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jessgeekmom's review
5.0
This style of book can easily be tedious for me, but this one kept my interest. The story was well thought out and I really enjoyed it.
justjenn's review
3.0
This book is in the form of interviews and diary entries that have been compiled by a reporter/author piecing together the story of what happened to humanity when aliens found us. The premise is plausible and intriguing, but the execution left something to be desired. Perhaps because I recently read and enjoyed Neuvel’s Themis Files trilogy, which uses the same conceit of interviews and diaries, this felt derivative and forced. Enjoyable, but not a favorite.
crofteereader's review
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for my free advanced review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is an interesting one. In the fine tradition of unconventionally formatted scifi rooted in the "real world" (think Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel) Dahlia Black sets out to tell a unique and fascinating story. Something in outer space is sending a transmission that can rewrite human DNA. And the rewritten people either died from the strain of the change or vanished.
This book is set 5 years later, in the form of a "non-fiction" book about the events, focusing on Dr. Dahlia Mitchell, who discovered the transmission and soon became the face of the end of the world as we know it. The book takes the form of interviews, transcripts of conversations, diary entries, letters, and phone calls, with small bits of narrator-driven text in between. The style created a very interesting narrative distance that I found really enhanced the story. It gave the author the freedom to deviate from a small group of characters, instead bringing in anecdotes from victims and survivors around the country. By breaking up the information and giving us many different viewpoints, the narrator was able to really develop this world.
Unfortunately, the pace dropped off quite a bit in the second half. The individual component stories lacked the tension that earlier anecdotes possessed. And the conspiracy theory seemed thrown in as an afterthought; it popped up a few times throughout but didn't seem to have overarching ramifications in the "present" world (ie the world in which this story is a newly published nonfiction). I started wondering why it mattered, which is when the formatting was really losing its weight.
I did like the characters and the attention to detail. The footnotes were fun and made the style seem more real. I'm definitely going to look into reading this author's previous book and will keep an eye out for any future stories. If you want an unconventional scifi tale set in what is essentially our world as we know it, this is a great book to pick up!
This is an interesting one. In the fine tradition of unconventionally formatted scifi rooted in the "real world" (think Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel) Dahlia Black sets out to tell a unique and fascinating story. Something in outer space is sending a transmission that can rewrite human DNA. And the rewritten people either died from the strain of the change or vanished.
This book is set 5 years later, in the form of a "non-fiction" book about the events, focusing on Dr. Dahlia Mitchell, who discovered the transmission and soon became the face of the end of the world as we know it. The book takes the form of interviews, transcripts of conversations, diary entries, letters, and phone calls, with small bits of narrator-driven text in between. The style created a very interesting narrative distance that I found really enhanced the story. It gave the author the freedom to deviate from a small group of characters, instead bringing in anecdotes from victims and survivors around the country. By breaking up the information and giving us many different viewpoints, the narrator was able to really develop this world.
Unfortunately, the pace dropped off quite a bit in the second half. The individual component stories lacked the tension that earlier anecdotes possessed. And the conspiracy theory seemed thrown in as an afterthought; it popped up a few times throughout but didn't seem to have overarching ramifications in the "present" world (ie the world in which this story is a newly published nonfiction). I started wondering why it mattered, which is when the formatting was really losing its weight.
I did like the characters and the attention to detail. The footnotes were fun and made the style seem more real. I'm definitely going to look into reading this author's previous book and will keep an eye out for any future stories. If you want an unconventional scifi tale set in what is essentially our world as we know it, this is a great book to pick up!
elna17a9a's review against another edition
4.0
*Received via NetGalley for review*
I'm a sucker for any books inane untraditional format, and Dahlia Black fits that bill, being told through interviews, transcripts, and author's notes.
This is the oral, "close-up" history of the Elevation: humanity's new stage after being exposed to an alien signal. Only a few people are Elevated, and not everyone makes it to the final stage (either because their bodies failed or because others targeted them).
There are definitely some interesting threads that are followed here. and it's nice to see how optimistically things ended, even after facing the worst of humanity.
I'm a sucker for any books inane untraditional format, and Dahlia Black fits that bill, being told through interviews, transcripts, and author's notes.
This is the oral, "close-up" history of the Elevation: humanity's new stage after being exposed to an alien signal. Only a few people are Elevated, and not everyone makes it to the final stage (either because their bodies failed or because others targeted them).
There are definitely some interesting threads that are followed here. and it's nice to see how optimistically things ended, even after facing the worst of humanity.
measure's review against another edition
2.0
Reads like a 'found footage' movie in novel form. Did not like most of it. Some good stories and characters mixed in but did not add up to anything worthwhile.
pvn's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting doc-style story, which is well-told. I also liked the characters and a creative and imaginative plot. Recommended for scifi fans.
I really appreciate the ARC for review!!
I really appreciate the ARC for review!!
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