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ruthjenkins's review
3.0
Does what it says on the tin: Hamlet v2 is an AI android, Hamlet v1 is dead, Claudia is the new head android of the company. It's initially clever - I especially liked Gertrude's introduction as the human CEO - but the beat-for-beat retelling became a stale. There was little room for surprises because it's literally just the plot of Hamlet, and I would've liked to see that handled a bit more cleverly. Perhaps a longer version (this was only 160 pages) would have had more time to build up the characters and develop their relationships, rather than have them as like-for-like stand ins for the originals.
dasnet's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I mean its Hamlet, so nothing changes as far as we know what we know about Hamlet. There are some changes, (besides the fact that Hamlet is a programmed robot with too many emotions, but really, that's not so off base)
Claudius becomes an android Claudia, Horatio replaces Hamlet's love interest. Ophelia is a human. Laertes is a counter android.
But what makes this so fun is that it's exactly that, it's Hamlet in a way that can be understood. In a time we are all dealing with AI and existential dread, who is better to lead that than Hamlet? It's priceless
Claudius becomes an android Claudia, Horatio replaces Hamlet's love interest. Ophelia is a human. Laertes is a counter android.
But what makes this so fun is that it's exactly that, it's Hamlet in a way that can be understood. In a time we are all dealing with AI and existential dread, who is better to lead that than Hamlet? It's priceless
tine1210's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kleonard's review against another edition
1.0
A novelization of the play with the very thin veneer of many characters being AIs. Nothing interesting, thought-provoking, or new here.
pupgir's review
adventurous
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? Yes
3.5
valetparkering's review against another edition
2.5
This was... not good. Rarely actively bad but mainly just kind of empty. The synopsis is accurate in calling this a beat-by-beat retelling. It seems like this started as a writing exercise that quickly turned into bending every aspect of the play to the metaphor of the sci-fi setting. The characters are very sketchy and move through the plot because that is how it was in the play.
I understand why the author chose to gender swap some of the characters but having Claudio be woman-aligned and having her be Polonius' conduit to power felt ill-conceived.
The writing felt inconsistent. Either is was heavily borrowing lines from the play or it was incongruously modern. This again contributed to the checklist-feeling structure. We have to have these certain set pieces and elements, even though they aren't justified in the text that's actually being written. So there will be these big, dramatic lines in near Elizabethan English and then two paragraphs later Hamlet is saying "nope"
I understand why the author chose to gender swap some of the characters but having Claudio be woman-aligned and having her be Polonius' conduit to power felt ill-conceived.
The writing felt inconsistent. Either is was heavily borrowing lines from the play or it was incongruously modern. This again contributed to the checklist-feeling structure. We have to have these certain set pieces and elements, even though they aren't justified in the text that's actually being written. So there will be these big, dramatic lines in near Elizabethan English and then two paragraphs later Hamlet is saying "nope"
terranovanz's review against another edition
3.0
A clever cyber punk, gender bending, queer reinterpreting of Hamlet.
leeloop's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
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
3.5
I love that it didn't stray to far from the source material. Instead of making the female characters weak or feeble, prone to madness, they were strong and they made up the majority of the cast; Rose Kranz, Gilda Stern, Claudia, and of course Ophelia and Gertrude. The book managed to adept Hamlet into a more modern tale for a more modern audience and a respectful manner. Everything I wanted from it and more. Referencing The Lion King which is also a retelling of Hamlet was genius :)
srwestvik's review
2.0
Sadly, this one did not work for me on both an thematic and technical level, the latter of which I feel contributed to letting down the former’s potential. Full review to come.