Reviews with content warning for Incest - The Left Hand of Darkness

Reviews tagging 'Incest'

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

117 reviews

breathless's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective slow-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? No

4.25

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astrangewind's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

In my continuing search for Science Fiction That I Like, I was recommended The Left Hand of Darkness - a highly celebrated book written by a highly celebrated science fiction author.

By all means, I should have really liked this one. It has the things I really enjoy reading about: a unique civilization (which is written here very well); a planet on the edge of the human habitable zone; a bit of survivalism; a strong focus on characterization; and world-building that adds richness without being overly complex. It was simply fine.

The Left Hand of Darkness simply has too many pieces that don't fit together quite right. The primary plot - of Genly Ai attempting to convince Gethen to join the Ekumen - is, frankly, boring. I liked the plotline with Genly and Estraven well enough

(but imo they should have kissed)

. The overarching metaphor of the book - the central question of what human society would look like if men and women were on a level playing field - is initially fascinating from a cultural perspective, but it's ruined when Le Guin inserts a meta-chapter explaining the entire metaphor. If you have to explain the metaphor, then maybe it's not a very good one. Additionally, it has cisgender feminism written all over it. From a cis-feminist perspective, sure, it's fine. From a transgender perspective - which I naturally use, given that I am, myself, transgender - it's limiting and quite unimaginative. (And given how much emphasis Ai puts on his differing biology, and how often he's naked in front of any number of Gethenians, it really should've come up more often that he has external genitalia, which makes him weird.)

It was well-written but the plot was clumsy. The setting seemed to matter not at all; there was no reason this had to have happened on a different planet at all, as opposed to some fantasy setting, or even on Earth in the far north, say Siberia. Parts of it read like Lord of the Rings, for example, except occasionally someone mentions a car or a radio or a spaceship.

Maybe I'm too slow, or not well-read enough on the relevant feminist literature of the 1970s, but The Left Hand of Darkness just didn't really click for me.

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mrgriffit's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

A masterclass in storytelling. About how people connect with each other, their country, and their world. It’s at its best when the main characters are pushed together and the only flaw I can find is that it doesn’t get to the point where they are “together” until much later in the story than I wished.

On an altogether different note, it feels as though in some ways, the journey that began in Rocannon’s World is finished here. The gift of Mindspeech is finally used for its true purpose, connection and understanding. A tool to bring people together, not to dominate or destroy.

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red_lapis's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

4.25

A deeply thoughtful and fascinating exploration of humanity and our connections with one another.

Le Guin is masterful at world building - like any story set in another world it can be a bit of a mouthful to chew on in the first few chapters, but other than that we're fed only what is necessary, and more importantly when it is necessary to understand the impact and consequences of growing up in these worlds.

The world itself is so rich and full of depth. Though is it firmly sci-fi, at times it doesn't feel too far from home, and sometimes it feels absolutely mystical. It is unlike any other sci-fi I've ever read, that's for sure. Despite being set many thousands of years in our future, there's a comforting timelessness feeling to it. I'm sure there is so much more to learn about the cultures and people of these worlds in the sequels and I can't wait.

The characters are again so tangible and full of depth. Despite being so different from us, it's easy to find them so relatable as they learn to understand themselves and each other. The characters and the plot is compelling.

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that_vnr's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

!!! MILD SPOILERS AHAID !!! I genuinely don't want to touch another book for a month. This book broke my heart in all the good ways a book can. Leaves you wanting for more, leaves you numb and speechless. It's the book I always needed. A sci fi story that challenges you. The reader and the protagonist are informed very early on what the outcome of the story will be, so it leaves you wondering about what truly, in my opinion, matters: What is love, what is gender, what is humanity? What makes us so different from the androgynous dwellers of Gethen? Why as a reader did it feel so natural to assign a gender to these genderless people, just as Genly Ai did, but why did I also feel then need to reprimand him and myself while doing so? Why as a person in real life do i do the same? I don't throw the word masterpiece around easily, but this is a treasure for sure.

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bakatan's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

4.5

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libellumartinae's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Alrightie, this book was... intense. beautifully so, but I can't help but deny that partnering this book with another was a bad choice in my part that inevitably staunched my enjoyment of it. One of the things, in fact, I struggle with the most is a sort of initial confusion that didn't diminish throughout the reading experience as I tried to piece together the author's world. It's also true that as I have noted from other reviews not much happens throughout this book and this brought it to be a boring in some parts.

But gods! the whole architecture and meaning of this is utterly fabolous, alongside the knowledge that everything written is somehow already happened and you can see the echoes of it throughout the writing. An enchanting scifi reads.

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