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bergha1998's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Found Family, Romance Subplots
“We cannot blame ourselves for the wars our parents start. Sometimes the very best thing we can do is walk away.”
“You found something dark within your own house, and you are wondering how much of it has rubbed off on you.”
“The truth is, Rosemary, that you are capable of anything. Good or bad. You always have been, and you always will be. Given the right push, you, too, could do horrible things. That darkness exists within all of us.”
“All any of us can do—is work to be something positive instead. That is a choice that every sapient must make every day of their life. The universe is what we make of it. It’s up to you to decide what part you will play.”
“How much of me is actually you?”
Graphic: Murder, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Racism, Violence, Cursing, Drug use, Colonisation, Confinement, Racial slurs, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Police brutality, and War
the_reading_wren's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I wasn’t expecting it but I liked the episodic style of storytelling because it made every chapter satisfying. I could tell this was Chambers’ debut novel due to pacing and some lack of clarity in the messages (which in her more recent books are more honed), but the fact I still gave it 5 stars shows just how much I love her world building, and the wisdom she shares through her characters.
Graphic: Gun violence, Grief, and War
Minor: Blood, Murder, Ableism, Vomit, Confinement, Drug use, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Torture, Alcohol, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Deadnaming, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Police brutality, Slavery, and Violence
toastedoats42's review
- 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
Moderate: Physical abuse, Police brutality, Death, Murder, Racial slurs, Violence, and War
sacredgayometry's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Classism, Gun violence, Ableism, Animal death, Death, and Kidnapping
Minor: Xenophobia, Grief, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual content, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Ableism, Bullying, Alcohol, Animal death, Terminal illness, Cursing, Murder, and War
There are some challenging themes especially near the end of the book surrounding war, conflict, colonialism and xenophobia. There is challenging content surrounding death and grief as well as memory loss. Cultural misunderstandings and cultural differences are central to the book, and I felt were generally approached very respectfully. Otherwise a lighthearted read.toffishay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Death, and War
Moderate: Xenophobia
Minor: Sexual content
rosemarygrace1211's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Moderate: Genocide, Medical content, War, Death, Grief, Police brutality, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Animal death, Chronic illness, Classism, Murder, and Xenophobia
claudiamacpherson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Confinement, and Genocide
Minor: Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Medical content, Alcohol, Animal death, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Racial slurs, and Slavery
booksthatburn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
There are a lot of characters and they generally feel distinct from each other. That means I can't really point to an overall style, other than that once I tracked names enough to tell Jenks and Ashby apart I did all right for the rest of the book (I kept mixing up who was with Pei).
main character - If anyone is the main character it might be Rosemary, she's definitely the reader's way into the narrative as a human who doesn't have any travel experience and is generally unfamiliar with the people and places that they encounter on the way. Because she isn't the only point-of-view character there's a pretty robust diversity not only of perspectives but of angles for explanation.
The ship has a relatively small crew but it's enough to make a character relationship web complicated pretty quickly. Ashby is the captain, which means he doesn't pal around with the crew much but still is close to most of them. I like his relationship with Pei, it's nice to see a long-distance thing portrayed well. Jenks and Kizzy have a friendly working relationship and a great rapport. They get along even when they're getting on each other's nerves, which is good since they're generally working on ship maintenance together. Sissix is my favorite, and I like how she is with Rosemary, especially towards the end. There's even more crew and I'm very bad with names, so that's about my limit of what I can remember and say without spoilers. Generally speaking I like the way that non-human characters have conversations and relationships with each other that don't have anything to do with the human ones. It helps reinforce the feeling of a galaxy that isn't centered on humans, which is definitely a welcome departure from a lot of space sci-fi.
Most of the worldbuilding in terms of physical spaces is focused on the ship, with a few visits to other worlds on the way. Where it shines is in establishing the impression of a full galaxy with complicated dynamics of which we're just getting a tiny slice. I love the descriptions of various aliens, and the way the characters make a specific effort to understand other perspectives and ways of being.
For the first half of the book I was lukewarm, having trouble getting into it but having a good enough time to continue. It more than paid off in the second half, wow. There are a lot of important characters by virtue of paying attention to the entire crew plus a few additional people. Because the big thing that's happening is they're traveling a very long way to a specific destination, plus some stops and occasional complications along the way, most of the plot revolves around developing and continuing relationships between the characters. The main journey is to slowly travel to somewhere very far away for a specific reason, and then because of the tech involved they'll be able to get home very quickly. It makes the ending feel climactic even though technically all they did was go a long way away and then come right back to where they started in a fraction of the time.
The ending is devastating. The emotional culmination of getting to know these characters runs into the dangers of their journey in a way that is sudden, frightening, and grief-stricken. If you like found-family journey stories (especially ones in space), don't miss this one.
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Grief, Ableism, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Gore, Terminal illness, Kidnapping, Confinement, Medical content, Vomit, Torture, Genocide, Animal death, Murder, and Death
Minor: Sexual content
skudiklier's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, War, Xenophobia, Terminal illness, and Cursing
Moderate: Death, Racial slurs, Vomit, Sexual content, Murder, Medical content, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Drug use, Colonisation, Blood, Animal death, Alcohol, and Ableism
Minor: Bullying, Child death, Trafficking, Suicide, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, Incest, Infidelity, and Genocide
The racial slurs aren't real ones, but in-world ones (for different species, not human races) Also CWs for nonconsensual medical treatment, androodborstje's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Colonisation, Terminal illness, Violence, and War
Minor: Body horror, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, and Slavery