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shottel's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
World Running Down isn’t innovating, but that’s okay. It’s solid fiction, set a couple generations after rich people jump ship to a new planet after deciding that earth is a lost cause. A few large cities remain the last bastions of prosperity, while outside their borders things somewhat resemble Mad Max. In this environment Valentine, a trans guy trying to scrape together enough money to buy a visa to one of the cities, takes a job that sends him down a path that involves a lot of reflection about what it means to be sentient and our duty to others and the environment. Less high-falutin, there’s also a lot of gay emotions and some sex. It’s a genuinely enjoyable novel, especially if you like more reflective fiction or trans or gay main characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, Transphobia, Dysphoria, and Gun violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Animal death, Sexual violence, Blood, Body horror, Deadnaming, Hate crime, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicide
meshell's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
World Running Down by Al Hess was such an interesting exploration of identity, friendship, artificial intelligence, and what a peri-apocalyptic future might look like, and left me with a lot to think about.
There is the archetype of the gated city of splendour and the surrounding communities of struggle and strife, but both are shown with care I think. On that note, I was intrigued by some of the settings of the story - and I thought the world building was brilliant:
- Salt Lake City as a gated city of plenty, run by artificial intelligences called Stewards, and a human council.
- Several outer communities in varied states of anti-technology, stealing from travellers, but in a way that was implied to be subsistence based rather than just based around cruelty like some of the city based "respectable" criminals. There is a designated queer community.
There is a love story, some unexpected allies, a mystery, ADHD rep, and queer, trans rep. It's got a great combination of cozy and adventure - and just some deep conversations. I think there is a lot going on in this book, and I think for the most part, it was really well done.
There is the archetype of the gated city of splendour and the surrounding communities of struggle and strife, but both are shown with care I think. On that note, I was intrigued by some of the settings of the story - and I thought the world building was brilliant:
- Salt Lake City as a gated city of plenty, run by artificial intelligences called Stewards, and a human council.
- Several outer communities in varied states of anti-technology, stealing from travellers, but in a way that was implied to be subsistence based rather than just based around cruelty like some of the city based "respectable" criminals. There is a designated queer community.
There is a love story, some unexpected allies, a mystery, ADHD rep, and queer, trans rep. It's got a great combination of cozy and adventure - and just some deep conversations. I think there is a lot going on in this book, and I think for the most part, it was really well done.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Homophobia, Transphobia, Classism, Violence, and Sexual content
mar's review
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
At times dramatic but ultimately feel-good story about a trans scavenger on the Mad Max-y salt planes of near-future Utah, taking on a big job from the utopian Salt Lake City in the hopes of finally earning his admission into it - with the help of a temporarily-trapped-in-an-android-body AI. (Who is very hot... and smart... and cute... and- well. you get the picture 👀). I particularly enjoyed the worldbuilding around AIs and androids - the two usually get lumped together, and it was interesting seeing a world in which they were very distinct groups treated and perceived completely differently. If anything, some of the concepts/subplots in this book were so compelling I was disappointed not to see them expanded on even further (such as the test for determining sentience - for such an important part of the story it felt a little surface-level - or the animal-robot hybrids roaming the planes). I think just how easily everything got wrapped up into a neat happy ending was a bit unrealistic, but it's definitely a book to read for comfort rather than realism. Equal parts fun character-driven adventure and a sweet gay romance, it's a great read for a rainy day <3
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Dysphoria
Moderate: Violence, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, and Transphobia
Minor: Homophobia, Deadnaming, and Sexual assault
ash_hernick's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Are you interested in reading about the philosophical debates around artificial sentience? Fights (and treaties!) with motorcycle-riding religious pirates? The desert wastes of an almost post-apocalyptic Utah? Maybe you're just looking for a sweet romance between a trans man and his AI boyfriend? If any of these piqued your interest, then "World Running Down" is perfect for you!
"World Running Down" by Al Hess is a lovely story about Valentine, a trans man, and Osric, an AI trapped in an android body, traveling together through the ruins of a run-down, near-future Utah. Valentine's a scavenger, trying to get together enough money from doing odd jobs to get a visa so that he can live in a city and finally transition the way he wants to. He's traveling with another scavenger, Ace, and together the two go from town-to-town picking up jobs and studying for the inevitable citizenship test they'll have to take if they get their visas. While stopping in a settlement one day, Valentine meets Osric, a person from the city sent as a messenger to tell the two scavengers about a job from a high-paying client. Oh, and Osric's also a Steward (one of the city's AI guardians) illegally trapped in an android body.
There was so much I loved about this book. I'm always a sucker for discussions of what qualifies as artificial intelligence and sentience, and "World Running Down" explored these ideas in a way that was thoughtful and felt natural. I loved the conversations between Valentine, Osric, and various androids and Stewards about sentience. This book was such a refreshing read and reminded me thematically of "A Psalm for the Wild-Built" (one of my favorite recent speculative releases) in a lot of ways, although the stories themselves are very different. I think it's that both books handle discussions of AI and sentience in similarly compelling ways.
I also thought the romance between Val and Osric was sweet and built up well within the narrative. It didn't feel instalovey at all to me, but it's also clear that a spark was there from the beginning, and Hess develops that attraction well. I also loved how the Valentine and Osric are able to connect to each other through the idea of both being "in the wrong body" in a sense - Val wishes he had a more traditionally cis masculine form, and Osric has never been in a humanoid body before. I wouldn't have made that connection on my own, but the way the two talked about their experiences felt natural and made a lot of sense with the internal logic of the world.
On the topic of Valentine's trans identity - sometimes Valentine experiences transphobic microaggressions, and there are references to explicit transphobia off-page, but I appreciated that Hess's depiction of both felt respectful and purposeful. Sometimes Valentine is misgendered on-page, but he always steps up and tries to shut it down as soon as he can, or another character steps forward to support him. Most people he encounters are actually accepting of his gender identity, and if they misgender him initially, it's an accident, and they switch to the correct pronouns and name for him as soon as they learn they've made a mistake. It's even a major plot point that the central city in the novel offers HRT and gender-affirming surgeries to its citizens, covered under the city's healthcare plans. Fair warning that Val does bind with bandages/tape sometimes in the novel, but I really can't blame him - man's essentially living in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Overall, all of the author's choices around displaying the transphobia (or lack thereof) that Valentine experiences throughout the novel felt purposeful and realistic. Obviously, Utah as a futuristic desert wasteland full of wandering pirates and androids isn't exactly realistic - but each instance felt like it made sense within the greater understanding of the story.
In general, I was just ecstatic to see such a well-developed gay and trans character in a well-written romance with an equally well-developed gay character. They were wonderful.
With all my praise of it, you probably won't be surprised to here that there wasn't much I disliked about this novel. Mostly, I wished there'd been more of it! I did feel like there were some plot points that weren't fully resolved, or ideas that weren't wrapped up completely, but none of these were major in the grand scheme of the story. There were moments when I wished I'd gotten to learn a little more about the history of the futuristic world Valentine and Osric lived in, but again, this had no bearing on the main plot.
I'm definitely going to be recommending this book to friends! As I was reading it, I already had a mental list going of the people in my life who I thought would love it. Definitely pick it up if you're interested in reading a character study of a trans man doing what he can to transition in a falling-apart world, or if you're looking for a queer romance against a speculative near-futuristic setting. Even if you're just looking for another quick read about AI, this could be the book for you! I cannot recommend it enough.
Are you interested in reading about the philosophical debates around artificial sentience? Fights (and treaties!) with motorcycle-riding religious pirates? The desert wastes of an almost post-apocalyptic Utah? Maybe you're just looking for a sweet romance between a trans man and his AI boyfriend? If any of these piqued your interest, then "World Running Down" is perfect for you!
"World Running Down" by Al Hess is a lovely story about Valentine, a trans man, and Osric, an AI trapped in an android body, traveling together through the ruins of a run-down, near-future Utah. Valentine's a scavenger, trying to get together enough money from doing odd jobs to get a visa so that he can live in a city and finally transition the way he wants to. He's traveling with another scavenger, Ace, and together the two go from town-to-town picking up jobs and studying for the inevitable citizenship test they'll have to take if they get their visas. While stopping in a settlement one day, Valentine meets Osric, a person from the city sent as a messenger to tell the two scavengers about a job from a high-paying client. Oh, and Osric's also a Steward (one of the city's AI guardians) illegally trapped in an android body.
There was so much I loved about this book. I'm always a sucker for discussions of what qualifies as artificial intelligence and sentience, and "World Running Down" explored these ideas in a way that was thoughtful and felt natural. I loved the conversations between Valentine, Osric, and various androids and Stewards about sentience. This book was such a refreshing read and reminded me thematically of "A Psalm for the Wild-Built" (one of my favorite recent speculative releases) in a lot of ways, although the stories themselves are very different. I think it's that both books handle discussions of AI and sentience in similarly compelling ways.
I also thought the romance between Val and Osric was sweet and built up well within the narrative. It didn't feel instalovey at all to me, but it's also clear that a spark was there from the beginning, and Hess develops that attraction well. I also loved how the Valentine and Osric are able to connect to each other through the idea of both being "in the wrong body" in a sense - Val wishes he had a more traditionally cis masculine form, and Osric has never been in a humanoid body before. I wouldn't have made that connection on my own, but the way the two talked about their experiences felt natural and made a lot of sense with the internal logic of the world.
On the topic of Valentine's trans identity - sometimes Valentine experiences transphobic microaggressions, and there are references to explicit transphobia off-page, but I appreciated that Hess's depiction of both felt respectful and purposeful. Sometimes Valentine is misgendered on-page, but he always steps up and tries to shut it down as soon as he can, or another character steps forward to support him. Most people he encounters are actually accepting of his gender identity, and if they misgender him initially, it's an accident, and they switch to the correct pronouns and name for him as soon as they learn they've made a mistake. It's even a major plot point that the central city in the novel offers HRT and gender-affirming surgeries to its citizens, covered under the city's healthcare plans. Fair warning that Val does bind with bandages/tape sometimes in the novel, but I really can't blame him - man's essentially living in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Overall, all of the author's choices around displaying the transphobia (or lack thereof) that Valentine experiences throughout the novel felt purposeful and realistic. Obviously, Utah as a futuristic desert wasteland full of wandering pirates and androids isn't exactly realistic - but each instance felt like it made sense within the greater understanding of the story.
In general, I was just ecstatic to see such a well-developed gay and trans character in a well-written romance with an equally well-developed gay character. They were wonderful.
With all my praise of it, you probably won't be surprised to here that there wasn't much I disliked about this novel. Mostly, I wished there'd been more of it! I did feel like there were some plot points that weren't fully resolved, or ideas that weren't wrapped up completely, but none of these were major in the grand scheme of the story. There were moments when I wished I'd gotten to learn a little more about the history of the futuristic world Valentine and Osric lived in, but again, this had no bearing on the main plot.
I'm definitely going to be recommending this book to friends! As I was reading it, I already had a mental list going of the people in my life who I thought would love it. Definitely pick it up if you're interested in reading a character study of a trans man doing what he can to transition in a falling-apart world, or if you're looking for a queer romance against a speculative near-futuristic setting. Even if you're just looking for another quick read about AI, this could be the book for you! I cannot recommend it enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Medical content
Moderate: Kidnapping, Sexism, Classism, Religious bigotry, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Deadnaming, Violence, and Homophobia
Minor: Kidnapping, Trafficking, and Sexual assault
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