Reviews

The Quantum Magician by Derek Künsken

prof_chronotis's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

llntmll's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

vakarian's review

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adventurous funny 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? Yes

5.0

moonmama's review

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4.0

#netgalley
#thequantummagician
I found this surprisingly easy to read, with the amount of hard science and esoteric mathematics and physics, though I won’t say I completely understood all of it! But, as said, it was quite thrilling. The author effortlessly built the future world up, making it as believable, though heavier on the Warcraft than expected. I liked it more and more as more and more interesting characters were introduced and fleshed out. If you’re a fan of hard sci-fi, and even of sci-fi, you won’t want to miss this mind bending thriller!

marianne_brough's review

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adventurous dark

3.0

fredcthulhu's review against another edition

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5.0

Hard Sci-fi at its finest.

Part heist novel plus part hard sci-fi equeals one of the best novels I have read in some time. Where most sci fi revolves one or two high concepts Derek Kunsken bombards you with a salvo of concepts that will leave you in awe. The Puppets are one of the creepiest creations I have ever read. I could not recommend this book enough for fans of sci fi.

chlcrc617's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.25

florinese_expert's review

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adventurous funny hopeful inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

arhgee's review

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5.0

Really enjoyed this book and it's sequel. The Quantum Evolution books hearken back to the post-human genre popular in the 2000s and the Afro-futurism of Alastair Reynolds. Would recommend.

egid's review

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2.0

Künsken sets out to create a heist set against a frankly disturbing backstory of exploited post-humans — and succeeds, too well. No more genehacked slaves-turned-slavers torture cult for me, thanks.

It’s also tough to suspend disbelief when the primary far future superpowers are an alliance between the English and Spanish… and a colonial French empire. There’s no indication that other post-Earth cultures exist in this world aside from brief mentions of “The Middle Kingdom”. Maybe ¾ of the dense quantum info dumps could have been swapped for a greater sense of what this universe is like without harming the plot. It was a gamble that fails without justification for how and why these states and languages persisted. I love the odd nod to history here and there, but this world ultimately felt contrived and implausible.