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mishnah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The author talks about it like it's a locked room story, but the noir-ish trappings here are mostly just aesthetic – there's no actual solvable mystery here, no clues to untangle. Instead, it's a well-struck political thriller more than anything else, reminiscent of The City in the Middle of the Night in its sometimes clumsy, sometimes deeply affecting welding of contemporary political concerns and things more alien.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore and Violence
tigger89's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This is a neat little locked room mystery set in space, with a compelling twist in the second half. I don't know what I thought was going on when I started this book, but I certainly wouldn't have guessed that! I loved the afrofuturism — the destination colony is in the Lagos system — and the attention to scientific detail, though I have to take the author's word for it that it's accurate. I also appreciated the themes surrounding AI consciousnesses.
My biggest gripe with this book is that it felt like a prequel to a different book or series. There were some aspects — the Lambers, Nightshade — that felt un-elaborated upon, and the ending of the story felt like it was setting up the kind of grand conflict that would be the main plot of a different story. There should be another story taking place five or ten years after this one, and the fact that we don't have that makes this feel incomplete somehow, despite the fact that the mystery was successfully concluded.
I usually try to note animal death content warnings in my reviews, but this is one where I'm gonna have to direct you to somewhere else. I have a note that there is such a content warning needed, but I've fallen behind on reviews and no longer recall the specific contexts well enough to warn.
My biggest gripe with this book is that it felt like a prequel to a different book or series. There were some aspects — the Lambers, Nightshade — that felt un-elaborated upon, and the ending of the story felt like it was setting up the kind of grand conflict that would be the main plot of a different story. There should be another story taking place five or ten years after this one, and the fact that we don't have that makes this feel incomplete somehow, despite the fact that the mystery was successfully concluded.
I usually try to note animal death content warnings in my reviews, but this is one where I'm gonna have to direct you to somewhere else. I have a note that there is such a content warning needed, but I've fallen behind on reviews and no longer recall the specific contexts well enough to warn.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Body horror, Slavery, Terminal illness, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Murder, Animal death, Medical content, and Genocide
antarcticsloth's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Medical content, Mental illness, Cursing, and Death of parent
Minor: Racism, Excrement, and Racial slurs
billyjepma's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I struggled to get into this at first and found myself bristling at how little the story prepared me for its version of space travel, alien worlds, and technology. On one hand, I admired the in media res approach, but on the other, I felt like it kept me at arm’s length from the characters and the mystery they find themselves in. And then, right around the halfway point, something in me or the book clicked into place, and I tore through the remaining 150+ pages in one sitting. All those wrinkles I initially saw as obstacles unfolded and played out in immensely satisfying, exciting ways. I still think that the first half is a little rough, and there are areas I found to be slightly underbaked, but I can’t argue with the results. Once things got going, I was all in and then some.
The very concept of a single-location murder mystery in a spaceship is enough of a hook to get me. If you’re willing to be patient, Thompson’s storytelling delivers on and exceeds the expectations of that initial conceit. I love the themes stitched into the plot, appreciate how they exist analogously to the story, and pay off in simultaneously rewarding and frustrating ways. Which is a good thing in my book because the themes Thompson introduces are too big and, in some ways, too abstract to have a proper resolution. I appreciate that he lets his characters (and, by extension, his reader) sit in that vaguely uncomfortable space. Take away the headiness, though, and you still have a simmering thriller that feels like the twisted love child of Seven, The Martian, and 2001: A Space Odyssey, with some tasteful hints of a Hercule Poirot caper mixed in for good measure.
The very concept of a single-location murder mystery in a spaceship is enough of a hook to get me. If you’re willing to be patient, Thompson’s storytelling delivers on and exceeds the expectations of that initial conceit. I love the themes stitched into the plot, appreciate how they exist analogously to the story, and pay off in simultaneously rewarding and frustrating ways. Which is a good thing in my book because the themes Thompson introduces are too big and, in some ways, too abstract to have a proper resolution. I appreciate that he lets his characters (and, by extension, his reader) sit in that vaguely uncomfortable space. Take away the headiness, though, and you still have a simmering thriller that feels like the twisted love child of Seven, The Martian, and 2001: A Space Odyssey, with some tasteful hints of a Hercule Poirot caper mixed in for good measure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Blood, and Gore
Moderate: Murder, Terminal illness, Violence, Cursing, and Medical content
Minor: Child death, Colonisation, Classism, Racial slurs, and Cannibalism
urs's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs and Gore
Moderate: Confinement, Terminal illness, Violence, and Body horror
motherbeetle's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
This book broke my brain. It was more horrific than I expected, which I think added to the tenseness of the whole situation. I really enjoyed it, even if I did have to sleep with the light on for a few nights.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Violence, and Gore
Moderate: Cannibalism
Minor: Fatphobia
asza's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
rorikae's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
'Far from the Light of Heaven' is a locked room mystery in space that incorporates some intriguing world building.
The story centers around Michelle Campion, a passenger aboard a spaceship who wakes up midflight. Campion finds that a number of the passengers have been murdered and sends out a distress signal. Rasheed Fin, an investigator, is sent to Campion's ship, Ragtime, to get to the bottom of what really happened.
My favorite aspect of this story is the worldbuilding that Thompson incorporates. There are some alien creatures with interesting abilities that I felt really fleshed out the world and drew my interest. I found the mystery engaging and the way the story wove into a larger narrative that expanded beyond the Ragtime, allowed us to learn more about the wider world.
My real issue with this book was the audiobook. It's a decent audiobook but it failed to truly capture my interest and this led me to feel like I was missing parts of the book. I would highly recommend picking up the physical copy if you have a similar experience. I would be interested to return to this story in the future as I feel that I've missed out on some crucial aspects of the story due to my issues with the audiobook.
The story centers around Michelle Campion, a passenger aboard a spaceship who wakes up midflight. Campion finds that a number of the passengers have been murdered and sends out a distress signal. Rasheed Fin, an investigator, is sent to Campion's ship, Ragtime, to get to the bottom of what really happened.
My favorite aspect of this story is the worldbuilding that Thompson incorporates. There are some alien creatures with interesting abilities that I felt really fleshed out the world and drew my interest. I found the mystery engaging and the way the story wove into a larger narrative that expanded beyond the Ragtime, allowed us to learn more about the wider world.
My real issue with this book was the audiobook. It's a decent audiobook but it failed to truly capture my interest and this led me to feel like I was missing parts of the book. I would highly recommend picking up the physical copy if you have a similar experience. I would be interested to return to this story in the future as I feel that I've missed out on some crucial aspects of the story due to my issues with the audiobook.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Murder, Blood, Body horror, and Violence
Moderate: Cannibalism
sarah984's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I really enjoyed this one. It's a sort of a combination of space thriller and detective story with a bit of a supernatural element. There are some great action scenes, and while the characters aren't super developed, they feel unique and do the job. The romance is pretty bland though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Gore
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, and Violence
Minor: Excrement, Sexual content, War, and Fatphobia
booksthatburn's review
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
FAR FROM THE LIGHT OF HEAVEN is a locked-spaceship mass-murder mystery with a disgraced detective and a rookie ship captain.
The ensemble of characters is interesting, I especially like Joké. Her storyline was the most engaging for me, and I like how she comes into her own.
The main thing that frustrated me is that there was literally no way to figure out the answer any earlier than the extended sequence which explains the whole thing in great detail. The actual answer was fascinating enough to loop back around to regaining my interest, but it does mean the middle of the book dragged for me. I like the world that was built, but not really the way that it was conveyed, and I enjoyed the political wrangling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Blood, Animal death, and Death
Moderate: Racism, Gore, Excrement, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Fatphobia, Child death, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, and Cannibalism