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scifi_rat's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Grief, Medical content, Gore, Murder, Confinement, Violence, Ableism, Torture, and Xenophobia
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Terminal illness, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Genocide, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Sexual content
erikwmj's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Torture and Ableism
Minor: Xenophobia
v171's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
At the end of the day, I will always be a sucker for a "small group of experts in their field go to space on a momentous mission for Earth and run into shenanigans" story, regardless of genre. To Be Taught If Fortunate, Providence, Alien... I love them all. And in that regard, Blindsight did not disappoint.
There was so much I really enjoyed about this story. The shifting perspective from present to past served as a great world building tool and character development device for Siri. I loved the character interactions and the unique character "quirks" for each of the crew (It took me a few chapters to actually realize what was going on with The Gang!). The writing was relentless with the technological terms: even from the beginning, so that took some getting used to. But the overall story was truly fascinating and kept me interested from about mid way when the forward momentum started to pick up. I loved loved loved how the aliens were described and ultimately ended up being. I found it to be the most likely case of first contact for humans, and the thesis of the over arching story was brilliantly executed.
My primary complaint with this book was just how damn preachy it grew to be! Initially, these large blocks of thematic heavy content was isolated to a few character monologues. However, toward the end of the book, whole chapters seemed to be devoted to the narrator simply info dumping philosophy to the reader without clearly tying it back into the story. I started to dread these sections of the text because they frequently occurred at the height of action. This was an..... interesting structural decision.
There was so much I really enjoyed about this story. The shifting perspective from present to past served as a great world building tool and character development device for Siri. I loved the character interactions and the unique character "quirks" for each of the crew (It took me a few chapters to actually realize what was going on with The Gang!). The writing was relentless with the technological terms: even from the beginning, so that took some getting used to. But the overall story was truly fascinating and kept me interested from about mid way when the forward momentum started to pick up. I loved loved loved how the aliens were described and ultimately ended up being. I found it to be the most likely case of first contact for humans, and the thesis of the over arching story was brilliantly executed.
My primary complaint with this book was just how damn preachy it grew to be! Initially, these large blocks of thematic heavy content was isolated to a few character monologues. However, toward the end of the book, whole chapters seemed to be devoted to the narrator simply info dumping philosophy to the reader without clearly tying it back into the story. I started to dread these sections of the text because they frequently occurred at the height of action. This was an..... interesting structural decision.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Cancer and Cursing
Minor: Child death
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