Reviews

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

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titleistmuffin's review

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

A compelling exploration of an earth with very different biological systems than our own, with a good dose of humor and action. However more than any of Scalzi’s other books this one suffered from all of the main characters being the same person in different skin, as well as moments of dialogue that are so over the top in his typical sarcastic tone that they just didn’t work for me. The worst was

the “awards ceremony” after they saved the guy from getting eaten in the jungle, with all the made up inductions into made up orders.

I could tell he was going for humor but it just didn’t land there.

candydang's review

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4.0

fun, quick read that needs to be made into a movie asap. audiobook was 10/10, Will Wheaton was fantastic.

whatbobbyreads's review

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adventurous lighthearted tense fast-paced

2.0

neolx's review against another edition

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Oof… this writing was just bad kid movie humor and tedious exposition.

yyecats's review

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No

2.5

cultneophyte7's review

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4.0

Great stupid fun

da_thirst's review

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adventurous hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This is competently written fantasy for the modern young adult who wants a well paid, meaningful career with coworkers who aren't garbage, and also hates capitalism. This isn't really a criticism - I really enjoyed the escapism into an alternate earth where such things are possible - but I will say that I spent most of the book waiting for a central conflict and then quickly regretted it when it limply arrived for the climax.

What I'm trying to say is I liked the book for what it is, but it does have significant flaws that you should be aware of before picking it up.