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laurareads87's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Ooh I quite liked this! This novella follows the first team to utilize time travel technology for the purpose of a survey of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in service of ecological restoration. It is 2267, and humans live in either 'habs' - contructed habitats on the earth's surface - or underground, having survived environmental devastation. The team are assured by the company holding access to the technology that time travel to the past does not impact the present/future, and so ethical concerns are frequently dismissed. There is a lot of interesting world-building here: from the network of banks and other financial interests with massively disproportionate impact on who pursues which kinds of projects, to the intergenerational differences between those who lived through the worst of ecological catastrophe and those who came after, to the ways that individuals exercise bodily autonomy to the degree of being able to alter their own endocrine systems at will, this little novella covers a lot of ground and includes interesting analysis of ecological distress and the possibilities for change. I also liked the diverse cast of characters and character development overall. I'm happy to hear there is a sequel in the works!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content, Violence, and Murder
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