Reviews

Vast by Linda Nagata

crimsoncor's review

5.0

Such a fascinating book.

Spoiler

Lot just gets more and more interesting. His entire relationship with Clemantine is so fucked up. Like, he doesn't "want" to dominate and control her, except actually his entire biological imperative has been remapped so that is all he wants to do. Watching his transformation from ostensible hero with some questionable impulses in the second book into an almost (though inadvertent) villain is really cool. It really remaps a lot of what we know about Jupiter too, as you learn that he was basically incapable of controlling his abilities.

. This books leans way harder into the "what is consciousness" question when you can digitize people than the last one, though that has been there since the first book. Just becomes much more of a plot hinge here.

Absolutely loved this series. Kinda wish I had read it back when it originally came out, because it would have totally blown my mind then. Now, it is really well done, but so many of the ideas have been picked up in stuff I've already read, it isn't quite as awe inspiring

mjfmjfmjf's review

3.0

That was a tough read. Big. Confusing. With no clear plot. And no clear timescale. Lot's of ideas. Upload. Nano. Philosopher Cells. Interstellar Nano dust. A cult organ? cell? I liked bits of this very much. And other parts were just overwhelming. And then it basically petered out? I suppose if I were read this series straight through in order it would feel different but maybe not. I'm not sure what I just read. 2.5 of 5.

sooflo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

annaswan's review

I read this to make more sense of Edges. Weird, fascinating book.

ineffablebob's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Vast picks up right where Deception Well left off, with a small group venturing forth on a journey to find the origins of the alien Chenzeme. Unlike the prior book, in Vast there's pretty much always something happening, either encounters with Chenzeme or others, or internal conflicts between the crewmates. What hasn't changed in this novel, though, is confusion on both the part of the characters and the reader about where this is all going. By the end, there is a resolution to the story of the main characters, but still a lot of unanswered questions about where all of it began. But along the way, there's a lot of interesting concepts that come up regarding how these specimens of augmented humanity live their lives, from memory editing to body modification to communication with alien life. 

This is the final book in a trilogy, though it really felt like two separate stories. There's the first book, describing humanity changing themselves via nanotechnology and leaving the confines of Earth. Then there's the other two books, which are all about the Chenzeme and their cult virus, viewed through the lens of a small group of fairly ignorant characters trying to understand what's going on. I empathize with them, because I also wasn't sure what was going on most of the time. Lots of interesting ideas came up along the way, though, about how humans live when they can reshape themselves and their world effectively at will, via advanced nanotech. I found the concepts more interesting than the actual story, and that made the read worthwhile, even without resolution to many of the questions raised along the way.

yvris's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

popestig's review

4.0

It's magnificent and hard sci-fi and wonderful and packed with science fiction. And also character driven.

It's not perfect. There are lots topics and ideas and concepts that are just touched on the surface, leaving lots of plots and elements unfinished or at least their potential unfulfilled. Of course, all the stuff that seemingly happens off stage makes for a grander tapestry, so it might be on purpose. But the series easily has material to be twice the length.

zetasyanthis's review against another edition

4.0

Man, this book is complicated, and left me with really complicated feels...