Reviews

Es fing gut an, gut geschrieben. Aber nun zieht es sich. Die drei Ideen/Geschichten passen nicht gut zusammen. Bin bei 60% und langsam genervt von den ständigen Wiederholungen und davon, dass nichts passiert…

charl's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense 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? No

4.5

Unsettled Ground really unsettled me so I was excited to read another one of Fuller’s books and 🫣🥴🤢 again I'm so bloody unsettled!! I really enjoyed the octopus in depth bits, although they're really sad to read, and just the uncovering of messy weird humans and how we're all fucked and fucked up, the pandemic throwback vibes ugh 🤢 and the magic vibes of the revisiting stuff - I can see it as like a 6 part drama

gralicia's review against another edition

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hopeful mysterious medium-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

3.25

I enjoyed the 3 distinct parts of this book, although they didn't always feel connected.

The virus/apocalyptic aspect was what I was expecting from Severance (Ling Ma), but this got there quicker.

The Revisiting was well written and engaging, but felt like a seperate story. I enjoyed the plotline about navigating the complexities of her dad's illness, her own potential surgeries, etc.

The octopus storyline was informative and interesting, gave a big insight into Neffy's state of mind. Again, though, it felt disconnected and like a seperate story.

I'm not mad about open endings, but this one fell a bit short with the last chapter/day.

There were some weird inclusions in the story, that just didn't sit right, such as

- the vague fat-shaming and accidental racial comment about Leon's mum. Came out of nowhere?

- Justin. I almost stopped reading when the nature of their relationship was revealed. It didn't add anything to the story, and I felt like the author was trying to convince herself it was ok, more than anything else.

- The allusion to a sexual assault involving Sophia, and then Neffy being blamed for the men finding her.

- The strange psychosexual and romantic aspects of her notes with the octopus. 🐙