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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this was surprisingly good. i didn't know what to expect, this being my first crouch book, but i've heard good things raving about his other books, so i had a decent outlook for this one being enjoyable. i wasn't totally sold from the beginning, with the writing style being what it is, but as i settled in, i learned to sit along for the ride.
i like to dub books like these, and writing styles like these, as white-man-sci-fi. they all have such a distinct writing style in that it's far from poetically verbose, but not in a way that's necessarily bad. i also like to call it white-man-wattpad, because it reads similarly, but somehow better, and in a way that can actually tell an enjoyably engaging story. there are many moments in this book in particular that i felt were wonderful passages and surprisingly profound. like the epilogue, for example. i think the epilogue is the best written piece from this book, and indubitably impactful in its message. while it's certainly not necessarily on the nose as you read, the epilogue wraps up this book and its message perfectly, and honestly, in the currently sociopolitical climate of our world, and within environmental issues as well, it really delivers a hard punch.
we do have a compassion issue. crouch is correct in writing that compassion fades after a certain threshold, and the fact that it does is treated as something normal. we look at the awful news we see every day and we compartmentalize it because we have the privilege of living thousands of miles away from the genocides occurring in palestine, sudan, congo. but in america, we've got so many horrific things happening right before our eyes and our citizens mobilize to the streets in protest for equality, for basic human decency. even with these humanitarian crimes right in our backyard, our politicians, and the average citizen, don't seem to care. they act as if it's not happening, like there's nothing they can do to help.
if there were a way to edit our genotypical expressions to rewire us at a cellular, atomic level to make us more compassionate, i think humankind would be better off. we would not have millions, billions, living in poverty, on the brink or beyond the thresholds of starvation. we would not have our homeless, veterans or not, living in the street without shelter or access to fresh water and warm food and a soft bed for their backs. we would not be watching endangered species as they are poached into oblivion simply because the pride and vanity of the rich demand the furs and hides from their flesh, the ivory tusks from their skulls.
this book is a dystopian commentary on our world and its society, and sure, its plot is outrageous and unbelievable, but there's a notion to it that makes it a stark possibility some decades in the future. but greater than that, it highlights the humanitarian crises and our numbness as a species to create any actionable change to better our world not only for ourselves, but the generations that will come after we're feeding worms in the soil.
i like to dub books like these, and writing styles like these, as white-man-sci-fi. they all have such a distinct writing style in that it's far from poetically verbose, but not in a way that's necessarily bad. i also like to call it white-man-wattpad, because it reads similarly, but somehow better, and in a way that can actually tell an enjoyably engaging story. there are many moments in this book in particular that i felt were wonderful passages and surprisingly profound. like the epilogue, for example. i think the epilogue is the best written piece from this book, and indubitably impactful in its message. while it's certainly not necessarily on the nose as you read, the epilogue wraps up this book and its message perfectly, and honestly, in the currently sociopolitical climate of our world, and within environmental issues as well, it really delivers a hard punch.
we do have a compassion issue. crouch is correct in writing that compassion fades after a certain threshold, and the fact that it does is treated as something normal. we look at the awful news we see every day and we compartmentalize it because we have the privilege of living thousands of miles away from the genocides occurring in palestine, sudan, congo. but in america, we've got so many horrific things happening right before our eyes and our citizens mobilize to the streets in protest for equality, for basic human decency. even with these humanitarian crimes right in our backyard, our politicians, and the average citizen, don't seem to care. they act as if it's not happening, like there's nothing they can do to help.
if there were a way to edit our genotypical expressions to rewire us at a cellular, atomic level to make us more compassionate, i think humankind would be better off. we would not have millions, billions, living in poverty, on the brink or beyond the thresholds of starvation. we would not have our homeless, veterans or not, living in the street without shelter or access to fresh water and warm food and a soft bed for their backs. we would not be watching endangered species as they are poached into oblivion simply because the pride and vanity of the rich demand the furs and hides from their flesh, the ivory tusks from their skulls.
this book is a dystopian commentary on our world and its society, and sure, its plot is outrageous and unbelievable, but there's a notion to it that makes it a stark possibility some decades in the future. but greater than that, it highlights the humanitarian crises and our numbness as a species to create any actionable change to better our world not only for ourselves, but the generations that will come after we're feeding worms in the soil.
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Fast paced, interesting science, good characters. I'm not sure why I didn't appreciate this book as much as I did Dark Matter and Recursion. I think oftentimes authors come out of the gate so spectacular that anything they do that follows is always compared - and comes up slightly short every time.
Do not infer this to mean that this isn't a fantastic book, because it is. The science alone makes it worth the read. The main character of Logan is complicated and deep; the effects of the science on his personality is fascinating. I think the main thing that kept me off kilter with this book is the basic conflict in the plot. There was no growth to get there; the main problem came out of a conversation rather than a buildup. I wanted to understand Kara more, understand her motivations and her emotional state.
I do think that the narration by Henry Levya was also just slightly under par for me. These are a lot of little things that add up to "just not quite there" when it comes to me and Blake Crouch and 5 stars. It has made me think, though, that I'd like to go back and revisit Dark Matter. Crouch is a great author. I'll read whatever he comes up with next without hesitation.
Do not infer this to mean that this isn't a fantastic book, because it is. The science alone makes it worth the read. The main character of Logan is complicated and deep; the effects of the science on his personality is fascinating. I think the main thing that kept me off kilter with this book is the basic conflict in the plot. There was no growth to get there; the main problem came out of a conversation rather than a buildup. I wanted to understand Kara more, understand her motivations and her emotional state.
I do think that the narration by Henry Levya was also just slightly under par for me. These are a lot of little things that add up to "just not quite there" when it comes to me and Blake Crouch and 5 stars. It has made me think, though, that I'd like to go back and revisit Dark Matter. Crouch is a great author. I'll read whatever he comes up with next without hesitation.
This felt like two books in one, with neither element really shining. Interesting ideas regarding costs of science (is death of many worth scientific breakthrough?) and biohacking. But the Mission Impossible stuff felt out of place. I'm definitely looking forward to the prestige 10-episode miniseries adaptation this will inevitably get though.
Audio. Robin Cook ish. 3.5
Loads of scientific terminology. But, you can skim it. ;)
Loads of scientific terminology. But, you can skim it. ;)
Intelligent, disturbing, tense, exciting…ultimately revealing surprising heart. A really worthy use of dystopian future to make a statement about the present, an insightful and important statement. Well-researched and taut. Crouch is a great writer.
DNF 17%
Libby audiobook
Pulpy sci-fi thriller. Stylistically similar to the bit of The Maltese Falcon I had read before. Good for what it is, but very much written by a man. It’s also weird to me that in a dystopian future, the main character has no trouble getting medical care and sick leave. I think this comes from the assumption that government jobs are cushy.
Libby audiobook
Pulpy sci-fi thriller. Stylistically similar to the bit of The Maltese Falcon I had read before. Good for what it is, but very much written by a man. It’s also weird to me that in a dystopian future, the main character has no trouble getting medical care and sick leave. I think this comes from the assumption that government jobs are cushy.
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A