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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
slow-paced
A little too misogynistic at times. I had the feeling I had read this before or seen a movie about it, but that isn’t the case. Relationships are weird.
Very good read! Once again, Margaret Atwood succeeds at creating a dystopian future based on the intersection of scientific advances and the basest, most reptilian elements of the human condition. This time however, the very last page of the book leaves the reader asking not-easily-answered questions about taking responsibility for the choices that we make and who we truly are. I enjoyed the suspense of this book, which Ms. Atwood expertly maintained from beginning to end. This was a very compelling read. Given the current global economic conditions and ever-increasing income inequality, it is not hard to imagine the future laid out in "The Heart Goes Last."
Another highly enjoyable work of speculative fiction from Atwood, this time critiquing the North American prison industrial complex, as well as the extent to which we're willing to sacrifice our liberty for security.
There’s a reason it took me a month to read. It started off strong and just fell apart. It was easy to read I just didn’t feel like reading it until I wanted to finish it and move on to something else. Atwood has much better works than this.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I can't begin to say how much I enjoyed reading this book! On the surface it is playful, light and brilliantly bizarre. It has some great comic moments and even farce (the husband fantasising about a mysterious lady with fuchsia lipstick who is actually his frigid wife having it off with someone else). However, underlying this is a much darker nineteen eighty-four type theme. I started to go off it a bit towards the end; it became more fluffy when I wanted it to become a bit darker. The last couple of pages saved it though.
It is modern and bright but the writing is classic and unpretentious.
It is modern and bright but the writing is classic and unpretentious.
Margaret Atwood is amazing, but The Heart Goes Last just didn't do much for me.
This might just be the most frustrating serial fiction ever. Not because of how it's written, but because of the publication schedule. This is most certainly not the end of the story, but there's no release date on episode 5, and this one came out over a year ago.
The premise behind Positron is a near-future dystopia, where people deep in debt voluntarily go into prison for six nonconsecutive months a year. The other six months, they spend in suburban paradise. Stan and Charmaine are happy with their choice to enter the system, until Stan finds a note he believes was left by the woman who lives in their house during their off months, and fills his head with all kinds of fantasies. Only, it's a code name used by Charmaine, so she can cheat on Stan with Max, the man who occupies their house during the months they're imprisoned.
Four installments in, Stan's death has been faked and the subversive forces are working on getting him out, while Charmaine is being ogled by the guy in charge at Stan's funeral.
I'm honestly not sure if I'm rooting for Stan and Charmaine's eventual reunion. The only things they have in common are that they lie to each other and lust after other people. Stan was momentarily interested in his wife again when he realized she was the sultry vixen he'd been lusting after, thinking all along she was boring and pure. But he's easily distracted by a defective sexbot, who imprinted on a stuffed animal instead of the man she was built for. And, while Charmaine genuinely grieves for her husband, there's a heavy burden of guilt involved, as she believes she killed him.
I guess I'll see what future installments bring. I sure hope there will be future installments.
The premise behind Positron is a near-future dystopia, where people deep in debt voluntarily go into prison for six nonconsecutive months a year. The other six months, they spend in suburban paradise. Stan and Charmaine are happy with their choice to enter the system, until Stan finds a note he believes was left by the woman who lives in their house during their off months, and fills his head with all kinds of fantasies. Only, it's a code name used by Charmaine, so she can cheat on Stan with Max, the man who occupies their house during the months they're imprisoned.
Four installments in, Stan's death has been faked and the subversive forces are working on getting him out, while Charmaine is being ogled by the guy in charge at Stan's funeral.
I'm honestly not sure if I'm rooting for Stan and Charmaine's eventual reunion. The only things they have in common are that they lie to each other and lust after other people. Stan was momentarily interested in his wife again when he realized she was the sultry vixen he'd been lusting after, thinking all along she was boring and pure. But he's easily distracted by a defective sexbot, who imprinted on a stuffed animal instead of the man she was built for. And, while Charmaine genuinely grieves for her husband, there's a heavy burden of guilt involved, as she believes she killed him.
I guess I'll see what future installments bring. I sure hope there will be future installments.