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lucasbrooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Slow start, but enjoyed the wider scope than the first book - could really feel the swath and weight of the empire. Climax may have ended a little too quickly for my tastes
stephanieridiculous's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not entirely sure about a star rating. I'm hovering somewhere in the 3 to 4 range.
The pros:
-Great characters, specifically Swarm
-Engaging writing style in general
-Fascinating aliens
The cons:
-A lot of repetition. Gripes between characters kept getting rehashed repeatedly, concepts kept getting explained, just lots of hand holding that wasn't necessary
-Our two main characters didn't really do much? I'm not entirely sure how exactly they contributed to the overall plot. They mostly just existed and things happened around them, and there is A LOT of convenient timing, and a very simple resolution needlessly wrapped up in "complex" political machinations
-There wasn't a lot of suspense, or rather the things the suspense was built off of someone else always already knew - including us, the reader.
-Tonal shifts that were not telegraphed or expected. Both within the duology and within this installment. In book 2 we get both graphic sex (that is needlessly referred back to constantly) and body horror. Neither of these things are bad necessarily (although I don't really care for either), but they were so abrupt to me, and so different from the tone of book 1, that it jolted me out of the narrative repeatedly.
The pros:
-Great characters, specifically Swarm
-Engaging writing style in general
-Fascinating aliens
The cons:
-A lot of repetition. Gripes between characters kept getting rehashed repeatedly, concepts kept getting explained, just lots of hand holding that wasn't necessary
-Our two main characters didn't really do much? I'm not entirely sure how exactly they contributed to the overall plot. They mostly just existed and things happened around them, and there is A LOT of convenient timing, and a very simple resolution needlessly wrapped up in "complex" political machinations
-There wasn't a lot of suspense, or rather the things the suspense was built off of someone else always already knew - including us, the reader.
-Tonal shifts that were not telegraphed or expected. Both within the duology and within this installment. In book 2 we get both graphic sex (that is needlessly referred back to constantly) and body horror. Neither of these things are bad necessarily (although I don't really care for either), but they were so abrupt to me, and so different from the tone of book 1, that it jolted me out of the narrative repeatedly.
cleo_reads's review against another edition
4.25
I enjoyed it almost as much as the first. Even though it’s quite different - bigger scope, higher stakes, much more ambitious (and the first one was pretty dang ambitious).
Graphic: Death
Moderate: War, Vomit, and Xenophobia
Minor: Genocide
robum's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
gdenav's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
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
3.5
ginte's review against another edition
reflective
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
yearning sapphics in space trying to establish contact with aliens for a ceasefire
pagesofash's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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
4.0
cc2's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
bina's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0