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readundancies's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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? No
4.5
One of my favourite things about reading a series is when the newest instalment makes me rethink how I rated the previous ones. Hypocrisy is at the root of humanity and I am a feeble human at best.
Which is all to say that I don’t know what I was smoking when I read Velocity Weapon last year, but it deserved better than the 4.25 stars I initially allotted it and has since been amended.
But let’s talk about Chaos Vector, and how when looking at it as a sequel, it really got the job done. It was so easy to slip back into it’s pages and pick up again. And considering I did not re-read the first novel in the series before picking this one up, I’d say it’s not so bad in terms of remembering all of the political players and whatnot. It all comes back with pretty relative ease, at least the important bits.
And I love the writing. I’m still of the mind that in terms of character perspectives and how I’d rank them, it would be Sanda >> Biran still but Tomas = Jules at this point. O’Keefe has this way of pairing dialogue with description in a way that seems not only natural but also seamless, and it really helps to temper the plot alongside the characters. It’s not one or other that’s the focus, it’s a pretty equal distribution and I haven’t come across a sci-if series in a while that does it all so effectively.
Speaking of plot, I was literally on the edge of my seat with this one and all of it’s plot twists and subplots. There were less plot twists that the first, but we get a deeper dive into characters that didn’t have as much individual page time in the first novel. I really enjoyed the faster pace but also the little tangents involved with the high level of espionage and political manoeuvring and how it all played out so fluidly. I could feel myself getting excited as I progressed through the story and it was a wonderful feeling indeed.
And my biggest praise is that the length of the novel was never a deterrent for me because the plot waits for no one. There’s no way to muse upon how much story is left because the pace is kept tight and holds fast to the plot. Things are always happening.
And the fucking truth bombs in this series. Megan E. O’Keefe, you should be a household name but also I’m glad you’re not because you would not be appreciated in the way you should if that was the case.
I will be nabbing a copy of the final instalment of this series, Catalyst Gate because this series has been such a good time and I cannot wait to finish it off.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, War, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Gore, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, and Gun violence
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