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khalessi82's review against another edition
I couldn’t get past the beginning when the pedophile slept with the kid. I know she’s a 53 year old vampire in a child’s body, but at the time he doesn’t know, and I’m sure we can say he was under her “influence” since she had feed of him. But I’m not into reading anything like that
buckperk's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
A very in depth look at a society comprised of vampires (ina) and their familiars (symbiotes). Examined whether on can have agency in a society where one doesn't really have power. But, the protagonist, though 63 in age, looks like a 10 year old girl. She has a lot of sex and intimate relationships. I couldn't get over the images. Not my favorite.
grislygateau's review against another edition
5.0
this is the best piece of fiction I’ve read this year.
mfox1018's review against another edition
3.0
This was a very strange book, and I can't quite decide how I feel about it. I wavered between giving it 3 or 4 stars and settled on 3.
Things I liked:
A different take on vampires. Vampires are all the rage these days, but I've never seen them presented like this. Butler's vampires have enough of the characteristics of a "typical" vampire to be recognizable - they feed on blood, they're nocturnal, they have abnormally long lifespans - but in all other aspects they're unique. They are not evil, or at least not in as much as humans are - they can be good or bad people just like anyone else. Each vampire (or Ina, as they call themselves) is sustained by a group of human symbionts who take as much pleasure from being fed on as the vampires take from their blood, and are physically addicted to the venom of their Ina. The Ina and their symbionts live in communities separate from the rest of society, in family groups of all male or all female Ina, visiting their mates occasionally but otherwise living apart. I liked the way that Butler took away the vampires are the forces of darkness aspect of a typical vampire and replaced it in her antagonists with evils that are typical of humanity - racism, excessive pride, ruthlessness.
I liked the characterization of both the main character (the story is told in first person through the eyes of Shori, an Ina who has lost her memory) and the side characters - Shori's symbionts, her Ina relatives and supporters. I was intrigued by the whole societal structure and history of the Ina and their communities. And finally, I enjoyed the storytelling. A good mix of action scenes and the tension of the Ina version of a criminal trial.
Things I didn't like:
I was frequently confused by the Ina family structure. Butler never really explains exactly how it is that her Ina have multiple mothers and fathers, or if she did explain it, I somehow missed the explanation. I had a difficult time keeping track of exactly who was related to Shori and the nature of their relationships, and ended up just vaguely categorizing the other Ina in my mind as "related" or "not related" without trying to understand the details.
I was also disappointed in how the worldbuilding was handled. I know that Shori's memory was damaged and she had to learn about her world somehow, but there were so many times that other characters just sat her down and gave her (and the reader) a nice convenient infodump. I much prefer the way that Roger Zelazny handled his first-person amnesiac narrator in the Amber series - letting him stumble along and figure things out for himself. It just seemed clumsy and not what I would expect from a writer of Butler's caliber.
I know that it was intended to illustrate the seductive nature of the Ina and their influence on humans, but I was completely weirded out by
Finally, though I applaud Butler's attempt to write about racism in a fantastic context, the combination of a SF/F vampire story and a story about racial prejudice/genetic purity just didn't quite mesh for me. I'm not sure why. I was disappointed, because I absolutely LOVED the other two books of Butler's that I've read - [b:Wild Seed|52318|Wild Seed|Octavia E. Butler|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ZwSFC2vpL._SL75_.jpg|1330000] and [b:Kindred|60931|Kindred|Octavia E. Butler|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1232805354s/60931.jpg|1049657]. Ultimately, I think this is what bumped by review to 3 stars instead of 4 - it suffers by comparison to her other work.
All that said, I enjoyed the book, and I'm glad that I read it. It's just not my favorite of Butler's. Though I will absolutely still continue to seek out more of her work!
Things I liked:
A different take on vampires. Vampires are all the rage these days, but I've never seen them presented like this. Butler's vampires have enough of the characteristics of a "typical" vampire to be recognizable - they feed on blood, they're nocturnal, they have abnormally long lifespans - but in all other aspects they're unique. They are not evil, or at least not in as much as humans are - they can be good or bad people just like anyone else. Each vampire (or Ina, as they call themselves) is sustained by a group of human symbionts who take as much pleasure from being fed on as the vampires take from their blood, and are physically addicted to the venom of their Ina. The Ina and their symbionts live in communities separate from the rest of society, in family groups of all male or all female Ina, visiting their mates occasionally but otherwise living apart. I liked the way that Butler took away the vampires are the forces of darkness aspect of a typical vampire and replaced it in her antagonists with evils that are typical of humanity - racism, excessive pride, ruthlessness.
I liked the characterization of both the main character (the story is told in first person through the eyes of Shori, an Ina who has lost her memory) and the side characters - Shori's symbionts, her Ina relatives and supporters. I was intrigued by the whole societal structure and history of the Ina and their communities. And finally, I enjoyed the storytelling. A good mix of action scenes and the tension of the Ina version of a criminal trial.
Things I didn't like:
I was frequently confused by the Ina family structure. Butler never really explains exactly how it is that her Ina have multiple mothers and fathers, or if she did explain it, I somehow missed the explanation. I had a difficult time keeping track of exactly who was related to Shori and the nature of their relationships, and ended up just vaguely categorizing the other Ina in my mind as "related" or "not related" without trying to understand the details.
I was also disappointed in how the worldbuilding was handled. I know that Shori's memory was damaged and she had to learn about her world somehow, but there were so many times that other characters just sat her down and gave her (and the reader) a nice convenient infodump. I much prefer the way that Roger Zelazny handled his first-person amnesiac narrator in the Amber series - letting him stumble along and figure things out for himself. It just seemed clumsy and not what I would expect from a writer of Butler's caliber.
I know that it was intended to illustrate the seductive nature of the Ina and their influence on humans, but I was completely weirded out by
Spoiler
Wright and his eagerness to sleep with what appeared to be a ten-year-old child. Even knowing that she is much older than she looks, it just didn't sit right with me and as a result I really disliked Wright for the whole rest of the book. The other symbionts that Shori picked up didn't bother me, because they knew what she was from the start, but Wright went for her in total ignorance.Finally, though I applaud Butler's attempt to write about racism in a fantastic context, the combination of a SF/F vampire story and a story about racial prejudice/genetic purity just didn't quite mesh for me. I'm not sure why. I was disappointed, because I absolutely LOVED the other two books of Butler's that I've read - [b:Wild Seed|52318|Wild Seed|Octavia E. Butler|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ZwSFC2vpL._SL75_.jpg|1330000] and [b:Kindred|60931|Kindred|Octavia E. Butler|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1232805354s/60931.jpg|1049657]. Ultimately, I think this is what bumped by review to 3 stars instead of 4 - it suffers by comparison to her other work.
All that said, I enjoyed the book, and I'm glad that I read it. It's just not my favorite of Butler's. Though I will absolutely still continue to seek out more of her work!
lyrafay12's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
elisvervain's review against another edition
dark
tense
1.0
I was not expecting the s*xu*l relationship between the presumed 10 year old and the much, much older, grown adult man. I know she turns out to be an older vampire (via research), but he thought she was ten and that's too much for me. I DNF'd immediately. I only include this as a warning for others that would be bothered by this, too.
jordansfrz's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to like this more than I did, because I love Octavia Butler. Ultimately though I put it down and didn’t care about finishing it for quite a while. And interesting take on vampires, though.
msmagoo502's review against another edition
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
5.0
captainz's review against another edition
3.0
Hey, it's a vampire story with politics! I'm not sure if the narrator was boring or if Shorey (audiobook so I don't know any of the spellings) is supposed to sound nearly emotionless. It felt like homework to listen to this book. The last half was definitely easier to get through than the first, but when it was suddenly the epilogue I was quite disappointed. That's what I get for picking books at random, I don't know what to expect. The writing is good, I just didn't love Shorey or most of the other vamps, found her being in a child's body yet very sexually active quite disturbing, and definitely felt bad for most of the humans. It's an interesting plot, but not what I'm interested in.
illiumbluebell's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I am so disappointed by this book, especially since I figured I would love it after reading the blurb.
The two main things that made me dislike this book were the pacing and the relationships.
The pacing started off ok, but the moment we reach the 'Council' sessions things slow down horribly and get kind of boring.
The relationships...what can I say? While Shori is 53 years old physically she looks like a young girl. Her body hasn't yet fully developed. Yet I'm supposed to be ok and find it acceptable that she has a sexual relationship with a 23 year old man? No, just...no. It truly gave me the ick and no part of the lore, which explained why it was normal and ok, convinced me why I should feel otherwise.
It was written well and the idea for the plot was good. I just can't get past the ick of the normalised pedophilia.
The two main things that made me dislike this book were the pacing and the relationships.
The pacing started off ok, but the moment we reach the 'Council' sessions things slow down horribly and get kind of boring.
The relationships...what can I say? While Shori is 53 years old physically she looks like a young girl. Her body hasn't yet fully developed. Yet I'm supposed to be ok and find it acceptable that she has a sexual relationship with a 23 year old man? No, just...no. It truly gave me the ick and no part of the lore, which explained why it was normal and ok, convinced me why I should feel otherwise.
It was written well and the idea for the plot was good. I just can't get past the ick of the normalised pedophilia.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Violence, and Murder