Reviews

Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis

emohan's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

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

4.0

Interesting & captivating story. Definitely something that is different than most other stories out there. Ludwing was an interesting character and in the end he

disappeared and likely reverted to the dog he always was. Though I am curious as to what in the explosion in the armory truly reverted them to their normal selves again.

Spice: none

slb80's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

gemma_dilemma's review against another edition

3.0

So disappointing. Such potential and such a great concept sadly falling flat with bad pace and bad characters.

murderbotsbestie's review against another edition

4.0

This is a difficult review to write. Because Lives of the Monster Dogs is one of the strangest, most creative and beautiful books I've read.
Lets talk about the plot. I loved it. The idea of isolated, biologically engineered dogs is a fascinating concept. And the visual of one in a top hat is incredible. Its very steampunk, which I love. And the illness was a great addition to the book. It underlined the fact that its not natural for dogs to speak and use canes. The illness was an amazing representation of nature overcoming science. It reminded me of Frankenstein in a way. Which is great because I love Frankenstein.
The ending was also amazing. Somewhat unsatisfying, but I can't see a better ending. But more than that, the ending and the whole book was deeply sad. The party was a last hurrah before mass suicide.
And it hurt me. A lot. Because over the course of the book I fell in love with the monster dogs. They were fascinating and sometimes arrogant and mean. But I was completely drawn to them anyways. Throughout the book I felt more and more sympathetic and compassionate towards them. After all, they were out of the past. Trapped in sa world that didn't make sense to them. Its weird, but they felt like my kids. I wanted to protect them.
And its genius, because thats exactly what happens to Cleo, the main character. She is strangely attracted to the dogs, despite them treating her pretty badly. And in the end she does everything to try and save them.
Speaking of Cleo, I thought she was ok. She felt like a blank slate, a parallel to the readers emotions. Not like an actual character. But its not her fault, she couldn't compete with the monster dogs.
AND THE MONSTER DOGS. Like I said above, I loved them. Especially Ludwig. Not because he was nice, but because he was interesting. He was such a miserable character, I couldn't help but pity him. And even though it was horrible, I could understand why he would want to kill himself.
Ludwig, at heart, is a scholar. He's an intellectual with an extraordinary mind. And the illness takers that away, transforming him into a regular dog. Its one of the the worst things that could happen to him in his mind. Its why he's such a tragic character, because there was no way thAt he could be saved. Even if he did move on from the past, the illness would take his mind anyway.
So yeah, this book tore my heart into bits. But I LOVED IT. Though there was a couple things that bothered me.
First off, Augustus Rank has THE WORST gardians ever. I mean come on, those kid is dissecting animals. Thats weird. And the doctor dude just rolled with it?!? A kid tore apart a cows leg. Send him to a psychologist. I'm shocked that he didn't turn into a serial killer. But point is, it felt weird and not realistic. They would have done SOMETHING, however small.
The other thing is Cleos friendship with dogs like Lydia and Ludwig felt very forced and quick. It never felt like Ludwig and Cleo were close friends at all. And Lydia and Cleo saw each other once and then became platonic soulmates. I would have liked more exploration into their relationships.
But overall, fantastic book. The plot was great, the characters amazing and it succeeded in keeping me emotionally attached to it. For days. I couldn’t even read another book. But, Cleo was lacking and the relationships were underdeveloped. Despite that, I would 100% recommend it to anyone who likes science fiction or steampunk.
4/5 stars

kayken556's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

jrcronewillis's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

adriana_mv's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

savaging's review against another edition

4.0

This book was strangely slow and stately for its subject matter (dogs with hands who speak!). Sometimes I wondered if I was bored. But the final parts are some of the most moving writing I've ever read.

greywolfheir's review

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

elisabethbeck's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Flowers for Algernon sad