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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The concept of this novel is... well... bizarre? Imaginative? Insane? Possibly one of the most thoughtful environmental metaphors ever (maybe)? If you enjoy science fiction, fantasy, space travel, and social commentary, read this book. Seske Kaleigh is an engaging protagonist you find yourself cheering for again and again.
Mostly a miss but some redeeming qualities. There were a bunch of issues touched on and usually when I read a book with a "bunch" of issues I complain about having none of them sufficiently explored, Escaping Exodus does not break the trend unfortunately. We have spoiled spoiled heiress assuming the throne even though she is unqualified. We have a matriarchal society with a mirror image of men being seen as second class citizens, along with male oppression we have a Brave New World type of situation where there is an entire class of citizens grown to supply manual labor. Finally, or not finally, I am just tired of giving examples, we have the exploitation of the beast/ship just like humans destroying nature for their own benefit.
The first 2/3 were sort of boring generic although the world idea of humans capturing a huge spacefaring beast to hollow out and use as a ship was very good. The character development was all sort of what you read in a 100 other novels.
The last 1/3 was decent enough to earn the ever so bland 3 star rating although the taking over the world scenario was not super believable.
The first 2/3 were sort of boring generic although the world idea of humans capturing a huge spacefaring beast to hollow out and use as a ship was very good. The character development was all sort of what you read in a 100 other novels.
The last 1/3 was decent enough to earn the ever so bland 3 star rating although the taking over the world scenario was not super believable.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5⭐️
The setting of the book is amazing! Entire human civlizations hitchhiking inside giant space faring creatures the size of a moon -fun!. I kept thinking of the space whales from one of the 90’s Star Trek movies. Like a parasite the humans slowly consume the beast as they make their way across the vastness of space. We find out their current beast is pregnant and I am always amazed at how Mother Nature can make the ugliest creature so darn cute when a baby.
It was real fun to see how they lived and moved around inside the creatures. There is an interesting caste structure and the matriarchal society reminded me a bit of Gerd Bratenberg’s “Egalia’s Daughters”. The main character takes a husband and I just kept seeing YouTube’s James Charles
The setting of the book is amazing! Entire human civlizations hitchhiking inside giant space faring creatures the size of a moon -fun!. I kept thinking of the space whales from one of the 90’s Star Trek movies. Like a parasite the humans slowly consume the beast as they make their way across the vastness of space. We find out their current beast is pregnant and I am always amazed at how Mother Nature can make the ugliest creature so darn cute when a baby.
It was real fun to see how they lived and moved around inside the creatures. There is an interesting caste structure and the matriarchal society reminded me a bit of Gerd Bratenberg’s “Egalia’s Daughters”. The main character takes a husband and I just kept seeing YouTube’s James Charles
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked quite a bit about this book, but I also disliked plenty. My favorite aspect - and the strongest part, I think - was the world-building, which is imaginative and well-developed. The book is set on a giant sentient space beast, which is exploited as both a physical home and the source of critical resources needed for the populace to function and survive until the next exodus to a new beast. Groups of workers specialize in different areas of the beast’s body, which develop their own distinct cultures and have different levels of prestige. Super cool. I also really enjoyed the themes of resource/worker exploitation and how those intertwined with social class dynamics.
But this is a book for the plot-driven readers, which I am decidedly not. For me, there were too many plot threads, and the book felt packed to the brim with Stuff That Happened. Some of those threads were wholly unnecessary, and the threads I most enjoyed (e.g., the eruption of social class warfare) to be underdeveloped and/or resolved too quickly. Further, while I very much liked the idea of a sapphic romance between besties in which the distance between them socially is further widened by circumstances and their own choices, I felt the development of their relationship was lacking. And even thought privileged, ignorant Seske works to redeem herself toward the end, I wasn’t ultimately sold on Adalla’s continued (renewed?) interest in her as a romantic interest, let alone life partner.
I don’t plan to continue with the sequel, but I’ll definitely give Drayden’s other books a shot. If you tend to prefer plot-driven books and/or find the concept of the space beast interesting, I’d say this one may by more up your alley than it was mine.
Okay... So, um straight up the weirdest book i've ever read. To point that I am embarrassed to say I really liked it???
DRAYDEN OMG. The world and characters and symbolism of this book just hit the mark.
Okay so the world, arguably what I can talk the most about. I was really trying to explain this to somebody and they looked at me like I had two heads... BUT essentially the world has failed and the human beings have left Earth, and now we're living in these space beasts. Essentially the people are parasites to these beasts. Overusing the recourses and poorly effectiving the lives of their beasts till the beasts die. I think the relationship between the people and the beast is meant to be very representative of our relationship to Earth. I think the Beast being a living breathing thinking creature allows Drayden to personify, and try to say something about our relationship to the Earth.
I also really liked the fact that it was a matriarchal society but the fact that the matriarchal societal was not displayed as a good thing. It portrayed to be just as bad as the patriarchy were basically men have the same roles as women it's our world. I think this helps ground a perspective about the fact that gender based superiority is bad end of story (Shocking). Althought this idea is kinda a yah duh everyones knows that, I think people need the opportunity to see it! We're so used to seeing a our patriarchal society, this idea needs to be displayed, people need to be able to see and grasp this concept. Its like the Barbie movie display of this but like 10 times more well done and clear about it.
Also... the romance... I loved it, I don't have many words for it... but I do like how complex the relationships are. How the trauma and weight of the situation really really affects the relationships. Did Adalla and Seske relationship kill me yes, again and again.
This book was brilliant.
Side note this book helped me discover that a avidly dislike tentacle porn... and I fear Drayden's opinions on it.
DRAYDEN OMG. The world and characters and symbolism of this book just hit the mark.
Okay so the world, arguably what I can talk the most about. I was really trying to explain this to somebody and they looked at me like I had two heads... BUT essentially the world has failed and the human beings have left Earth, and now we're living in these space beasts. Essentially the people are parasites to these beasts. Overusing the recourses and poorly effectiving the lives of their beasts till the beasts die. I think the relationship between the people and the beast is meant to be very representative of our relationship to Earth. I think the Beast being a living breathing thinking creature allows Drayden to personify, and try to say something about our relationship to the Earth.
I also really liked the fact that it was a matriarchal society but the fact that the matriarchal societal was not displayed as a good thing. It portrayed to be just as bad as the patriarchy were basically men have the same roles as women it's our world. I think this helps ground a perspective about the fact that gender based superiority is bad end of story (Shocking). Althought this idea is kinda a yah duh everyones knows that, I think people need the opportunity to see it! We're so used to seeing a our patriarchal society, this idea needs to be displayed, people need to be able to see and grasp this concept. Its like the Barbie movie display of this but like 10 times more well done and clear about it.
Also... the romance... I loved it, I don't have many words for it... but I do like how complex the relationships are. How the trauma and weight of the situation really really affects the relationships. Did Adalla and Seske relationship kill me yes, again and again.
This book was brilliant.
Side note this book helped me discover that a avidly dislike tentacle porn... and I fear Drayden's opinions on it.
4.5⭐️
The setting of the book is amazing! Entire human civlizations hitchhiking inside giant space faring creatures the size of a moon -fun!. I kept thinking of the space whales from one of the 90’s Star Trek movies. Like a parasite the humans slowly consume the beast as they make their way across the vastness of space. We find out their current beast is pregnant and I am always amazed at how Mother Nature can make the ugliest creature so darn cute when a baby.
It was real fun to see how they lived and moved around inside the creatures. There is an interesting caste structure and the matriarchal society reminded me a bit of Gerd Bratenberg’s “Egalia’s Daughters”. The main character takes a husband and I just kept seeing YouTube’s James Charles
The setting of the book is amazing! Entire human civlizations hitchhiking inside giant space faring creatures the size of a moon -fun!. I kept thinking of the space whales from one of the 90’s Star Trek movies. Like a parasite the humans slowly consume the beast as they make their way across the vastness of space. We find out their current beast is pregnant and I am always amazed at how Mother Nature can make the ugliest creature so darn cute when a baby.
It was real fun to see how they lived and moved around inside the creatures. There is an interesting caste structure and the matriarchal society reminded me a bit of Gerd Bratenberg’s “Egalia’s Daughters”. The main character takes a husband and I just kept seeing YouTube’s James Charles