Reviews - A Fire Upon the Deep

860 reviews for:

A Fire Upon the Deep

Vernor Vinge

4.07 AVERAGE

jrm5394's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A really fun and fascinating sci fi read that left me crying within a few chapters. The story wrote a check it couldn't quite cash in the end in my opinion but still a worthwhile read

jsmyrk's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous inspiring tense slow-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: Complicated

thenchuff's review against another edition

5.0

This book just hit all of my sweet spots and I loved it.

moogcity's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-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: No

eleanorfranzen's review against another edition

This is exactly the sort of thing I want to take with me on a long flight or a multi-step train journey. The first 80 or so pages require incredible focus and concentration, because Vinge is introducing you not just to a new planet but to a whole new galaxy, including the way that technology is decreasingly effective as you move closer to the center of the galaxy’s spin, and vice versa. He’s also writing some characters who are part of a race where consciousness is distributed between multiple bodies, a fact the reader has to figure out as they go along, and he’s taking their civilisations completely seriously; they’re at a roughly medieval tech level and are just as interested in power grabs, strategic advantages, and land wars as medieval human societies were. That society ends up coming into close contact with human children from further out in the galaxy, so with far greater technological advantages—but the disadvantage of being kids, and having to figure things out on their own and stay alive. There’s a third group of people (some humans, some a different race of alien) who are trying to mount a rescue of the children, but time and distance and the speed of light and the decreasing functionality of their highest tech is working against them, plus they’re being hunted by a murderous digital intelligence. Vinge’s aliens are superb—differentiated from each other, distinct cultures and subcultures, properly dynamic individuals—and you’re rewarded for the intense level of focus by constant fantastic character interactions, action set pieces, and moments of epiphany. This is a genuine modern classic of sf and one of the most brilliant pieces of writing I’ve read so far this year. The prequel, A Deepness in the Sky, is on my wish list now. Source: bought new with gift cards

ellennicole's review against another edition

2.0

I have read a lot of scifi this year, and this was highly rated so I expected to love it. Unfortunately it’s a miss for me. Complex in ways that felt unnecessary, characters that I just struggled to care about, and I just have no interest to push through and finish.