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sechurae's review against another edition
4.5
Throws you right into the action of Before the plot, and although it was a little confusing, I was pretty much hooked right away. A lot more character focused, there multiple POVs to follow and root for. Stand outs include Kris, the intergalactic lawyer, Olli, grumpy and abrasive tech specialist, and Kit, an individual from a crab-like species that acts as accountant and contract-negotiator. Similar to The Tyrant Philosophers books where you get to see glimpses of the different cultures and worlds through the microcosm of its characters.
The descriptions of unspace were also gratifyingly unsettling, as well as the Architects, where Tchaikovsky uses levels of scale to their utmost in his descriptions.
Really grabbed me, and made it a quick, engrossing read.
The descriptions of unspace were also gratifyingly unsettling, as well as the Architects, where Tchaikovsky uses levels of scale to their utmost in his descriptions.
Really grabbed me, and made it a quick, engrossing read.
bex_knighthunterbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This is much more conventional space opera than what I've read from this author before. A rag-tag scrapper spaceship gets caught up in events much greater than intended - multi-POV, dual timeline, and epic in scope. There is a lot of action, including space battles, heists and a cat & mouse detective element. This all culminates for me into something that just isn't really my thing. I was interested in the two main perspectives, but beyond them did find myself losing track of the expansive cast. Maybe this was too complicated for me to take in as an audiobook, but I think the bigger issue is that the story just didn't really excite me to keep my attention. The world/galaxy the story is set on is one with many different intelligences and aliens and this adds to the complexity of the story, but we never got to explore them as in the Children of Time series (which I adored). There was a lot of depth to the world building, but I never really got the sense it was there for any reason - I'm not sure what this book was trying to say. When I was listening I was generally enjoying the story, but I just wasn't able to piece together enough of the whole to really feel the tension/mystery elements. Probably just not for me - I don't think I'll continue with this series.
zoilkn's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kbc1239's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty good read. Think I prefer Children of Time better. The world building was amazing. Sometimes hard to keep up with the different aliens. The plot moved fairly well and the mystery around the Architects was well done. Overall, enjoyed but not my favorite.
jslin108's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
Finished it, but the plot felt very repetitive and I found the behavior of most characters to be tiresome.
arnaudlacey's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Great read, as I'm coming to expect from Adrian Tchaikovsky. He's taken some of the key aspects of cosmic horror and put it in a cool futuristic sci-fi setting. Really well developed characters, but I wanted to hear more about the worlds and societies featured. Excited for the next one!
davidtan's review against another edition
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
4.5
godzillaismycopilot's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
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? No
4.75