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aleyajo's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
adamq's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
In terms of the mystery, the first two thirds are a slog. There's no compelling reason why the protagonist gives up so much over what is, to her and the reader's knowledge, merely an intriguing curiosity. Eventually the stakes get raised, but not in a way that explains the motives from earlier. Some plot points satisfyingly connect by the end, but along the way the mystery feels very artificial (some clues are written out directly to the protagonist, others she just arbitrarily finds on an assortment of dead bodies). Most side characters are very under-developed, leading some major moments to fall flat.
Unfortunately this book (especially the final act) doubles down on the worst impulses of VanderMeer's environmental politics. In other VanderMeer books I've read, there's a lurking sense that he desires a return to a mythologized nature uncorrupted by humans - here he makes that more explicit and more front-and-center. The conclusion of the book
I do think VanderMeer is onto something with the climate noir premise - hopefully we'll see that get better executed soon.
Graphic: Animal death and Injury/Injury detail
fox_at_the_circus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
The main character in the beginning gave me the vibes of a headmistress teaching a valuable lesson. and then she slowly becomes more frantic and personal and it is harder to follow, harder to distiguish where the 'now' ends and her retelling of past stories starts. it really grips you and makes you keep reading. Her childhood trauma and family trouble work really well with the noir feeling and also explain why she would follow this path. Her slow descend into some kind of madness (or maybe just clarity of mind) is so well-written.
I always felt a bit lost and a few steps behind everyone while reading, but so was the main character often times, and it really improved the noir reading experience.
I also learned a lot about humingbirds and salamanders in this book.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Torture, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
pterodog's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
To me, this is a book about change, both personal and ecological. It's about what happens when you're not looking, or when you're looking so hard at something else that you fail to keep an eye on the world around you. It's also about humanity's impact on the planet, ecoterrorism, climate change and the futility of expecting (or hoping) for one person to 'fix' everything.
I also liked how it really held onto the mystery aspect. VanderMeer gives you bits and pieces of the story but it doesn't all tie together until the final pages. Some of the reveals I wasn't too shocked by (Jane killing her grandfather, for example) but some of them genuinely took me by surprise (Silvina and the farm! What the hell!) and it was a really fun ride once Jane started putting all the pieces together.
A lot of other reviews have mentioned that they didn't like Jane, but I found her fun to read about. She is completely unapologetic about any of her choices, even the objectively terrible ones, and she's so methodical and straight-shooting that it takes a while before you start to notice how often she admits she hasn't been forthcoming with the reader and wonder how much else she's keeping back. She's not necessarily a likeable character but she is engaging and I was rooting for her overall, even if I was rooting for her husband and daughter much more.
Overall I really really enjoyed this book. I found the Southern Reach trilogy difficult because there was so much about it I didn't understand, and Hummingbird Salamander was similar to that but had enough of the plot set in stone and firmly explained that I didn't end up frustrated at the end. It's sad, but deeply gripping and very topical.
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Suicide, Torture, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Ableism, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Police brutality, and War
crowcore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
So the book felt a little on the nose 😬
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Body shaming, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Ableism, Confinement, Genocide, Infidelity, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, and Deportation
kaylatee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death
- Lots of gun violence - Main character shares anecdotes from her childhood of her emotionally and physically abusive grandfather and mother who suffered bouts of psychosis. Not graphic, but still upsetting - Taxidermy is a main subject