 simply because I still mostly enjoyed it. So, this gets 2.5.
I enjoyed most of this book but the resolution was pretty deeply unsatisfying and left a lot of loose ends—any thriller/mystery that's any good will employ red herrings, but most of the red herrings at play here seem very forced in retrospect. Beyond that, the over-explanation at the end was at a certain point kind of silly. I'm all for making it clear what happened but it was made clear a few times over and then the characters internal-monologued their justifications on top of that.
I'm trying not to just give everything a 3 simply because I still mostly enjoyed it. So, this gets 2.5.