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sugarpal's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
3.5 stars
Reread to refresh my memory, because I won a giveaway for an arc of the second book, Truth of the Divine.
Axiom’s End is Youtuber Lindsay Ellis’s debut novel. Set in 2007, the book explores what might have happened if the conspiracy theorists were right, and First Contact was real. Moreover, the public knows about it, thanks to the whistleblowing of the main character Cora’s father, Nils (basically the Julian Assange of this world). When she becomes the sole interpreter for one of the aliens, Cora gets wrapped up in the mess of alien politics and government secrecy, and as the secrets unravel and her relationship with the alien evolves, she finds herself caught between humanity and the otherworldly.
I stand by my original review of 3.5 stars. For whatever reason, it took a long time for me to feel very connected to the characters, or invested in their relationships –– I only really started to like them towards the end. The writing was also unremarkable, not terrible, but not beautiful either. Still, I found this book very thought-provoking: I remember the first time I read it, I couldn’t stop thinking about it for a week, so Ellis must have done something right. I was especially interested in Ellis’s exploration of humanity’s [hypothetical] relationship with aliens, the inherent gap in understanding between alien species, and how that might make conflict inevitable. (I was less interested in the debate in the theater of public opinion led by Nils, over whether ‘Truth is a human right.’)
I’m excited to see where Ellis takes the story in Truth of the Divine!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Gore, and Violence
pourrir's review against another edition
adventurous
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? It's complicated
2.0
I barely liked this book, and if I hadn't been listening as an audiobook, at work, I probably would not have finished it. The writing is very reminiscent of fanfiction, and while I like a good fic every once in a while, I want more out of published works. The descriptions were too repetitive, the plot twists predictable, the plot and scenes went by way too fast. The dialogue was strange and for a book with a large focus on inter-species communication, none of the characters spoke like normal humans. I had no sympathy or care for any of the characters besides Ampersand . One part that drove me crazy in particular was when Ellis kept using the term "sneaked out" in the past tense when it so clearly should have been "snuck out". The first isn't technically incorrect, but is so uncommon that it immediately took me out of the story.
Sidenote:I had high hopes for this book once I saw the romance developing, but the rest of the story ruined the alien romance aspect
Sidenote:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Genocide, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Car accident and Violence
Minor: Abandonment
emilymdxn's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide and Violence
valpuri's review
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Violence, Genocide, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Car accident, Death, Cursing, and Confinement
Minor: Torture and Suicide
wlarianna's review
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
allyofshalott's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
catsy2022's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Trafficking
Moderate: Blood, Death, Gore, and Violence
Minor: Suicide
rachaelbunny's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Grief, Kidnapping, Suicide, Xenophobia, Violence, and Toxic relationship
paolina's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I found the beginning a little clunky, and was at times put off by this being clearly a set-up for a longer series, but really got into it by the end. Can't wait for the next one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Confinement
Moderate: Death and Violence
Minor: Suicide and Torture
annbutnotanne's review
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I have some mixed feelings in regards to this novel. My opinion is largely positive, but I can't say I didn't have gripes.
There was only one character I found I really cared about throughout the book, and that was Ampersand. I was not invested in his relationship with Cora in part because I just found their attachment to each other something I couldn't really connect with, and also because I couldn't invest myself in Cora as a main character. I was invested in learning more about him and his culture, and that was it. I couldn't really grasp the dynamics between Cora and all her other family members, especially her aunt, and what I did understand I didn't really resonate with.
I thought the plot only got really intriguing around the last 300 pages of the novel. For the first half it did feel a little sluggish, I was engaged mostly to get answers the book of course presents us with, and didn't appreciate the approach to get said answers until well after the halfway point. After we reach that point though, the plot gets up and runs. Plot twist galore, so many different angles we go into that not only make the conflict so much more multifaceted but also make me excited to see what is to come.
Honestly, this book series has a lot of potential, I'm intrigued enough to see it through but I can't say this will be a new favorite any time soon.
There was only one character I found I really cared about throughout the book, and that was Ampersand. I was not invested in his relationship with Cora in part because I just found their attachment to each other something I couldn't really connect with, and also because I couldn't invest myself in Cora as a main character. I was invested in learning more about him and his culture, and that was it. I couldn't really grasp the dynamics between Cora and all her other family members, especially her aunt, and what I did understand I didn't really resonate with.
I thought the plot only got really intriguing around the last 300 pages of the novel. For the first half it did feel a little sluggish, I was engaged mostly to get answers the book of course presents us with, and didn't appreciate the approach to get said answers until well after the halfway point. After we reach that point though, the plot gets up and runs. Plot twist galore, so many different angles we go into that not only make the conflict so much more multifaceted but also make me excited to see what is to come.
Honestly, this book series has a lot of potential, I'm intrigued enough to see it through but I can't say this will be a new favorite any time soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Gore
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Torture and Genocide