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torij2000's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Cancer, Death, Gun violence, Terminal illness, and Suicidal thoughts
colloreda's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Child abuse, and Misogyny
Minor: Classism, Grief, and Gun violence
bessadams's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual content, Murder, and Cursing
Minor: Cancer, Dementia, and Confinement
sophiesmallhands's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Racism, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Misogyny, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
bookedandbusy's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I enjoyed this one, but the last 77 pages felt very drawn out to me, it felt like it could’ve been wrapped up much sooner, but, I did like the ending! And the first half and middle of the book were great too, it was just the drawn out dialogue to the end that got me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cancer and Dementia
yourlocalbookreader's review against another edition
emotional
fast-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
“The point is there are no villains in this story, or maybe there are no heroes.”
When I read the Atlas Six, I knew that I would become obsessed with these people and their twisted lives. And while I hated them occasionally (and regularly found them insufferable), I knew I was bewitched and my love for this series has only grown since. I read this book almost exclusively on the hours when the sun wasn't up yet and I think that fundamentally impacted my perception of it.
Because while the series might have started as Nico, Libby, Parisa, Reina, Tristan and Callum, it ends up being so much bigger than that. It's the soul crushing moments of being human with people around you - with coming to terms with the fact that you DO actually care for others, with the ideas of platonic soulmates and ever ending love. It's knowing that we are all just victims of our own circumstances. In some worlds we're the ants, and in another we're the foot that steps on it unknowingly.
The Atlas Complex is not going to be everyone's cup of tea - and the 3 star rating on Goodreads confirms that. It's a polarizing book, with people saying that it's too long and yet about nothing at the same time. It's exhausting and pretentious and the characters ramble about things that don't matter but are simultaneously world ending. All of that is likely true.
But oh god - if that's the mood you're in. If you want to sit there and struggle with the pain of the universe and your own purpose and see the curtain fall after the show? If you're someone who overthinks every moment and sees significance in the smallest of moments. If you're gonna have an epiphany on a random wednesday night staring out the window- then this is the book for you, and I welcome you to join me silently crying about it on the train at night.
rep// Black MC, Asian Mc, Poly / queer rep
When I read the Atlas Six, I knew that I would become obsessed with these people and their twisted lives. And while I hated them occasionally (and regularly found them insufferable), I knew I was bewitched and my love for this series has only grown since. I read this book almost exclusively on the hours when the sun wasn't up yet and I think that fundamentally impacted my perception of it.
Because while the series might have started as Nico, Libby, Parisa, Reina, Tristan and Callum, it ends up being so much bigger than that. It's the soul crushing moments of being human with people around you - with coming to terms with the fact that you DO actually care for others, with the ideas of platonic soulmates and ever ending love. It's knowing that we are all just victims of our own circumstances. In some worlds we're the ants, and in another we're the foot that steps on it unknowingly.
The Atlas Complex is not going to be everyone's cup of tea - and the 3 star rating on Goodreads confirms that. It's a polarizing book, with people saying that it's too long and yet about nothing at the same time. It's exhausting and pretentious and the characters ramble about things that don't matter but are simultaneously world ending. All of that is likely true.
But oh god - if that's the mood you're in. If you want to sit there and struggle with the pain of the universe and your own purpose and see the curtain fall after the show? If you're someone who overthinks every moment and sees significance in the smallest of moments. If you're gonna have an epiphany on a random wednesday night staring out the window- then this is the book for you, and I welcome you to join me silently crying about it on the train at night.
rep// Black MC, Asian Mc, Poly / queer rep
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Gun violence
Minor: Cancer and Sexism
aliyachaudhry's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.5
"I'm actually an elite member of a secret society"
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Murder, Chronic illness, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Death of parent, Gun violence, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, and Grief
Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Cancer, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Child death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Police brutality, Rape, Vomit, and Kidnapping
Minor: Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Genocide, Dementia, and Xenophobia
caryndi's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
The first two books in this series were some of my favorite reads in 2023, so I was very excited when The Atlas Complex came in at the library. It did not disappoint! When you get invested in a series, there's always the possibility the final book will fail to stick the landing but this book did so and then some.
There was a decent amount of dramatic irony built up going into this book, because we as readers knew what Atlas' plan was, whereas Libby did not trust what she was told about Atlas' plan. That alone was a great setup for conflict. Libby's choices and the choices of the other characters in the book added new layers that really had me wanting to learn where it all was headed.
One thing I want to applaud the author for is how well she took as us readers along for the ride. My experience was that I came out of the first two books rooting for specific characters and against others, and a lot of that was turned upside down in this book. It wasn't even a sense of "well this person/story is just boring me now"—but of her showing the characters growing and changing in ways that was really gratifying as a reader. I never would have imagined I'd feel so strongly about certain characters or relationships but for exampleCallum's death hit SO hard.
Additionally, this series was built around character relationships and they continued to be on point. This book was perhaps the gayest of all of them (always a plus!) and explored some new character/relationship dynamics that I enjoyed. I'm also a sucker for the "everyone is a bit in love with everyone else" trope and the six main characters really had that going on. Even when it was outside of actual romantic relationships—I'm a sucker for that blurring of friendship vs. something deeper and boy did I get that!
The structure of the book and the names of the sections were clear allusions to the author's philosophical inspirations and I think this book also lived up to that promise. I am not deep enough into philosophy to have more than a surface level understanding of the various systems she referenced but in terms of calling for that kind of thought, and being an examination of choice and outcomes, I thought it was a triumph. The ending of this book was satisfyingly unsatisfying (kinda spoiler,in that it didn't provide that perfect catharsis some books do ), which I think was kind of the point of this approach/framing. The text was very upfront about acknowledging that the categories of good/bad are mostly artificial, or at least only useful in very limited contexts, and really dug into that concept throughout.
If I have one critique it would be with the very very last chapter: I just don't think it was needed. I can see the argument for putting it in there, especially knowing that readers come to things with different levels of engagement and understanding. But IMO it would have been better to leave that off—to go without that concrete "here is the moral". I think the book lead readers, at least careful ones, to that conclusion.
Final thought: I appreciate Ms. Blake doing her part to make sure everyone knew her characters were all very sexy. That's the kind of effort I respect. (Also I'm curious if color versions of the character art exists anywhere!)
There was a decent amount of dramatic irony built up going into this book, because we as readers knew what Atlas' plan was, whereas Libby did not trust what she was told about Atlas' plan. That alone was a great setup for conflict. Libby's choices and the choices of the other characters in the book added new layers that really had me wanting to learn where it all was headed.
One thing I want to applaud the author for is how well she took as us readers along for the ride. My experience was that I came out of the first two books rooting for specific characters and against others, and a lot of that was turned upside down in this book. It wasn't even a sense of "well this person/story is just boring me now"—but of her showing the characters growing and changing in ways that was really gratifying as a reader. I never would have imagined I'd feel so strongly about certain characters or relationships but for example
Additionally, this series was built around character relationships and they continued to be on point. This book was perhaps the gayest of all of them (always a plus!) and explored some new character/relationship dynamics that I enjoyed. I'm also a sucker for the "everyone is a bit in love with everyone else" trope and the six main characters really had that going on. Even when it was outside of actual romantic relationships—I'm a sucker for that blurring of friendship vs. something deeper and boy did I get that!
The structure of the book and the names of the sections were clear allusions to the author's philosophical inspirations and I think this book also lived up to that promise. I am not deep enough into philosophy to have more than a surface level understanding of the various systems she referenced but in terms of calling for that kind of thought, and being an examination of choice and outcomes, I thought it was a triumph. The ending of this book was satisfyingly unsatisfying (kinda spoiler,
If I have one critique it would be with the very very last chapter: I just don't think it was needed. I can see the argument for putting it in there, especially knowing that readers come to things with different levels of engagement and understanding. But IMO it would have been better to leave that off—to go without that concrete "here is the moral". I think the book lead readers, at least careful ones, to that conclusion.
Final thought: I appreciate Ms. Blake doing her part to make sure everyone knew her characters were all very sexy. That's the kind of effort I respect. (Also I'm curious if color versions of the character art exists anywhere!)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Blood, and Grief
amelianotthepilot's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? Yes
5.0
ugh this was so good i dont know what to say except i cant believe she did [REDACTED] dirty like that :(
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Murder, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Death
lqvekanej's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Self harm and Suicidal thoughts