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dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I’m jealous of anyone who hasn’t read this book because that means they get to read it for the first time. The way the author writes is so beautiful, and this book contains multitudes - about love and grief and generational trauma and being mixed race and wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff. I got a little too attached to the characters for my own good - I thought Graham, Maggie, and Arthur were such a lovely found family. There were some twists that were predictable but others I definitely didn’t see coming, and honestly the pacing was all over the place - nothing much happened for about 75% of the book but then suddenly everything happened in the last 25% and it was a lot to process. But my overall reading experience was very positive and I’m sure this book will be an early favourite of this year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Murder
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, Vomit, Cannibalism, War
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Cannibalism
Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, Gore, Blood, Vomit, Alcohol, War
adventurous
slow-paced
This book made me go back and rate my other books higher.
This is all over the place. i was super interested at first, then irritated by the author’s embarrassingly extreme self-insert and clunky language. But this chaos also made me want to see it to the end.
This is all over the place. i was super interested at first, then irritated by the author’s embarrassingly extreme self-insert and clunky language. But this chaos also made me want to see it to the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Racism, War
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, War
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A wonderfully, poetically written story about love, longing, and introspection.
An intriguing debut novel, with obvious self insterts by the author and an unusual obsession with an obscure Arctic explorer (but who am I to judge anyone’s obsessions?). This was the second book I reserved at the library, and I had to wait a month to get my hands on it. (I'm still waiting in line for the first one.) Although I can’t remember why I placed the reservation, it must have been because this novel was voted Readers' Favorite Science Fiction at the 2024 Goodreads Choice Awards.
My point is that, in terms of sci-fi, I would classify this novel as "sci-fi light." It didn’t exactly fulfill my sci-fi cravings.
Still, I found myself mesmerized by the unusual metaphors and the quiet longing between the two main characters, although I wouldn't exactly call it a romance either. What I appreciated most about this story weren’t the advertised themes of romance and sci-fi, but the careful examination of contemporary issues like the modern workplace and present-day racism, which I found quite insightful.
This wasn’t the perfect story, and I feel slightly melancholic about that because it seems like the author was so close to writing a truly poignant one.
An intriguing debut novel, with obvious self insterts by the author and an unusual obsession with an obscure Arctic explorer (but who am I to judge anyone’s obsessions?). This was the second book I reserved at the library, and I had to wait a month to get my hands on it. (I'm still waiting in line for the first one.) Although I can’t remember why I placed the reservation, it must have been because this novel was voted Readers' Favorite Science Fiction at the 2024 Goodreads Choice Awards.
My point is that, in terms of sci-fi, I would classify this novel as "sci-fi light." It didn’t exactly fulfill my sci-fi cravings.
Still, I found myself mesmerized by the unusual metaphors and the quiet longing between the two main characters, although I wouldn't exactly call it a romance either. What I appreciated most about this story weren’t the advertised themes of romance and sci-fi, but the careful examination of contemporary issues like the modern workplace and present-day racism, which I found quite insightful.
This wasn’t the perfect story, and I feel slightly melancholic about that because it seems like the author was so close to writing a truly poignant one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Racism, Cannibalism, Murder
Minor: Genocide, Homophobia, Slavery, War
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexual content, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Deportation
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Racism, Grief, Alcohol, Colonisation, War
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A phenomenal read. Cast of characters is just as diverse as the time periods they come from.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, Colonisation, War
Moderate: Outing, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this book. The wry narrative style had me instantly hooked, and the infinitely varied, complex characters soon drew me in even deeper. The author shows immense dexterity in handling the tonal slalom between bloody and brutal scenes with moments of aching tenderness. The writing does leave the reader to put in some work; occasionally I found sections hard to follow, as the author leaves a fair few things off the page as ambiguous or unresolved. Those choices do make sense against the wider narrative approach and thematic exploration of truth and immutability, but this was a minor drawback for me as I find inference in fiction tricky to follow. Overall, this is a book rich in emotion, excitement and provocation; I'll sit for a good long while with the line that "It can get better, but you must allow yourself to imagine a world in which you are better."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Slavery, Xenophobia
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Slavery