Scan barcode
quandtuniverse's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Confinement
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Genocide and Torture
There is a fair amount of discussion on the topic of imperialism, colonialism, and assimilation, at one point naming the western invasion and genocide of north american indigenous peoples as a reason why the aliens are reluctant to communicate with humans.ehmannky's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. I would say, the first third of this book kind of felt meh-ish to me. It was good, but I didn't particularly feel it settle in my heart. That changed once Ellis introduces the alien-human bonding moments about 1/3 of the way into the novel (absolutely lovely moments of reaching across barriers of communication, finding ways to relate to another being somewhere in the middle of the respective lived experiences). I love a good monster/alien-human relationship (especially when the alien in question posits that we are the horrifying ones), and once Ellis has space in the narrative to let that flourish, the book really felt like it comes together. I also liked that the main character Cora struggles with communicating with humans as well, and that it's through communicating with an alien that she seems to get more in touch with her own self.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Moderate: Confinement
Minor: Genocide
More...