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293 reviews for:
The Vela: The Complete Season 1
Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon, Yoon Ha Lee, S.L. Huang
3.83 AVERAGE
293 reviews for:
The Vela: The Complete Season 1
Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon, Yoon Ha Lee, S.L. Huang
3.83 AVERAGE
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
putting it down for now. Im not sure if i really like full production audiobooks. It takes away from the story for me
i liked this a lot! super fun that it was co-written by such powerhouse sf writers. plot was interesting and well-paced, lovely prose, interesting characters. just a good sci fi book!
adventurous
dark
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
I only bought this because Becky Chambers was one of the writers but even she couldn’t save this mess. Tired story, wooden characters, and poorly edited, this was boring and disappointing.
Okay, first of all, big thanks to Serial Box for giving me an ARC of this, because I've been excited to read The Vela since I first heard about it. And... I'm happy to say that it lived up to all my expectations!
This is a fascinating story that combines politics, space adventures, and some huge moral and ethical questions - all things I love encountering in fiction. The setting is fascinating and I think very well thought out, although it would have been nice to get to know a little more about the different worlds and cultures of this universe. I did love how casually queer the whole universe was. I also felt that the authors handled the complexity of the moral and political situation very well. The characters were compelling and believable, even if Niko occasionally felt a little young. And they did a great job of navigating how to structure the story within the serial format (although I was VERY glad that I had all of the episodes already as I got toward the end).
I received a free ARC from the publisher.
This is a fascinating story that combines politics, space adventures, and some huge moral and ethical questions - all things I love encountering in fiction. The setting is fascinating and I think very well thought out, although it would have been nice to get to know a little more about the different worlds and cultures of this universe. I did love how casually queer the whole universe was. I also felt that the authors handled the complexity of the moral and political situation very well. The characters were compelling and believable, even if Niko occasionally felt a little young. And they did a great job of navigating how to structure the story within the serial format (although I was VERY glad that I had all of the episodes already as I got toward the end).
I received a free ARC from the publisher.
Collaborative work is not easy. On the other hand, reading such a work comes with an expectation, whether the (co)writing is a smooth blend of styles with a flowing story that draw us readers into the world, going deeper with the characters, ultimately ending the journey feeling fulfilled.
The Vela is one of those works. Sure, you could see the different narrative styles and characterizations. I've never read anything from Solomon and Huang (still in my wish list, no worries), but I quite enjoyed their parts, even though I sliiightly prefer the ones from more familiar writers (to me), i.e. Lee and Chambers. Speaking of which, holy hell, what a combination!
Fans of space opera would enjoy this serial - it has everything from space battles, political intrigues, warring planets, but sprinkled with refugee crisis, a dying system, and most of all, complex and diverse main and supporting characters with varied motivations. This last part was my favorite, since it was endearing to read how people, despite being in the same side (more or less), always have different motivations, unique for them, generated by either life experience, morality, political view and ambition.
Thank you Serial Box for this review opportunity, and the authors for doing a great and enjoyable collaboration. If you all consider to do another one, I'll be here :D
The Vela will be launched on March 6, 2019, via serialbox.com. For more information, visit serialbox.com/how-it-works
The Vela is one of those works. Sure, you could see the different narrative styles and characterizations. I've never read anything from Solomon and Huang (still in my wish list, no worries), but I quite enjoyed their parts, even though I sliiightly prefer the ones from more familiar writers (to me), i.e. Lee and Chambers. Speaking of which, holy hell, what a combination!
Fans of space opera would enjoy this serial - it has everything from space battles, political intrigues, warring planets, but sprinkled with refugee crisis, a dying system, and most of all, complex and diverse main and supporting characters with varied motivations. This last part was my favorite, since it was endearing to read how people, despite being in the same side (more or less), always have different motivations, unique for them, generated by either life experience, morality, political view and ambition.
Thank you Serial Box for this review opportunity, and the authors for doing a great and enjoyable collaboration. If you all consider to do another one, I'll be here :D
The Vela will be launched on March 6, 2019, via serialbox.com. For more information, visit serialbox.com/how-it-works
A serial novel written by four different authors (Yoon Ha Lee, Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon, SL Huang), The Vela was fun and action-packed, and felt paced more like a collection of tv episodes than a full novel. It even ends with a tv-style cliffhanger! Interesting characters and worldbuilding in an appealing sci-fi package.
Thank you to Serial Box for an ARC to this story, in exchange for an honest review.
Background on the Vela's political situation: The rich Inner planets in some far off planetary system have been mining hydrogen from their sun for a long time, and this has caused a severe cooling of all the Outer planets, to the extent that most have become or are becoming uninhabitable. (I had a hard time understanding how humans could affect a star so quickly, as stars are HUGE and old and can burn for billions of years. Once I decided to just let my science questions slide, though, I could sit back and enjoy this tale.)
There is entrenched discrimination by the Inner planets peoples against those of the Outer planets. Those who could escape their dying planets went in-system, and ran headlong into that discrimination. For a while, some were allowed to immigrate to Inner planets, but eventually immigration was closed, and refugees eventually ended up in a refugee camp of sorts above the most anti-immigration planet, Gan de.
At the story's open, Asala Sikou is tasked with protecting a visiting dignitary (and military general) from Gan de, to Khayyam. She’s also convinced by the President of Khayyam to find a missing spaceship, The Vela, that disappeared while at her home planet, Hypatia. This request brings up bad memories, as Asala was sent away by her family from Hypatia, to save her life. The more Asala digs into the disappearance of the Vela, the more messy the answers become. To further complicate her mission, she's saddled with the President's adult child, Niko.
On one level, The Vela can be read as a straight-up space opera with spaceships and planet-hopping, coupled with plenty of peril and flight for its main characters. The Vela is an action-adventure tale, but it’s also a story with interesting characters, and a setting that raises many questions, not just within the context of the story, but of the geopolitical situation of today. There is a lot to like in this story:
-The two main characters, Asala and Niko, are from Hypatia (Outer) and Khayyam (Inner). Both are well drawn.
-Asala is a damned good sniper, and just general badass. Asala's quietly competent at what she does, not flashy, and Niko admires her and even hero worships her a little. Asala’s quiet hides a LOT of pain. She’s been cut off from her family for most of her life, and though she understands why they sent her away so she could live, she’s never stopped missing them, especially considering how important family and clan are to people of Hypatia. Asala's perpetual outsider status makes for some interesting interpersonal dynamics between her and every other character in this story.
-Niko initially comes across as both painfully naive and idealistic, but as the story progresses, they reveal all sorts of interesting talents and views.
-There's a third character whom I found really interesting, Soraya, who is the chief administrator of the refugee camp. She's overworked and incredibly dedicated and I liked her as soon as I met her.
-The story action is pretty much constant as there are fights, murder attempts, and space battles aplenty. The main characters are constantly on the move and in peril, with the tension picking up pretty early in the story, and not letting up.
It's impossible not to draw parallels between this story and a number of things happening around us: resource extraction leading to environmental destruction and climate change, wealth concentrated in a few, who we allow to immigrate to our countries, discrimination, and how we treat refugees. While the Vela has a number of darker elements, it also entertains the heck out of you. The Vela was a lot of fun to read, and with its ending, had me hoping for more installments in this fast-moving story.
Background on the Vela's political situation: The rich Inner planets in some far off planetary system have been mining hydrogen from their sun for a long time, and this has caused a severe cooling of all the Outer planets, to the extent that most have become or are becoming uninhabitable. (I had a hard time understanding how humans could affect a star so quickly, as stars are HUGE and old and can burn for billions of years. Once I decided to just let my science questions slide, though, I could sit back and enjoy this tale.)
There is entrenched discrimination by the Inner planets peoples against those of the Outer planets. Those who could escape their dying planets went in-system, and ran headlong into that discrimination. For a while, some were allowed to immigrate to Inner planets, but eventually immigration was closed, and refugees eventually ended up in a refugee camp of sorts above the most anti-immigration planet, Gan de.
At the story's open, Asala Sikou is tasked with protecting a visiting dignitary (and military general) from Gan de, to Khayyam. She’s also convinced by the President of Khayyam to find a missing spaceship, The Vela, that disappeared while at her home planet, Hypatia. This request brings up bad memories, as Asala was sent away by her family from Hypatia, to save her life. The more Asala digs into the disappearance of the Vela, the more messy the answers become. To further complicate her mission, she's saddled with the President's adult child, Niko.
On one level, The Vela can be read as a straight-up space opera with spaceships and planet-hopping, coupled with plenty of peril and flight for its main characters. The Vela is an action-adventure tale, but it’s also a story with interesting characters, and a setting that raises many questions, not just within the context of the story, but of the geopolitical situation of today. There is a lot to like in this story:
-The two main characters, Asala and Niko, are from Hypatia (Outer) and Khayyam (Inner). Both are well drawn.
-Asala is a damned good sniper, and just general badass. Asala's quietly competent at what she does, not flashy, and Niko admires her and even hero worships her a little. Asala’s quiet hides a LOT of pain. She’s been cut off from her family for most of her life, and though she understands why they sent her away so she could live, she’s never stopped missing them, especially considering how important family and clan are to people of Hypatia. Asala's perpetual outsider status makes for some interesting interpersonal dynamics between her and every other character in this story.
-Niko initially comes across as both painfully naive and idealistic, but as the story progresses, they reveal all sorts of interesting talents and views.
-There's a third character whom I found really interesting, Soraya, who is the chief administrator of the refugee camp. She's overworked and incredibly dedicated and I liked her as soon as I met her.
-The story action is pretty much constant as there are fights, murder attempts, and space battles aplenty. The main characters are constantly on the move and in peril, with the tension picking up pretty early in the story, and not letting up.
It's impossible not to draw parallels between this story and a number of things happening around us: resource extraction leading to environmental destruction and climate change, wealth concentrated in a few, who we allow to immigrate to our countries, discrimination, and how we treat refugees. While the Vela has a number of darker elements, it also entertains the heck out of you. The Vela was a lot of fun to read, and with its ending, had me hoping for more installments in this fast-moving story.
adventurous
dark
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:
Yes