303 reviews for:

2034: A Novel of the Next World War

James Stavridis, Elliot Ackerman

3.53 AVERAGE

weasel11's review against another edition

3.5

dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

a1j9o94's review against another edition

5.0

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Entertaining but depressing

This book was a realistic take of what a nuclear conflict between the US and China could look like. It lays out a series of events that seem chillingly plausible.

ashleigh81134's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ftagliaca's review

4.5

dark tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

badb_catha's review against another edition

3.0

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3.49 stars for this cautionary tale about hubris and ego and the mass slaughter they may create in the near future. There’s a humanity in this book usually lacking in books of this sort, and which is almost certainly the influence of Ackerman. That helps this book punch a bit above the weight otherwise warranted by the somewhat thin and breezy plot.

nswhitaker's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging informative reflective fast-paced

the_grimm_reader's review against another edition

5.0

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This was an entertaining read, at least as entertaining as the subject of a potential world war can be. I’ve read other reviews that really dig deep into complaints about the likelihood of these scenarios actually playing out. In post, I don’t find I have the same criticisms. It is a work of fiction in the thriller genre, so I just accepted the world and cast of characters as the ground on which the scenarios played out. What I actually found refreshing was the multicultural and geopolitical ensemble—there isn’t one “hero” or “villain” to follow in this work. The entire imagining of dominos that fall and pave the way into and through World War III, as in reality, are pushed over by many people across the globe at various levels of government. If the writers bent reality a bit to make way for certain events to occur, that seemed reasonable enough to me. It’s not a history book, so if you’re looking for historical fiction this isn’t it.

cjeasley's review against another edition

3.0

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Much less impressive than Red Storm Rising, but the concisiveness of the prose lends this to a much easier read, and you definitely get more character as well.

jonaske's review against another edition

3.5

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Angsteinflößend, aber wirklich Wert zu lesen wäre meine Kurzzusammenfassung.
Wie der Name vielleicht prognostiziert, spielt das Buch im Jahr 2034 und behandelt eine Art neuen Weltkrieg.
Das angsteinflößende an dieser Ausgangslage ist jedoch, dass das Szenario gar nicht so unrealistisch ist und das macht es einfach nah und schafft eine Art Angst was zukünftige Probleme und Unstimmigkeiten angeht.
Dadurch konnte ich bzw. gefühlt, musste ich, dieses Buch so schnell lesen, ich konnte und wollte es auch gar nicht weglegen. Es war also wirklich, wirklich packend und spannend.
Ansonsten hat mich das Buch auf anderen Ebenen nicht wirklich erreicht. Die Charaktere waren mMn recht irrelevant bzw. austauschbar. Niemand hat mich in irgendeiner Weise gecatcht oder ich habe mit deren eigenen Geschichten mitgefühlt. Gleichzeitig ist dies vermutlich auch nicht der absolute Fokus, daher ruiniert es das Buch nicht komplett, aber ist natürlich ein gewisses Manko.

irishrose7777's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No