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naxmy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
nydstilheden's review against another edition
4.0
A very interesting book. I probably won't read it once more over the next couple of years, because it literally took me ages to finish it and I skipped pages and pages just to get to the end, which wasn't quite what I had hoped for.
Some of the plot is just.. cliché and totally not things that would ever happen. In my opinion. And your favourite characters will die. But that just adds to the story. So all in all a good read, though it might take some time to get through.
Some of the plot is just.. cliché and totally not things that would ever happen. In my opinion. And your favourite characters will die. But that just adds to the story. So all in all a good read, though it might take some time to get through.
goethe's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
anna_athena's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
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? No
5.0
dodgson's review against another edition
4.0
It’s a lot of characters to keep up with, but the writing style pulls you in to their lives, the detective story, and the scientific minutiae, making all of it accessible and interesting. Maintains plausibility and earns its length—Schätzing creates a world and you get the feeling you’re inhabiting it and watching details and discovery unfold, rather than keeping track of innumerable details. Its message is interesting, and you discover it as you wind through the story, rather than having it broadcast at you.
zurpel's review against another edition
4.0
The Swarm is one of the few books by German authors that reached real popularity, so naturally I was curious about it. So I grabbed a copy of the audiobook from my local library.
The story follows several characters that start out in different places but will eventually all arrive at the same place and focus their efforts. The reason for this is the necessity to research a threat that comes from the sea. Formerly peaceful whales are beginning to attack humans, worms are destroying the ice in the north and seafood poisons everyone coming into contact with it. At first all these occurrences seem to be random, but then the researchers discover that all seems to be directed by an intelligent being, which seems to be living in the sea.
I liked the book well enough. The characters were round and easily distinctable from each other (the audiobook was dramatized, so that might have helped as well) and the plot fast-moving.
However, this sort of book is generally not my thing and as such this will probably never get onto my favorite-ever shelf and I’ll probably not re-read it. Descriptions of whales attacking people and icky stuff coming out of seafood freak me out, so one time is really enough.
Still, the book included some thought-provoking aspects (are humans really the only “intelligent” species on the planet?; how far can we go in maltreating nature, especially the oceans?) and I really liked this about the book.
So for a book not in my comfort zone of reading it was surprisingly enjoyable.
The story follows several characters that start out in different places but will eventually all arrive at the same place and focus their efforts. The reason for this is the necessity to research a threat that comes from the sea. Formerly peaceful whales are beginning to attack humans, worms are destroying the ice in the north and seafood poisons everyone coming into contact with it. At first all these occurrences seem to be random, but then the researchers discover that all seems to be directed by an intelligent being, which seems to be living in the sea.
I liked the book well enough. The characters were round and easily distinctable from each other (the audiobook was dramatized, so that might have helped as well) and the plot fast-moving.
However, this sort of book is generally not my thing and as such this will probably never get onto my favorite-ever shelf and I’ll probably not re-read it. Descriptions of whales attacking people and icky stuff coming out of seafood freak me out, so one time is really enough.
Still, the book included some thought-provoking aspects (are humans really the only “intelligent” species on the planet?; how far can we go in maltreating nature, especially the oceans?) and I really liked this about the book.
So for a book not in my comfort zone of reading it was surprisingly enjoyable.
lonkabooks's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.75
sarafreitas's review against another edition
3.0
Muita ficção científica, muita ciência da natureza, muitaaaa filosofia... não consigo ter uma opinião mas que agarra agarra!