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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
fast-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:
Yes
This book was the squishiest of sci fi from the very beginning, and it was great. Such an interesting and well-built out world, my favorite kind of likable characters that make very questionable decisions, and a plot that progresses very rapidly. Definitely a book for those who enjoy sci fi and space travel outside the realm of technology. The ending went from fast to blink-and-you'll-miss-it, and was a little too quickly wrapped up for it to become a new favorite. One of the easiest books I have read to fall into.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror
Moderate: Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I really wanted to like this. I thought the system and culture surrounding the beast was fascinating and well thought. That aspect of the world-building truly fascinated me. I loved the writing and how well the two pov narration worked to build the story.
But reading this book was frustrating and heavy for me. That is pretty much a me thing. But the highly binary reverse sexism of the matriarchal system really brought me down. It leads to a lot of toxicity in family relations, physical and psychological abuse starting from the very first chapter. And I get that it makes sense relating to the world-building, but it made ut impossible for me to like the main character who is blinded by her own privilige and make sexist and transphobic remarks. It's definitely a me thing. I need to like the characters to push enjoy reading but that aspect hit too close to home for me to enjoy it.
They are a few plots holes in the second part but I think they may be addressed by book 2.
All in all a book with amazing creativity and world-building, but which is not suited for me.
But reading this book was frustrating and heavy for me. That is pretty much a me thing. But the highly binary reverse sexism of the matriarchal system really brought me down. It leads to a lot of toxicity in family relations, physical and psychological abuse starting from the very first chapter. And I get that it makes sense relating to the world-building, but it made ut impossible for me to like the main character who is blinded by her own privilige and make sexist and transphobic remarks. It's definitely a me thing. I need to like the characters to push enjoy reading but that aspect hit too close to home for me to enjoy it.
They are a few plots holes in the second part but I think they may be addressed by book 2.
All in all a book with amazing creativity and world-building, but which is not suited for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Transphobia
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m giving 4.5 stars just because the very beginning was a touch confusing for me, and the ending felt a little rushed. But this book was great! I was nervous about sci fi because I don’t read it a lot, but the universe created in this story was fascinating to read about. And the romances, along with the coming of age for the main characters, made me feel all the feels.
4 stars for the first half of this book, a low 3 stars for the last half, so this is technically a 3.5 stars rounded down.
For the first 50% of this book, I thought this was going to be a new favourite. I adored both our POV characters, their relationship, polyamory, the matriarchal society, the environmentalist themes - this book has so many things that I loved.
However, I think it falls short on a couple of fronts. Firstly, I think the side characters were generally just not as well-developed as I would've liked. One character in particular felt like they did a complete 180 at around the 75% mark, which just felt really jarring. Secondly, and probably more importantly as I think perhaps some of the charcter issues I had were a result of this, is that the pacing in the second half of the book was all over the place. I did feel like there were some pacing issues and jarring time skips throughout the book, but it really didn't bother me until the last half. And then to top it all off, the ending wrapped up in about 20 pages (I read this on e-book so don't quote me on how many actual pages that was), and just felt really rushed. Some side characters and side plotlines were just completely discarded, and just left me feeling unsatisfied.
I think if this book had been about 50-100 pages longer, it would've been so so good. I would've loved to see certain characters, plotlines, and relationships fleshed out more. I know there is a sequel, and I'm definitely still interested in it, but I was disappointed by the second half of this book.
All that being said, I think this is a really good book. It's easy to read, and almost has this kind of dark humour that I really enjoyed. Thematically, it also packs a punch with the matriarchy (and its commentary on the patriarchy of our society), the caste system, and environmentalism. I would definitely still highly recommend it, especially if any of those themes speak to you, or if you're looking for a good sapphic sci-fi.
For the first 50% of this book, I thought this was going to be a new favourite. I adored both our POV characters, their relationship, polyamory, the matriarchal society, the environmentalist themes - this book has so many things that I loved.
However, I think it falls short on a couple of fronts. Firstly, I think the side characters were generally just not as well-developed as I would've liked. One character in particular felt like they did a complete 180 at around the 75% mark, which just felt really jarring. Secondly, and probably more importantly as I think perhaps some of the charcter issues I had were a result of this, is that the pacing in the second half of the book was all over the place. I did feel like there were some pacing issues and jarring time skips throughout the book, but it really didn't bother me until the last half. And then to top it all off, the ending wrapped up in about 20 pages (I read this on e-book so don't quote me on how many actual pages that was), and just felt really rushed. Some side characters and side plotlines were just completely discarded, and just left me feeling unsatisfied.
I think if this book had been about 50-100 pages longer, it would've been so so good. I would've loved to see certain characters, plotlines, and relationships fleshed out more. I know there is a sequel, and I'm definitely still interested in it, but I was disappointed by the second half of this book.
All that being said, I think this is a really good book. It's easy to read, and almost has this kind of dark humour that I really enjoyed. Thematically, it also packs a punch with the matriarchy (and its commentary on the patriarchy of our society), the caste system, and environmentalism. I would definitely still highly recommend it, especially if any of those themes speak to you, or if you're looking for a good sapphic sci-fi.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'd read this book again! It's a softer sci-fi, which i appreciate, and I really like the idea of manipulating an organism instead of technology as a premise. It reminded me of Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld. I think there were definitely pacing issues, and I always have a hard time with a main character that constantly seems to be getting in their own way, but I'd recommend the book to anyone that likes distant-future sci-fi.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child death, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Death of parent, Alcohol, Classism
Minor: Misogyny