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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The kind of "old school scifi" that I love.
A book that is more about reflection than action. It's really up to the reader to connect the dots.
The prose can be a bit too complex at times, and some anthropological concepts are more from the 19th century than the 20th when this book was written.
Without those two minor grievances, it would have been a 5 stars for sure.
A book that is more about reflection than action. It's really up to the reader to connect the dots.
The prose can be a bit too complex at times, and some anthropological concepts are more from the 19th century than the 20th when this book was written.
Without those two minor grievances, it would have been a 5 stars for sure.
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
The kinds of books that really reward second or third readings usually appeal to me, where you want to go back to the start again, armed with the knowledge that came through the story in the first reading. Having read some reviews and the blurb at the start of the book (which I avoided at the start after being spoilt by previous SF Masterwork 'notes'), it is clear that there are multiple layers to this collection, but between the patchwork narrative and the actual plot and characters, I'm not sure that I'll be re-reading this for quite some time.
i think i love books that have "puzzles" in them (stories in which crucial parts of the narrative are obscured or hidden in plain sight) is because i love leaving a novel feeling like i _almost_ understood it; it makes the work seem more alive to me.
Wolfe, in general, is amazing at this, and this book (a collection of three novellas, each reflecting bakc upon the other) is a great example of him at his best.
Wolfe, in general, is amazing at this, and this book (a collection of three novellas, each reflecting bakc upon the other) is a great example of him at his best.
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is one of the most challenging books I have read in a while. The second part drug a bit for me and it was all very challenging to tie together but it was super inventive and left me with a ton to think about.
Eh. An interesting set of intertwined novellas but a bit too much old school misogyny for me. People seem obsessed with Gene Wolfe being great but I really don't see it. This book didn't do much of anything for me. Read for sci-fi book club.
challenging
mysterious
Even though The Fifth Head of Cerberus is what is known as a "fix-up" novel, i.e. a whole constructed of several original and previously published pieces - in this case, three novellas - the whole does, indeed, work surprisingly well. This may not become apparent in the transition from the first into the second part, but the third novella does an excellent job of connecting everything into an effective whole. Although i am not yet very familiar with the sci-fi and fantasy genres, i have found the images, themes and ideas within this book both provocative and thought-provoking. The style is quite accomplished and literary, characters sharply drawn and eerily mysterious, and the philosophical underpinning sound and pertinent.