Reviews

The Core of the Sun by Johanna Sinisalo

theangrystackrat's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

essjay1's review

5.0

What a weird, fantastic book! The author has a great style, and although a kind of dystopian fantasy, this novel has a lot to say about contemporary politics and societal norms. Absolutely recommended reading.

smitha_r's review

5.0

I was pleasantly suprised by how much I loved this book, although I had an inkling that I would like it due to it's obvious feminist commentary. It helped that the main character Vanna was an interesting and rich personality, plus the unique story-telling (flipping between present day and her letters to Manna) kept things exciting as well. I started skimming near the end of the book as the climax picked up and I frantically wanted to know how it ended!

freddie's review

5.0

Nice world-building and social commentary on gender dynamics, but the best part is the tender story about a person dealing with the loss of a family member, a story of guilt and letting go. The inclusion of chili addiction adds a surprisingly fitting touch of absurdity.

meghan111's review

5.0

A readable, not-super-depressing feminist dystopia by an author of weird Finnish fiction. I loved how immediately engaged I was by this. In the Finland of 2016 in this novel, the government has taken extreme measures to regulate public health, including outlawing hot chilis and capsaicin (the active component which produces the burning sensation). Chilis are bought and sold illegally, and produce a high in the user.

Women and men are also tested at an early age to make sure they're appropriately feminine and masculine - as a toddler, does she gravitate towards the doll or the firetruck? Is she aggressive or nurturing? Feminine women are designated as Elois and are allowed to marry and have children. They learn housekeeping, gardening, and frivolity as they grow up, all their energy devoted to hoping and thinking about their marriages. Vanna and Manna are raised by their grandmother on a farm, and both are designated as Elois. Vanna, the older sister, is only pretending to be one, though.

soy_sputnik's review against another edition

3.0

No sé si comprendí del todo la forma en que quería ridiculizar la _femeneidad_ de la hermana desde esta superioridad moral de _yo no soy como las otras chicas y sí pienso_- Así que no diría que es mi libro favorito, pero sí es un libro muy absorbente, sobre todo desde la segunda parte, cuando el rollo de los chiles se pone irrisorio pero ahí seguía. Quizás por mi crecimiento en un país donde el chile es la cosa más común, no lograba ponerme el el mood de seriedad de lo que implicaba el ardor y esas cosas que según te hace sentir la capsicina. Por lo demás, una lectura dominguera, ni horrible, ni genial, pero de buen chisme.

anm_aragon's review

4.0

Curioso que su lectura sea adictiva, dada su trama. Ese final...

ilnadurn's review

2.0

Okay this seems to be a hot take but this was not weird enough for me! It needed to be about 10x weirder in order to balance out an otherwise fairly basic, overdone premise. I feel like I can’t even call it a ‘premise’ because we spend about 200 pages covering what’s laid out in the synopsis. The first 180 pages could have only lasted for about 30, purely to set up the context of Vanna and Manna’s childhood/relationship. The addition of the files from the government alongside all of the details of Vanna’s life just meant that I was being hit over the head with the point that yes, this is a dystopian with extreme gender roles - which I got from the synopsis and I’m honestly sure are obvious to people reading this book. This book did not do anything that Handmaid’s Tale didn’t do (30 years ago!). Also, because there was so much exposition I found a few holes which if written differently I wouldn’t have noticed or minded. This book should definitely not be read for any intellectual development/base as feminist thought!

That being said, the last 100 pages were so so good!! I wanted way more of that! If the whole book was a high-stakes murder mystery with more illegal chili growing/dealing based in this dystopian world, I would have enjoyed it wayyy more. But unfortunately the action on that part didn’t really start until 2/3 of the book was over. I still enjoyed reading this overall, but it dragged in places and I wanted more from it!

hileahrious's review against another edition

5.0

Expertly written... Sinisalo takes a not-so-uncommon theme (the domestication of women) and makes it into so much more. It's brilliant how she combines the eusistocratic world, a drug addiction, the bond between sisters, and a spiritual transcendence to create and beautifully finish the story. The chili pepper addiction may seem like an extra, but the book's resolution wouldn't be possible without it. Amazing. Not to mention the style, the cut-and-paste way of mixing first-person narratives with letters, articles, and definitions that cleverly add to the story while necessarily informing the reader of the author's fictional world. Also, as a chili on top, filled with a feminist-friendly satire. Weird, suspenseful, highly recommended.

eva_ave's review

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0