Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
adventurous
slow-paced
Didn’t hit like other Stephenson books. Might get the second book in the series on sale or if I’m in a reading lull.
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I almost gave up about 80 pages into this book. The story had yet to focus and Dawn/Autora had yet to emerge as the focal point. That stretch is difficult but once you get through it, you are rewarded.
The sections on Camp Marks and the Chicago World’s Fair are both educational and engrossing. Dawn’s ambivalence to her environment and tenuous circumstances is believable. One could argue that parts of the story tend to idle. There is also a very unrealistic torture scene (nobody could survive more than 30 minutes of that). But that is overcome by a compelling narrative spanning multiple continents, the Soviet counterintelligence apparatus and a “Nurse Rarched on steroids” character.
There’s enough here to pursue volume 2 even if one were to argue the second book is maybe where Stephenson should have begun.
The sections on Camp Marks and the Chicago World’s Fair are both educational and engrossing. Dawn’s ambivalence to her environment and tenuous circumstances is believable. One could argue that parts of the story tend to idle. There is also a very unrealistic torture scene (nobody could survive more than 30 minutes of that). But that is overcome by a compelling narrative spanning multiple continents, the Soviet counterintelligence apparatus and a “Nurse Rarched on steroids” character.
There’s enough here to pursue volume 2 even if one were to argue the second book is maybe where Stephenson should have begun.
adventurous
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
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:
No
Polostan is a quirky spy story set in the 1930s. The action takes place in the United States and in the Soviet Union. It’s the first entry in a three-part series, and the other parts have yet to be published as of early 2025. I’ve read many Neal Stephenson novels; some, like Seveneves, better than others, like Fall or Termination Shock. I don’t know where the Polostan trilogy as a whole will fall, but so far, so good.
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
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:
No
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes