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tigger89's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I finished this book nearly a month ago, and it's been stopping up my review queue ever since. I have very complicated feelings about it. Ultimately, I think I liked it, based on a personal reading that was very much between the lines and that I can't guarantee the author intended. You see, this book has many feminist themes, and it's not particularly subtle about them. They also lead, at least on a surface-level reading, to a fairly ugly, gender-essentialist conclusion about the nature of men versus women.
After much deliberation, I choose to interpret the book as undermining those apparent themes, for a number of reasons that are are too spoilery to discuss here. But I understand how many readers might, and have, come to a different conclusion. For that reason, I'd recommend this book to people who like their plot themes to be a little messy rather than straightforward, and caution those who are particularly sensitive to depictions of gender-essentialist feminism.
The things I liked the most about this book were getting to know the characters, the speculation on future technology with the Flick devices, and the empowering depiction of sex work, both in Camp Zero and in the Floating City. I also appreciated how the White Alice narrative was separate from the main narrative until near the end, leaving the reader uncertain of whether it was set in the future, the past, or concurrently with the rest of the plot.
The most important question: does the bear die, does the snake die, and do the dogs die?There's a scene where a captured bear cub is used in a gambling game. The bear cub is implied to have been injured in the course of being captured, but, though its ultimate fate is unclear, no harm comes to it on screen. In another scene, we briefly encounter a pet snake. It's later implied to have already been dead when we arrived. In addition, there are several guard dogs working at Camp Zero. All survive.
After much deliberation, I choose to interpret the book as undermining those apparent themes, for a number of reasons that are are too spoilery to discuss here. But I understand how many readers might, and have, come to a different conclusion. For that reason, I'd recommend this book to people who like their plot themes to be a little messy rather than straightforward, and caution those who are particularly sensitive to depictions of gender-essentialist feminism.
The things I liked the most about this book were getting to know the characters, the speculation on future technology with the Flick devices, and the empowering depiction of sex work, both in Camp Zero and in the Floating City. I also appreciated how the White Alice narrative was separate from the main narrative until near the end, leaving the reader uncertain of whether it was set in the future, the past, or concurrently with the rest of the plot.
The most important question: does the bear die, does the snake die, and do the dogs die?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Death, and Colonisation
Moderate: Blood, Murder, Violence, Alcohol, Rape, Dementia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Animal death and Animal cruelty
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