Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
Much darker than Ship Breaker, more coherent than Wind Up Girl.
So I read Ship Breaker earlier this year, not realising that it was a book #1 in a series. Then I recommended it to Dad, who revealed that he had The Drowned Cities and hadn't realised it was a book #2 in a series! Which I think is really a sign of a good book, that you can't tell it has a prequel or sequel. Books should really stand alone. But anyway, I read The Drowned Cities and it was pretty good, although imo a little less self-contained than Ship Breaker because I'm pretty keen to read Tool of War now. Hopefully the post ships it to me quickly... Good stuff, these books. I already knew Paolo Bacigalupi was a great writer (have you read Wind-Up Girl? Go read it) but these are really impressing me with the thorough world-building and the fact that they kind of read like post-apocalyptic fantasy but in fact I think technically qualify as sci-fi, which is super cool when you think about it.
To my video review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9H5QfR16lk&index=16&list=PL8klRVMuUbQ3f8W4Xl-j1mq8vKEBC69OB
What a bleak bleak book. Very dark and sad. I'm glad we got to know Tool more and that he was the anti-hero of the book. I liked Mahlia. She is a tough cookie. Reading this book though was a bit of a hard slog just cause it was so dark. I wanted to know how it would end but knew it wasn't going to end well.
I found this book extremely dull which left me sad. I absolutely loved Ship Breaker therefore I was hopeful that this would be a great read. I read about 100 pages and was not impressed. I decided to skip ahead and read some from the middle and nothing seemed to be happening at all. I hate this and it kills me to say it because I feel that Bacigalupi is a phenomenal writer. I'm sure others will disagree with me, so I would suggest picking it up for yourself and giving it a try.
What can I say about this book? There is so much that is good about it. It is a fantastic example of young adult fiction that has a real intent to it. It's not just a throw away YA novel that you will forget afterward.
The themes of war, child soldiers, the psychology of warriors and loyalty and following orders was so true to the real world and so interesting. It, like Ship Breakers, does not fluff over anything. It meets the issues head on and treats them realistically.
It is a fantastic book, but don't look to be uplifted by the book. While the ending is hopeful, it is not meant to be tied up nicely. Paolo is an amazing author with a great voice in his works of fiction.
The themes of war, child soldiers, the psychology of warriors and loyalty and following orders was so true to the real world and so interesting. It, like Ship Breakers, does not fluff over anything. It meets the issues head on and treats them realistically.
It is a fantastic book, but don't look to be uplifted by the book. While the ending is hopeful, it is not meant to be tied up nicely. Paolo is an amazing author with a great voice in his works of fiction.
The Drowned Cities is an interesting look at how three people try to make their way out of a situation that seems increasingly hopeless. The writing is action packed and keeps the reader turning pages. Bacigalupi also doesn't shy away from the gorey details and the war is all the more realistic because of it. Mouse and Mahlia are both complex and flawed which only makes you root for them even more.
Forced my way to about 65% through, but just couldn't get any farther. The story was interesting, but way too brutal/gory for me.
This is a dark, gritty vision of a future america that has fallen into ruin. The land is war-torn and various rebel armies, guerillas and child soldiers fight for whatever they can lay their hands on.
The main characters: a young woman, a young boy and a genetically engineered hybrid soldier killing machine are richly convieved and believable and their connections with each other are ever changing throughout the book. The landscape is a truly terrifying and what I imagine as a realistic vision of war.
Very, very enjoyable read.
The main characters: a young woman, a young boy and a genetically engineered hybrid soldier killing machine are richly convieved and believable and their connections with each other are ever changing throughout the book. The landscape is a truly terrifying and what I imagine as a realistic vision of war.
Very, very enjoyable read.
Fun and fast, an exploration of the nature of war complete with a giant warrior-werewolf and some extremely angry children. The details of child-soldiers were surprisingly accurate- almost a futuristic A Long Way Gone.