Reviews

It’s a John Scalzi book. That means we get a likable and down on his luck protagonist who just needs his chance to shine. It also means we get delightful side characters, a well-constructed sci-fi world, witty banter, and zero chances that our heroes won’t succeed through a mix of cunning and sarcasm. It’s mental comfort food. My only complaint was that the story’s conflict didn’t kick in until almost 70% through. Thank goodness for the great world building and characters. I liked Fuzzy Nation a bit better.

tinybears's review against another edition

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4.0

Fun read, characters were inclusive which is neat. The whole radiation as food was a little far fetched, but I guess that's Godzilla for ya.

aoeada's review against another edition

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2.0

2.5/5

There were some moments here I enjoyed quite a bit. I'm a fan of expository text that just explains scientific processes in a world that is unlike our own. I could read that for like eight hours and feel like I've just read the best book ever. Scalzi does a good job explaining the unique world here in terms of biology and physics. It even hits a few moments where it feels like an Andy Weir novel; then the dialogue comes in and the "I'll ironically explain this by saying I'm not saying it" exposition drops.

There's a good amount of excitement here in entering a weird world that is explained somewhat interestingly. The climax pays off to an extent and has a few moments where the author takes the events kind of seriously, but just for a couple of pages.

On to the bad. If someone asked "what do people mean when they say a millennial sense of humor is annoying?" I would show them this book. If you use the word "epic" to describe shit all the time then this is the book for you. I get that everyone finds certain things funny, but after a while this Marvel-style sense of humor is extremely grating. This book turns that sense of comedy up to astronomical levels.

My other major complaint is that the first person POV usually gives a unique perspective and a more personal telling of events and what the character is seeing. When everyone has the exact same voice, there's no real reason to have a first person narrative. I would have preferred anyone else too, because this MC doesn't explain a single thing! There's a giant kaiju in front of you for the first time, you'd probably talk about its unique fur pattern, the way its body moves, ANYTHING. This guy says "this kaiju is the size of a mountain" and that's what we get the entire book. Absolutely nothing is described beyond a single adjective. If this was an intentional choice, I think it could have been pulled off much better. As it stands, it feels very lazy and destroys my immersion.

This just feels like the narrative of a person who barely cares that they're in this insane world and gets used to it within three minutes.

sydsmith23's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging funny tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

jaketheteacher's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.25

John Scalzi has become my go to author to get out of a reading slump. The way that he can write such engaging material with such little amount of heavy lifting with exposition along along with his amazing sense of humor and of course, will Wheaton never missing as a narrator makes any John Scalzi book in the comedy realm and instant by, have gotten through the two books of his in a day both times because they are so difficult to put down. The concept of having a society built for the preservation of kaiju is such a unique concept that it drew me in from the title. You better believe that I will be reading any book that Scalzi put out (as long as it’s not the science fiction that I keep seeing recommended for me by him.)

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