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amyreh's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Slavery
Moderate: Animal cruelty
Minor: Self harm
ehwesson's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I really wanted to like this book. It had a good plot premise. But all that was lost in the ramblings of the author. Long bouts of world building and descriptions that left me confused. "Did we notice this for a reason?" Is something I had to think every other line and the answer was usually no.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Trafficking, and Murder
Moderate: Death, Kidnapping, and War
Minor: Animal cruelty and Animal death
ka_cam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
A perspective-hopping philosophical exploration of consciousness, perception, communication, science, AI, loneliness and connection. The ending was a bit dissatisfying but I really enjoyed the low key world building, varying but interconnected ponderings and mediations of the characters, and generally gave me lots to chew on, imagine, and talk about!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Self harm, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
bebidocrimes's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It's brilliant to parallel the discussion of an organic species gaining consciousness with the argument of what constitutes as A.I. having consciousness. It opens the can of worms that we don't really know how to define that, or if we can even make that call since our own is so reliant on our limited perception of the world through our five senses. The ending wrapped up really quickly and a little too cleanly for how violent this book was, and Ha's entire life direction being based on a boy who didn't care about her when she was young was certainly a choice. If you wanted to rope in loneliness and indifference of the world, why not just lean in harder to her being an orphan? Overall a really fascinating read that tickled my brain in the same way that any discussion of new sentience does, like other robot stories or Frankenstein.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
leia_lynn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Brilliant, thought-provoking, prescient—I don’t reread things and I reread this. I wish I could make it required reading. Nayler weaves together some of the most pressing issues of our historical moment in this imaginative and grounded near-future science fiction that shifted how I think about the question of what it means to be a conscious, intelligent being.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Animal death
sionnac's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
lyndle's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
really cool meditation on being human, the future of ai, and environmentalism. I felt very smart reading it. liked it a lot. gave "arrival" vibes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Slavery, and Trafficking
Moderate: Violence
swimmingwolf59's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is a really cool mix of environmentalism, the problem of communicating with both different species and ourselves, and the exploration of consciousness. I really really enjoyed it, and it definitely brought up a lot of things that I'll continue to think about for a while. I loved that the characters were all people of color, and that all of them had flaws that were explored in the book. I also liked the theme of conquering "indifference" for other people, other species, etc as our best, and maybe only, way forward.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Gore and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Mental illness, Self harm, and Sexual content
bites_of_books's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The Mountain in the Sea is a really well constructed speculative novel. We follow a couple of different characters in the not so far future where AI and technology have evolved into day-to-day tools. Along with technology, capitalism and major corporations have continued to profit and take over a lot of the world at the expense of natural resources and indigenous communities.
Ray Nayler explores the topic of humans communicating with a different species, in this case the octopus, and in the process learning a lot about ourselves. Who are we in the octopus' eyes? Are we fellow living beings or are we invaders threatening their environment?
There are so many topics discussed in this book that it's hard for me to put it all into coherent thoughts. A big one was human to human interactions. Today a lot of us live our lives mostly online, communicating with people via text, video calls, etc., and have lower face to face interactions. In this book we see what might happen if we end up replacing humans with AI as part of therapy or just because it's convenient to have someone who is just there to listen to us without us having to reciprocate the energy.
Another big topic is that of individuals choosing a path of least resistance vs the path that leads to something good. It is about individuals being brave and making choices, choosing to live and stop being indifferent to fellow people and things going on in the world.
In one of the sub-plots we follow a man who ends up as a slave on a fishing vessel that is controlled by AI. The vessel's only goal is to get as much of the scarce protein left in the ocean and the interactions in this sub-plot really left me thinking. We accept that the things we consume have to come from somewhere but we rarely actually think and acknowledge the labor that each component requires and how ethical it all is or isn't.
All in all, I highly recommend this book for everyone. If you enjoy reading about science and where it might take us this is a must read. If you care about our world and our place in it definitely read this. This is not an easy read but it's definitely necessary, it should make you think and question what is happening around us all, and hopefully convince you to make the choices that will lead us all in a better direction.
PS. For me this was like a zombie film, not really about the zombies. This is not about the octopus, it's about the humans.
Ray Nayler explores the topic of humans communicating with a different species, in this case the octopus, and in the process learning a lot about ourselves. Who are we in the octopus' eyes? Are we fellow living beings or are we invaders threatening their environment?
There are so many topics discussed in this book that it's hard for me to put it all into coherent thoughts. A big one was human to human interactions. Today a lot of us live our lives mostly online, communicating with people via text, video calls, etc., and have lower face to face interactions. In this book we see what might happen if we end up replacing humans with AI as part of therapy or just because it's convenient to have someone who is just there to listen to us without us having to reciprocate the energy.
Another big topic is that of individuals choosing a path of least resistance vs the path that leads to something good. It is about individuals being brave and making choices, choosing to live and stop being indifferent to fellow people and things going on in the world.
In one of the sub-plots we follow a man who ends up as a slave on a fishing vessel that is controlled by AI. The vessel's only goal is to get as much of the scarce protein left in the ocean and the interactions in this sub-plot really left me thinking. We accept that the things we consume have to come from somewhere but we rarely actually think and acknowledge the labor that each component requires and how ethical it all is or isn't.
All in all, I highly recommend this book for everyone. If you enjoy reading about science and where it might take us this is a must read. If you care about our world and our place in it definitely read this. This is not an easy read but it's definitely necessary, it should make you think and question what is happening around us all, and hopefully convince you to make the choices that will lead us all in a better direction.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, and Classism
snazzy10101's review against another edition
5.0
i have only praise for this book.
it is perfect.
no notes.
it is perfect.
no notes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Deportation
Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Kidnapping, and Classism